Italy, Day 9: Vatican and Return

It's our first morning back in England. No one has made me an Americano. I am sad.

Our last day in Rome was a bit tricky because we needed to check out by ten but our train didn't leave until nearly 7 pm, so we packed and after breakfast we took the Metro to the Termini station and checked our bags there.

Then we went on to the Vatican. We would have liked to seen the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel but we knew the lines would be long, and they were. This was the part of the line that we could see:



So we continued on a short way to the Piazza San Pietro and the Basilica. This was another of those moments where you pass an entranceway and the massiveness of what you see gives you pause.





I understand Nero used to race horses around this.

We saw the line to enter the basilica was also daunting but it was moving well and we decided to go for it. It was only twenty minutes to get through the security check. We were given a choice of just entering the basilica, entering a queue for the catacombs, and entering a queue for the cupola. We went for the cupola. We probably shouldn't have.

The cupola line was slowest. We thought that once we'd entered the interior we'd have some freedom of movement but we didn't - we were roped off and shuffled forward for another hour.

We paid the seven euros apiece for the lift to the dome balcony. The interior is massive and Margo and I were scared to get close despite the fencing.





We could have climbed the 320 steps to the cupola at the very top, but we were all too scared. We were relieved to get to the balcony exterior.





Then we took the lift down and entered the basilica: another "wow" moment. Just the atrium itself in the entranceway could swallow most churches. It is a huge, huge space. And amazingly, neary every inch of it is decorated; paintings and sculptures adorn every wall and corner and everything else is filled with little frescoes and gold filigrees and other adornments.









Now it was time to sit and rest and feed, which we did with all speed. When we could stand again, we took the Metro to the other side of the Spanish Steps and an entrance to a large park system that houses the Borghese gallery and villa, a zoological garden, and many other walks, gardens, and sculptures. We settled at a kids' play structure near the Piazza di Siena. We noticed how some of the trees have no canopy except at the top: it's a deliberate pruning effect.



A few steps over our shoulder was the Temple of Diana. On the interior of the dome you can see her prey: small images of various animals and fish.



This was a neat structure: the beams are like double-sided piano keys. Tipping it to either side pushes air through a piped valve sounding a musical note.



Later, lying on the grass, Sarah collected daisies, and Margo made her a daisy chain.



Relaxed, we stood up and made our way back to the Metro and Termini station. We had dinner, got some more paperbacks plus a Doctor Who and the Daleks book for Sarah, retrieved our luggage, and boarded the Palatino for Paris. Our train cars were newer this time.



We had almost 24 hours of travel time ahead of us, but somehow we didn't kill each other. It was a good thing that Margo scheduled lots of time between legs, as our Palatino arrived two hours late into Paris, but we still got to the Eurostar terminal comfortably, even early.

Arriving in London, it was good to speak English again when giving taxi directions and ordering food. And the sunny, warm weather we'd become used to was still largely with us, though a bit cooler. Unfortunately, I'll have to get used to instant coffee again ...