Roman Forum

The warm sun shines down on my old, smooth stones. High above, my tall, broken columns reach for the bright blue sky. I live in the middle of a big, busy city called Rome, in a country named Italy. A very long time ago, people wearing special white clothes called togas walked along my paths and smiled at the sunshine. They came here to meet their friends and talk about their day. Do you know who I am. I am the Roman Forum, the heart of ancient Rome.

I wasn't always a busy square. A very, very long time ago, around the 7th century BCE, I was just a wet, grassy field full of puddles. But clever people came and built a special drain to whisk all the water away, making me dry and ready for fun. Soon, I was the city's big playground. They built beautiful temples with tall pillars and important buildings with big steps. People came to my market to buy yummy fruits. They listened to leaders like Julius Caesar share big ideas, and they cheered during happy parades with music and flowers. For hundreds of years, I was filled with laughter and happy sounds.

After many, many years, the city changed, and I became very quiet. I fell asleep under a soft blanket of earth and green grass. Everyone forgot I was here. I dreamed for a long, long time. Then, in the 1800s, kind people with soft brushes and little shovels came to wake me up. They gently uncovered my old stone paths and tall columns. Today, I am awake again and I love having visitors from all over the world. They walk where the people in togas once walked and imagine all my stories. I am here to show everyone that even very old places have amazing stories to tell.