Do you love Ancient Rome as much as I do?

Salvete, omnes!

TL;DR: Looking for like-minded people.

The sun hangs high in the sky, and a warm breeze brushes across my face. The world feels simple and beautiful. It isn't safe. Countless terrible things can happen. But even the gods can sometimes be bargained with.

I remember standing in an ancient temple on the shores of Chersonesos in Crimea. It was late February. The waves of the Black Sea crashed against enormous boulders, filling the air with the scent of salt and the sea. Tall columns rose above me, silent witnesses to different eras. They've stood there for thousands of years. They'll probably remain for hundreds more, long after I'm gone.

A republic that laid the foundations of government. An empire whose capital was, in many ways, centuries ahead of its time. I've always been fascinated by that, and saddened by how much of it has been lost.

Concrete. Aqueducts. Villas. Baths. Roads. Temples.

Steel. Logistics. Legions. A military machine that remained unmatched for centuries.

The state. Consuls and aediles. Emperors and prefects.

Men and gods. Vineyards and olive groves.

And, of course, the Mediterranean, the empire's own inland sea.

Does anyone else feel the same way?

Roma Aeterna!