Rome - The Capital of the World

Thank goodness the Italians aren't dramatic or they may come up with grandiose names for "THE City." (I think I just got sarcasm on my keyboard)

I want to let you see the "Eternal City" of Rome. It really is a beautiful place with an ancient artifact around every corner. It was amazing and encouraging to see how remnants of the ancient world are being preserved and how the demands on the present world are being met at the same time. Well, enough jabber, let's get on with it...

Day 1 - Sistina Capella

For our first day out, we decided to see the "Holy See." Lane and I were both pretty pumped about seeing the Sistine Chapel. I have a program that sends me a religious painting every few days and I can't tell you how many of them have come either from the Chapel itself or the museums that are included in the tour. So, with instructions from Jess and Alex on how to get there, much enthusiasm about seeing some of the world's most famous pieces of art, and the soul soothing sounds of this guy on the tram, we were on our way.

Friendly Neighborhood Minstrel
Thanks to our wonderful directions, we found the place very easily. It's hard to miss the largest Christian church in the world and the tallest building in the city of Rome.

Welcome to the biggest church in the world in the smallest nation in the world. St. Peter's, Vatican City.
There are four things I expected to see while at the Vatican. I got to see three of them. Unfortunately, the Pope was no where to be found. But we did see...

Nuns of all colors! I have read that there is a meaning behind the color of their "habits" (nun outfits), but I don't remember what grey means.
Strange dudes in funny clothes! This was actually a step up for the Vatican guard from their usual attire. (Google Vatican guards to see what I mean.)
Amazing works of art! This is the inside of the basilica, but the picture doesn't do it justice.
Works like this (Raphael's "Transfiguration") were around, and in, every corner.
From St. Peter's we made our way to the Vatican Museums. By "make our way" I mean that we followed the Vatican wall around past the hundred African and South Asian immigrants that were selling fake Chanel, Prada, and Luis Vuitton bags on the sidewalk. I didn't stop to talk to any of them because all the Wolof I could remember was "I speak a little Wolof" and "I want to go to sea." I didn't think that would get me far.

So we got in to the Vatican Museums. I didn't really know what to expect, since I hadn't done my homework before going. All I really knew was that the Sistine Chapel was waiting for us at the end. What I saw before we ever got there was worth the price of admission.

The first thing that really got my attention was the "Hall of Maps." We had been walking through a few rooms with sculptures and things, but this room was the first one (of many) that made me stop and stare for a while. It was a long hallway that was decorated with these huge maps on the walls and beautiful paintings and guilding on the ceiling.

A view of the ceiling. Every inch was covered with something beautiful.
Lane really liked this room. The big maps were quite impressive.
From there, we wandered through hallways and bedrooms in the Apostolic Palace. These were rooms that were largely decorated by Raphael or his assistants and students. I really enjoyed these rooms. I was blown away by Raphael's use of color and how it gave the paintings such depth.

The Deliverance of Saint Peter
Maybe Raphael's greatest work, The School of Athens.
After taking in these great works, we then meandered through the modern art section. There were some interesting things, to put it nicely. Modern art is one of those things that is either cool and dead on, or is wacky and out there. There doesn't seem to be much middle ground. But we found quite a few pieces that were very well done. To my surprise, I got to see a couple Salvador Dali paintings in the collection. These were some cool things we saw, though I don't know who did them.




From there it was on, finally, to the Sistine Chapel. Everything you have heard about it is true. It's amazing. The ceiling is beautiful, there's no denying it. It is beyond my comprehension how a man can make such beautiful pictures. The thing that really took my breath was the huge Last Judgment that takes up the entire wall behind the altar. It was like nothing I've ever seen before. They wouldn't allow you to take pictures, and you could find better pictures online anyhow, so I don't have anything to show you here.

From there, it was off to find a slice of pizza and a way home. I developed a bit of a headache throughout the day. Everybody showed a lot of grace towards me by letting me drift off to sleep on the couch that evening. That was the end of DAY 1 of our Roman vacation. Man, it makes me tired just telling you guys about it.

Sleep tight Pope!