I chose to start this blog in Italy because next Spring I hope to take a trip there, that is if I can earn the money. Rome will be one of our stops and I wanted to learn as much about these places as I can before I go so that when I do go, I will know just what I'm experiencing. Plus I've always been fascinated with the Italian culture, although I think I'd prefer Dean Martin over The Godfather. c ;
We'll "visit" some other places in Italy later on, as well as some in plenty of other countries. And I'll blog about their history, culture, food, people and how they play a role in the bible if they do. But for now we'll stick with Rome.
Geography
Rome is located near the western edge of the boot shaped country of Italy. It's main historical attraction being the Colosseum.
History
In order to share with you everything I've learned about Roman history I would have to write a book. And it still probably wouldn't even scratch the surface of the entire history of Rome. So here, we'll just stick with the basics.
The Founding
There are many legends about how Rome was founded. The most famous being that of twin brothers named Romulus and Remus.
The legend goes that there was a king who had a brother who wanted to be king. So when the king had two sons, his brother got rid of him and sent his two sons adrift in a basket on the Tiber River. They floated along there until they were caught in the branches of a fig tree.
There they were found. The Latin word for she-wolf and prostitute ( Lupa ) is the same word, so there are two different versions of the story. One says that they were found by a she-wolf who raised them and took care of them until they were toddlers. Then they were found again by a shepherd who took them home to raise. In the second version they were found in the river by the shepherds wife, who was a former prostitute, and she took them home and raised them up in her house.Either way we know that it says they were raised by a shepherd and his wife, who, as the boys grew, told them of their true origin.
When the boys were old enough they raised an army and stormed Alba Long, the place their uncle was currently ruling from. They took over and restored their father to the throne.
Later on, now that they had the power to do so as young princes, they decided to found a city on the very spot where they were found as infants. They disputed however on which hill to build it on. But they finally decided on the hill Romulus suggested, Palentine Hill. And since it was Romulus's choice they went with, they named the city Roma, which in English translates to Rome.
Even though this is a legend, which means that it may or may not be true, it suggests that Rome was founded in the year 753 B.C. Historians believe at least this part to be true.
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