彭蒙惠英语：Roam Rome on Fleet Feet（在线收听）

Roam Rome on Fleet Feet

2

We’re off again

For the fast track to the Colosseum, our son advises us to take a tour with one of the Englishspeaking hawkers who approach tourists outside this 82 A.D. amphitheater. Paying our new “tour guide” 18 euros (US$24) lets us bypass the long ticket line.

The tour fills us in on Colosseum basics, pointing out where gladiators battled with animals and fought each other in bloody spectacles. During the early centuries of the first millennium A.D., free public events were offered twice a week at the Colosseum to keep the populace mollified.

We breeze past the Roman Forum, eyeing the ruins of ancient columns standing like sentinels in this commercial, political and judicial center of ancient Rome.

Through Rome we sail, climbing the Spanish Steps and visiting the Trevi Fountain, where I take a photo. Later, when I want to change the film, in my rush I open the camera on the partially shot roll and shriek, “I just ruined my Trevi Fountain stories.”

Walking the city

Despite our breakneck speed, we generally take the slow route getting around the city. We walk, brushing past locals and vying for sidewalk space with pigeons. Once, when we stop to study our map, an Italian gentleman who speaks no English comes over to assist us, a gesture of Italian friendliness.

As we near the Pantheon, we stop for an Italian treat, trying some strachiatella (chocolate chip) gelato.

By the time our walking lands us at the Pantheon, my feet are aching badly. But inside, while I’m staring up at rain gently falling through the hole in the top of the massive dome, my feet suddenly feel light. The amazing Pantheon has stopped me in my tracks. I don’t want to stop gazing up at the shaft of light and rain.

Vocabulary Focus

hawker (n) [5hC:kE] someone who makes money by selling goods or services informally in public places

vie (v) [vai] to compete with others to achieve or obtain something

stop one in one’s tracks (idiom) to cause someone to halt in the exact place where he or she is standing

shaft (n) [FB:ft] a ray or beam, usually caused by a light shining through a small opening

Specialized Terms

amphitheater (n) 圆形剧场 a circular or oval area of ground around which rows of seats are arranged on a steep slope, for watching outdoor plays, sports, etc.

gelato (n) 意大利式冰淇淋 a special type of Italian ice cream