Today I am going to the long awaited Vatican… I was anxious, excited, nervous, and dreading the thought of the mass amount of people I would see. Because it was a holiday in Roma, the streets were crowded, the shops were closed and the Vatican was busier than normal. I asked Carlo, who I look forward to chatting with every morning, the best way to get to my destination. He hesitantly asks me, “Can I call you a taxi, Miss Alexandria? This one is pretty, far…” “No Grazie, Carlo, no map and no taxi.” He laughs as if he already knew my answer but believes it never hurts to ask. He also knows warning me of the length of the walk, and the time it will take me to get there, falls on deaf ears. As he said, “walking keeps you in shape, and you must do a lot of walking.” Sweet Carlo proceeds to explain the route and, as always, makes sure all of my questions are answered before I walk out the door. He smiles with his infectious smile, reiterates to call if I need anything and leaves me with a “Ciao Bella.”
At the start of the day the weather is warm and sunny… perfect conditions for my walk. The walk is blissful and enjoyable now that I am familiar with the streets. I will not lie, the walk, just as everyone from Carlo to the polizia I stopped and asked for help had warned, was long, about 5 miles each way… not counting all the walking you do when you are there.
Per Carlo's instructions, I bought my ticket the night before. I planned a noontime reservation, whatever that meant, so I wanted to make it “on time”. The thing is in Roma is that every building is constructed with breathtaking architecture, and as a result, I thought every beautiful building was the museo because I didn’t really know what I was looking for.
When I got to the center, it was PACKED and it appeared everyone was listening to something. I figured it had to do with the holiday, so I proceeded to push my way up to the front. I was on a quest for a particular destination and that destination was the Vatican Museum, I had no time for Looky-Lous. Just as I was about to turn and run away, a voice caught my attention; it was frail, soft and spoke with no sense of urgency. Sure enough when I looked up, OH MY GOSH, it was the POPE!!!!
Now, I am not remotely CLOSE to being religious, however, religious or not, hearing the Pope speak is an honor, an extreme rarity and an inconceivable experience; it was quite overwhelming. Once I was able to gather myself, I proceeded to walk around the wall to continue my quest to the Vatican Museum… at first, I was thankful all those people were gathered only for the Pope’s speech on this historical day. However, my excitement quickly turned to disappointment when I arrived at the museo. A line, 4 and a half hours long (I later found out), stretched back several blocks. A woman even passed out in line, probably from heat exhaustion, dehydration or just because there were that many people; but I was on a mission and I was NOT about to wait in that madness. Yours truly marched her little tush right up to the door and told the guard that my “husband” was already inside and I had to run back to the hotel because I had forgotten the camera (I am going to hell… yes, I know). He looked at me and said go ahead, just as I heard another mutter something under his breath. But I was IN and I never looked back!
I quickly realized being alone was the best and most effective way to do such intricate sightseeing. Forget about my “looks”, being only one person is easy; it is oh “just one more person”… I have no doubt if I had been with a large group or even another person it would not have been that easy.
The Vatican Museum was beautiful, room after room after room, each with more magnificent paintings and sculptures than the one before. I took my time, I snapped about 300 pictures, and laughed at about 100 tourist groups (I wonder if they know how ridiculous they look). One person is talking into a little microphone, while about 40 people try to juggle listening, looking and processing the art… AND trying to “stay with the group”. I actually saw one guide loose the majority of her group and spend about 40 minutes trying to find them. It was pretty funny.
While in any sort of museum, gallery or “attraction” I have made it a rule to be Italian, not only is it fun way to practice the language, but it provides me a little entertainment. One couple from Ohio was doing the typical picture-taking process, one person poses while the other takes the photo and then they switch. When I saw this couple doing just that, I transformed into my Italian alter Ego, Alexandria (sounds very nice when Italians say it), and pointed back and forth to each and said “due” or “two”, indicating I would be happy to take a photo of the both of them capturing the fact they are actually on the same vacation. The woman almost wet her pants from excitement as she tells her husband to show me how to use the camera. “Si, Si, hai capito… pronto? Un, Due, Tre…” I say. The woman is quick to offer a photo of me too, which was nice… however how the whole thing went down made the situation nothing short of hysterical.
Picture it: she thinks I don’t speak English, so she proceeds not to speak slower, but louder. So this woman, wearing a fabulous orange ensemble, is about an arm’s length away from me yelling “DO YOU WANT ME TO TAKE A PHOTO OF YOUUUUU (yes, emphasizing the ‘you’ while gesturing the “snap shot” movement with her hands). I try not to laugh, although it made for a more “believable” smile. I say “si, grazie” and pose. At that point I want to take my camera and bid the “Griswalds” buongiorno… but she is not letting me off the hook that easily… “YOU LOOK, IS THAT OOOOKKKK?” As she is again doing her “sign language” for OK.
“Si, si, brava, perfecto. Molto grazie per mi foto, buongiorno.” At last, I am free and laughing as I walk for the next 6 minutes.
I spend the next few hours walking through the halls of the museum, careful not to miss any nook or cranny. The last stop in the Vatican Museum is the famed Cappella Sistina “Sistine Chapel”. As I am sure you know, this is a very sacred Chapel, which means you cannot take video or photos and you are supposed to be quiet for respect of others… however, for some reason, tourists have a problem with all three.
I stay there for about 20 minutes, breathing it in, trying to live in the moment. Of course, I have to constantly remind myself to clear my mind and stay present but the tourist groups make it increasingly difficult. It is like being in a library and you hear the buzzing of someone’s i-pod turned up too loud or the humming of the whispers between people. The distractions make it harder to stay present and tune-out. Nevertheless, the Chapel was magnificent, I stared so long, the images seem to become three dimensional, and it was amazing.
As I followed the exit signs to Basilica di San Pietro, I was greeted by Gianni, a guard I asked for directions, who ended up giving me the “VIP” treatment. Emy is still making fun of me and I am not sure if I will ever live it down. Gianni tells me I have missed a few exhibits and once I exit, I cannot come back in, so he tells me to turn around and head back up the stairs, through the Chapel to the Pius-Clementine Museum. A collection of “rooms” dedicated to various subjects (animals, statues, Busts/Emperors, Muse, etc.). Once I was done there, to come back to him and he would direct me to the “proper” way to see the Basilica.
I am weary to do this because I saw a line growing quickly below. When I asked Gianni what the people were waiting for, he explained to me the Basilica is divided into three parts (the church, the tombs and the cupola or the Dome). The Dome is what everyone was waiting to see, as it is famous for being the tallest in the world and Michelangelo's last great work. More so, it overlooks the entire city of Roma, which is exquisite. However, I was shocked when Gianni told me not only do you have to pay (again) to see this, you have to wait (again). He told me that he has seen people wait sometimes up to 4 hours; to which I answered with the most bewildered facial expression… As great as it sounded, 4 hours to wait in that sort of line… I would do it on my next trip to Roma (because I will be back!). Gianni did NOT approve of that idea.
He suggested I see the tombs first and then return to his station; he would then call his friend working in the Dome for me. He was the expert, so I followed his instructions and headed for the tombs. As you can imagine, the tombs, were just that... in a beautiful basement below the Basilica where the Popes are laid to rest. As I was walking through, I felt some sort of sadness… sort of like going to a cemetery. You cannot help to think that these were once living people, very important worshipped people. It was just sad, I don’t know how to describe it… but it was a somber yet memorable experience.
As promised, upon completion, I went back to take Gianni up on his VIP treatment. Considering the line today was ranging somewhere between 2-3 hours, I was happy to take his help if he could “make it happen”. And this man was a man of his word because not only did he call in a favor to his fellow guard; he escorted me past the waiting people, free of charge, to the cupola. VIP… that is me…
You have to take an elevator up, which is where Gianni bid me farewell, to get to the bottom, yes, the bottom, of the stairs. I then proceeded to climb a steep, long, narrow and windy staircase. Just when you think you are done, there are more stairs, and then more. Eventually, they end and the reward is indescribable. The view is something out of an art book, the Dome was beautiful, every detail was perfected and the Basilica below was overwhelming. I am getting emotional just thinking about it… FANTASTICO…
I embraced this moment for as long as I could, to be honest, I could have sat there all day, but I had to keep moving, sadly.
The actual St. Pietro was gorgeous… The walls were covered with sculptures, paintings and various details. Everything was perfectly and intricately placed… incredible. With something like this (as in many of my experiences, “presence” is the only way to fully understand what I saw). There will never be enough words, descriptions, blog entries or even pictures the can come close to depicting the real feeling of this place or any for that matter.
As I walked away for the Basilica toward the exit, I was shell-shocked from everything I had experienced over the last 5 hours of my life. I reflected on my, equally as long, walk back to my hotel, smiling the entire way.
The first face I look for is Carlo to tell him about my wonderful experience, he is happy and we laughed about how long the walk was. When I got back to my room my feet were filthy, I almost threw up… I washed them, changed my clothes and had an afternoon caffé and biscuits at the hotel restaurant… it was breezy, almost cold as I sat there. The great thing I got to finally Skype with Ali and Courty, seeing their faces made me very happy. I miss my family and friends dearly, but I love Rome.
I asked Emy and Adry if they would take me to see “Rome by Night”… to be honest I don’t even know why I ask; they didn’t event flinch and happily obliged. They picked me up and we went to a pizzeria where I was warmly greeted and well-fed. We proceeded to see Rome by Night and it was awesome, with the exception I am lousy at taking pictures! After Emy’s much needed assistance we met Luca for an ice cream at Emy’s “old neighborhood joint”. I had pistachio and chocolate, of course and it was out of this world. Smooth and silky, just as I hoped.
Because I had such a long day, I could not last that long and went home “early”. Early here is 12:30 am! I slept like a baby and thought about the day and how happy I was… if I was anyone else, I would have wanted to be me… only for the experiences I have been lucky enough to have had thus far.
Well goodnight Bellos e Bellas.
xoxo- Me
