I find that the transition of the western world from Pax Romana to the medieval period is talked about sometimes like a drastic step backward, but would that really be seen in daily life?
Side note: I don't usually see this, but if this is too long a span of time for one person to be an expert in, I could see an interesting thread if multiple people answered just half of the question (0 or 1000 AD)
By Roman, do you mean someone from the city of Rome or someone from the Roman Empire? In 1000 AD, the Roman Empire (or Byzantine Empire) no longer possessed the city of Rome itself and was centered around Constantinople.