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Published: October 1st 2011
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The Vatican
The ceiling of the Museum 'corridor' on the was to the Sistine Chapel ROME IN A DAY
Today was a massive day, we hit the key sites with a vengeance, by the time we finished we would be absolutely knackered but would have had the most amazing experience.
We started with a very crowded breakfast in a small Hotel dining room; crowds were to be a recurring theme throughout the day. First stop on our whirlwind tour of Rome was the Vatican – why not! If we thought we had been in some crowded tourist places before this lifted things to a whole new level! On average 25,000 tourists per day visit the Vatican – as an aside at $15 Euro per ticket do the maths!
VATICAN-SISTINE CHAPEL-ST PETER’S BASSILICA
Even when we arrived at 8.30am there were long queues, fortunately we had priority entrance through Insight and our line moved quickly so it wasn’t long before we were through the security check and in the Vatican City – which as we all know is in fact a separate country and the home of the Pope and the Catholic church.
Our guide took us out to have a look at St Peters dome from the best angle then we joined
Vatican
More amazing artwork to whet our appetite the hoards as we walked though the long wide corridor known as the museum, it was decorated with fantastic paintings and sculptures. The whole corridor was packed with people and it was an effort to move along in any sort of orderly way at all. The reward for sticking it out was to see some of the most amazing artwork we are ever likely to see, or so we thought.
In the end and with the greatest of respect what we had just seen was the entree, it is impossible to find the words to do justice to the Sistine Chapel. Standing in the middle surrounded by the stunning paintings on the walls and ceiling is a jaw dropping experience. Between 1508 and 1512 Michelangelo painted the 12,000 sq ft ceiling – somewhat reluctantly as it turns out, as he felt the commission was to serve the Popes need for grandeur. Each painting tells a specific story and our Guide had a fantastic knowledge and enthusiasm as she explained the main highlights. The Last Judgement is widely considered to be the finest work of Michelangelo and we were right there. We just stood there, mouths wide open and soaked
St Peters Bassilica
Its Huge and hugely impressive. Look at the size of the people relative to the building it all up, there was a very special atmosphere and despite the crowds it was a moving and unforgettable experience.
We then made the short walk to St Peters Basilica the largest church in the Christian world and surely must also be the most ornate. The Basilica is the burial site of St Peter, one of the 12 apostles so it is very much at the heart of the Christian community. Numerous great artists are associated with the Basilica, including Michelangelo, the paintings, tapestries and sculptures are mind blowing. The inside space is HUGE, the whole experience was incredible.
COLOSSEUM
After a short break we had the Colosseum in our sights, its an All Star line up for sure. A massive amphitheatre that could accommodate around 70,000 spectators where gladiators fought each other, and a range of animals, including Lions. It is also sadly where many Christians met an untimely demise. In addition to the above other forms of entertainment for the masses were hosted there including mock sea battles, theatre etc. Built between 72AD and 80AD the Colosseum is part ruins but there is easily enough of the original (and reconstructed) building to get a real feeling
The Colosseum
Inside the Coloseum. The Romans biggest ampitheatre for how things would have been all those years ago. Our Guide for the day took us through and then we had some free time to wander around and also to get lunch.
For lunch Jeanette, Don Sue and I went across the road from the Coloseum to Grand Cafe Possi Martini so we had lunch with a view. We paid dearly for the privileged though. We ordered 2 beers and were given the option of medium or large, we went for large assuming it would be a pint, wrong it was a full litre at 15 Euros a pop. We had 2 pizzas, two large beers a small one and an orange juice cost the princely sum of 72 Euro – great view of the Coloseum while we ate though!
WALKING TOUR
We returned to the Hotel for a break before heading out on a walking tour that covered all the remaining main central city sites plus the high class retail street where all of the elite Italian labels had stores.
We saw the Trevi Fountain (through in a coin each) it is the most spectacular fountain we have ever seen, Pantheon, Presidents Palace and Government
Now thats a pint!
A large beer meant a full litre at this Cafe. Don and I enjoying at cold beer on a very hot day, not cheap though! Buildings and the Spanish Steps. We really needed another day in Rome so we could have done these sites more justice. We’ve 'been there done that' and our Guide gave us some excellent information but the tail end of the day was very rushed and I’m not sure we were able to fully appreciate what was before us. To be fair to Brendan we only had 2 days and we definitely saw as much as it was possible to see.
We ended our day with a nice relaxing dinner in the Piazza Navona one of Rome’s main central squares. MASSIVE DAY!
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