The Vatican

I managed to wake up quite early on All Saints Day. It was a Wednesday if I remember correctly, although by this point on my trip I had already forgotten what day of the week it was. I rode the metro to St. Pietro and walked with the rest of the crowd towards the Vatican.

The huge semi-circle of pillars was in front of us soon. The Vatican. The visage of St. Peter´s Basilica creeped into view from the right. There was an enormous line curved along the edge to get into the church. The Pope was getting ready to address his flock. I was able to find a seat outside where they had a few rows directly in front of the stairs to the cathedral. We waited. And then on the huge screens outside the Pope began to speak, in Latin for the most part, as he continued to for 2 hours. It was the most unique mass I´ve ever been to. Afterwards he came to a window in his cloisters and a maroon flag was draped from the sill. He greeted and blessed the crowds in no less than 6 languages (Latin, French, English, Spanish, German and Italian). It was easy to tell where everyone was from. You just had to wait to see which language they cheered for.

After that I waited for the Bascilica to clear out and then I went inside. Lines were something you just had to get used to. As you enter the cathedral and turn right you see what some say is Michaelangelo´s masterpiece: La Pieta. Carved when he was all of 25 years old it foreshadows the genius he would was about to unleash upon the world. It is so delicately sculpted it almost seems as if he had made a mold from the actual moment.

As you continue to walk around there are shrines and statues for popes and saints. What distinguishes them is their sheer size. They are all made to be so big they impress you just by their mass. The ceiling is also very high. I went to the back to walk up to the cupola. Five hundred and fiftey-one steps to the top. You can cheat and take an elevator halfway, but I wanted to walk up all the way. And about halfway up is when you start to regret making that decision. It really is a push to get to the top. You get an unrivaled view of the inside of the Basilica and if you push a little further outside you see Rome like you have never seen it before. It goes all the way around and I saw everything I had spent the last few days seeing in Rome. And as a side note, the Papal Gardens are unbelievable. I could just picture Benedict himself strolling through them while he gathers his thoughts.
A descent from the roof of the Basilica down to the crypts put a bookend on the day. There you can find the final resting places of many popes. At one point there is a massive gathering. You see nuns in a row on their knees praying. One girl gave the guard a necklace to place on the tomb and return to her, now blessed. It is the grave of John Paul II. Soon after is the final resting place of St. Peter himself, given a very fitting shrine all of its own. That section of the walk was mindblowing.

The Sisteen Chapel was closed so I had to return another day to see that and the Vatican Museums. It was a very long day at St. Peter´s, but well worth it. I went back to the hostel and relaxed before coming back for the rest.

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I went with a group of people from the hostel to see the Sisteen Chapel. It was a good thing too, what we initially thought was the line was the line to get into the line, and then it wrapped around and around until we were waiting for over 3 hours. But it was good because two could take a break while the others waited, and vice versa. Finally once we got in we started to walk through the Museums, and the Sisteen Chapel was near the end.

But there was one room called the Hall of Maps which I will never forget. The ceiling was so ornate and detailed that two of us started wondering if this was already the Sisteen Chapel. Along the walls were painting maps of different areas in the world in ancient times. My Brazilian friend and I both said "Cara..." That about summed it all up, that and two dropped jaws.

We continued on and saw more of the Museums until there is a staircase descending to the actual Chapel. On the loudspeaker we all heard that photos are not allowed. I really don´t think anyone paid attention to that rule, because everyone was taking out their cameras. And then, finally, inside. You look up and and see the 12 scenes Michaelangelo picked to grace his most famous fresco. The Creation of Adam, the Expultion from Eden. All right there above your very eyes. Then you look down and see what I liked even more than the ceiling: the painting behing the altar, The Last Judgement. I could spend months staring at that painting alone. It is so vibrant and filled with different stories it enslaves your attention. We stayed inside for a while before moving on.

After the leaving the Sisteen there still are quite a few more rooms, but the star of the entire place is still the Chapel. We stumbled our way towards the exit and grabbed some well earned lunch. The group broke up after that, some went this way and some went that. I had to go back to the train station to catch my train to the next destination: Florence. Rome was an amazing experience, something mere words can only hint at. I don´t think there is any other city that threads its history so completely into everyday life. Any opportunity for more time there should never be cast aside.

So, I was off to Florence. I grabbed my things and headed off, in search of Michaelangelo and a picture of "the Duomo as seen from the Belvedere." Until next time.