Ostia Antica and the Lido

I must have complained enough about the rain because today was sunny, dry, and beautiful. I was so excited when I woke up and saw the sun shining because I knew it would be a perfect day to visit Ostia Antica. Once again, up and out of the house, I set off towards these old ruins which are similar to Pompeii. Ostia Antica is very close to the coast and once was a major port town for ancient Romans. It did not meet with the same fate as Pompeii via volcano, but rather slowly declined after the fall of the Roman Empire, the Tibur River shifting its course, and finally a plague of malaria. It is only 45 minutes or so outside of Rome and really shows the daily life of ancient Romans. Another bonus: today was free entry day because the Minister of Culture said so, yay for saving money on tickets.

Ostia was very peaceful, relaxing, and beautiful. I can't say whether I liked Pompeii more or less, but Ostia was very romantic. There was little left besides walls, the theater (pictured above), and a few mosaics. Nothing was roped off and so I could walk everywhere. People napped, ate, and played soccer throughout the ruins. There were very few visitors, tall cyprus trees, little green lizards running around, and a perfect breeze. I probably spent about three hours there, just enjoying the ruins and being out of the city. I have had the hardest time choosing photos for this post, I finally just posted several hoping they can show you Ostia better than I can describe.

I was really close to the beach so around 3pm I got on a train towards the Lido. It was a good idea but did not turn out as fabulous as I had hoped. First, I had a hard time actually getting to the beach. I found it easily, but there were rows of high walls and restaurants and I couldn't find an opening to walk out to the sand. I was about to give up when I spotted a three foot wide space in the wall that had access to the beach. The beach itself, however, was not very nice. It was kind of dirty, littered with cigarettes, smallish, and was full of very random people. I found a pier and walked out to get a view of the water (which was actually pretty, very blue) and see the beach from a distance. Sadly, things did not improve. I soon found myself surrounded by very affectionate couples, families, and general lovey-dovey ness. I felt a little out of place which rapidly turned into awkwardness at being all alone. For the first time in a while I was acutely aware that my loved ones are all very far away right now and that I'm really alone. I suppose the beach was romantic, but in a sort of painful romantic way. Friends and family you were all painfully missed at that moment. I decided to leave shortly thereafter because I just couldn't take the alone, awkward, and almost dumb feelings that were quickly ruining my lovely day. I was in a much better mood and stopped feeling crummy as soon as I was back in Rome. I have really gotten used to this city and feel really comfrotable living here. I need to change my mentality because at the end of this week I will be leaving and moving around between lots of different cities. For now, I will enjoy my last few days here in this hectic but wonderful place.