The Vatican ... what a disappointment

The church named St. Peter's is the centre-piece of Vatican City in Rome. My wife and I have wanted to visit since I was an altar boy and she sang in our church choir, over 50 years ago.  

Christians have been making pilgrimages to the original church on the site since the 4th century. 

Millions more have been attracted to today's St. Peter's which was designed by an army of architects that included Michelangelo and Bernini and was completed in 1626.

The Vatican is historically significant.

It's an architectural wonder of the world. It has over-the-top art, everywhere, and for the 1.2 billion Catholics in the world, it's ground-zero for our religion.

When you enter the Square in front of St. Peters

you feel welcomed.

The surrounding columns

to the left and right encircle you --

like the Allstate good-hands. 

The Square accommodates 100,000 people each week

for the Pope's blessing.  

In the center of the Square

is a 120' high single piece of concrete

- an obelisk which was installed in 37 AD.

It was brought to Rome by Caligula

from Egypt in a sailboat.

 A sailboat.

The history and art that surrounds you in this place is

breath-taking.

The front of the Basilica gives the impression of an extra big church. It's an illusion. It's much bigger than that. The proof is inside where the distance from front to back is actually longer than two football fields and almost two football fields wide --when you look up, it's 393' to the top of the dome and every inch of the dome is adorned with eye-popping art.

If you haven't been to St. Peter's, it's big.

But the numbers mentioned here may be confusing or difficult to translate. The following may be a better example; St. Peter's is big enough to accommodate The Statue of Liberty, or the space shuttle, or the castle at Disney, or the Sphinx @ Giza or Air Force One.

It's very, very big.

On every wall is a masterpiece. Each piece better than the last.  Even if you not religious, you have to wonder if something heavenly hadn't guided the hands of these artists and craftsmen ... and how did they all show-up in Rome at exactly the same time in history.

Spending time in St. Peter’s

is worth the trip to Rome all by itself.

The Pieta is beautifully presented at a side altar. 

It's a full-sized sculpture of

Mary with Christ's expired body draped across her lap. 

While looking at it and trying not to blink, you wonder, how did a 23-year-old Michelangelo find this image in one single piece of marble?

We spent 3 days that week returning to St. Peter's because there is so much to see. On Sunday, we were both looking forward to going to mass at the Vatican and we arrived early.  Several hundred visitors were already in the building but they were there to look and take pictures - something that is encouraged. 

For those of us who were attending mass, the ushers separated us and moved us to the seats directly in front of the main altar. 

It was mass ... but I thought to myself, this is really going to be special.

This is St Peter's.

This is the top.

I've waited all my life for this.

This is going to be way off the "wow" meter.  

The priest will likely have movie star good looks. 

The sound system will be Madison Square Garden quality and the mass singer will surely have the voice of an angel.

Mass started as bells sounded. The cavernous room became quiet. Even the visitors behind us lowered their voices as the celebrant appeared in his vestments and was about to ascend the altar's stairs. 

But wait! 

There's something wrong.

I didn't think the priest's tiny legs were going to get him to the 5th step. He was a chubby, bald, little guy, and was kinda swarthy looking. His Italian accent was so thick, I don't think even the Italians could understand him. 

Every time he went to speak, he used the little Radio Shack microphone that was sitting on the side of the altar.

What about my dream of the ultimate mass?

I prayed that the singer, who was next up, would be able to rescue this scene. But, when he took his place and began to sing, I knew I would be generous if I said this angels' voice was average ... and, he looked like the priest's twin brother.

And, he was wearing an open-necked golf shirt and a black, shiny Member's Only windbreaker!

After a week of devouring the Basilica's art, its sculptures, it's history and pageantry, this little guy and his sartorial miss-fire were able to reduce the splendour of the Vatican to what could be best described as a  local elementary school basement. 

You know, like the basement they make into a church when 

the real church is being repaired.

Look closely ... this is a very unusual photo

This is Via della Concilliazione - one of the busiest streets in Rome. It's more than 5 football fields in length. The traffic comes in waves.

It's non-stop, day and night. Don't slow down and don't ever even think about parking on this street.

When you enter Concilliazione, you have a full-on view of St. Peter's Bascilica and its magnificent dome. That was the idea when, in the 1950s, city planners took a section out of the building at the end of the street to allow for this view.

While we were on it, I saw something that never happens.

It's not allowed.

Everybody knows.

Don't do it ... don't even think about doing it - don't park.

Not only is this red car parked, the driver was nowhere to be found.

I took all of the pictures featured in this article.

But, this moment provided me with a once-in-a-lifetime photo opportunity

of two of Italy's most recognizable, iconic symbols in the same shot

... Michaelangelo's Bascilica dome and the Ferrari logo on the back of the car.