We added an extra day to our trip so that we could spend more time exploring Italy. Pompeii was on our minds, but the long bus ride was deterring us. Ostia Antica seemed like the perfect substitute. Ancient ruins and only a train ride away. We each downloaded Rick Steves audio tour of Ostia Antica to our cell phones. What a great day it was going to be!
The train ride was easy. Rick's guidebook had superb directions to get us thru the station to the connecting train. Ostia Antica was a bustling port at one time. The mosaics on the main square are incredible. Most people of the time could not read, so the mosaics on the ground were the equivalent of a sign in front of a business.
By day 10 we were all feeling quite comfortable with the public transit system. We traveled with two of our tour buddies, Laura and Pin Ching, to Ostia Antica.
The amphitheater at Ostia Antica is quite large. The day we were there, some school children were on a field trip. The students took turns giving presentations to the group. If our Italian was better, we might have known what the topics were.
Thanks to Rick's audio tour, we had a great half day at Ostia Antica. That left us with more time to explore Rome.