Inside the Vatican's City St. Peter's Basilica!
Trip Start
Mar 15, 2012
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67
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Trip End
Mar 31, 2012
Where I stayed
Rome, Lazio, Italy
Thursday, March 29, 2012
And then it was time to visit St. Peter's Basilica, this huge church, symbol of the Roman Catholic religion and seen so often in pictures! Being a late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City, it remains one of the largest churches in the world. Interesting facts!
We followed our local guide inside the basilica which had an elongated nave that led to the central dome. The church was gigantic and statues were everywhere. We made our way around the nave way up to the altar where once there, our local guide informed us that according to historical evidence, Saint Peter's tomb was directly below it.
What was also seen inside St. Peter’s Basilica was Michelangelo’s famous marble sculpture, the Pietà, completed by the artist in 1499. What makes this piece so special as well as being a masterpiece of its kind is the fact that it was the first of a number of works done by the artist. As well, it is the only piece that Michelangelo ever signed! Interesting facts!
At one point, I asked the guide if Michel and I could leave the group and go way up to the Basilica’s top floor which promised stunning panoramic views of St. Peter’s Square from there. Unfortunately and much to my regret, we were told by her that we wouldn’t have had enough time to do this little escapade of ours!
Half an hour later, we were outside the basilica and wandering by ourselves around St. Peter’s Square. Our tour was now finished with the local guide. I was happy to see the entire area at daylight since the only other time I’ve been here was at nighttime, this being when we first arrived here in Rome a couple of weeks ago!
Since Easter was coming up, preparations were being done by several workers at the front of St. Peter’s Basilica. They were putting additional chairs and artificial green grass.
Lots of shops were within proximity of the church selling anything from religious items, clothing to souvenirs. I managed to purchase a pink jacket with Italy written at the front of it plus little souvenir items!
By 4:00pm, we were back inside the motor coach and heading towards our last pit stop for the day being our hotel, the Sheraton Roma Hotel situated a short distance from the airport. We were on the last leg of our journey here in Italia!
Monique :-)
