Tuesday, August 7th
Sarah arrived early Tuesday morning and found her own way to our apartment from the airport. Just as we were starting to wonder how we could find her if she were to not show up, she appeared at the door at 10:00 a.m. She hadn’t slept well,
but with only two days to see Rome there was no rest for the weary. Sarah had spent one year studying in Rome and this is where she met Frank, but she hadn't been back in Rome in 46 years.
We pre-bought tickets for the Vatican for 2:30 pm but decided to stop by there first to make sure that Jim would be allowed to enter in his shorts. We took the bus to the Vatican and then a taxi to the Castel Sant'Angelo, originally built in the 123 AD as Hadrian's maouseluem, but serving over the years as a castle for the Pope, connected to the Vatican through a fortified corridor. It was terribly hot, I'd even say stifling. The Castel sits along the banks of the Tiber River and the Ponte Sant'Angel was at one time the only bridge connecting the Vatican and central Rome. We crossed the now pedestrian-only bridge and walked to lunch near the Piazza Novana before heading back to the Vatican Museum to begin the 4 miles of museum that would eventually lead us to the Sistine Chapel.
The Vatican Museum is actually a collection of many different museums, and together it is one of the greatest
collections in Europe. We started way
back in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, walked through a courtyard with beautiful old and significant statues, saw rooms hung with tapestries and rooms covered with maps. When we got to the Raphael rooms, we were still moderately interested in what we were seeing, but by the time we got to the
modern art wing of the Palace, we were good and ready to get to
the Chapel already!
Inside the Sistine Chapel we found a place to sit, quite an accomplishment given the crowds, and listened to a Rick Steve's free download audio tour - very interesting and informative. We also followed perhaps the best tip ever
and walked out a side door which leads directly to the Basillica, saving us
at least 30 minutes of walking – have I mentioned how hot it is???
 |
| mosaic work inside St. Peter's Basillica |
Before getting into the Basicalla, we past the entrance to
climb the cupola – and Rachel who had not been feeling well, summoned the energy to go to the
top, joined by Dad and Grandma. Julia and I went inside and waited for them at the dome's exit. This is what the adventurous set had to say about climbing the cupola: it gets very, very narrow and as you climb to the edge of the dome, the walls start to slant so you are walking at an angle. There was not much air in there air. But it was definitely still worth it to get the 360 views of all of Rome, including the papal gardens. Then we took the Rick Steve’s audio tour of the Basilica, which gave a fascinating explanation of the world's most famous church.
We pre-bought tickets for the Vatican for 2:30 pm but decided to stop by there first to make sure that Jim would be allowed to enter in his shorts. We took the bus to the Vatican and then a taxi to the Castel Sant'Angelo, originally built in the 123 AD as Hadrian's maouseluem, but serving over the years as a castle for the Pope, connected to the Vatican through a fortified corridor. It was terribly hot, I'd even say stifling. The Castel sits along the banks of the Tiber River and the Ponte Sant'Angel was at one time the only bridge connecting the Vatican and central Rome. We crossed the now pedestrian-only bridge and walked to lunch near the Piazza Novana before heading back to the Vatican Museum to begin the 4 miles of museum that would eventually lead us to the Sistine Chapel. 
The Vatican Museum is actually a collection of many different museums, and together it is one of the greatest
collections in Europe. We started way
back in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, walked through a courtyard with beautiful old and significant statues, saw rooms hung with tapestries and rooms covered with maps. When we got to the Raphael rooms, we were still moderately interested in what we were seeing, but by the time we got to the
modern art wing of the Palace, we were good and ready to get to
the Chapel already! 
Inside the Sistine Chapel we found a place to sit, quite an accomplishment given the crowds, and listened to a Rick Steve's free download audio tour - very interesting and informative. We also followed perhaps the best tip ever
and walked out a side door which leads directly to the Basillica, saving us
at least 30 minutes of walking – have I mentioned how hot it is??? 
By the time we finished seeing St. Peter's Square (and how cool it is that there is mathematically determined spot where all of the columns outside line up visually) it was already 7:00 pm. We took a taxi home to have a little pre-dinner down time (ie Olympics) and then set off to visit the hotel where Sarah spent her first night in Rome in 1965 - the Cavalieri in Monte Mario. It was a nice Hilton back then, but is now a very posh Waldorf Astoria Resort. We walked the grounds and stopped poolside to listen to a lounge lizard who sang us a Billy Joel ballad. We drove by the school Sarah attended and then to find the shopping area where she and her mom used to get their groceries and sundries, but is now more of a night hotspot with restaurants.
No comments:
Post a Comment