Vacation Rome Part 2

Ok, so here are some more photos from Rome. What a great place. Certainly our favourite city on the trip.

This photo was actually taken on our first night in Rome. We had a few sandwiches and water under the beautiful fountains in Piazza Navona. For those history buffs all the beautiful fountains were made by the famous Bernini.

Don't know the name of this building, but it sat at the end of a small little street and just had this mystical look to it.

Very nice building, but no idea of the name. Let me know if you know the name!

This is a photo of the Piazza de Popolo and the church in its same name. It is very famous as three of the main streets in the older district meet at this piazza. The church had these amazing marble skeletons which you can see below. Never saw anything like them anywhere else in our travels.I really like these sculptures. I am not into skulls & bones, but it does look amazing to see it.

You see these type of things in the churches and this is then why you need more time in this great city to really understand the meanings.

Finally after so so much walking we got to have a nice Italian lunch in an outdoor cafe near the Vatican. Got some other tourists to take this shot.

After standing in a one kilometre long line to get into the Vatican we finally made it to the entrance. We did not know what to full expect, but we left really touched by the experience. Not so much as a religious experience, but to be immersed in such preserved history. It was in some places almost overwhelming the art and history that surrounded us.

Looking out onto some of the many gardens spread throughout the Vatican City.

The three photos above we taken through the various gardens of the Vatican. The small head water fountain was really quiet interesting.

This hall was one of the highlights of not only the Vatican but all of Europe. I sadly do not know the name, though once I know I will add it. I believe this hall must have stretched for no less than 750 metres. It was covered from floor to ceiling with all types of art, from path names, sculptures, tapestry's, and more. The details we amazing, and the time we spent paid no justice at all to the art in this hall. I honestly felt guilty for the pace we set moving through the room. But time was not on our side, and I guess a future trip will be needed.

It is not the clearest of shots as using a flash is absolutely prohibited, as is talking! This is the most famous Sistine Chapel. To pretend to be a historian for a moment, let me give some information; When used in an official capacity it is where the cardinals meet to elect a new Pope. They do this under the great frescoes created by Michelangelo. The ceiling was done entirely by Michelangelo and no one else. It took him four years from 1508 to 1512. It is so complex the story, and intriguing. It tells stories from the creation of man to the redemption of mankind. Pictures of planets, and the sun. Pictures of land and sea, and the beginning of animals. Then in 1536 he was asked again to paint the back wall which is above. This creation took him 5 years and is the most famous of Michelangelo's works; The Last judgment. There are a total of 391 figures in this painting with Christ the Judge as the centre figure. The other side wall frescoes were done by several artists and were actually begun around 1481.

So my final words on the Sistine Chapel was WOW. I mean you were surrounded by so much art that I could not really take control of my thoughts and visual senses. When you look through this room you are almost confused, not sure what to look at, and not sure how to work your eyes through the room. It does not help that the room is crowded with so many other eager tourists trying to do the same as me. Anyway, an experience not to forget.

So here is the great St. Peter's Basilica. It is the greatest church for the Christian Faith and originated in 324 as a shrine for the mortal remains of St. Peter. The building itself that we look at today took hundreds of years to complete.

Several shots taken inside the Basilica. Left is St. Peters eternal tomb. Other two shots inside the Basilica. The shots though do not pay justice to the size of the church. It really was so big.

Here we are finally standing outside the St. Peters Basilica in St. Peters square, also known as Piazza San Pietro.

Piazza San Pietro almost over powers the Basilica but actually adds to the visual power of this area. It was created by Gian Lorenzo Bernini in the mid 17th century. There are 284 columns arranged in four rows and surmounted by 140 great statues of saints and martyrs. There are two amazing fountains on either side as you can see, and the Egyptian obelisk in the centre which was brought to Rome from Heliopolis in 1586.