The Vatican

Aw so now I see where my Catholic high school education pays off. It was all for this moment, to visit the Vatican! I did not know that Vatican City is it's own COUNTRY! They have their own money, transportation, post office, radio stations, and President well the Pope. We arrived at the Vatican and went to the Vatican Museum where the Sistine Chapel is. We had to first go through security and then saw the post office. It is the only place in the world that has the official Vatican stamp so of course I bought some postcards of the Pope and sent them to my parents. Basically thanking them for sending me to Catholic school so I can really appreciate this moment. The museum had tons of treasures and beautiful art all along the walls and ceilings. Kind of funny since Sarah mentioned the Church tells you to live modestly. They had everything from Egyptian ruins, mummys, sculptures, paintings, and scriptures. But finally alas, we arrived at my most anticipated places, the Sistine Chapel. You walk in and you can't believe your eyes. It is nothing I was expecting with all the baroque colors and massive scale of the room. You are overwhelmed where to even begin to start looking but of course your first reaction is to just look up. You are so amazed on Michelangelo's masterpiece you don't feel the pain shooting in your neck. You also can't believe that you are actually looking at the scene where God touches mankind. It's so famous and it's right there in front of your eyes. I learned that the Sistine Chapel was covered in a wax from candles and protective paint that really hid the colors used. So recently they cleaned the ceiling to restore the piece to it's original color. Such bold colors and drawn to perfection that they look 3D. We secretly took pictures which is a big no no but it is so hard to resist. We stayed there for a good half an hour just listening to the audio tour (Rick Steves, of course) and learning about how important this room is and it's history. Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel not laying on his back as history books told it. In fact, he did it standing up tilting his head up. Imagine what his neck felt like! All I have to say, WOW!

After the Sistine Chapel we headed to the St. Peter's Basilica. There you had to go through security again and Rick Steves began Rick Steve's audio tour. I saw where the Pope lives, where the smoke comes out the chimney when they find a new Pope, the window where the Pope blesses the massive crowds, the square, and inside the Basilica. Michelangelo helped design the inside of the Basilica even at an old age. Michelangelo in my opinion is the best artist that has ever walked this earth. Pope's are buried there and important religious people as well. The Vatican was a spiritual experience and surreal.