Buon giorno and Happy St. Patrick's day.
What a wonderful day to round out our tour of Italy. Today was a little rainy but it didn't matter as we were inside most of the day. Today we did the Vatican and it was amazing! A definate highlight of the trip so far.
We got to the Vatican in the morning. The line to get into the Vatican museum was already long, so we decided to use one of the tour guides peddling on the streets promising "skip the line" guided tours. It did get us in faster than on our own, but we still has to wait. There was a line to skip the line!
Once inside, we toured the Vatican museum. It is one of the largest museums but not all of the collection is on display. I was quite surprised by how many pagan statues were present in a holy Christian place. Most were gifts to the pope. The tapestries were my favorite part. It is amazing that they still look so good after so many centuries.
We finally made it to the Sistine Chapel. What an awe-inspiring place. We received an explanation of all of Michelangelo's work prior to entering because you are not supposed to talk in the chapel. We were told that the Sistine Chapel was Michelangelo's first time painting a fresco that he had to teach himself how to do it while he was working on the chapel. On one side of the chapel are frescos depicting the Old Testament and the other has the New Testament. The wall behind the alter is "The Last Judgement" which was painted several years after the rest of the chapel was completed. The ceiling is wonderful. If you are like me, you will strain your neck looking at it because it is too wonderful to look away! Unfortunately we were not able to take pictures, so you will have to refer to Google for those.
Next was St. Peters Basilica. This place was jaw-dropping beautiful. In my opinion the most beautiful piece of architecture we have seen to date. This place is massive. There are plaques on the floor showing where other large cathedrals would stand in size compared to this place. The amazing thing about it though, it is decorated to not feel so big. We listened to the Rick Steves audio tour again. He said that the stained glass dove at the far end of the church is actually 7 ft across, but looks like it will fit in your hand. Pictures cannot depict the grandeur of this place and it is something that needs to be seen in person.
The Basilica was designed and built by Michelangelo but he died before it was fully completed. It was built on the suspected site where Saint Peter (or just Peter to the protestants) was buried after being crucified. In the 1700's, an archaeologist dug up the suspected site of Peter's tomb and found some bones 2 yards away. According to the Pope, they are "probably maybe" the remains of Peter. As a result, the high alter sits over his tomb.
Also, St. Peters houses Michelangelo's "Peitá", which is the only piece of work he ever signed. It is a statue of Mary holding the lifeless body of Jesus following the crucifixion. It gave me goosebumps! It is one thing to read/understand what Christ went through to save us from our sins, but it is another to see it depicted in such a chilling manner! That is what makes a great artist.
After our day at the Vatican, we needed another laundry night. The laundry mat is not a common place in Rome. We had to lug our sack of dirty clothes on the metro and walk a couple of blocks to find a facility that will do the laundry for us (drop off service). We couldn't find a self service place. So, while we waited, we had dinner. We stumbled onto a little restaurant that was entertaining a tour group. Lucky us as we got to partake in their entertainment. We got to listen to two opera singers (a soprano and a tenor) sing italian favorites! It created a wonderful ambiance while we ate some delicious seafood risotto, pork loin, and beef tips. It was the best meal we have had in Italy! What a way to end our time here!
We made it an early night as we have to get up early for our flight to Valencia, Spain!
Arrivederci
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