This is a very special place, soaked in ancient history. It was the Roman market place of Thessaloniki and it is thought to be sited where an ancient Greek version had previously stood. The Roman forum dates from the 2nd century AD and is thought to have operated for about 400 years, well after the demise of the Empire. The site allows you to quickly lose yourself in the past while it takes you back to the times of Roman dominance of large parts of the known world. Your entrance into the site gives you an immediate feeling that this has a very important place in history, from both a local and indeed wider perspective. The first thing to do is to visit the underground museum which is on the far side of the Forum. to reach it you walk through the partially-underground walkway, known as the Roman “Cryptoporticus” arcade, which was the equivalent of a Roman underground shopping mall and is itself really interesting. The detailed description of the "mall", given in the museum, makes you realise just how advanced the Roman civilisation had become as it transports you back to those times. . After you go through the very informative museum, you start to really piece together the site's significance and finally you are drawn back outside to the forum again where you can better picture just how it must have looked and how it would have felt to have wandered through the forum in centuries gone by. The site is truly magnificent and even includes a theatre which was used for gladiatorial games. The museum could perhaps be laid out a bit better to make it easier to follow all it has to offer but don't let that put you off... It is well worth spending time there.