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| Scenes from Vatican City and Saint Peter's Bascilica |
Our last
full day in Rome! We had planned to go to the Vatican museums earlier in the
week when we were met with the harsh reality… Italy is like Disneyworld
(Everything is better with careful planning, reservations and a fast pass). Our
care-free go with the flow follow your heart travel lifestyle clashed with the
need for a scheduled itinerary. Thankfully on Monday night I realized that the
Vatican Museums were open late on Fridays in the summer. We could see the
museum at night! No crowds, no infamous lines and a chance to actually see the
Sistine chapel (Which after hearing so many horror stories I had all but
written off). I booked the tickets and marked our calendar for Friday night.
A large meal on Thursday and no real plans until the evening meant we slept in Friday morning. We had a dangerous habit in Rome of staying up well past 1am local time and not getting out of bed until after 9. This meant we missed the rush of the morning crowds at all the busy attractions but it made planning meals and maximizing our tourista time more challenging. Sean had gotten pastries the day before from a cute little shop near our apartment so we had a late breakfast there. Freshly squeezed juices are all the rage in Rome and I was able to get an 8 oz glass of freshly squeezed grapefruit, lime and pear juice for 5 euro.
We spent the early afternoon packing and planning the next leg of our trip that was certain to include a very early train trip the next day. In the late afternoon we crossed the bridge to the Vatican.
Vatican City is technically another country and in some ways it feels that way. Far more commercial than the rest of Rome, several of the buildings had large advertisements for Samsung phones. Mere steps from St. Peters Basilica was a McDonalds. We arrived after the museum closed for the afternoon and got in line to see the famous basilica. All the major attractions in Italy have lines in part because they all require patrons to pass through a metal detector. This late in the afternoon the church only had 3 open but we still made it inside in about half an hour.
The Vatican website and dozens of signs tell you that sleeveless shirts, shorts, backpacks, selfie sticks, hats and more are banned. They also remind you that this is a church and that they expect silence. Needless to say almost none of these rules are enforced. Inside the massive church the roar of the crowd is almost deafening. Meanwhile in a cordoned off section of the church, mass is going on. As Sean put it, it is more than a little uncomfortable to be in a place of worship and feel like you’re one of many people trampling upon it.
There are no pictures that can adequately portray the scope of St. Peter’s basilica. It is a massive cavernous and ornately decorated church. Larger than life carved marble sculptures of various popes line the main thoroughfare. The sounds of organ music wafting through the air seems almost like a dream until you realize parts of the church are closed to conduct mass. The church is big enough that you can close down whole sections of it without it being obvious.
A large meal on Thursday and no real plans until the evening meant we slept in Friday morning. We had a dangerous habit in Rome of staying up well past 1am local time and not getting out of bed until after 9. This meant we missed the rush of the morning crowds at all the busy attractions but it made planning meals and maximizing our tourista time more challenging. Sean had gotten pastries the day before from a cute little shop near our apartment so we had a late breakfast there. Freshly squeezed juices are all the rage in Rome and I was able to get an 8 oz glass of freshly squeezed grapefruit, lime and pear juice for 5 euro.
We spent the early afternoon packing and planning the next leg of our trip that was certain to include a very early train trip the next day. In the late afternoon we crossed the bridge to the Vatican.
Vatican City is technically another country and in some ways it feels that way. Far more commercial than the rest of Rome, several of the buildings had large advertisements for Samsung phones. Mere steps from St. Peters Basilica was a McDonalds. We arrived after the museum closed for the afternoon and got in line to see the famous basilica. All the major attractions in Italy have lines in part because they all require patrons to pass through a metal detector. This late in the afternoon the church only had 3 open but we still made it inside in about half an hour.
The Vatican website and dozens of signs tell you that sleeveless shirts, shorts, backpacks, selfie sticks, hats and more are banned. They also remind you that this is a church and that they expect silence. Needless to say almost none of these rules are enforced. Inside the massive church the roar of the crowd is almost deafening. Meanwhile in a cordoned off section of the church, mass is going on. As Sean put it, it is more than a little uncomfortable to be in a place of worship and feel like you’re one of many people trampling upon it.
There are no pictures that can adequately portray the scope of St. Peter’s basilica. It is a massive cavernous and ornately decorated church. Larger than life carved marble sculptures of various popes line the main thoroughfare. The sounds of organ music wafting through the air seems almost like a dream until you realize parts of the church are closed to conduct mass. The church is big enough that you can close down whole sections of it without it being obvious.
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| Select Views from inside the Vatican Museum including the Egypt room, the map room and Sean's reaction |
At 7:30 we were allowed into the Vatican museum. Most of the galleries had
indoor lighting but a few of the sculpture gardens were intended to be viewed
in daylight. The minimal lighting added did not adequately illuminate them but
overall it was well worth it to see the museum at night. None of the galleries
were crowded. We were able to walk into the Sistine Chapel and spend a full 20
minutes in the gallery viewing various parts of the ceiling from the stone
benches along the perimeter.
While the Sistine Chapel was by far the highlight, Sean and I greatly enjoyed the map room. This long gallery had 40 painted maps of different sections of Italy blown up into giant pieces 10 feet by 10 feet. I also very much enjoyed the small contemporary section that included pieces from many world renowned artists such as Mondrian, Dali and Van Gogh. Interestingly many of the pieces had distinctly religious content despite that being outside the normal scope for various artists.
While the Sistine Chapel was by far the highlight, Sean and I greatly enjoyed the map room. This long gallery had 40 painted maps of different sections of Italy blown up into giant pieces 10 feet by 10 feet. I also very much enjoyed the small contemporary section that included pieces from many world renowned artists such as Mondrian, Dali and Van Gogh. Interestingly many of the pieces had distinctly religious content despite that being outside the normal scope for various artists.
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| Select view of Contemporary Vatican Museum pieces |
My only complaint about the Vatican museum (other than not getting to meet the cool pope nor Jude Law) is that they have a singular viewing direction. The galleries are sequential and there is no way to skip one or go back easily (this seems to be common of many of the art museums in Italy). Comparing this to the Louvre, MET or Prado where you can move between galleries at will and there is no set itinerary.
I would certainly recommend the Friday Night opening if available. It made for a unique and relaxing experience. While Sean and I enjoyed Rome, we both felt overall it was far too crowded and tourist driven for our tastes. We are very much looking forward to a few days in rural Southern Tuscany at an agritourismo.
Stay tuned for the next post which will include driving in Italy, Etruscan ruins, charming cities of Sovana, Sorana and Pitigliano built into the cliffs, and our experience at an agritourismo!
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