4-14-09 Rome Day 3

We checked out of our hotel and made our way to the subway station, catching our last glimpses of the majestic Colosseum. We thought we had left pretty early so as not to wait in a line at the Vatican Museum. When we got there, however, the line was insanely long. It was easily 500m long, extending around a block and a half with a large snaking portion. We thought that this would be one of those “hours long” lines that we hear horror stories about (get reservations for museums, people!), but to our amazement we got all the way through in about 20 minutes.

I’m not sure if we just didn’t spend enough time on the Vatican website or if they just aren’t very good webmasters, but when we got to the ticket office the price was substantially more than we had expected. We’ve managed to cut enough corners on food and such to be able to afford the price, however. The price was 14€ a ticket. It turned out to be well worth it.

Today was the day I saw my first dead human being in person – there was a mummified woman lying in a sarcophagus in the first wing of the museum. I don’t feel any more adjusted to the inevitability of death as a result – something about the age of the corpse gives it a sterilizing emotional distance.

 We found busts of some important ancient Greek personalities:

This golden sphere in one of the courtyards, created for the museum in the 90s, is one of the few pieces of modern art that I’ve actually liked:

The culmination of hours of wandering through this museum was, for us, the chance to see Raphael’s School of Athens in person.

 After this room we were funneled into the Sistine Chapel with large crowds. If you ever visit, bring binoculars – the famous ceiling is very high up and the paintings are relatively small. We weren’t able to get good photographs with the light and distance being what they were. The Last Judgment on one of the walls is much bigger and easier to see.

The Vatican museum actually has some information on its exhibits, so at first we were wondering if our 10€ guidebook was worth the price. Eventually, however, it proved its worth, especially in the Sistine, where it names and describes the paintings and their features. In the Sistine Chapel there are repeated admonitions to be silent and respectful since the room is supposed to be holy, but this is almost universally ignored – the room is a madhouse of chatting crowds and screaming children.

Once outside, we managed to get a few pictures of some Swiss guards:

Finally, we found a laundromat, which was different than the ones I’m used to in that a person actually does your laundry while you wait, and gives you some complimentary internet access time on their computers, all for a slightly inflated price of 10€ for a single load.

Our laundry was done in time for us to catch our night train to Paris. At the end of our time in Italy and in the days since, we’ve reflected on our experience there. We’ve found that Italy is a place of crazy drivers (especially the mopeds), rude and pushy pedestrians, and indolent shopkeepers. The food is delicious but expensive, the lunches long and service slow. There is no such thing as an orderly line at a ticket counter or cashier, only a chaotic mob pushing and shoving to the front. In general, it seems like everyone is in a frenzied, panicky rush to get wherever it is they are going so that, when they get there, they can sit around and relax for several hours. To me, it’s a madhouse. Still, there were great sights to see, and the whole experience was incredible.