Rome wasn't built in a day...but we saw it in one

The next morning Kirsten and I awoke feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the sights of Rome.  Emily slept in because she had already been to Rome and she hadn't been feeling 100%.  First on the list was a visit to the smallest country in the world-Vatican City!

One of the great things about traveling in the off season is there was NO LINE at the Vatican Museums!  I almost didn't believe it.  Inside the museums, there is ancient, Renaissance and modern art.  I saw a mummy with her head, hands and feet unwrapped-that was awe inspiring; frescoes by Raphael; sculptures of humans and animals; tapestries, maps and modern paintings by Chagall, Van Gogh and Dali. 

Next was the crown jewel, the piece de resistance: The Sistine Chapel.  I felt really silly for thinking the Creation painting by Michaelangelo was the only one on the ceiling.  There are definitely much more, each one depicting a scene from Genesis.  It was supposed to be silent inside, after all, it is a chapel.  But there were quite a few tour groups, so there was a low humming of people talking.  One guard's job was to "shush" all of us.  I think that job would get really old, really fast.  It was not as crowded inside the chapel as it would be in the summertime.  I actually could sit down and gaze upwards to the ceiling!

It took a few hours to get through the majority of exhibits at the museums.  Our second destination was the Basilica di San Pietro (St. Peter's).  Kirsten and I gasped at the ridiculously long line that snaked around the colonnade (created by Bernini).  We did suck it up and waited about 30 minutes to get in. 

The wait was well worth it.  I was entertained by the couple in front of us in line.  They spoke Spanish with no lisp and were excessively and publicly displaying their affection.  Then, whenever the man would take a picture of the girl in front of the basilica, she would never smile. It was weird. 

My favorite part of St. Peter's was the tombs of the popes.  In front of John Paul the Second's tomb, there was a myriad of flowers, candles and other trinkets.  In addition to all of that, there was an area for people to kneel and pray in front of his tomb.  As we strolled by, Kirsten remarked, "I don't know who that guy was, but it looks like he was pretty important. "  I couldn't help but burst out laughing.  "Kirsten, that was the last pope who just died 3 years ago!" I said. 

Coming up out of the crypt, we were in awe of the sheer grandeur of the inside of St. Peter's.  Catholic churches in general have a bunch of things going on at once (By this, I mean everywhere you look, there are sculptures, frescoes, stained glass windwos, etc.), but this is the MOTHER of all catholic churches.  I tried to get a glimpse of St Peter's tomb-it was relatively difficult to tell where his exact tomb was, what with all of the other adornments. 

We met up with Emily in front of the obelisk in the middle of the piazza and wet to get some lunch at a trattoria.  Lasagna, green salad and a golf ball size of gelato was not life changing, but still good. 

After that brief respite, we took the Metro (the dirtiest metro any of us have been on thus far) to the Colosseum.  They charged us an arm and a leg to get in (ha,ha) but it was worth it.  I was reminded of Floyd Casey Stadium while walking around in there (our team members being the animals, the opposing team being the gladiators).  Seriously though, I would have loved to see the Colosseum in its heyday.  I tried to imagine the shouts of the crowd, the powerful and wild animals skittering about on the floor, the overall atmosphere of the sporting event.  Five thousand animals died in the arena within the first 100 days of opening.  PETA must have been pissed. 

No rest for the weary-after the Colosseum we had to take the Metro, a bus and walk for about 15 minutes to get to the Appian Way/St. Sebastian catacombs.  What we saw here was what I expected to see in Paris.  But, I  now was expecting something similar to the Parisian catacombs. 

[Let me break it down for you.  Paris=BONES, Rome=NO BONES.  I didn't expect to see bones in Paris, but I did.  I expected to see bones in Rome, but didn't.] 

As far as shock value, Paris=1, Rome=0.  These Roman catacombs were interesting due to the history.  Early Christians constructed the area underneath the Romans' ashes.  Cemeteries, under Roman law, had to be constructed outside the walls of the city.  This makes sense when you consider the easy transmission of diseases and pestilence in those days. 

After the catacombs, (it was dark by this time) we visited the Pantheon and saw Raphael's tomb, went to Trevi Fountain (I had no coins to throw, and it's highly illegal to steal some out of the fountain) and the Spanish steps.  I followed all of this with half of a a buffalo mozzarella and cherry tomato pizza and a nice warm bed.