Today, we toured the Vatican, and explored its museums. 

As reported by the CIA, popes in their secular role ruled portions of the Italian peninsula for more than a thousand years until the mid-19th century, when many of the Papal States were seized by the newly united Kingdom of Italy. In 1870, the pope’s holdings were further circumscribed when Rome itself was annexed. Disputes between a series of “prisoner” popes and Italy were resolved in 1929 by three Lateran Treaties, which established the independent state of Vatican City and granted Roman Catholicism special status in Italy. In 1984, a concordat between the Holy See and Italy modified certain of the earlier treaty provisions, including the primacy of Roman Catholicism as the Italian state religion. 

First up was queuing up alongside the Vatican City walls to enter the Main Gate. Long lines were seemingly everywhere, but moved at a reasonable speed.

Upon entering, the Vatican Museums awaited us. The Vatican Museums are the public museums of the Vatican City. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries, including several of the most well-known Roman sculptures and most important masterpieces of Renaissance art in the world. Before entering the Vatican Museums, we traversed the the Pinecone Courtyard, and the New Wing.

One of the first parts of the Vatican Museums that is seen when the visit begins is the Pinecone Courtyard. It is a large open space of 300 square meters adjacent to the corridors and halls of the museum. This pine cone was made in the first century B.C., and it was a decorative fountain that, very probably, adorned the interiors of the Baths of Agrippa.

Pope Pius VII (1800-1823) employed the Roman architect Raffaele Stern to build what is now called the New Wing (Braccio Nuovo) of the Chiaramonti Museum. Photos were prohibited in many areas of the museums and photo ops were minimal.

We marveled at the beauty of St. Peter’s Basilica and stood in awe of Michaelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel.

After touring the Vatican, it was off to the Port of Civitavecchia where we boarded Royal Caribbean’s Odyssey of the Seas. We’re officially off the internet for 10 days more or less. We had a really good dinner on board, and listened to great jazz, “Jazz Standards” by the Odyssey of the Seas Quintet.