Rome, Italy -- Day 2

Monday, October 21, 2013

Rome, Italy

The Vatican

We got up for the major breakfast buffet and then our driver, Stefano, picked us up to take us to the Vatican.  Stefano was our driver who picked us up from the cruise terminal and drove us to Pisa and back to Rome.

We had reservations and a private guide for the Vatican.  Another time that it is so worth the money to not have to wait in the huge line to get in.  Our guide was Andrea and he was extremely interesting and gave us a very in-depth view of the Vatican and the works of art inside. 

There really are no words for the Vatican… it is truly a beautiful place.  The Sistene Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica were fabulous.

St. Peter's Basilica Dome

There we are!

A small dome.

See how the tile looks 3D?

That's a big bowl!

One of the many wall paintings.

The ceiling.

A tapestry

Another small dome.

A Michelangelo statue of Mary and Jesus.

St. Peter's Basilica

A dome in the basilica

This is a beautiful stained glass behind the pulpit area of St. Peter's Basilica.

The width of this is over five feet.

 

Some cherubs at the holy water fountain.

A Swiss Guard

Both of the Swiss Guards

The Pope's window

The front of the Vatican.

 

 

This is the end of our tour of Rome.  We did a whirlwind trip through Rome and it's a fabulous city... crazy streets and really crazy drivers.

Bob and Denise are off to the Rome Airport Hilton and Jim, Tracy and I are off into town to pick up a few last minute gifts.  We were dropped off by our driver, Stefano and were going to catch the hotel bus back.  We missed the bus and decided to take a cab.  Oh my.... what a ride it was.  Tracy and I didn't know whether to keep our eyes open or close them and just pray!  There are no lanes in Rome and there aren't many stop lights and I think anything goes.  Who ever is bigger or more daring gets the right of way.  We sped past other cars, almost ran over a person trying to cross the street, got yelled at by a policeman and the driver yelled back.  We laughed and laughed and Jim says he really has had the full Rome experience now.

 

Tracy, Larry, Jim and I went down to the patio again and had some pizza and focaccia and visited with Melinda, a very sweet young woman who waited on us the previous night. 

 

Tomorrow the four of us go to the Rome Airport Hilton for the night so we can get to Terminal 5 bright and early for our flight.  We understand that you must be to the Rome airport three hours before your flight because of the huge delays that are normal here.