Day 12 - Rome - Vatican Tour

March 22, 2019

Our first day in Rome was meant to ease us into touring this amazing city. We had five full days ahead of us here, so no need to rush the major attractions.

We had a nice breakfast at the B & B and met Beverly, the person who'd be serving breakfast for the next few days. As well as laying out the typical Italian breakfast, she made Espresso for Edith and Americano for me each day. She was originally from the Phillipines and had made her way to Rome with her husband and child. 

We were given instructions on how to get to the Vatican using the Rome Metro, which had a station very near to the B&B hotel. It was quite early and there were big line-ups to board the train.

Pickpocket attempt on the Metro

We were nearly the last people to board a crowded train, but a woman managed to squeeze through the doors before they closed. The stops and starts were sudden and I helped this woman keep her balance a couple of times. I also felt a tickling sensation inside my coat and pulled away thinking I might be a target of a pickpocket. 

After getting off the train, I mentioned this to Edith expecting to be told I was imagining things, but she had the same sensation around her purse. 

I had put my wallet in the inside pocket of my jacket which had a zipper that easily got stuck. That was enough to defeat the attempt. The woman did get into Edith's purse but only got a nylon carry bag that had Kleenex in it. Close Call.

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Vatican Tour

Here's our first view of St. Peter's Basilica as we entered the site. The obelisk is from the Circus of Nero, a circus in Ancient Rome. 

This next shot shows the Doric Colonnades that encircle part of the site.

The tour schedule for the Vatican is quite complex.

Edith had planned to tour the Vatican Museum on our first day, St. Peter's Basilica on the second and the Sistine Chapel on the third day.

However, on showing up we found that this would be difficult to arrange and we ended up doing all three on this first day. 

The blue flag on the right is also shown in the next photo. Each tour guide carries something distinctive that the tour members can lock on to and follow. Here's our guide, a very well spoken gentleman.

Since there are so many people and so many tours each day, most companies use radio transmitters and receivers so that the guides commentary can be heard.

Prior to the tour the tour members were asked to identify where they were from. As it turned out, the man behind Edith (and his family) were from Surrey BC.

Much of the rest of this post will not have much in the way of comments. It was impossible to remember everything we saw and there were only a few artifacts that had identifying signs.

Here's a sample of our guide speaking. Apologies if it appears sideways.

This is either Sehmet or Sekhmet, an Egyptian Goddess of War.

Self-explanatory item.

Some preparation for the Sistine Chapel, the last part of the tour. Absolutely no photos were allowed there.

A sphere within a sphere.

A statue with some Peacocks

With so many statues around, it makes sense to keep some spare heads available (Just kidding).

And here's a spare body for the heads.

This statue and painting combination was deemed worthy of a photo.

Here's a couple of views from high up in the Basilica.

A memorial for Leonardo Da Vinci

Next Stop:

The Roman God Ceres:

No information on this next one:

Here's Edith intently listening to our guide.

These are what the crowds were like in some of the narrower hallways.

And here's a movie taken from a crowded hallway.

The only reference to this statue is that originally the child had blue eyes.

All I can say is this is not the Sistine Chapel.

I found this painting with Google, but it was on a Vatican stock photo site.

This next one comes up as "Dove with Branch - St Peter's Basilica"

This is Michelangelo's Pieta, something identifiable at last.

Here's another great work that I can't identify.

This is Pope Gregory XVI

I can only think of Santa Clause with this one. Apparently many of the deceased popes are preserved in this fashion. This may be Pope John Paul II who died in 2005.

This is St. Peter’s Baldachin which is a large Baroque sculpted bronze canopy over the high altar at the Basilica.

The upper part of this structure is shown below. The item in the top middle does not show too well.

I zoomed in for a closer look:

This is a memorial to Pope Pius VIII who was pope for less than a year in 1829 and 1830

This is a Swiss guard, one of a small group who maintain the security of the Vatican. He decided I did not pose any threat with my camera.