Another start in the beehive café. The waitress was 5 years old and as cute to boot. With fuel to go, it was back to the metro. Today we were off to the Vatican. We got to the station and followed the tide of people. Luckily they were all going to the Vatican too. We got to the museum in good time and the line was non-existent. Straight in, got our tickets and headed for the Sistine Chapel. You just have to walk through 40 other rooms along a designated route with a sea of people to get there. The opulence and dare I say greed of the Catholic Church is there to see by all. It also shows a down side to human nature that all that the previous ages wanted to leave for generations to come as their mark was constant images of bloody wars. Fighting under the banner of religion making it right and just. But on a lighter note, the room of maps was awesome. Huge woven maps, about 4 m tall, of all the regions of the time. All very detailed. Did I say we went through more rooms that I can remember? The later ones containing more modern art. Some of it, I even liked.

Finally we got to the Sistine Chapel, probably after an hour of walking. It was huge and full of people / sardines. Oh yeah, it had the odd painting too. The rules were simple. No photos, no video, no farting, no noise and if you have to breath, make it shallow. I thought they were a bit over the top on that. I though it was ‘when in my house, my rules’ not some tosser in a uniform. There I go again. Finally we inherited a seat, sat down, read our smart books and enjoyed the marvel that was all around (other than said tossers picking people up for the odd photo shot and giving the big Sh!! every now and then). Fancy people looking at arguably one of the most famous pieces of art in the world and wanting to discuss it with their loved ones. God Forbid!! Well obviously he did not, as I saw no lightning bolts. Then there was the customary exit into the gift shop where posters sell for E10. We decided to send some postcards, one to Nana especially.

Then it was down the nice round staircase to the exit below, where Zuz suggested we better eat our apples, as food would be scarce. Yep, Zuz strikes again. The food vans were parked outside the door. We even had a laugh when we saw the pesky little Indians had adapted and were selling umbrellas. At least today there was a need for what they were selling.

We went around to St Peters Square, and straight into the Basilica. This is absolutely HUGE. Again words cannot describe. They say it can hold up to 60,000 people. There must have been at least 5000 in there at this time. Some very nice sculptures and paintings etc. as nice and as lavish as it was, it left me with a my **** is bigger than yours feeling. They even have marks on the floor of how big the next 10 biggest churches are. All this bling just goes away from what religion should be about. Anyhow, then we headed up to get a little closer to Huey, up to the famous dome. We took the lift half way up and climbed the rest of the way to the top of the dome. One section travels on the inside of the dome, some 50m above the basilica floor. Then through tight alleys and staircases until you get to the top. The rain had gone and left clear air. The view was spectacular through the gridlock of people. After our fill of the vista, we came back down. Deciding to go into the souvenir shop. Low and behold, they had Vatican shot glasses. Laughing, I’ll take one of those to add to the collection thanks. We also coped a naughty nun behind the counter as she gave us a few extra bags the size of a pack of smokes to smuggle out as a pseudo souvenir.

Then from the top to the bottom and into the grotto where many a pope is entombed. Including Pope John Paul II. There were still many people praying and crying at his tomb. As I was buggered, we decided to head for home, but only after an ice cream at the station to aid the energy levels.

We relaxed and nursed our sore limbs until we went for dinner. Still sore we did not go too far and picked a chain looking place that at least had a good menu. Grumpy waitress and loud Yankees……Warning…..But we ordered anyway. My food was lovely, top-notch spaghetti and clams with chilli. Did they say chilli? Must have missed it in the food. But it was nice none the less, even if the bill did take ages considering the food arrived seconds after ordering it. Not so roman, but a nice food experience. A few lindt balls from the lindt shop on the way home and ready for a well deserved shower and rest.