July 28 a.m : Vatican Museum

We decided that we could not leave Rome without seeing the Sistine Chapel. So, Back to the Vatican! The original plan was to walk, but (considering all the queueing and inside walking) we decided to risk the #62 again. The wait was considerable, but reasonable, this morning. Off we hopped at about 9:15. It turned out the Sistine Chapel was several blocks away from the Basilica. (This picture of the harlequin guard was near the Basilica). There was a queue for about half a kilometre, but it was moving along okay, and it was out of the sun for the most part. Inside the Vatican Museum building there were plenty of twists and turns. We had to pay 54 euros for the family, so not bad. We crossed a courtyard, passed statues, another courtyard and the museums began. There were rooms and corridors of art before we came to the Chapel. It was very good art, too... many statues at first which seemed to outnumber those that we'd seen at the Louvre. There was a couple of rooms devoted to animals alone... an enormous camel's head, a boar just like the ones up the lane, a dog ripping into a deer and more. There were long corridors golden and bright with ceiling paintings as well as those on the wall. Among the various scenes, I came to delight in small squares with birds in them... Then there were huge tapestries... small corner rooms, more halls... Suddenly, two or three large rooms painted by Raphael were in sight. Scholars, twisting horses - several familiar to me. (Wayne kindly took this photo so the horse looks like it's pooing on my head.)







One central ceiling panel had a bunch of cherubs that seemed tangible - great undershots, too, of little bottoms.

Then there were rooms of modern art. Tiring now, the Fosters walked through these quite quickly. Down some steps, around some corners, then - glory and trumpets- the Sistine Chapel.

It really was an eye-opener. The huge wall behind the alter, covered in clusters of Michaelangelo's twisting male bodies... so earthy for all their divine theme. The other walls did not get so much of my attention, although they were done by fine artists too, including Botticelli. Most of us were risking cricked necks to look at the ceiling.

I had seen many of these paintings in books and prints. Seeing them all together was marvellous, although my neck will probably never be the same again. The Creation of Adam is such a definitive interpretation. The hands... such a simple but profound gesture. I had some questions that one of the guides probably could have answered, but we were glad not to be part of the crowded groups that were forced to move from place to place (at a considerable price).

So finally back to the bus stop, quite done in. The #62 wasn't too late - although it had that strange halt again. We had a bought 'panini' for lunch today. The fridge was a bit bare since we were leaving the next day. We all needed a long siesta today, but we were glad to have seen the Vatican Museum after all.