Vatican City

The smallest COUNTRY in the world.

DAY 18

This was our day to visit Vatican City, the smallest country in the world! We debated about whether to join a tour to help us maneuver our way through the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica. After so many enriching experiences with local tour guides, we again wanted to gain a deeper understanding of our visit by going with the experts. After doing some research about the tour groups recommended by Rick Steves, we chose the group, Through Eternity, and we were not disappointed.

A big advantage of these tours was the small size of the group. Although their limit was 13, our group only had 12 people. Our tour guide, Beatrice, was just as professional and engaging as the tour guides we had with the Rick Steves’ tour group. With her enthusiasm, knowledge of art history, and dramatic way of explaining things, she kept our attention for more than three hours and we gained a solid understanding of the art which, otherwise, would have gone unperceived and underappreciated.

Vatican Ceiling frescos	Vatican Ancient Greek torso extensively studied by Michelangelo and other great sculptors	Vatican It is difficult to grasp the enormity of this basilica, the largest in the world.
Vatican St. Peter's Baldachin with its Solomonic columns over the main altar of the basilica	Vatican The Swiss Guard	Vatican
Vatican	Vatican	Vatican Entrance to the museum
Vatican	Vatican The flow of tourists is just never ending!	Vatican
Vatican	Vatican The ceiling leading to the Sistine Chapel	Vatican
Vatican	Vatican St. Peter's Basilica. St. Peter's Baldachin with its Solomonic columns over the main altar	Vatican St. Peter's Basilica
Vatican St. Peter's Basilica	Vatican The "Pieta" by Michelangelo in St. Peter's Basilica	Vatican St. Peter's Basilica
Vatican St. Peter's Square	Vatican St. Peter's Basilica