Italy 2025 - Day 5: Vatican City - Emilio and Nicholas

Emilio:

Today we started together at 9:30! Although we were all rejuvenated with a long night’s rest, the weather unfortunately was cold and wet. It had rained for the first time since we had arrived! We did not let this deter us from seeing the Vatican today! Although briefly waiting in line while it rained, we all eventually filed into St. Peter’s square.

The group arrives in St Peter’s Square.

Nicholas and Emilio deliver their presentation on St. Peter’s Basilica.

Nicholas and I (Emilio) first gave a brief overview of the history behind St. Peter’s Basilica before letting Kaitlyn, our guide, take over and walk us through an overview of the Vatican obelisk, the Baldacchino featured inside (with its unique Solomonic columns) and the Holy Door.

The group processes through the Holy Door, open for the 2025 Jubilee Year and not likely to be open again for a Poly group until 2050.

Afterwards, we climbed up what seemed to be an endless amount of stairs to the highest view available of the dome within the Basilica, where we got to see the ceiling mosaics up close! Finally, after a breathtaking morning, we were ready for lunch.

The group enjoys the view from the interior of the Dome after climbing several hundred stairs.

Part of the group explores the roof of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Nicholas:

For lunch we had free time in Vatican City, giving us a chance to explore the surrounding area. After lunch, we walked to the Vatican Museums and waited in a really long line to enter.

The group waits in the really long line to enter the Vatican Museums.

Once we got in, Kaitlyn led us through the whole museum and explained the stories of some amazing artwork and statues. We took turns posing as statues as we walked around and enjoyed the breathtaking ceilings throughout the whole museum.


The Mars of Todi, a rare Etruscan bronze statue.

The Athenian potter/painter Exekias’ vase depicting the heroes Ajax and Achilles playing a board game.

Abe is stoked to see Raphael’s “The School of Athens.”

We finished our exploration by walking through the Sistine Chapel which was truly magnificent and displayed many stories Kaitlyn had told us before entering. My favorite part of the chapel was the painting of Jesus giving the keys of the kingdom of heaven to St. Peter.

The group examines the Gallery of Maps (no photos are allowed in the Sistine Chapel).

After the museum, we walked to our final dinner in Rome where we enjoyed an amazing array of appetizers and some of the best food we’ve had. We also celebrated Amelia’s birthday with a tiramisu. We then got back on the train and headed back to the hotel, closing our final night in Rome.

The group enjoys antipasti at dinner.

Happy Birthday, Amelia!

The group waits for the Rome metro.

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