Advertisement
Published: September 14th 2012
Edit Blog Post
The reason we took this short trip to Italy was to celebrate Maria’s 40
thbirthday. We wanted to do something unforgettable. Well, today was the big day. She’s now in her 40s! It is starting to show, as she seems to be napping a lot.
We had an early start today. We were up at 6:15 am to get ready. We hopped in a cab and headed over to the Vatican. Literally a couple of hours before flying out of Calgary, a friend who is a travel agent, arranged for us a tour of the Vatican. I had unfortunately left this too late, and was not able to find anything on my own. She was a big help. Our tour was considered semi-private, in that there were only 10 people in our group, and we got to enter over an hour before the general public. In fact, we were the second group to enter the Vatican Museum, so it was practically empty to start.
We started at the Vatican Museum. This is a conglomeration of several mini-museums, holding some of the greatest art anywhere. Many people and groups flew through this area to get to the Sistine Chapel. Our guide
was very passionate about art – it was actually amazing how much she knew. The rooms we walked through, displaying endless sculptures, art, etc. were actually the rooms used by popes centuries ago. Our guide was able to point out the meaning of so many things – it was actually extremely interesting. Walking through these rooms, the art is not the only thing to observe. The walls and ceilings themselves were….well, it’s hard to put to words. The details in every room were outstanding – most done many centuries ago.
By the time we got to the Sistine Chapel, it was quite crowded. We had discussed what we would see with the guide ahead of time, so when we entered the chapel, we had a good idea what to expect and what to look for. Michelangelo spent 4 years craning his neck on wooden scaffolding, six stories up – just to “paint” the ceiling. He spent several more years on the walls, some of it many years later. There are some great stories behind the images that he portrayed, and I wish we could have taken some pictures, but a Japanese group owns the right to the images. They
donated considerable money to fund the restoration of the chapel. For many centuries, candles were used to light the chapel, and of course over the centuries, this darkened the artwork. It’s now been restores to its original colours with very advanced methods of not disturbing the actual artwork.
It was amazing to be in the actual room where Cardinals are sequestered to vote for a new pope. We saw the door the newly elected pope exits, where he goes to a side room and chooses his new name. He then proceeds further to where he ultimately is introduced to the world on the balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Next on our tour was St. Peter’s Basilica. This church is massive. It really is hard to put in words what it looks like inside. I believe it is longer than 2 football fields in the middle. Again, there are statues and various art all over the place, but the walls and ceilings themselves are amazing. The detail is indescribable. It was designed to fell smaller than it is. The statues lower to the ground are often about 15 feet tall. The higher up you look, the statues look the
same size, but to give that affect, are actually several feet bigger.
The Dome at St. Peter’s is amazing. It’s 448 feet from the floor to the top. At the end of our tour, we went to the top of the dome! It cost 7 Euro to take an elevator part way up, and then we had to climb another 323 steps. It’s a sweaty, crowded, claustrophobic 15 minute climb, but well worth it. Once you step outside, the views of Rome are fantastic. Besides the view, it was nice to stand straight. As you climb the last stretches inside the dome, us tall people had to have a curved posture to fit the shape of the dome. We’ve included a few pictures of the views.
Our legs were burning, but we decided to push on. Next stop was Castel Sant’ Angelo. First parts of the buildings were erected in the first century! This building was eventually connected to the Vatican in 1277 via an elevated corridor at the pope’s request. Since Rome was repeatedly plundered by invaders, Castel Sant’ Angelo became a refuge for threatened popes. They would flee to the safety here, and were able to
see out over the Vatican and Rome.
We walked back to our hotel from here. We got lost in the tangled web of streets that make up Rome. We’d think we were going in one direction to find that we were actually in another part of Rome altogether. We ultimately found our hotel and both of us had a much deserved nap.
We went out to a restaurant that Rick Steve’s recommends in his book (which we’ve followed his advice for meals several times). We had a great meal at Osteria da Mario. It’s a VERY intimate place with great food, and within a few minutes of us getting there, was packed.
I can’t remember if I mentioned this previously, but there is a difference with eating here in Rome. Back in North America, people eat before going to do something at night. In Italy, the eating is an event itself. We typically start with an appetizer. The bruschetta has been amazing. We then have a first course, which is often a pasta. It’s then followed by a second course, which for us has usually been a meat of some sort. From there, we sometimes have a
desert, but have to keep in mind that there is still gelato from a different place.
Tonight, we didn’t have room for the gelato. A travesty! We normally have been having wine with our meals as well. That typically means Maria has one glass, and I have to work at finishing the rest. Well tonight, it was the opposite. Maria hogged the wine – something I guess I can let slide since it is her birthday.
After eating endless courses, we decided to take a short walk over to the Trevi Fountain to see it lit up at night. It was a little quieter as well, as all the tour groups were gone. We took some pictures, and sat and people watched. Before coming, I had seen a show on scams in the city. One thing that happens frequently at the Trevi Fountain is a game some local men play. They try and pick up female tourists, and score points if they sleep with them. Sure enough, as we sat there watching, it was VERY obvious that this one man near us was working his magic on two young women. When they finally left, he moved on to
other women. Pretty sad to watch.
It was a very long day, but a great one. I think Maria enjoyed her birthday. It was definitely different. As it gets close to midnight, our attention turns to getting some sleep and getting ready for another big day – the Colosseum and the Forum.
Ciao.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.1s; Tpl: 0.016s; cc: 5; qc: 44; dbt: 0.0413s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Aunt Carol
non-member comment
Birthday
Happy Birthday Maria!!!! Sounds like you are having a fabulous time. Enjoy both of you. Love the pictures and info. Love Carol