Lessons from Italy: The Colosseum
 |
| It's me! In the Colosseum! |
Good grief, James, why are you talking to us about Italy??
OK, so I went to Italy over Easter. We wanted a city break and my daughter had just finished doing The Romans at school, so we thought it would be cool to go visit Rome, Naples, Pompeii et al.
I went with fairly low expectations - I've only ever been to Italy once before, when my wife and I visited Pisa and Florence - and I didn't really like it. Beautiful architecture, obviously... but everything was a bit dirty, there were a lot of scammers everywhere trying to get money off you...and it just didn't feel like the nicest place I've been to.
I went with fairly low expectations - I've only ever been to Italy once before, when my wife and I visited Pisa and Florence - and I didn't really like it. Beautiful architecture, obviously... but everything was a bit dirty, there were a lot of scammers everywhere trying to get money off you...and it just didn't feel like the nicest place I've been to.
But, it's fair to say, I had a blast in Italy this year....and now I've had a couple of months to reflect, I feel like I definitely learnt things about myself, and a bit about tech.
I wasn't sure whether these were appropriate things to write about on this blog... but I figure "what the hell" - it's my blog, I can do what I want. I also think it's important for managers to appreciate the importance of travel, the broadening of the mind, the value of new perspectives etc. Especially in a world where remote work enables many people to travel and explore more of our lovely planet.
I wasn't sure whether these were appropriate things to write about on this blog... but I figure "what the hell" - it's my blog, I can do what I want. I also think it's important for managers to appreciate the importance of travel, the broadening of the mind, the value of new perspectives etc. Especially in a world where remote work enables many people to travel and explore more of our lovely planet.
Plus, if business insider think talking about the Colosseum is business related, who am I to argue.
Good grief, James, why are you talking to us about The Colosseum??
I'll copy the link to that business insider article again.
I woke up to this pushed in my news feed this morning.
I woke up to this pushed in my news feed this morning.
In case you can't be bothered to click through, or it gets lost to the sands of time, the TLDR is:
I visited the historic and iconic Colosseum in Rome for the first time in October 2022.
I found the reality of visiting the popular attraction in Italy didn't match my expectations.
Even though I tried to avoid tourists, I still battled crowds and long lines and couldn't see much.
So, in this article, the author discussed their disappointment that whilst visiting one of the biggest tourist attractions in the world they were unable to "avoid tourists".
Now, I'm somewhat indignant in general that someone writing about a holiday they went on three years ago pops up in my feed. It's worse when their whole point is that a tourist attraction has a lot of tourists. But it's even worse when they're dissing my Colosseum! Yes, as it turns out, I really love the Colosseum. So I feel honour-bound to jump to its defence.
Now, I'm somewhat indignant in general that someone writing about a holiday they went on three years ago pops up in my feed. It's worse when their whole point is that a tourist attraction has a lot of tourists. But it's even worse when they're dissing my Colosseum! Yes, as it turns out, I really love the Colosseum. So I feel honour-bound to jump to its defence.
Let's talk about my own experience of the Colosseum and why it's left such a mark on me.
How is booking the Colosseum?
Right, let's get the tech-related stuff out of the way early doors. The booking system is a shitshow.
You have to work hard to find the official site, as there are so many others trying to confuse you (with wildly different pricing!).
You have to work hard to find the official site, as there are so many others trying to confuse you (with wildly different pricing!).
Once you've found the right site, availability is pretty patchy. This is partly on us for having a last minute holiday, but also owes a lot to the number of tour guides etc they allow to buy up tickets in advance...so oftentimes availability is better through 3rd parties.
Then, once you've found something available, it's really not clear what you're buying. You get a ticket that combines the Colosseum with other nearby attractions (which were also awesome).... But then you can choose between going under the Colosseum, onto the Colosseum floor or up onto the steps... It's really unclear which is best, or whether you can combine them etc...I had to consult a lot of forums and stuff to figure out the best option.
And then once you've done this, the checkout is a pain too.
I spent an evening trying to book tickets for the Colosseum, the Vatican, Pantheon etc... and honestly it was one of the most frustrating experiences of my life. I was going to write one of my much-adored step-by-step UX breakdowns of the whole ordeal... but honestly, having endured it once, I can't face going back to take screenshots etc.
There are certain things that are just different by default in the UK, I think - as an example, taking (free) young children. In the UK you'd still expect to be given a ticket for the child, even at zero cost, so you know they've been counted, they have a ticket etc. In Italy they don't seem to bother issuing tickets if you don't need to pay for them - you just turn up with the little munchkin.
I feel like there's a broader cultural difference, though, where the Italians - slightly stereotypically - are just more relaxed about things and less rule-driven. So whilst, in the UK, the websites would be trying hard to give more information about the products...they'd be trying to cut down on 3rd party sales and shut down copy-cat sites...I believe the Italian mindset is more "meh, they'll figure it out" (this certainly seems to be the case on the roads, where adherence to any kind of rules seems entirely optional)
I felt strangely comforted by this experience, however... In the midst of an industry worried about how we survive with AI...in a day job where we try and maximise the ROI from comparatively minor changes... it's reassuring to find that some of the biggest tourist attractions in the world still use tech that feels pretty 90s...so there's still plenty out there we can improve by doing the basics, without overintellectualizing everything. They don't need an AI chat agent... they just need to remember how many tickets you put in your basket from one screen to the next!
Then, once you've found something available, it's really not clear what you're buying. You get a ticket that combines the Colosseum with other nearby attractions (which were also awesome).... But then you can choose between going under the Colosseum, onto the Colosseum floor or up onto the steps... It's really unclear which is best, or whether you can combine them etc...I had to consult a lot of forums and stuff to figure out the best option.
And then once you've done this, the checkout is a pain too.
I spent an evening trying to book tickets for the Colosseum, the Vatican, Pantheon etc... and honestly it was one of the most frustrating experiences of my life. I was going to write one of my much-adored step-by-step UX breakdowns of the whole ordeal... but honestly, having endured it once, I can't face going back to take screenshots etc.
There are certain things that are just different by default in the UK, I think - as an example, taking (free) young children. In the UK you'd still expect to be given a ticket for the child, even at zero cost, so you know they've been counted, they have a ticket etc. In Italy they don't seem to bother issuing tickets if you don't need to pay for them - you just turn up with the little munchkin.
I feel like there's a broader cultural difference, though, where the Italians - slightly stereotypically - are just more relaxed about things and less rule-driven. So whilst, in the UK, the websites would be trying hard to give more information about the products...they'd be trying to cut down on 3rd party sales and shut down copy-cat sites...I believe the Italian mindset is more "meh, they'll figure it out" (this certainly seems to be the case on the roads, where adherence to any kind of rules seems entirely optional)
I felt strangely comforted by this experience, however... In the midst of an industry worried about how we survive with AI...in a day job where we try and maximise the ROI from comparatively minor changes... it's reassuring to find that some of the biggest tourist attractions in the world still use tech that feels pretty 90s...so there's still plenty out there we can improve by doing the basics, without overintellectualizing everything. They don't need an AI chat agent... they just need to remember how many tickets you put in your basket from one screen to the next!
And was the Colosseum really as busy as that article said?
I mean, what do you want me to say?
Yes.
It's the Colosseum.
A lot of people want to go there.
Yes.
It's the Colosseum.
A lot of people want to go there.
But honestly, it wasn't so bad. Yeah, you probably had to wait for a couple of minutes to get to the front for a photo...and yes, there were people pushing in left and right (as there was everywhere in Italy)...but you just need to breathe through it and try to enjoy yourself. When you got to the front of the queue and got to experience being there, it was great.
As for photos, I'd have needed to use "Magic Eraser" a lot if I wanted selfies without people in the background. But my life isn't an Instagram reel...if I want pictures of myself in front of a deserted Colosseum at sunset, there are much cheaper and easier ways of getting them.
Take this snip from one paragraph on the wiki page:
 |
| Yeah, like I'm going to let this chance pass me by! |
But was the visit generally awesome?
I mean, seeing the Colosseum in real life is pretty cool. After however many times you've seen it on TV, read about it in books, assembled it in kids jigsaw puzzles etc... to actually be there and see it is really something.
As an attraction / experience? Meh. For a building that is such an iconic piece of history they could do SO MUCH MORE to tell the stories of the place, to talk about the technology involved, to give people more of a glimpse of how it was used, etc etc etc... the actual exhibits you see as part of the tour are OK, but pretty minimal and not particularly inspiring - especially for younger visitors.
Given the lack of information during the visit, I felt a bit unsatisfied... like I wanted to know more. So once the kids were asleep I spent a while in our hotel reading about the Colosseum, watching videos etc... and some of the things are just really fascinating to me. So why do you like it so much?
Take this snip from one paragraph on the wiki page:
By the late 6th century a small chapel had been built into the structure of the amphitheater, though this apparently did not confer any particular religious significance on the building as a whole. The arena was converted into a cemetery. The numerous vaulted spaces in the arcades under the seating were converted into housing and workshops, and are recorded as still being rented out as late as the 12th century. Around 1200 the Frangipani family took over the Colosseum and fortified it,
At first glance you're like "hmm, that's interesting". But then think about it again... That couple of sentences is covering a six hundred year period of the Colosseum's life. Imagine houses and workshops in the Colosseum. Being passed through generations. People coming and going... all their stories....their families and friends...their lovers...their enemies... all taking part under the watchful eye of the Colosseum.
I, like most people, spend a lot of time reading about (and sometimes worrying about!) American politics. What a sense of perspective it gives to realise that this 600 year period of the Colosseum's history, described in under a paragraph, is over twice the age of the United States....
Then zoom out again and realise that this 600 year period is less than a third of the Colosseum's history.
Empires rising and falling...catastrophes, celebrations, new eras and chapters... the world turning... centuries passing...and the Colosseum just standing, constant, in the midst of it all.
Amazing.
I, like most people, spend a lot of time reading about (and sometimes worrying about!) American politics. What a sense of perspective it gives to realise that this 600 year period of the Colosseum's history, described in under a paragraph, is over twice the age of the United States....
Then zoom out again and realise that this 600 year period is less than a third of the Colosseum's history.
Empires rising and falling...catastrophes, celebrations, new eras and chapters... the world turning... centuries passing...and the Colosseum just standing, constant, in the midst of it all.
Amazing.
But how does this help you?
If I'm stressed, or worried, or sweating the small stuff, I can ask myself "WWTCD?" and my perspective shifts.
Some might say this represents a step towards stoicism or nonattachment, but I'm not sure that's exactly it.
It's more aspirational, about how I want to behave as a person.
I feel like I've always identified with Tolkien's Ents. Big, still, calm, constant, wise. And in the recurring question that echoes through my life "if you were a tree, what tree would you be?" I've always wanted to be an oak. Strong, reliable, constant... And the Colosseum is like the epitome of this oak / Ent energy.
So I want to carry more Colosseum energy forward in the way I act in life...
...and I hope that my children grow to know that as their world turns, as they face catastrophes, celebrations, new eras and chapters...Like the Colosseum, I'll always be there.
Some might say this represents a step towards stoicism or nonattachment, but I'm not sure that's exactly it.
It's more aspirational, about how I want to behave as a person.
I feel like I've always identified with Tolkien's Ents. Big, still, calm, constant, wise. And in the recurring question that echoes through my life "if you were a tree, what tree would you be?" I've always wanted to be an oak. Strong, reliable, constant... And the Colosseum is like the epitome of this oak / Ent energy.
So I want to carry more Colosseum energy forward in the way I act in life...
...and I hope that my children grow to know that as their world turns, as they face catastrophes, celebrations, new eras and chapters...Like the Colosseum, I'll always be there.
Ciao for now!
As always, thanks for reading. If you're lucky, I might write up some more of my Italian learnings soon! :)