Another exciting day had arrived, I would know the Vatican City. I remember that I was eager for that visit, I waited for it since I started planning my trip. My travel companion and I arrived very early to Saint Peter's Square with its imposing columns, right in front of the St. Peter's Basilica, seat of Catholicism.
It was really early, there was practically no one there and the Basilica was still closed; it allowed us to take our time to take pictures and videos and especially admire the great work, everything we saw outside was only a small part of what we would find inside. The weather was quite enjoyable on that beautiful morning.
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Once we entered we could notice that the place was impressive, full of beautiful artworks. There were many altars where they celebrated masses both in Italian and Latin. It was very curious to see that some priests celebrated the mass giving their backs to the people, a rare practice that has been in disuse for approximately 50 years.
Once we toured the entire Basilica, it was time to visit the Vatican Dome, a tourist place where you could not only see part of the city of Rome, but also the Vatican City and its beautiful Vatican gardens, a place to which tourists do not have access.
Going all the way up to the dome is a challenge especially for those who are not in good shape. There were hundreds and hundreds of steps to reach the top; when I was finally there I had to take a break to recover, but the magnificent and beautiful view was worth all the effort I had made.
That morning was definitely more than I had dreamed or expected, we took many pictures. After that, we visited the papal tombs, located under the Basilica, there were tombs of all the Popes in history. Saint Peter's tomb is prohibited, while John Paul II's is the most visited by tourists, although the Swiss guards do not allow to take pictures. Speaking a little about the guards, I must say that they caused me curiosity and admiration, their suits were so colorful; they were mostly very serious, but there were times I could see them a little more relaxed.
Then we went to the Vatican museums, where a great variety of works of art are exhibited, I must say that my main objective was to see the Sistine Chapel, which we reached after crossing many corridors that resembled an elaborate labyrinth. There, we could see renowned works such as the Last Judgment and the Creation of Adam, both works by Michelangelo. In that place, photographs are not allowed, but we managed to take some without being caught.
After that pleasant visit, it was time for lunch, so we went to a small restaurant outside the museums and tried a delicious plate of spaghetti. Then, we continued our tour to Castel Santangelo.
While touring all those places I thought about the Angels and Demons film, and tried to locate fragments of it in the city. Nowadays, every time I see that film, many memories of my trip come to my mind and make me smile, I really hope to revisit Italy.
