Day 20

Woke up today feeling under the weather again.  Really getting sick of being sick.  Today was not the day to lie in bed and feel sick though.  Today me and a few others are going to the Vatican to complete a class project.  Not just around it, actually in the museum.  Very exciting.

Walked past St. Peters square on the way around to the museum.  That right in front is the actual Basilica, which is not what we went into today.

That is free and you can walk in on any Sunday when they are not holding mass.

First thing that caught my eye was an actual mummy.  I had never seen a mummified body.  Apparently the fluids are first drained then the body is lied in salt for 90 days to dehydrate the body.  A type of preservative is then put on the body and that is that.

Kinda weird to see in a place where they are so strict they chop off the genitalia on statues to avoid offending anyone.

Remember, you can click and zoom in on any picture.

First real stop, monument hall.  Every one of the rooms in the Vatican museum had walls and ceilings like this.

Here is a picture of Emperor Augustus Caesar, adopted son of Julius Caesar.  This is the sculpture I chose to do my project on.  I must write an essay describing everything from his clothes, posture, look on his face, shoes and even his hairstyle.  Then I must compare and contrast Augustus with another similar statue.

One of the interesting things discovered in the past 20 years is that many statues did not originally appear shiny and pure white marble like the one above.  Almost all statues in Rome had colored eyes, dyed clothes and were very much filled in.  Much time and effort has been put into restoring the statues to the white marble look in the past 300 years, only to find that this was not what the sculptors originally wanted them to look like.  As anyone with a car or house can attest, paint wears off a heck of alot faster than stone objects crumble.

A statue that caught my eye was described as a statue from the Nile. As in Nile River.  You can see the many children playing with the crocodile on the far left.  They must have watched alot of Crocodile Hunter to be that brave.  Also some children playing with a mink, front and center.

How did Scooby Doo get into the Vatican museum?

On the way to the courtyard this caught my eye.  It is a sculpture that has been done in the past century and was featured in my game Assassin's Creed as holding the piece of the Apple of Eden.  Obviously fiction, nevertheless it rotated on its own schedule and was pretty cool.

Still wasn't feeling great in the courtyard so went to the store and grabbed a water bottle, nearly finishing it before I got to register.  Then I find out that you are only allowed to sit down and order, which means you pay a waiters fee(no tipping in Italy).  When I asked for the price, they responded 2.50 Euro(around $3.40).  For a bottle of water that nearly was finished.  Ughh, if it wasn't the Vatican I would consider just walking out.  Figure that wasn't a very Christian idea...

 Walked by some beautiful and some interesting tapestry's.  This one is Christ rising to the heavens.  Words are not really needed.

This one is a little more disturbing.  It shows children being slain, and I do not have the knowledge or history to describe why.  It was labeled, "Slaying of the Innocents."  I think this is a little more disturbing then the covered male genitalia.  But who am I to insult art?

Remember: You can zoom in by clicking picture.










Well since we are in the museum, why not visit the Sistine Chapel when we have the tickets?

I apologize for the picture angles and quality, but you are not even allowed to take pictures in the Sistine Chapel.  I could not justify not sneaking in a few shots, especially when Michelangelo spent 6 years of his life painting everyday the roof of the Sistine Chapel. Plus, there were hundreds in the room, and dozens snapping pictures.  You just had to be sneaky.

Pictures will never describe the feeling you get from looking around in here.  Many are crying, I had chills running through my entire body.  Michelangelo, who was actually a sculptor, told no one of his vision or plan, and started square by square.  Many questioned his plans, but they didn't have the vision.

And Michelangelo finished with the picture center(kinda to the right).  It is God nearly touching Adam, giving him the touch of life.  Please click and zoom in on these, they really are some of the most enthralling paintings in the world. Words do no justice.

I even felt less sick leaving this place, and I can't describe the hope that enters your body, no matter what religion, when you are in here.  Breathtaking.

The walls were also painted.  These were not painted by Michelangelo, but were beautiful. This was my most obvious picture, but my favorite.  It shows a battle.  To the left are the hills and to the right is a city.  The city is being rained and hailed on, while the hills to the side have a rainbow spreading across.  Unbelievable.

I had to run out after this because I definitely was very obvious in taking this picture, but there is no resisting that.

There really is nothing else that I want to include in this day of the blog.  I want to leave you thinking of the Sistine Chapel.  It is a place of inner energy and everyone has awe on their face.  Even children seem to understand the unbelievability of what they are seeing.

So that is what I saw and felt.  I encourage anyone of any race or belief to go and interpret their own feelings for themselves.



  I hope this day at least shows a little of the inspiration I felt. Thank you all for reading!  Stay tuned!