The Vatican

I didn't specifically mention the Vatican during my whirlwind summary of Rome, and that's because the Vatican is not in Rome.  Vatican City is completely surrounded by Rome, yet it is an independent country -- the world's smallest in both area and population.  It is the seat of the Catholic Church.  Vatican City is considered an absolute monarchy ruled by the Pope, who is both the head of state and the head of the Catholic Church.

Tomasso, our guide for the Colosseum tour, was also our tour guide for the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica.  We've found that hiring a private guide for such history-rich sites like the Colosseum and the Vatican are well worth the investment.

With our guide Tomasso

As we walked through the Vatican Museum and saw so many pieces of priceless art and artifacts, Tomasso reinforced that the early popes behaved essentially like kings.  They acquired wealth and that wealth was used to buy expensive items such as sculptures, paintings, and tapestries which are priceless artifacts today.  Their wealth was also used to build and expand the "palace" which now houses the Vatican Museum.

Seeing the Sistine Chapel was both awe-inspiring and yet indescribable.  Photography is not allowed in the chapel, so we only have our visual memories to remember.  Sorry, no pictures.

Michelangelo's Pieta

We finished our tour in St. Peter's Basilica, the largest church in the world.  There are markers on the floor that show where other cathedrals would end relative to St. Peter's, completely fitting inside with room to spare.  We saw several that we've visited through our travels, including Washington National Cathedral in D.C., St. Paul's in London, and the Florence Cathedral with Brunelleschi's dome.  In short, St. Peter's is cavernous and takes pride in it.

Swiss Guard

We walked through the cathedral amazed at its beauty and its religious history.  We saw Michelangelo's Pieta, carved when he was only 23.  We walked around Bernini's gilded canopy that covers the high altar.  We also heard singing and organ music coming from a side chapel from a mass in progress, filling the space with such beautiful sound to match what our eyes were seeing.

Our tour was late in the day, so it was close to 7:00pm before we left the basilica.  Darkness had fallen and we got to see St. Peter's bathed in light.  A lovely end to a lovely day.