The Vatican

The corridor walls were lined with maps and, overhead, the frescoes depicted what was happening  in various parts of the Pope’s domain.

As our guide pointed out, the  following painting took the ‘ubiquitous gaze’  trompe-l’oeil  perspective technique to a different level as not only the eyes followed the viewer as they walked along the hallway but the perspective of the table and other objects in the image also appeared to completely re-align.

The images on the tapestries were quiet often reflections on the religious beliefs and important happenings in the history of Christianity  but on many of the tapestries and paintings, the scenes were not always pretty and often contained scenes of significant violence.

Photography is not permitted in the Sistine Chapel so I satisfied my finger clicking urges by photographing the large display panels in the adjoining courtyard. The tour guides make good use of these panels to explain the nature of the masterpiece inside.

There were amazingly few flashes going off while we were in the chapel. Make no mistake about it, plenty of photos were still being taken covertly but, perhaps it was individual reverence for the scene above or a great fear of the Swiss security personnel making their way through the crowded space but, whatever the reason, camera flashes were remarkably absent. In my case, I showed remarkable constraint :-).

After visiting the chapel we re-emerged into the courtyard and counted heads before entering into the Basilica of St. Peter. It’s sheer size is amazing.

Outside the Swiss guard were thrilling the spectators as they stood silently manning their posts.

After watching the changeover of the Swiss guard it was time for us to pass through the columns encompassing the courtyard and take a break and grab a bite to eat before heading off to visit the Roman Coliseum.

We didn’t go to the advertised bar but photographing the nearest clock was one way for me to keep track of when the group would be getting back together again.

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