It is always amazing to visit sites well known from history, literature and popular culture. This was no exception. We marveled at the skill and knowledge of the architects and builders and paid tribute to the slaves who did the back-breaking work.
A week before our visit, I booked on-line, 24 hour tickets with timed entry to Colosseum, entry to Forum Romano “at any time”. “Any time” is the time one reaches the head of the queue, regardless of having tickets or not. Entry to the colosseum early afternoon was prompt at the exact time stated on the ticket. Rick Steves audio was helpful for both
We visited the forum before the colosseum. There is an uphill slope to the entry point for the forum/Palantine hill complex, then downhill through the remains of ancient Rome to the, now grass covered, site of the forum itself. It would be hard going in a wheel chair, one flight of steps had a lift beside it which was not operational. We didn’t attempt Palatine Hill, which is a good climb. Did not see any toilets on the way to the forum.
Any food options I could identify on-line required a time-consuming uphill walk, so we took a picnic and ate sitting on one of the stone bollards in the Colosseum forecourt. After entering the colosseum we made use of the toilets on the ground floor and took the elevator to the first floor where we could appreciate its size and the complexity of operating the site.