Circo Massimo crowds anticipate Gaga

…filled Circo Massimo (where ancient Romans raced chariots, staged mock ship battles, and held religious festivals) with a reported million people – for a speech and a couple of songs on piano tonight – concluding the parade that started at Piazza della Repubblica, marched through the city, down Via dei Fori Imperiali, around the Coliseum – stopping periodically for impromptu dance parties in the streets to the deep pulsing bass of mega-speaker laden trucks – but the best part by far was watching the beaming relieved Italian faces (otherwise burdened by the daily spectacle of an embarrassing political and cultural environment in a gradual 17 year – Berlusconi took national office May 10, 1994 – dispiriting downward spiral making international headlines) of all ages and walks of life witnessing a rare display of diversity celebration on their streets.