The Vatican and Rome (8/10)

The Trevi Fountain was unrecognisable under
the scaffolding and glass barriers

We were off to the Vatican today, but via a couple of Rome's famous landmarks. The first of these was the Trevi Fountain, and were we so disappointed! It was empty, and shrouded in scaffolding, and restoration work was being undertaken as we stood there. There was a walkway over the basin of the fountain, quite close to the workers doing the restoration work. It would have been interesting to have been able to get closer to them to see what they were actually doing, but it wasn't to be. The fountain is actually part of the facade of a palace.

Interior of the Pantheon 

From here it was on to the Pantheon, a building Jill has always wanted to see because it is the only architecturally intact monument from the classical Roman period. It is thought to have been built in the the 3rd century AD, and was sanctified as a church in 609. It has not been architecturally modified, but there are many tombs to some of Italy's kings and artists, Raphael among them, which have been attached to the walls and placed in niches which would have formally held Roman statues. Its ceiling was originally covered in bronze, but this was removed to forge Bellini's canopy which is over the high alter in St Peter's. At least it was used to make something beautiful and not something nasty like cannons. The original bronze doors are still in place. The interior measures 43.4m in width and height, and the oculus is still open to the elements. There are holes in the floor to drain away any rainwater that falls through it. It is an amazing space.

The bottom half of the round base of Castel Sant'Angelo
was the base of the Roman mausoleum!

Heading towards the Vatican we decided to visit the Castel Sant'Angelo on the banks of the Tiber. This huge structure was originally built as the mausoleum for Hadrian and his family, and he constructed the bridge across the Tiber to allow access to it. It was begun in 123 AD and was used by the Imperial families up until Caracella in 217. It originally had a huge square base on which was built a round tower decorated with columns, and on this was placed the mausoleum, crowned with a huge bronze statue of Hadrian in a chariot drawn by four horses. Roman emperors were no shrinking violets! Inside this building was a large corridor which spiralled its way up to the vault, "The Room of Jars", where the cremated remains of the family members were deposited. This corridor still remains, although it has been cut by another which gives direct access to the castle mounted on top. 

Chests that the Popes kept their treasure in.

The Mausoleum was converted into a fortress in 400 AD but was sacked soon after by the Visigoths and then the Goths.  The fortress was built on the second tier of the mausoleum, probably in the tenth century. It then became a residence of Pope Nicholas III in 1277, who also connected it to the Vatican via a "secret" rat run. If the pope happened to be at the Vatican when trouble brewed, he was able to make a dash for it if he felt his life was in danger, which seemed to be a regular occurrence. Successive Popes added to the fortifications as Rome was regularly under attack.  We were able to view the former Papal apartments, and there were a number of rooms with magnificent frescoes, interestingly on historical mythical themes as well as the usual religious ones. There were also several rooms given over to commemorating Italy's part in WWI, but interestingly not WWII. There is a good view of Rome and the Vatican from the ramparts. It was off to the Vatican next.

St Peter's from the Castel

We were fortunate that when we arrived the queue wasn't too long and that the day was pleasant and not hot. The square in front of St Peter's was full of barriers and plastic chairs which detract somewhat from its magnificence. We opted to just go into the basilica, and not climb the dome. The queue was too long for that. While we were queued up, Allan told off a tour guide who tried to push her way through. She only had a group of four but we weren't going to have any of it. She tried twice before backing off. Another person in front of us, another Australian, also objected to people pushing past. The Aussie ideal of a fair go lives on! St Peter's is big, but quite restrained compared to some basilicas we have been in. Our first stop was in front of the Pieta. It is a truly beautiful piece of sculpture. It is a shame that you cannot get really close to it now. From here we wandered the length of the nave and admired Bellini's bronze canopy (strictly speaking a "baldacchino") over the high alter. The works that were achieved without modern equipment still astonish. As usual the floor is beautifully inlaid with many coloured marbles and the ceiling was stunning as usual, all gold stucco work. It seemed very quiet for the number of people wandering around, so the structure must be designed such that the noise is absorbed. It would be interested to hear a service in there un-miked. Lots of people seemed to make no noise, but what would one voice sound like?

Crowds inside St Peter's

On our way out we asked at a ticket desk where the entrance to the Vatican Museum was. They were selling guided tour tickets for a combined Sistine Chapel/Museum entry which we didn't want. We had already decided that we wouldn't go into the chapel because of the crowds. As we walked across the square the queues had about doubled in length in the short time we were in the basilica. We had been a bit lucky. To get to the museum we had to walk out of the square and around the walls for a bit, so we joined with what seemed to be thousands of others and headed in that direction. When we got there there were several options for queues. What we hadn't realised was that we could have booked on line which would have been easier because the queue was much shorter. Then we saw the price and considered €16 too much. We weren't sure if we could buy just a ticket into the museum, but decided that there were so many people milling about that we would give the whole thing a miss. We also decided not to boost dear old George's coffers just that little bit more. That price is by far and away the most we have been asked to pay, and it isn't as if the Vatican is short of a shekel or two. They must be raking it in! Still ripping off the masses! We thought that we might walk around the Vatican City instead, but when we looked at the map we decided that that was just a little ambitious, so back-tracked a little and headed in the vague direction of the hotel.

Normal human decoration on the Spanish Steps

On our way back we detoured via the Spanish Steps, just because we could, and they were there. Lots of people here also, just sitting and people watching. We had thought that we might visit the Villa Borghese Museum and Gallery, but it is by reservation only so we opted to just wander the streets of Rome and see what we happened upon. Lots of squares with Egyptian obelisks, large fountains, regal palaces, and people doing what we were doing - getting a feel for Rome, and not rushing from one archaeological site or church to another. Rome is also a shopaholics paradise. I bought myself a small red and black leather handbag, my one souvenir of Rome (besides the memories). We also put our heads into another gallery which had a special Caravaggio exhibition on, but the hip-pocket nerve struck again and we opted not to pay €12 for the privilege. We decided to dwell on the memories of his two works we saw in St John's in Valetta instead. As Allan admitted, we were already on the plane home. 

Part of the Baths of Diocletian - now a church

On our way back to the hotel we investigated another church which had been built to incorporate more ancient Roman architecture, this time the Baths of Diocletian. It was a beautiful church with a completely unadorned, white vaulted ceiling. In a room to one side was a very informative display giving the history of the church, and it was Michelangelo who actually designed the vaulting and the church. Perhaps out of respect for his genius, it was decided that it didn't need any decoration. Whoever made the decision must have had some authority, because it was so rare to find a church like this. We arrived back at the hotel around 5.00pm which was early for us, and sat and wrote a bit, and packed the cases so that all we needed to do was put in the toilet bags and go. Dinner was scallops of veal with lemon (Jill) and marsala (Allan) sauce and vegetables. It was very good. Up to the usual Italian standards which was great for the our last dinner before heading home.