Day 28 – May 13 Friday

Back to tour mode – wake-up call at 6am & depart at 7.15am for the Vatican.  We were the 2^nd tour group there & only waited a short while before the 8am opening with our local guide Nicoletta.  We went through the Vatican museums first, admiring all the magnificent statues & paintings, plus a pair of magnificent red marble sarcophagus 2,000 years old.  We entered a closed hall hung with ancient tapestries & marvelled at the size & detail of all the magnificent works of art before entering a very long hall with painted & decorated ceilings.  The paintings on the ceiling were wonderful, with the artist having the ability to make them look three dimensional.  Then it was down a few flights of narrow stairs & we were in the Sistine Chapel.

The paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo are astounding, then you turn around & see the wall he also painted later – magnificent – he was really talented.  I’ve seen the photos in books but the reality is so much better.  Next it was into St Peter’s Basilica, the largest church in the world.  The height of the dome is amazing, plus the sheer volume of space inside.  The pictures on the walls are all mosaics in marble, absolutely amazing, than the patterned marble floor is all stolen from ancient Roman ruins, including the Colosseum.  The different altars around the church are all beautiful, then the main altar is especially so.  We went past some coffins of  popes with death  mask of wax & even  silver but John Paul II is interned in a plain marble coffin.  As we walked out the front door we saw the line up of people waiting to get in – my goodness – at least an hour or so standing in the sun in the square – I’m so glad we were on a tour & finished – it was hot – 31C in Rome today.  The obelisk in the square is the largest in Rome & was used to crucify St Peter upside down & then beheaded.  It makes no difference if you are a Christian believer or not you can’t help being blown away by all the magnificent skill of the artists & the enormity of it all, words & photos can’t possibly describe it, you have to actually see it to be awe struck.

Next to the Colosseum & Nicolette gave us a very good explanation of what, why, who & how.  Today we were inside the Colosseum with our tour group & were able to see the seating plus the vast amount of underground structure to support all of the events.   It is huge inside as well & after all the photos we waited in the shade for our walk back to the bus, then hotel for a late lunch.

After lunch siesta time then a walk to the Piazza Del Popolo, a gateway in the old city walls before walking along the gardens of the Villa Borghese, where we came across another obelisk.  This one was a memory to the Roman victory in Romania  We saw the museum to Leonardo Da Vinci & went in for a fascinating exploration of his work – what a genius this man was – architect, engineer, & painter – so talented.  We continued on to the top of the Spanish steps, what great views over the city.  A walk down Via del Corso & then around the Mausoleum of Augustin before back to a small cafe near the hotel & magnificent sea food Italian dinner.   It was really good.  The noise of a rally of old cars kept blaring past as we were eating – they must  have made around six laps of the circuit around the city in the time we were eating – police escort with sirens blaring & all.

Today was our last day in Rome, 6 days really went fast, we have walked many kilometre & seen so many wonderful things, we have fallen in love with this beautiful city of history, art, ruins & architecture & it’s people.  We will leave with heavy hearts.