Day 55: Saturday, March 19, 2011

Kevin and I in St. Peter's square 

We got up around 10 and got out the door by 11.  We didn't think we had a ton to do that day so we weren't in a huge rush like we had been Friday. Jack and I hopped on a bus at the train station that took us almost right to Vatican City.  It was about a ten minute bus ride and we crossed the Tiber River on the way, getting a good view of the Mausoleum of Hadrian, a huge fortress used as a refuge by some of the emperors and popes over the centuries.  When we got to the Vatican we were both blown away.  St. Peter's Square is huge, and is surrounded by these huge column walls.  We stood in the middle of the square for a few minutes just taking pictures and enjoying the view and then headed to see how the lines were.

St. Peters Basilica 

 This is the start of my panoramic picture capturing: 

Picture 1) Facing away from the Basilica 

Picture 2) Moving clockwise 

Picture 3) St. Peters Basilica 

Picture 4) Huge columns that formed a horseshoe shape
around the square 

Picture 5) The last of the panoramic view 

So that is exactly what St. Peter's Square looks like :)

St. Peter's Square 

As we were walking I walked right past one of my best friends from USC, Alex.  I knew he was going to be in Italy that week but with no phone I didn't really see much of a chance to meet up.  And we just happened to walk right past one another in the center of St. Peter's Square, amongst 5,000 people also in the square.  Small world.  We caught up for a couple minutes but he was with a group and they were moving so Jackie and I moved on to try and get into the Vatican Museum.  Well we found out that it was 15 euro to get in and the line was about 2 hours.  Bummer.  We ran into some tour promoter who we haggled the price down to 30 euro and decided to do it.  It was worth 15 extra just to skip the two hour line so we went for it.  Once we said yes the guy starts in a full sprint towards his office.  I kept up about two feet behind him most of the way, but Jackie was struggling.  She's so small and her legs can only chop away so fast.  Normally Jackie is a surprisingly fast speed-walker but this guy had her beat.  I kept having to fall behind and grab her and tell her to keep up.

Walls to the Vatican 

Laocoon and his sons 

We arrived at the office out of breath just as the tour was starting.  Our tour guide was named Anton and he had a very strong British accent that became tough to understand when he would get excited about something and start talking fast.  Going through security at the front of the museum was a joke.  I could have been carrying a rocket launcher and wouldn't have been stopped.  The security guards were all standing together cracking jokes as people were setting off the metal detectors over and over.  We started the tour, and we both really enjoyed it.  We had a little trouble hearing sometimes because the headsets we were using weren't the best quality, and they only gave you one earpiece.  But, if we stayed close to Anton, we could hear fine.  Our tour of the Vatican Museum was about an hour long.  That sounds like a solid amount of time, except that the Vatican is the largest collection of art in the world, even bigger than the Louvre in Paris.  If you were to look at each piece of art for 10 seconds, it would take seven years without sleep to see everything.  There is so much art in every single room, and the museum itself was absolutely humongous.  And it was gorgeous.  Every ceiling, even in the corridors that connected to the bathroom, were so beautifully painted.  We went through a few of the most famous corridors in the museum and saw some amazing sculptures.  Anton did a great job of explaining the important pieces and also pointing out a few of his favorites.

Courtyard in the Vatican.  The gold globe is the newest addition
to the museum. 

Michelangelo's favorite sculpture that inspired
much of his own art. 

One of the many spectacular ceiling's
in the Vatican.

Maps from the 1400's that were 90% accurate. 

Guards at the door of the Basilica 

Finally, we arrived at the Sistine Chapel.  Unfortunately, cameras were not allowed in the Chapel, and it was very strictly enforced.  There were security guards screaming "NO CAMERAS" and "BE QUIET" the entire time we were in there.  Really took from the serene atmosphere.  Fortunately for us, Anton happened to be an expert on the Sistine Chapel.  He took us piece by piece through every frame on the walls and ceiling, going into full detail.  He also knew so much about the background of the contract to have it painted, like how Michelangelo hated it and wanted nothing to do with it, rushing through it so he could get to his sculpting.  All of it was very interesting.  We spent about 45 minutes in the Chapel, and then the tour was finished.  In the Sistine Chapel there is a door on the far corner that leads right to St. Peter's Basilica.  But the gift shops were on the opposite side of the museum, so in an effort to get the tourists to buy souvenirs, they have security at the convenient exit, and make everybody walk all the way back through the museum and then around half the city walls just to get back to the Basilica.  Really annoying.  So Jackie and I, and another couple we befriended from Paris, went to a little restaurant on the way towards the Basilica.  We got some pretty good pizza, then headed for the church.  We waited in line with our Parisian friends, then went our own separate ways.  Inside St. Peter's was amazing.  It was so humongous inside, and it reminded me of the part in Lord of the Rings when they go into the Mines of Moria, just gigantic.

Entrance to the Basilica 

Alter in the Basilica 

Kevin :)

Me looking very small next to the big statues

We walked around inside the church and took a few pictures of the sculptures and architecture inside.  It was getting late and I really wanted to see the tomb of John Paul II, but couldn't find it.  We got sent in three different directions by everyone we asked, finally able to find it with about three minutes until they were closing for the night.  Lucky me!  I apologized to Jackie for making her run around like a madman, but she was understanding as usual.  We left the Basilica as the sun was starting to go down, and decided to take the metro to the Trevi Fountain instead of walking.  We wanted to be able to get pictures of it during the day because the camera wasn't doing very well at night.  We hurried to the metro and got on when it was fairly empty.  Well, at the next stop half of Rome got on and we were shoved into the middle.  Our stop was the next one, which nobody had to get off except us.  So all the people crowding to get on at our stop didn't let us out.  We literally had to body check people out of the way until we barely got out as the doors closed.  Close call!  We passed by the Spanish Steps, where it was totally packed.  Luckily, at the pub crawl the night before we got to see the Steps fairly empty because when we got there after the metro, it was a zoo.  It's the number two pickpocket spot in the world so we didn't stick around long.

In front of the Spanish Steps 

Number two pick-pocketing spot in the world.
Not very comforting.  I clung to my bag the
entire time.  

Kevin and I at the Trevi Fountain 

Afterwards, we went to Trevi, and it was beautiful.  It was really crowded, but we managed to get a good seat and take some great pictures.  It's the largest fountain in Europe (I think) and it was very cool.  Jackie and I threw in a couple 1 cent euros and made a wish, then went and got a good spot and watched the sun set behind the fountain.  It was very cool.  We had done a ton of walking that day so it was nice to just sit and relax for a bit.

The disappointment of going into Hard Rock then being forced to leave because of time had really gotten to Jack.  We decided to go back for round two.  We were just going to stay in that night so we could wait as long as necessary.  We headed over there and got a reservation, then headed back to the hostel so Jackie could change because she was very cold.  We got back and two minutes later our name was called.  We both ordered burgers, split a side caesar, and got two waters for a grand total of 50 US dollars. Wow.  But, it was really good and we had some fun just hanging out at the restaurant so there are bigger tragedies than an expensive burger.

Kevin and I on the Trevi Fountain  

Trevi Fountain - Rome, Italy

Biggest rip-off of our lives!