the futility of capitalism: rome, day 4: un giorno in chiese

I decided to wake up early on Monday morning and go directly to the Vatican so that I could (hopefully) avoid the lines at St. Peter's Basilica. This turned out to be an excellent idea, as the basilica opens at 7am and I got there at 7:30, which meant not having to wait in any lines, contend with crowds, or feel rushed going from one place to the next. This also turned out to be the only day of my trip when it rained, so it was good that I didn't have to wait in any outside lines.

Here's what the basilica looks like as you approach it:

Here's what the square looks like front the front of the basilica:

This is what you see after you get into the basilica from the main foyer:

Notice that you can't really see all the way to the back. It really is that big.

The amount of paintings, carvings, sculptures and so forth inside is quite staggering. There's not much you can do to describe it, so I'll just let photos do most of the talking.

Candles at the front of the altar:

The linguistics nerd in me has always been fascinated by the Greek inserted amongst the Latin quotations that circle the building:

Another view of the main altar:

I spent a lot of time aside, and again, it was quiet and not crowded, so I took my time. I even stood and watched a German mass for a while just to get a feel for what the believers would do inside.

Afterward, I decided to pay a few shekels to go up to the cupola, which is the top of the basilica. It would have been much better if it hadn't been overcast, but oh well.

The main dome:

You get a nice view of the inside of the dome once you get up there, and you can even climb all the way to the very top of the dome if you like. Considering the knee and Achilles tendon problems I've had over the last couple of years, I decided to take a pass on that.

The inside of the dome:

The walkway around the dome is covered with mosaics:

Detail on a mosaic:

Looking down:

Another view of the top:

After I was done, I ran into a couple of these guys near the exit to the side of the basilica:

The Swiss Guard are the pope's personal security detail. By tradition, they must actually be Swiss. Great uniforms, too.

When I was done in the Vatican, I got back on the metro and headed over to another of Rome's famous churches, San Giovanni in Laterano (St. John Lateran). It started raining around the time that I got there, so it was pretty dead on the grounds and inside, which was nice. Laterano is much smaller than St. Peter's, but still impressive...and it should be, considering the fact that it, rather than St. Peter's, is actually the seat of the bishop of Rome, i.e., the pope (even though he rarely goes there).

The main altar:

Looking below the altar at the statue of John the Baptist:

Behind the altar:

After I was done inside, I wandered around outside to see what was in the square behind the church. I found yet another Egyptian obelisk, but not much else, so I made my way down the street to another famous church.

The path I walked to the next church:

The church:

The next church was another of Rome's most important churches, Santa Croce in Gerusalemme (Holy Cross in Jerusalem). According to Catholic tradition, fragments of the cross used to crucify Jesus are kept inside. It is perhaps for this reason that photos are not permitted inside. I did snap one surreptitious photo, however, since I liked the ceiling at the back of the church.

I was pretty beat after this, so I headed back to the hotel and rested and worked for the next six hours or so. When evening came, I decided to head back to the Vatican area for dinner. I found a restaurant off the main street to St. Peter's Square and had a nice dinner of risotto, veal milanese, fruit salad and some other stuff that I no longer recall. After dinner, it was tripod time in St. Peter's Square. The Vatican police apparently will throw you out if they see you using a tripod, so it's probably a good thing that I went there on a dark, rainy night.