Vatican Day

Tuesday, May 21

Today was the day we were heading to Country #3 of our trip – the Vatican! After our usual breakfast of chocolate-covered croissants, cocoa pebbles, and yogurt from Hotel Ascot, we set out for the Metro to get out to the Vatican. Upon exiting the Metro, we were immediately bombarded with tour guides, all selling us “the best tour ever” while promising us that if we didn’t buy from them, it would be “the worst day ever.” Turns out, it wasn’t the worst day ever, but one filled with beauty and regalia.

Our original plan was to see St. Peter’s Basilica before the Vatican Museum (we had an appointment for 12:30 there). We walked first to St. Peter’s Square, where we marveled at the line to get into the Basilica. It would have taken at least 3-4 hours to get through the line and inside, and we didn’t have the time or the patience for that. We explored a bit more, before deciding to enjoy a long lunch on the way to the Vatican Museum.

Square inside the Vatican Museum

The place was again not recommended, but turned out to be an OK find. Chris tried Amy’s Quattro Formaggio pizza and decided he is definitely not a fan. Seriously? What’s not to like about multiple types of cheese?! From there we walked to the Vatican Museum – planning ahead paid off again! By making an appointment, we were able to skip the line and walk straight in. We were inside within 10 minutes, and ready to begin taking in the grandeur that is the historic Roman Catholic church.

We quickly realized that this museum experience wouldn’t be quite like the others, as we were herded through the exhibits in a mass of people, with little room to move or stop to observe exhibits. We overheard one tour guide telling a couple of Americans, “You are from a civilized country, where when people bump into you, they say excuse me. You’re in the Vatican now!” We were able to catch a couple breaks by “pulling off” into ancient Egyptian (with 2 real mummies!!!) and ancient Etruscan (with an ancient chariot!) side exhibits, before continuing through the museum.

A REAL mummy! (From our side tour of the ancient civilizations)

The whole museum was breathtaking, and I am still having a hard time wrapping my mind around how such massive, elaborate, beautiful structures were built SO LONG ago. I have no idea. Everything inside is ornate, covered in gold, and obsessively detailed. Pictures just don’t do it justice (aren’t I so snobby?).

The Address Room was fascinating to me – it was old maps of the entire world painted on the wall.  OK, that’s actually a terrible description. It’s a hall that is probably 1-2 football fields long, and there is not an inch of white space, anywhere. If it wasn’t covered by a map, it was covered in gold or some other precious material. We continued on to the fresco rooms painted by Raphael (beautiful) and into the Sistine Chapel. I can’t even put into words how mind-boggling it is that we were there! We saw the Sistine Chapel! This is the kind of stuff you learn about in school from the time you’re in third grade (OK so actually, this was my go-to answer in Scholastic Bowl - any time I heard "Vatican" or "Sistine Chapel" - buzzed in, answered Michelangelo, score). We were there - seeing it in person! It definitely made me stop a second and think about how lucky we are to be on such an awesome trip.

Small excerpt of a wall of the Address Room.

The ceiling of every room was something crazy ornate like this.

After exiting the Museum, our feet, legs, and backs were sore. Understatement of the century. We took a couple minutes to sit in the Museum square and enjoy being in the Vatican, people-watching the entire time, of course. Afterwards, feeling not-so-refreshed, we headed back towards St. Peter’s Square to check on the status of the lines to get into St. Peter’s Basilica.

THERE WERE NONE!! Our “foiled plan” from the morning turned out to be perfect. We walked right in and spent about an hour and a half inside, even being able to head to the crypt where past Popes are still visited.

Front of St. Peter's Basilica

After another short break on the steps of St. Peter’s, we headed back towards the Metro to see a final church before dinner. Santa Maria della Vittoria was another Amy suggestion, and per usual, did not disappoint. This church was smaller than the others we had been seeing, but no less ornate. It appeared to be dedicated to St. Teresa, and had a beautifully detailed, gold burst backdrop, similar to St. Peter’s Basilica. From there, we walked around for 30 minutes until a recommended restaurant opened at 7, and headed there for dinner.

Ristorante di Giovanni was described as having good prices, and being very local. Both were true. Our entire bill was under 45 Euro, and there were 2 truffles and 2 litres of wine included in that price! A “truffle” is not actually what I thought it was – first of all, it is much bigger. It also involves some kind of cake, as well as ice cream, and a frothy sauce. I’ll look up how to make them when we get home, but we tried one chocolate and one vanilla, and could’ve probably each eaten 2 of our own. Delicious! We headed back to the hotel rather early to get a start on packing up and getting ready for train/Venice day!

Chris & Amy in St. Peter's Basilica

David & I in St. Peter's Square