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Our second day in Rome had us visiting the Vatican.
Our second day in Rome had us visiting the Vatican. If you haven’t read about our first day in Rome, click here! We had again booked tickets through Get Your Guide and our first tour was booked for 8:50 am. Due to the previous day’s events, Hayley’s early morning tumble and my footwear friction, we decided not to make the hour-long walk from our hotel. Instead, we hired a cab. Getting a ride was an easy process using Uber. The trip across the city was quick and cost us less than €10.
We exited our taxi at the piazza outside the Vatican entrance.
It was a perfect day for visiting the Vatican, with brilliantly clear blue skies. Our meeting point for the guide was easy to find with the Get Your Guide app. The point is clearly stated in your booking and can link the coordinates to either Apple or Google Maps. After checking in with the tour operator, we joined the group.
The first tickets of the day were for the dome climb of St. Peter’s Basilica, a guided tour of the Basilica and access to the crypt below.
The group followed the bouncing flag carried by our guide around the corner and into Piazza San Pietro to join the queue. The line snaked across the Piazza and at first, seemed like it would take an eternity to reach the entrance. The time did allow us to listen to our informative guide via radio.
I felt immediately that visiting the Vatican was going to be an excellent way to spend the day.
At the centre of the Piazza stands an ancient obelisk originally raised in Heliopolis, Egypt in 30 BC. After being moved to Alexandria, where it stood until 37 AD, it was transported to Rome and installed in the centre of Circus Nero. The obelisk has been in its current location since 1586. The Baroque Colonnade surrounding the Piazza was built in the mid-17th Century and consists of almost 300 columns and topped with 140 statues.
I was already in awe and we hadn’t even entered.
The first part of our tour was climbing the dome of St. Peter’s. Of course, what would a visit to any kind of religious institution be without ascending a million stairs? Visiting the Vatican was no different. After passing through a security check, we waited for our turn to ride the lift up. Sadly, it simply took us to the base of the dome.
The climb that ensued took us through narrow passages and upstairs that followed the curvature of the dome. At approximately the halfway point, we were treated to an interior view of the basilica from a balcony that took us around the inside circumference of the dome. This was followed by more off-kilter stairs and even narrower passageways.
Once we arrived at the top of the dome we were treated to an incredible view from not only the tallest building in Rome’s ancient centre but the tallest dome in the world! This was one of the rare times that the height did not terrify me. There was ample room to move about, the railings were sufficient and the slope of the dome reassured me that a fall wouldn’t be straight down.
I enjoyed being able to take photos (obviously the Altar of the Fatherland was a point of focus for the camera) without fear. We then descended to the base of the dome to continue our tour. It was now late in the morning and the sun was beginning to heat up. Our group followed the bouncing flag into St. Peter’s Basilica for the next part of the tour.
We have visited our share of churches and cathedrals, but this Basilica was on another level.
St. Peter’s is the largest church in the world and it is enormous. It’s no wonder that it took over 120 years to construct, ending in 1626. Even though we don’t identify as religious people, this Basilica definitely makes visiting the Vatican worth it. The architecture, sculptures and lavish marble and gold gilding are absolutely jaw-dropping.
The tour also took us through the Crypt below the church. In 1939, archaeological work began in a previously inaccessible area underneath the Basilica. It is believed that St. Pete was buried here after his execution by Nero in the First Century AD. There are also over 90 Popes and other notable historical figures, including Roman Emperor Otto II buried here. Visitors are expected to stay silent while touring the crypt and photographs are forbidden.
Upon the tour’s completion, we were able to spend some more time in the Basilica.
We took some photos and tried to take in as much of the church as possible, but it would truly take hours to see all of just the interior of the Basilica and we were getting hungry.
There are limited options when it comes to food inside Vatican City, so we did some research on the area beforehand. Mama Eat Lab, just around the corner came up on our search for gluten-free restaurants. The food was delicious and it was impossible to tell that it was gluten-free.
When visiting the Vatican, this place is a must even if you do not have dietary restrictions.
The next activity of our day visiting the Vatican.
It was a rather long walk along the Vatican City walls to get to the Vatican Museums. We had pre-booked our tickets through Get Your Guide to save us time waiting in line. Our tickets were waiting for us at the Get Your Guide desk inside.
Get Your Guide; Vatican: Museums & Sistine Chapel Entrance Ticket
The museums consist of 24 galleries with a vast collection of 20,000 works on display. The collection includes paintings, sculptures and religious artifacts.
There are paintings from the Renaissance era from Da Vinci and Raphael to modern pieces by Van Gough, Picasso and Salvador Dali. The Gallery of Maps is a 120-meter-long gallery with 40 panels of topographical maps of Italy painted in the 16th Century.
Of course, the most famous attraction of the Museum is the Sistine Chapel.
Although construction was completed in 1481, it was the painting of the ceiling done by Michaelangelo between 1508-1512 that has been the centrepiece of the chapel for five hundred years. It is incredible to imagine that one man had completed this work of art on his own.
Our time spent in the Sistine chapel was slightly frustrating. Not all of our fellow tourists were respecting the request for silence or the ban on photography inside the chapel. Every five or six minutes the security detail would speak over the microphone and ask the crowd for silence. The silence would last about two minutes before the whispers turned louder.
So, if you find yourself in the Sistine Chapel one day, please keep your phones and cameras in your bag and just wait till you are outside to make your lunch plans.
We had spent almost the entire day visiting Vatican City.
There still was more to see, but I think it would be easy to spend another day exploring. One point I should mention is that Vatican City is a state that is independent of Italy. There is a pharmacy that claims to be the busiest in the world, serving over two thousand customers daily. You can also buy stamps that are not available anywhere else in the world at one of four post office branches. Mail a postcard to family or a friend through Vatican City’s own postal service as a souvenir from your day visiting the Vatican.
Whether your desire to visit is based on religious faith or interest in history, visiting the Vatican should be on your to-do list in Rome. With its amazing architecture and history dating back over two thousand years, you will not be disappointed.