CITTA DEL VATICANO

What a perfect day to visit Vatican City; it was a tad chilly and rained on (and sometimes off) all day long.

Purchasing our tickets to the Musei Vaticani online was key to our day: we bypassed the queue that literally runs for blocks, and on a cold and soggy day, that was crucial.

We literally walked up to the gate, showed our voucher and entered. After consolidating our belongings and checking them intothe cloak room, we ascended the winding stairs up to he official entrance.

Andrea was intent on seeing the Raphael rooms and Sistine Chapel, and she was not the only one. What distinguished us was that while we walked through and noted the Candelabra, Tapestry anf Map galleries, we did not stop to ogle them. While others may have chomping at the bit, a majority were in guided groups and had to listen to a lot of details I'm sure many may not have cared about.

The Stanze di Rafaello were fabulous, crowded, but fabulous. Andrea commented later that the rooms were so much smaller than she had imagined. These were the private rooms of Pope Julius II, and how he got anything done in them would have been a miracle, because there is just so much going on in the imagery on every square inch, from floor to ceiling. We spent a majority of our time in the Room of the Segnatura, in which Andrea pointed out all the defining characteristics of the School of Athens wall. As one might imagine, it is hard to turn around when these rooms are full of people. It was hot and cramped, so we pushed on to the Sistine Chapel, barely noting the contemporary art gallery that precedes it.

The Sistine Chapel was magnificent ( a word I waited to use and which applies to this space.) Of course, it too is jam packed with fellow touristas, and the guards are constantly calling out "silencio" and "no flash!" Those comments are punctuated with "you can't sit there." We found a spot in the middle of the chapel, and I would say we held our ground there for at least 20 minutes, taking it all in. I had questions, and Andrea had answers about Michaelangelo's work. We brought binoculars, and with them I was able to see figures and elements in the shadows I otherwise would have never noticed from ground level.

I believe when Mark, Greg, Ralph and I visited the Vatican in 1980, the Sistine Chapel was either under partial renovation or closed (or I was drunk and getting sick), because I don't remember having gone through there. Everyone is familiar with the image of God Creating Adam, and most would recognize Original Sin/The Expulsion from the Garden of Eden. However, there are seven other major ceiling panels, that unless you just finished a Renaissance art history class, you probably don't know about; all just as rich in color and storytelling. Standing there looking up is numbing, to the body and mind.

But the Sistine Chapel is more than just the ceiling; it is also the west wall with the Last Judgment. Again, Andrea pointed all the elements in this huge mural. To be standing i front of it with people whispering in so many different languages is a life experience. Andrea wandered off to set herself in front of the Libyan Sibyl, one of her favorites. I found a spot on the pew that lines the chapel where I presume the cardinals sit when electing a new pope. There, I read more about the art that enveloped me. The north wall depicts scenes in the life of Christ, while the south wall depicts scenes from the life of Moses. The names of the artists who contributed to this masterpiece is "the who's who" of Renaissance art.

After ,oving around the room, getting new and different angles, we finally released ourselves from the chapel's captivity. It was here, in a very small pass-through room, that Andrea had her find of the day: the exhibit of papal chausibles. Never heard the word before yesterday, but these are the intricate, gold and silver vestments the popes wear over their linens on special ceremonies. Andrea loves textiles, and these finely embroidered (probably the incorrect term, sorry Andrea) and especially the one with the Barberini bees excited her immensely.

From there, one passes through a series of long rooms, at which are conveniently located souvenir shops. Apparently, the church need no longer sell "indulgences" to shorten lowly humans' time in Purgatory. Now it sells "indulgences" of another sort (key chains, jewelry, books...) to help finance operations. I enjoyed walking through these rooms (Museo Cristiano) because through open windows you could see the Vatican Gardens and the rain. Also, there are uncountable priceless objects, such as a rotating "map" of the world, a vise Bramante used, and a time piece. Many of these objects are made from jewels and other precious materials. These rooms seem to go forever, and we were quite content browsing at our leisure after the previous crushes in the Raphael rooms and Sistine Chapel.

At the end of this part of the Vatican Museums, we stopped for a bathroom break and lunch. My lunch was God Awful! First truly bad meal I have had since arriving in Italy. It looked good when separated by the glass of the cafeteria counter. I certainly hope Ben 16 eats better than this. Andrea had a hot dog (I wonder if it was kosher?) which suited her just fine.

After lunch, we wandered, hitting the Etruscan Museum, the octagonal cortyard...everything, including the Vatican post office (Andrea scoured the stamp collection.) Of course, we went through the Pinacoteca. Every piece of art I once studied in art history is here: from the 1100s through Giotto and the start of the Renaissance, through Raphael's "The Tranfiguration" and the start of the Baroque. Andrea's favorite painting of the day had to be "The Entombment" by Caravaggio.

The museums close at 6:00 pm, and around 4:45 or so, we started backtracking, hitting the museum's contmporary works. There is a room of huge Matisses, which amply impresed us. I was personally very moved by the Chagalls, and one in particular moved me to tears: "Between Heaven and Hell" the Otto Dix were also very heavy emotionally.

With less than one hour before closing time, we then headed back to the Sistine Chapel, almost empty at this hour and no less impressive. From there, we returned to the Raphael rooms, which were vietually empty! I took quite a bit of time in the first room, the Hall of Constantine. While the rooms may be small, the works are not, and the detail is unbelievable. Unrushed, I spent time in the Room of Helidorus and the Room of the Segnatura again.

As we mad our way out of the museum to the cloak room, we walked through galleries void of any people, except a security guard here and there just waiting to end their day. That was heaven on earth!

We had entered the Vatican Museums at 9:48 (per our stamped ticket) and walked out of there at 5:52 pm. We not only felt we got our money's worth, but we decided a second day would not be necessary.

It was shortly after 6:00 pm when we entered St. Peter's square. Again, the daily crowd was gone. Chairs for Wednesday's weekly papal audience were already set. We ventured inside the basilica, and Andrea was overcome by the sheer grandeur. First (and 14th) stop was at the Pieta. The sorrow, grief and pity are literally etched in stone. The Baldacchino is astounding, and we spent considerable time at its base. Andrea commented she had never seen such a large church, even in Russia. St. Peter's is just immense, in size and in the scope of work within it.

We were both amazed by a work depicting St. Jerome mear his death; it was a mosaic, but unless you read the description and double-checked with a guard (which we did), you would be convinced it was an oil painting. That is how small and tightly glued together the stones are.

Well, books have literally been written about the places and individual works we saw. To sum it up: A LOT. A lot of walking, a lot of great art, a lot to take in, a lot of fun, a lot to think about, and a lot to remember.

...Except my dinner! This was the worst day for eating. We walked to Piazza Cavour, which is close to Tribunali where we catch our bus, and decided on a restaurant. The bruschetta was too salty, and when my grilled shrimp arrived, I was in for the lowest, most disappointing part of the day. When most of us think about grilled shrimp, we think of the Crocodile Dundee TV commercial of huge, peeled shrimp curling up on a skewer, nicely blackened...NOT THESE!

They were the entire, raw shrimp, claws and eyeballs included. To make matters worse, they were small, so that when you were finally able to get to the meat, there was hardly any white meat at all! Some of the shrimp were not even cut properly to get to the meat. I was going to complain (14€ for these?) but Andrea prevailed, stating what good what it do? They certainly were not going to comp me, and as tourists, it's not like we are repeat customers who will refer our friends and return next week. And as you'll see from photos , it's not like I am going hungry or will faint from starvation.

As for photos of today, I certainly have too many, but will have to post them tonight upon our return, because today is our last day in Rome. (Hard to believe we arrived one week ago today.) Tomorrow, we take the 12:00 pm train to Florence.

Again apologies for all the typos, skipped letters...Phyliss, I will need to buy that keyboard when I get home, as pecking away on this iPad keyboard is for the birds!