Rome Trip Day 2: Colosseum and Beware of Scams

On June 16, 2022 I went to the Colosseum just because I wanted to see it and because I booked a so-called skip-the-line tour group ticket online. I arrived too early at the Colosseo Metro Station and just waited but I had trouble finding my tour group because for some reason I booked a tour group that had multiple options so it left without me as I saw the group exit the metro station and continue to cross the street to the Colosseum. I don't know why I booked the group tour with multiple options but I checked my credit card account I booked it with and saw it was refunded, so maybe they canceled the tour because I didn't show up or the entire tour was cancelled because not enough people showed up.

Anyways, I decided to try and book a ticket for the Colosseum without any tour group on the coopculture website, and I was able to purchase a ticket for 4:00 pm for June 16, 2022, as it was difficult to purchase tickets since it is a major attraction and tickets sell out fast, but I was lucky to get it for the same day after other earlier timeslots were sold out.

So the thing to do now was to wait and to explore or just do stuff. I decided to buy a bottle of water from a counter service restaurant located near the exit of the metro station and then drank it all because it was too hot because of Italy's Mediterranean climate. After that I explored Rome near the Colosseum for a while until I decided to eat lunch.

It wasn't even 10:00 am yet so I decided to look around to see what I could find and let me say it was interesting but more on that later.

Along the way I took some pictures in the morning after missing my tour group due to confusing directions about where to meet up as well as it also being a multiple option tour, but I won't say any more about that.

I think this picture above is supposed to be part of the Roman Forum but if it isn't it could be something else such as part of the Imperial Fora.

This is just a closeup of the same building located near the Colosseum and the Roman Forum.

This building above is a picture I believe of the Basilica of Saints Cosmas and Damian. I believe it still operates as a Catholic Church today according to their website.

Next are some pictures of ancient ruins that were nearby as this is the ancient part of Rome with the majority of the tourist attractions.

Ancient Ruins

Ancient Ruins

Ancient Ruins

Ancient Ruins

These ancient ruins could also be part of the Roman Forum or something else but they are still important to see because of what Rome use to look like and what it represented before.

But back to the point of Rome, which is considered an ancient city because of its history as well as its architecture, the major tourist areas are filled with con artists and scammers looking to make money from tourists as well as sometimes from locals.

In the middle of recording videos and taking pictures of these ancient ruins above some young mysterious black man approached me and placed some sort of African Elephant Friendship Bracelet on my wrist and gave me a belt so I just paid him his asking price. In the middle of this some Spanish-looking person wanted me to buy bottled water from him but I politely refused because I didn't want any water. After that I just went as far away as possible from that particular area and went back near the outside entrance/exit of the Colosseo Metro Station and then proceeded to look at the Colosseum just because of how massive it was up close. A short while later I went back inside the metro station and bought a round personal pizza and a soda for lunch since it was about 11:00 am and then I went back to my hotel room to rest until I needed to go back.

Now, here is the thing about the con artists and scammers near major tourist areas in Rome, but this can happen anywhere in Europe, but for this purpose I will stick to Rome, so I will just explain below some scammers and con artists I encountered in Rome.

Friendship Bracelets

The friendships are offered to tourists and sometimes rarely to locals by young looking Black African Men who say that they are from Senegal or that they want to help Senegal. The scam goes like this: the con artist or scammer places the bracelet on your wrist and tries to explain what it is for, essentially a form of small talk and often friendly conversation with a stranger, but then the scammer or con artist might offer you something else, such as a belt or even another accessory, depending on what he has in stock. Now, after explaining everything to the tourist or naïve local, the con artist or scammer sets a pre-determined price, as he will charge everyone different prices as he sees fit, so the pricing can be cheap or expensive depending on who the con artist or scammer is.

Here is the interesting part of this scam: the con artist or scammer will comment on "how nice your shoes are" or "where are you from," but to avoid being scammed by any of these fake people (because you don't know if they are actually from Senegal or even supporting the country) just ignore them and walk the other way so that you don't pay them to support their fake and illegal cause, since it is illegal in Rome to sell items this way. This might be considered rude to ignore them but other websites, blogs, and forums will tell you the same thing, as it is in the best interest of both parties so that the victim(s) don't fall prey to the scammer(s) and so the scammer(s) won't benefit from illegal activities and illegal revenue streams. That is the best option just to walk away and ignore them as they are trying to make a nice conservation with you. There

Bottled Water

Now, I know what you are thinking, how can bottled water be a scam, well it technically isn't but the person selling the bottled water might be suspicious or dishonest about where the water came from or the place they got it from. If you want to buy water you should buy it from the kiosk, a restaurant, or the vending machine; however, you should not buy bottled water from a person selling it on the side of the street because you don't know where he or she stored it, since it can be considered unsafe to drink because there are instances that these illegal sidewalk vendors store their inventory of bottled water in the sewer drains and manholes. 

That doesn't sound good because it can make you sick. So you should just walk away and avoid them like the people commenting on your shoes. Besides, you can get free water if you have an empty water bottle since Rome installed drinking water refilling stations around the city.

These were two type of scams that I continued to see and encounter in Rome while I was in the major tourist areas, but the reason they are considered scams is because the scammers are not truthful as well as their income source being illegal because they do not pay taxes. There can be other scams and things to avoid but I only encountered these two types of scams while in Rome.

Back to the point about the main point, which is about the Colosseum visit as well as the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, so I will explain further below.

After finishing lunch I went back to the metro and withdraw some cash from an ATM in the metro because I wanted extra cash after getting ripped off  earlier in the day from some man saying he is from Senegal and or trying to support his country, but I won't mention that again, as it isn't important now, yet I might mention something in the general context later. I then proceed to my hotel room and rest for a while until I believe it is time to head back to the Colosseum.

Since my reserved timeslot (I was lucky to get and purchase because direct tickets sale out fast online) was at 4:00 pm I did not know what time to leave so I just left at 1:30 pm or around that time or sooner but I don't really remember the exact time.

I walk across the street to the Colosseum after exiting the turnstile machine at the Colosseo metro station and proceed to walk around the Colosseum until I saw what seems to be the correct entrance for individual ticket holders. While walking around the Colosseum just to look at it these same "Senegal" scammers keep on trying to talk to me again and again but I just ignore them and continue to look around and then take pictures of the Colosseum along with the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, so instead of talking or approaching them I just ignore them and walk in the opposite direction in the hopes they will leave me alone.

A picture of the Colosseum I took while just looking around. I had to take this photo from quite a distance away because up close it would be impossible to get the Colosseum in the entire picture, as the top portion of the building might not be included because it is such a huge piece of ancient and well-built architecture.

This is supposed to be a picture of some ruins of the Roman Forum but if it isn't just look at a field of grass with people going inside the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

This is a picture of one of the many triumphal arches in Rome. If I'm correct this is the Arch of Constantine, but this is generally located between the Colosseum and the entrance to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Anyway, some person who tries to help people where they can buy tickets to the Colosseum eventually approaches me and asks if I have a ticket. I tell him yes that I have a ticket and at the specific time, so he tells me that I can go to the Roman Forum and then come back before 4:00 pm. So I headed towards the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill to look around and explore.

Arriving at the line I present my mobile ticket to security and then I proceed to security where I place everything in a sun hat so I don't have any issues from the metal detector during security screening. After passing through the metal detector I collect my stuff from the top or side of the x-ray screening machine and then proceed to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

A zoomed out picture inside the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill with people walking in different directions.

A close up of the same area but zoomed in with people looking at the buildings and ruins inside of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

This is a picture of the same buildings and ruins inside of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill but taken closer than the previous 2 photos. The first photo was normal magnification while the second photo was zoomed in for a close up.

Some buildings and ancient ruins with scaffolding present inside of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Another photo of the same buildings and ruins inside the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill pictured above but taken from a different angle.

This photo is farther up the path from the picture above but it shows some of the same buildings and ruins inside of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

People resting inside the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill or getting up close to view some ruins of ancient Rome.

The time for my reserved timeslot was nearing so I headed back towards the entrance of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill to exit.

Here is a photo of a triumphal arch inside the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill as I was leaving to get to the Colosseum.

After arriving at the Colosseum I got in line and showed security my mobile ticket and proceeded to security screening where I placed everything in my sun hat again to avoid setting off the metal detector. Then I took my items and went inside the Colosseum to view it about 15 minutes early.

Below is a picture of the Colosseum from inside one of the viewing spots, but this is just a dead end so all you can do is view the Colosseum or take some pictures, and nothing else.

After a while I decided to go up to the actual entrance of the Colosseum where ticket holders can actually begin their tour of the ancient arena but you will have to climb many stairs so it could become very tiring if you are not used to it.

 

This picture above is a view of the city of Rome from inside the Colosseum. It is located near a windowless viewing spot but be careful of crowds because many people will take similar photos in areas like this so you might have to wait for your turn.

This picture above is a view of the arena underground. Access to it requires a different kind of ticket that I didn't purchase but if you just want to view the Colosseum itself then the standard ticket should be fine for most people.

Here is a view of the arena underground from a different angle. Again you need a special ticket to enter the underground and or the arena floor itself, so if you have time you could purchase a last minute ticket if available or go with a tour group.

Since I was almost done with exploring the Colosseum I found the exit and just continued to walk towards that direction.

I got back to the Colosseo metro station and bought a mixed granita inside because I was exhausted and thirsty from the heat of the Sun. Then I went back to the hotel to go back to my room but while doing so had to wait 15 minutes for the train to arrive at the platform because there were some issues so people started to become inpatient.

Soon the train approached and I got off at Rome Termini and walked back to my hotel in order to rest for a while and then to buy dinner from the grocery store near by.