Make a Wish and Be in Awe (10 of 14)

Our next stop, Civitavecchia or "ancient town"is a major cruise and ferry port. During WWII, Allied bombings severely damaged this seaport and caused civilian causalities.  But it is here that we embark on our journey to... ROME!

Rome is filled with too much ... 10 hours is definitely NOT enough time to see what's in Rome! But we sure tried.

First stop... Make a Wish...the Trevi Fountain

It is the largest Baroque fountain in the city and one of the most famous fountains in the world.

The fountain is connected to one of the aqueducts that supplied water to ancient Rome.  In 19 BC, Roman technicians located a source of pure water. It served Rome for more than 400 years. Unfortunately Goth besiegers in 537-538 AD cut off the aqueducts and medieval Romans were reduced to drawing water from polluted wells and the Tiber River.

The fountain was refurbished in 1998 and the Italian fashion company, Fendi, sponsored a 20 month 2.2 million euro restoration of the fountain.

A traditional legend holds that if visitors throw a coin into the fountain, they are ensured a return to Rome. You can make a wish on a second throw over your opposite shoulder. :)

Be in Awe... off to the Pope's home.

The Vatican City is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome. It is approximately 110 acres and a population of a little over 800.

Vatican City is walled by these columns and watched over by the Swiss Guard.

This makes Vatican City the smallest internationally recognized independent state in the world by both area and population. The city is ruled by the Bishop of Rome which is the Pope whom is the Head of State and Government of the Vatican City State.

St. Peter's Basilica

Within this city is St. Peter's Square, St. Peter's Basilica, the Apostolic Palace, the Sistine Chapel and museums and gardens along with other various buildings.

The monument in St. Peter's Square. The Pope will greet and bless his constituents every Sunday from his window which is the top floor of the above building second window from the right.

Vatican City had a policy of neutrality during WWII and although the city of Rome was occupied by Germany from 1943 and the Allies from 1944, Vatican City itself was not occupied.

The columns were humongous!

St. Peter's Basilica is the most renowned work of Renaissance architecture and remains one of the largest churches in the world and one of the holiest Catholic sites. This basilica is the burial site of its namesake Saint Peter, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus and also according to tradition the first Bishop of Rome and therefore first in line of the papal succession.

Statue of Peter

Depiction of Peter's crucifixion upside down since he felt he was not worthy of dying like Christ

The basilica is cruciform in shape with an elongated nave in the Latin cross form. The central space is dominated externally and internally by one of the largest domes in the world.

The entrance is through a narthex or entrance hall which stretches across the building. There are numerous chapels throughout the church and at the heart of the basilica is the Confessional in reference to the confession of faith by St. Peter which led to his martyrdom.

The entire interior of St. Peter's is decorated in marble, reliefs, architectural sculpture and gilding. All the 'paintings' are mosaics. The basilica also houses a large number of tombs of popes.

Michelangelo's Pieta, made from Carrara marble, depicts the body of Jesus on the lap of his mother Mary after the crucifixion. Mary is depicted as a 33 year old which symbolizes her incorruptible purity.

A beautiful mosaic (not painting) of the Alter of Transfiguration by Raphael: Jesus, bathed in light, is borne aloft between Moses and Elijah while the Apostles Peter, James and John prostrate, contemplate a glimpse of paradise.

One of the incredible domes

panoramic of the square

 NEXT UP: Imperial Rome