Off to the Vatican...

Erith says:

Day 8

As soon as we got up we went to the very long line-up to go to Vatican City. We were quite close to the front so we got in quite early. We got there at 6:30 and they opened at 9:30. Dad and I got an audio guide so we could hear different stories about the rooms. The part I liked the most was the roof of the Sistine Chapel! It was sooooooo amazing!!! :-)

After that we went to the Pantheon! The Pantheon has a huge skylight and is over 1,800 years old. Once again we went to the Trevi Fountain for a few minutes.

Marcus says:

Well, we were up at 4:00 am this morning so we decided that we'd have another crack at getting into the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. We got there by about 6:30 and found ourselves about 30th in line, which was a far better prospect than the day before. We'd had an apple before we left and bought ham and cheese rolls, oranges and juice sufficiently far from the Vatican as to be reasonably priced. We also had 3 litres of water with us and were across the street from a cafe, so were pretty much set. I had my first coffee since we arrived in Italy... followed shortly by my second. Strong and sweet - how have I been forgetting to get coffee in the morning? Especially here...

The wait was still a couple of hours, but it was a cool morning and we had activities, so the time went well enough. We got in at about 9:30 and although there were a lot of other people, it all worked rather smoothly. The museums are fantastic, both the old art and the new. We had hired the audio units and were very glad of it as it made a huge difference hearing about some of the history of the paintings and the actors involved.

The Sistine Chapel was something else again. The walls are fantastic, but there's no question that the ceiling steals the show. I don't know how much of the vibrancy should be attributed to the restoration team, but it really is mind-blowing - we were so glad that we decided to go.

After that, we got a bit of lunch just down the hill from the Vatican along a very stylish shopping strip - I was thinking of a few people who may be reading this that would have fit right in there. We took the Metro back to the Station near Trevi Fountain, then walked there en route to the Pantheon. Erith loves Trevi Fountain and insisted that we stop on the way back as well. The Pantheon was amazing (I know I'm overusing that word) - it's huge and in very good condition. While we were inside, Cel rang from Siena, which was good as I'd been unable to call her. (Lizzie, Erith tried to call you when we got out of the Vatican, but I kept getting a "Network Busy" message - we'll try again tomorrow.

We took the Metro back to the closest station to the hotel and got straight back without getting lost. Aside from a minor adventure between Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon, we had a "lost-free" day - WooHoo!!

We've decided to stay tonight in Rome and amble up to Siena tomorrow rather than trying to cram everything into today. Given that we were up at 4:00 and we're exhausted yet again, it was surely a wise decision.

Rome has been a real blast - the number of incredible buildings blows me away. It doesn't take at all long to get the hang of the place either and it's very cool. I love (though don't share) the chic and style of the place - I can see how it would really grow on you.