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long queues
apaprently in the summer you have to wait up to 5 hours to get into the Vatican Museums...The Vatican City. It has it's own post office, police uniform and is technically a separate country to the rest of Italy. Unfortunately we ran out of time to explore St Peter's Basilica, as we waited hours in the line to the Vatican Museum. Probably should have done the former as the most interesting object in the museums was a 4000 year old mummified body of a small pharaoh. You could still see his fingernails and toenails. One of it's eye sockets had a patch over it, where they would have removed his brains from. It was fascinating!
Of course there was also the Sistine Chapel, with the famous painted ceiling by Michelangelo, portraying various scenes from the bible such as
The Creation of Adam and
The Last Judgement. Unfortunately it was a bit hard to appreciate it fully as we were ushered along by the guards so as to avoid a complete human crushing due to the hordes of slack-jawed zombie tourists pushing their way through willy-nilly.
I think I have mentioned it already, but it has been truly interesting being immersed in various religions in the countries we've been through so far. From the Buddhists in Thailand,
the Taoists in Vietnam, the Animists in Cambodia, mixture of Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims in Malaysia, then through to Istanbul with its devout Islamic heritage, and Greece whose Orthodox Church ministers with their wooden staffs and heavy black robes eminate an strangely ominous presence ... culminating in the Vatican City, where millions of nuns and other devout Christians come from all over the world to pay respect to the head of the Catholic Church - the pope himself. Unfortunately we did not see him, but we did see his death star (sorry only a few of you will get that reference - it is a little too un-PC to explain it...). It is a little sad that we will forever be staging religious wars against one another, whether it be Chinese Buddhists feuding with Malay Muslims in Kuala Lumpure in the 1950's; or North Cyprian Muslims still having continual disagreeances with their South Cyprian Greek Orthodox neighbours; and even the Catholics vs. Protestants in the land of the Irish who at the end of the day believe in the same thing. In fact, if one thing travel has taught us in this whirlwind trip around the world thus far, it's
the new death star!
sorry i'll refrain.. that whether you worship Jesus Christ or Buddha or a Hindu god or Allah or a human with the head of a fox ... at the end of the day these are all simply images and objects - important images and objects of course - but one is not more important than the other.
/end religious rant
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Jamie
non-member comment
It's 11.42am and I've done nothing but read your blog and day dream since I got in this morning at 8.30 The death star comment is so funny, me and rich went in the morning and they had all the tvs and seats still set up where he addresses his peeps! I totally agree with the mummy, i've got a few photos of him myself. It's a shame it was so busy for you guys. I remember the day we went to the vatican we got up super early and had no problems with queues, but then when we exited st peters there was a line a mile long. Same with the vatican museum it really wasn't that packed, which was good cause we didn't feel rushed and got to absorb it all. Although it made me quite sick thinking how much money the church have, and in all their ultimate wisdom and good on earth, can't think of a better way to spend it than to house a museum full of riches. I just kept thinking with each room we walked into, so this is the will of god, god would rather keep this room than use the worth to save a village in Africa! You guys have seen so much already, I don't know if Wales will live up to what you guys have already seen. Nevertheless we'll have each other and have an amazing time! I just hope it doesn't rain... too much!!! After looking at all those photos I can't wait to see you guys and give you both a big hug.