Vatican – The Holy Country

Once in Rome, it would be a regret for not visiting a special country. It is the smallest country in the world by both area and population, a country located in the heart of another country, a nation founded entirely on religion basis. Furthermore, this nation is also a place containing many priceless artifacts of mankind (that I could see with free : D). It’s Vatican City.

Since there are so many tourists visiting every day, I had to arrive very early to shorten the queue line. The whole country is surrounded by a high wall. Similar to imigration by airport, people must go through security gate before entering the Vatican.

The sunny blue sky made St Peter's Square look so beautiful that day.

There are 140 statues of saints in Catholic Church erected on two arched corridors. They seem to be greeting tourists visiting Vatican City.

To enter St Peter's Basilica, I had to queue again. What surprised me was that visiting the Basilica is completely free.

I saw Swiss Guards in front of the buildings. I started learning about these soldiers after watching the movie Angles & Demons. The Papal Swiss Guards have been protecting the Pope for over 500 years. They still keep their renaissance-style uniform to this day.

There is also a corridor in front of the main gate of St. Peter's Basilica. It looks very large.

Stepping inside the Basilica, "wow" was the first word I had to say. Because it looks so magnificent. The Basilica was designed by the most talented architects in the Renaissance time, including Michelangelo.

The domes of the Basilica are magnificently decorated with sculptures and ceiling paintings. It is also the tallest dome in the world.

Pieta, a sculpture of Michelangelo depicting sorrowful Virgin Mary holding the dead body of Jesus. This is the lifetime Michelangelo’s masterpiece which is being represented in St. Peter's Basilica.

There are many other sculptures in the Basilica. Unfortunately, I have no knowledge of the Catholic Church, so I did not understand the stories behind the statues.

… And the paintings depicting Catholic stories.

There are also places for Christians to pray.

In the middle of the Basilica is the high altar with Saint Peter's tomb underneath. This altar is the masterpiece of Bernini whom I knew him from the movie Angles & Demons too.

According to Catholic tradition, Saint Peter, the first Pope of Roman Catholic Church, was executed by hanging upside down on a cross at Vatican Hill. He was buried near the site of his execution, and that site was later built into the present-day St Peter's Basilica.

During an excavation under the high altar in 1942, remains of a man who died at the same time as Saint Peter's death was found and there was a nearby graffiti claiming that Saint Peter was buried there. After that, the remains of Saint Peter were announced to be discovered.

I also visited the crypt of the Basilica, where the popes are buried. But this place is not allowed to take pictures. I left St Peter's Basilica. From the entrance of the Basilica, the square looks really big.

I took a walk around the square to find Bernini Fountain, another work by Bernini.

A bronze statue of Angels Unaware was recently installed at the St Peter Square in 2019, representing a group of refugees and migrants on a boat. They are wearing clothes from diverse cultures and historical moments.

The Vatican Obelisk is said to have been erected in Egypt in 2500 B.C and then moved to Rome in 37 A.D by Emperor Caligula, the third emperor of the Roman Empire. That means, it is around 4,500 years old now!!!

I intended to visit the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel but the tickets are sold out for that day. There is a limited tickets for each day and everyone should booked it two or three days in advance. What a pity!