Off to 'See' Pope Frank's Home

To the Vatican we went in the early morning downpour. Maybe this was some kind of Vatican baptism for us before we entered Vatican City!

Overwhelming is a good word for site seeing the Vatican. There are 54 galleries that house famous works of art, artifacts from around the world, tapestries, archaeological findings - all collected by the popes throughout the ages. Then there are gardens, the Sistine Chapel, St Peters, and more.
We toured for 4 hours  - the limit for the Turk, and I have to admit for me too.

Rafael - I enjoy his use of light/dark in his paintings. Rafael and Michelangelo's works are prominent in Vatican

one of many gallery rooms you wander through

Spiral staircase designed by Giuseppe Momo in 1932

Etruscan burial stone

Ceiling of framed artworks that each depict a miraculous event

this ceiling was really really big

I'm a sucker for ancient mosaics

I would have fired the tile guy if he laid unmatched tiles like these!

Chagall banners - he designed a church based on this design element

Even Salvadore Dali is represented at the Vatican

I loved the cherubs playing together - and on the left side one is helping the other to climb into the ceiling

Sistine Chapel - built like a fortress to protect the cardinals as they vote on new pope. Brilliant colors and images. Could stand here for hours - but too many people!

Pieta by Michelangelo - behind glass after the ''incident' in 1970's

St Peter's has no frescos - only mosaic art on ceilings and walls. Mosaics last longer!

So much to see. Size is deceiving. the numerous works of art, columns, ceilings, sculptures  are all sized to make this huge space seem intimate. I hadnt realized that St Peter is buried here - we saw his coffin.

Vatican guard - the Turk didnt think he was real!

Statues along the Vatican roofs are saints and people who probably paid a good contribution