Besides the Colosseum, the other structure in Rome that causes my jaw to drop every time I see it, is the Pantheon.  My first visit this trip was at night:

The Pantheon was built as a temple.  The word, itself, means "All Gods".  The current structure was built between 118 and 125 AD by Hadrian ontop of a previous temple built in 27 AD by Agrippa. In 609, it was converted to a Christian church. The Pantheon is currently fronted by a large square and surrounded by buildings on its flanks.

While it can't be seen from this perspective, the building is circular and fronted by a large portico held up by "Corinthian" columns. After almost two thousand years, the dome is still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the World!  At its peak, in the middle of the dome is a hole with a diameter of 30 feet.  The hole has a fancy term  ... "oculus".  It  is 142 feet high. 

Here's a closer view of the top of the portico:

The next image was taken looking up and through the right side of the portico. You can see an apartment building on the other side.

Entrance to the building is through the large doors on the right edge of this next image:

On my second visit, I took this shot of a young lady sitting in front of one of the massive columns to provide a sense of the scale:

The sight looking out at the square through the portico columns.  Amazingly, the square was almost empty ... not a common sight:

Lets go inside!  Immediately, my eye was drawn to the massive ceiling of the dome:

This is the view from the other side:

Then I spotted the intricate lower half of the building:

Remember it is still used for religious ceremonies ... I saw several weddings.  

Here I spotted a bride and groom holding hands; walking down the side street.  Kinda weird by U.S. standards ... and don't you love the Mcdonald's sign in the background ... and the guy purple shirt with the accordion slung over his shoulder:

Back inside I saw a window of opportunity (yes, pun intended) and placed my camera on the floor and took a rapid succession of five shots (each with a different exposure) which I blended together to form this last image:

If for no other reason that the 30 foot hole in the ceiling, It's surely the coolest building in town!  But then, how many two thousand year old buildings have you seen still standing ... another reason for it being the coolest building. Really, though, it is an awesome building inside ... that's why I say its "way cool!"

Bye for now,

Adam