Vatican City

I did miss posting yesterday. I was exhausted from the heat and the crowds and we have no wifi in our Rome hotel room. There is a sitting room near the front desk where they make wifi available, but I pretty much fell into bed and the post had to wait until today.

We are done with the ship and now spending a few days in Rome. In transition from the ship to our hotel, we took a tour that took us to Vatican City. I guess it is technically something other than a city, but it seems like a city to me. I found it difficult to take pictures because of the crowds. In many of the buildings, you are pretty much standing shoulder to shoulder with thousands of others and trying to move at a collective slow space. This is not a situation in which I am very good with my camera - big feet and clumsy as I am. There are several areas in which photography and talking are not allowed. I saw many violations, but good Minnesotan that I now am I resisted. Now, if I still lived in North Dakota, you might have a glimpse inside the Sistine Chapel.

Our guide was great and knew a great deal about Michael Angelo.

A couple of images from our visit. 

A shot from the exterior of the compound.

A shot from the interior where photography was allowed. I thought the light flair was inspired.

The Swiss Guard. Not to worry, there were military personnel with automatic weapons about as well. I assumed the heavily armed soldiers were Italian.

The famous balcony (in the middle) from which the Pope makes his first appearance and I also think appears on special occasions.  

One final photo - me in the elevator of our hotel. I call this one “Mr Tourist”. The elevator is small and I am not.