Today was our second to last full day in Rome. It finally hit most of us that time’s a wasting, so we decided to finish all of our touristy destinations. For this reason, my morning started bright and early at Vatican City.
Here’s a little fun fact: Vatican City is an actual country with a population of about 800 people. How cool would it be to have a passport from there? Apparently they’re very precious and Vaticans (people from Vatican City, I guess?) can basically bypass any line at airport security.
We found a tour guide and began our venture through the world’s largest museum. There are most than 1,700 rooms in the museum, so we only saw a small portion of the collection. The paintings, tapestries and sculptures were all brilliant. In every direction I looked, I wondered how anyone could possibly have made that by hand, especially without modern tools.
We even passed sculptures of Greek gods and heroes, which I thought was pretty neat (probably because I took a Greek myth class last semester). I turned around and thought, “Wow, that’s Hercules! What’s he doing at the Vatican?” I don’t know if I was more surprised that Hercules was chilling in the Vatican or the fact that I accurately remembered who he was by the lion’s skin he was carrying. After walking through the museum and learning some sweet tidbits about famous works of art, we made our way into the Sistine Chapel.
There was no “awe” moment. No “Michelangelo dedicated four years of his life to this ceiling alone” moment. No “you are standing in one of the most renowned buildings ever created” moment. I was honestly disappointed in the Sistine Chapel.
Don’t get me wrong—the paintings were all gorgeous—but it was not what I expected. I walked into an extremely loud room that was flooded with tourists. Security guards were shouting “No pictures!” and clapping every minute, hoping their authority would somehow prevent pictures from being taken. The lighting was also very poor, so the paintings were all very dim. It took me a couple of minutes to even realize that I was standing directly under the iconic Hand of God portion of the ceiling. If the lighting was better and the ambience was more church-ful, I might have enjoyed the chapel, but that just didn’t happen.
We moved on to the catacombs to see the tombs of deceased popes. It was sort of neat, but really pointless. The tombs were all beautifully chiseled in marble and whatnot, but the tourist overload also ruined the mood. We were not even permitted to take pictures of Pope John Paul II’s grave room, so I guess my picture of Pope John Paul I will have to do.
We then moved onto St. Peter’s Basilica, which was much more moving than the Sistine Chapel. While it was still filled with tourists, it didn’t feel like it. This building was HUGE. Everything was awesome (in the original sense of the word). Everywhere you looked, there was something that caught your eye and demanded your full attention. My pictures don’t do it justice, but they’ll have to suffice for now.
We contemplated climbing the duomo, but we couldn’t find our way back to the line. Although I know I’ll regret it in a few weeks, I know it’s for the best. The stairs are supposed to be very tight and at some point, you have to use a rope for a handrail while crawling up the spiral staircase. Also, what happens when I pass out from lack of oxygen and claustrophobia? My Florence climb was good enough for one trip, thank you very much.
After the Vatican, we had our last day of class, complete with presentations. Our group presented on pizzerias in Rome and talked about how they differ from those in the states. After class, we grabbed some dinner and gelato. We went to the supposedly best gelato place in all of Rome, and I wholeheartedly concur with that statement. While it was not as good as my gelato in Florence, it was definitely the best I’ve had in Rome. It was artisanal and the place served very obscure and succulent flavors. If I’m not broke by Thursday, I may have to return to try out some more flavors.
Our last full day in Roma (for school) will be spent at the beach. I don’t know where the beach is or what body of water it is near, but I know that it’s the final thing we’ve been waiting for.
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