Vatican City.

We were up by 7:30 and to the museum by 9:30.  After a minimal peek at our drivers' licenses and bag check, we were through the turnstiles and into the Vatican Museum.  Our time was 10:30, but I guess it was just suggested...

We started with the Egyptian section of the museum. There's an extensive collection - lots of interesting artifacts.

Then we moved on to the Greek and Roman areas. A number of the statues are examples of the best in Roman sculpture.

Considered the most perfect statue of its time because of the musculature and balance of the pose

The river god Arno

Laocoon, the Trojan who said, "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts."  He is a character in The Iliad.

Next, we moved through the hall of tapestries, a few of which focused on the assassination of Julius Caesar.

There was yet another hall leading to the Sistine Chapel.  Note the amount of people walking through!

 

This hall was the hall of maps - what a beautiful collection of maps of the various parts of Italy!

Map circa 1500 of the world

After the maps, there were some gorgeous tables made of marble.

Our final destination in the museum was the Sistine Chapel, where the guards were ever vigilant against the taking of pictures and talking.  It was totally not what I expected -- huge with MANY different paintings adorning a huge space.  You actually had to look for a while to find the giving of life to Adam.

We sat there for a while and read our guide book while looking at all the frescoes.

And the way out of the museum...!!


Afterwards, we had a light lunch outside - it was a lovely afternoon.

Our view from the table at lunch - each section of this building was named after a famous artist

Next, we walked to the Basilica of St. Peter, where the Pope lives and also says Mass.

In front of the church

The first place I wanted to see was Michelangelo's Pieta.  It did not disappoint - I actually shed a tear upon seeing it.

Impressive stone work with the folds in this robe!

The center of the basilica

The interior of this place was incredibly impressive, but of course work continually needs to be done to keep it this way.

Bob walked the many steps to the top of the dome while I waited at the base.

The steps to go down from the top...

As we left the basilica, guess what we saw!

Mysterious ways....

We stopped on our way back to the metro station for some wine and a break from the little rain shower we were caught in.

House red - always good! And the waiter was a hoot!

Back at the hotel, Bob took a siesta while I perused the shops and a possible dinner choice.  We had dinner at a little place right around the corner from our hotel. 

Gnocchi with parmesan and sage

Spaghetti with tomatoes and artichokes

And no meal would be complete without Bob's new favorite after dinner drink -- limoncello.