Roma 3!

Wow! that is all I can say about my morning! wake-up call at 6am. bags on the bus, gone by 7.30am in the Vatican Museum by 8am! By then the line to get in was long already. We were lucky with our guide Franco, as she had a pass to get us in quickly. We went through with her, and then into this area that very few people were allowed in (she had a special pass) to see artifacts that were found .

 then into these galleries of art work, statues

 and to the Pope's staircase which only 1% of people see. it is a spiral staircase that popes used to go up to the top (one old pope used to go up on his donkey Camilla!). It was designed by the guy who helped design St Peters Basilica (not Michaelangelo). Very special as no other people there.

 this is the view from the top

 then through these galleries (amazing) esp. the tapestries designed by Raphael and made by Belgium weavers. The artwork on these were incredible. App.. they were made with gold, silver and silk. They get washed every hundred years in a special swimming pool! (they are huge).

Then a geographic gallery (old maps of Italy that 450yrs old without any sort of equipment to make them.The large one of all of Italy is very accurate.

Franca our guide was incredible with her knowledge and love of art. It made everything come alive as she was describing it.
Sistine Chapel - then we hit the crowds! First thoughts - I thought it was round like a dome. it is a long rectangle room with a curved ceiling that is painted by Michaelangelo. I thought it would be smaller - the whole place is huge! We were given a background about it by Franca as you are not suppossed to talk in there  so went in with a bit of knowledge of what to look for in the pictures. it took this guy 4 years to paint. Up to  then he had just been a sculpter not a painter so that made it even more interesting. Get this tho - there was noise, people chatting. The guards in there would call out 'silenza', then quiet for a while then noise again.
I got a sore neck in minutes, just looking up in awe. There have been lights put in to illuminate the ceiling part as app. it had been quite dark. Also it had just been restored as smoke from the lamps when the pope is in there had covered the colours. So we saw it in its best light. Unfortunately no cameras allowed to take pictures.
We were there 30 min. and it was enough.  It was mind-blowing.
After that it was over to St. Peters Basillica - the big church the pope says mass in. Michaelangelo designed most of it. It is huge with amazing statues, paintings, gold everywhere. Pieta was a famous statue of Mary with Jesus (Michaelangelo), St. Peters tomb (underneath), a mass was taking place to one side (inside it is like a long cross with a few domes with the big one huge! you can go up to the second part of it (500 steps) so we didn't. Just stood and listened to Franco and went ohhh, aahhh, wow, etc.

After that was St. Peters Square where the large masses are held at Easter, Christmas etc it is huge! you can see the balcony the pope comes out on, the window from another building he waves from very Sunday, the roof of the Sistine Chapel where the smoke comes out, the Swiss guards (did you know their bright uniform was designed by Michaelangelo as well?)

Mind-blowing is all I can say. Exhausting as we finished at 1pm. My feet were so sore and my mind so full.

Then on the bus to Florence, through Tuscany hills. Beautiful countryside dotted with tiny medievil towns on tops of hills.