ARROW - 28. Chapter 28

It was late when we got back to the hotel. “Armand, let’s take one more swim since it will be the last time we can say we swam above the city.”

“We can’t get our swimsuits wet. They won’t be dried by morning.”

He smiled, “No, we can’t go naked. Someone could see us.”

“Armand, you can watch while I swim, and I can watch while you swim.”

“You can swim, and I’ll hold a towel for you. I think you drank too many glasses of wine,”

He started to undress. I took one of the large shower towels, wrapped it around his waist, and we walked to the rooftop pool. Fortunately, there was no one there. The bar was closed, and the only light was the pool light.

He jumped in the pool, and he got right out. “What’s wrong?”

“The water is cold.”

Wrapping him in the towel, “You can still claim you swam in the pool above the city at 9 p.m.”

He smiled as he leaned in for a kiss.

In the morning, they brought our laundered clothes. We packed our suitcases, and we had breakfast at the bar. I checked us out, and we took a taxi to the airport. We had a 9:30 flight which would put us in Rome a little before 11:00.

While sitting in the waiting room waiting to board our airplane, “Armand, I’d like to come back to Barcelona. I want to spend more time in that Roman section, and I’m sure there are more sights to investigate.”

I smiled while making a mental note that the mural at the club would have to be finished first.

Our flight was called for boarding. Colin grabbed my hand as we walked to the plane.

Landing in Rome brought back memories. I remember my first time. For me, the idea of being in Italy and Rome, the home of the masters, was exciting. Colin was excited because he would see more of the Roman artifacts.

I had booked a small hotel close to the Colosseum, and I expected we would spend most of the afternoon there. Getting our luggage, we took a taxi to our hotel. I watched Colin, and his face was glued to the taxi’s window. Then he saw the Colosseum as the taxi approached our hotel.

“Can we go there after we check-in?” I just smiled.

From my experience with Colin in Barcelona, I knew that he would truly enjoy himself in Rome. I had booked the hotel for one week.

Checking in, I asked the concierge if that small restaurant Ai Tre Scalini was still operating. He said it was, but you’ll need a reservation during tourist season. I asked him if he would call and reserve a table for two for one this afternoon.

We had almost two hours before lunch. Plenty of time to enjoy the wonders of the Colosseum.

Walking toward the Colosseums, we arrived at the gate and signed up for the tour. We had to wait about 15 minutes before one of the guides came. By then, there were 6 of us in our group.

Collin was interested in the structure. Standing where the people would sit or stand, you could see under the floor of the Colosseum. “If we have time after lunch, we can tour the area underground. That is where they had the cells for the gladiators and animals.”

I don’t know how many photos Colin took, and he was happy, and that was all that mattered to me.

I told Colin we had to leave since I had made reservations for lunch. “We can come back after lunch and continue our tour of the Colosseum.”

We walked to the restaurant, which took less than 10 minutes. “This restaurant was a winery, and they still serve wine from the wine casks. You’ll enjoy this.”

Being seated, our waiter brought glasses of wine and an antipasto. Collin started, “What is this?” “That is ricotta cheese with truffle honey. Try it.” He did, and I got a smile. “Then what is this,” became a game.

After we ate, Colin wanted to return to the Colosseum. Walking back, I took a different path which led to the Fortum.

“What is this place?”

“This is called the Roman Forum. At one time, this plaza was the site of several government buildings. It was the center of Rome, a marketplace. We will come here again before we leave. This was an important site during early Rome.”

“We can come here tomorrow, after breakfast. I want to go back to where we had lunch today for lunch tomorrow.”

“Or dinner” The answer was a smile. We walked back to the Colosseum to complete our tour. From the top, looking down at the floor of the Colosseum, you could see the outline of the chambers below the floor.

“That is where they kept the animals and the gladiators.”

“Did they have the animals fight the gladiators?”

“No, I’m told they had two shows, the first would be the animals fighting each other, and the second the gladiators would fight each other.”

“Did they have a matinee?” “Funny”

We joined a tour party, and the guide led us to the cells. Now Colin took photos of the area where the spectators would be sitting or standing.

When I was here the first time, I did a tourist walk-through with my host. I looked at this building from an artistic point of view. Today, I looked at this building through Collin’s eyes as he talked about the skill it took to build this Colosseum. “Armand, how heavy is sand?”

I looked at him as to say why did you ask that? “The floor of the arena was sand supported by these cells. The size and walls of these cells had to be calculated to support the floor. Mathematics had to be well understood to accomplish the construction of this building.”

Thinking about what Colin was saying convinced me that Colin missed his calling. I was learning a few facts about Colin that I missed, which only increased my love for him. I’ll have him redesign the club with a bit of help from me.

We had dinner at our hotel, “What are we going to do tomorrow?”

“We will spend some time at the Forum, which we walked through, and you can check out the remnants of the various government buildings. Then we will have lunch and walk to the Piazza Venezia.”