Annie was getting ready to go to her classes, so after
getting myself awake and dressed, I joined her on her walk across Rome. Adelle wanted to sleep in after her flights,
so I let her be as I would be back after the walk to go explore with her. Annie took me to her favorite little café
near the Trevi fountain to get a cappuccino.
I usually don’t drink cappuccinos as I prefer a strong cup of black
coffee, but when in Rome….and they were delicious, every one I had. It was also nice to see the fountain before
all the crowds came too. We had it to
ourselves for a nice little period of contemplation.
I wound up exploring a little bit after Annie departed and
then headed back to the apartment to pick up Adelle and really get the day
going. We had several hours before I had
a tour scheduled at the Vatican. We went
back to the Trevi Fountain for lunch, since Annie recommended a pizza place
right on the piazza. I don’t have the
name (they had scaffolding up to work on the building and I didn’t look for a
business card) but if you are looking at the fountain straight on, it’s on your
left in that row of shops. And the pizza
was delicious! I had a slice that had
burrata and prosciutto – the cheese was more like butter or cream cheese; and a
slice that was basically a form of bruschetta – all fresh tomatoes and basil,
with a little mozzarella. Both slices
were incredibly flavorful and melted in my mouth! It was probably the best pizza I had in
Italy.
After sitting at the fountain and eating my pizza, we made
our way over to the metro stop a few blocks away (which was a chore to find
with all the windy streets), and hopped on a train across town towards the Vatican. While the metro won’t take you directly
there, it does take you close by and you just have to walk several blocks.
When you walk into the square in front of St. Peter’s
Basilica, it really is stunning. The
center contains the obelisk, and there were chairs set out in the front of the
basilica for a mass (All Saint’s Day was coming at the end of the week). You’ll be glad to hear, I didn’t burst into
flames when I set foot onto the Vatican’s grounds….not even a burning
sensation! (HA!) We walked around the
square and Adelle snapped a few photos of me.
We even visited the post office to enquire if we could get our passports
stamped (it is a separate country, after all).
They knew before we even asked…and promptly, but politely told us no.
Adelle had to run to meet Annie, so she left me to wander
around for about an hour before I met my tour group. I stopped at a little café across from the
entrance to the Vatican museum (it’s around the side from the main entrance to
the public square) and had a little nibble and some prosecco while I
waited. It wasn’t anything special, so I
didn’t really take note of the restaurant or the food; it was just a place to
rest up.
Oh, did I mention how humid it was in Italy. The temperature was average, maybe in the 70s,
low 80s, but the humidity was awful. I
sweat under my jeans the minute I walked about the door. And walking up and down the hills and
hustling around town made it worse. It
really was shorts weather, but unfortunately you can’t enter any “holy” place
in Rome in shorts, which is basically any building. So I sweat a LOT!
Eventually my tour time came around, so I joined the
group. I had booked a very small,
private tour of the Vatican through Viator.
The provider was actually Dark Rome (www.darkrome.com), and I can highly
recommend them for tours in the city.
The tour I had booked gave us access to rooms at the museum and the
Vatican that the general public just doesn’t get to see, plus we got the
Sistine Chapel all to ourselves at the end of the tour for about 20-30
minutes. Just the 10 of us, no one else
(other than the guide and security).
We started the tour off at the museum, which is the old
Vatican palace. It’s a huge museum. It would take months to see everything in the
collection available to the public. Our
guide, Rachel, was an Irish ex-pat who moved to Rome. She had a very broad knowledge of the Vatican
and the art the museum contained.
Because I was part of a small group, private tour, we had access to
rooms that were not available to the general public. Sadly, you are not allowed to use flash
photography, and cannot take any pictures in the basilicas or chapels.
In the old Papal Palace that now serves as the museum, there
is a huge courtyard where there are some statues, as well as a modern art
sculpture. It’s just so weird to imagine
that for hundreds of years, Popes and Cardinals roamed around this place.
Our guide took us up the Bramante staircase – or more
accurately, ramp. It was an add-on on
one side of the palace that the papal architect, Bramante, designed and built
to move art and sculptures in and out of the palace. From the top, you get some amazing views of
Rome. It was never really finished as it
seems to end short at the top, but it served a good purpose.
From then on, we were rushed around various galleries and
rooms, many of which the public doesn’t see, with our museum tour ending in
Raphael’s rooms. These were the rooms
that were painted by Raphael’s students, or himself, for the Pope, and were
used as meeting rooms for dignitaries, dining rooms, and even a library. Just beyond one of Raphael’s rooms we were
taken into an antechamber that adjoins the apartments currently occupied by
Cardinals. Interesting, the new Pope,
Francis, refused rooms in the papal apartments and instead occupies a more
mundane setup across the Vatican at a building built by John Paul II for
visiting clergy – kind of like a Holiday Inn Express, so to speak. This antechamber had been used by popes to
meet dignitaries, etc., and was a relatively important one – but now because it
is so old, it is kept locked up most of the time since too many people could
destabilize the floor (thus the small group allowed).
I saw so much, it’s hard to recall it all, but it all
impressed me greatly. It also reminded
me how much the church has used the money it collected from the public over the
years for what, in my mind, would be frivolous things. Granted, much incredible art and documents
have been kept and conserved by the Vatican for posterity, but the wealth that
moved through the hands of so few for the benefit of even fewer (until more
modern times) just galls me.
Anyway, today I benefit (albeit at an expense still to
myself) from prior generations dipping into their pocket for the church and the
papacy. Which brings me to the end of
our tour: the Sistine Chapel. Our group had the benefit of having the
chapel all to ourselves, for nearly a half hour. The security shooed out everyone (it was time
to close the chapel to the general public), then we were allowed in to have it
alone. Our guide explained, in detail,
each of the amazing panels overhead that Michelangelo painted so very long
ago. The detail in the restored frescoes
is amazing. Even though they are high
overhead, you could see clearly the detail, the lines on the faces, etc. And you could see Michelangelo’s progression
through the years. As you walk in the
front of the chapel, you really start with the end of the Genesis story, and
end with creation above the altar – it’s all about perspective: a priest (pope) from the altar would see it
in the correct progression.
The last judgment is behind the altar. It’s a sight to behold. Michelangelo apparently started at the end as
well when he started painting. His first
frescoes, you can see that he was still learning the technique, as well as
figuring out perspective, since he basically painted a panel within a panel,
making it appear smallish when you compare it to later frescoes. He finally figured out he should use the
whole panel and make it larger.
And you can see what he thought of people by his use of
various cardinals and contemporary people (as well as historical figures) that
he painted into the Last Judgment. He
had a wicked sense of humor, and his patron pope seemed to agree with him,
though he thought he probably went too far at points.
Just standing there, observing, I was just in complete
awe. I wanted to lie down on the floor
and stare at it all, but we were running out of time, and something inside me
felt it might be too sacrilegious, even for me.
But then our time came to an end, and we were rushed out as the museum
was closing.
After that experience, I was left feeling – I don’t know,
maybe incredulous? It’s hard to put into words.
But it’s an experience I am glad I had.
It was late now, and I was supposed to meet Annie and Adelle
for dinner. I tried to make my way
towards where they were, in a piazza on the other side of the river. I made a beeline down the street that was
supposed to take me to the bridges and away from the Vatican, and I saw towers
that were supposed to be to Castel next to the river and the bridges, but as I
got close, I realized I was back at the front of the Vatican again and had
turned in the wrong direction at some point and wasted about 15 minutes. Argggg!
Plus I was sweating profusely from the humidity, even at this time of
the evening. Eventually I managed to get
myself out of the maze of streets and on the right path and met up with them.
Annie took us took us to a restaurant in the Jewish quarter
of Rome (not far from the apartment) to enjoy some good Roman cuisine with a
Jewish twist. Ristorante Il Giordino (http://www.ilgiardinoromano.it/web/)
is in an alley way off the beaten path.
They are known for their deep fried artichokes. I am not a big fan of artichokes, but these
were delicious. Of course, deep frying
just about anything can make it tasty!
For my main dish I had a lovely pasta.
Of course, I don’t remember exactly everything we had, but I do know the
meal was worth the hoofing it across town to meet up with the ladies, and I can
recommend trying to artichokes. We also
kept cracking up the wait staff with our comments.
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