We met up with him at the exit of the Colosseum and followed him to the entrance of the Forum. During the 20-minute walk along Via dei Fori Imperiali (it doesn't really take that long, but we stopped on several occasions), our guide provided us with enough information to make me sorry he wasn't leading us through the Forum. We had bought a book at the Colosseum of Rome then and now, which basically shows pictures of the Roman ruins as you see them today, on top of which you can overlay graphical reconstitutions of what it once looked like.
Along with the descriptions provided in the DK Eyewitness guide I always carried with me, It turned out to be incredibly useful to understand what we were actually looking at and what all these pillars and columns were once part of. It truly was the next best thing to a guided tour (which I kinda wish we had booked), so I highly recommend buying one when you get to Rome. Besides, it makes for a very nice souvenir :o)
The Colosseum is located just east of the Roman Forum, the massive stone amphitheater was commissioned around A.D. 70-72 by Emperor Vespasian of the Flavian dynasty as a gift to the Roman people. In A.D. 80, Vespasian’s son Titus opened the Colosseumwith 100 days of games, including gladiatorial combats and wild animal fights. After four centuries of active use, it fell into neglect, and up until the 18th century it was used as a source of building materials. Though two-thirds of the original Colosseum has been destroyed over time, the amphitheater remains a popular tourist destination.
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