Vatican - Too early for Urbi et Orbi

There is no way of getting into the Vatican without going to Italy and Rome. As sad as this sounds, it isn't sad. Rome is great. However the hordes of people wanting to visit the Vatican are enormous but none of them is to blame for, cause the Vatican... is the Vatican and worth to visit.

March 4 - Visit in the smallest country of the World

Of course, the only one to blame for visiting the Vatican is me and my planning of the visit. As I was there on the weekend and visited Rome on Saturday, with the intention to visit the Vatican properly on Sunday. That was a big mistake! On Sundays, the Basilica and the Vatican Museum are closed.

When walking through Rome I also walked up into the Vatican on Saturday and figured out the huge line of people waiting to get into the Basilica, which contains the famous drawings of Michaelangelo. That queue was about 500 meters long and it made me shrugging when thinking of stepping at the end of the line, just to wait 1 hour for getting inside and leave again after already 1 hour due to closing time on Saturday evening. My thinking:

"I simply decide to go there on Sunday morning very early and skip the whole line.. hehe."

You wait about one hour to get into the Basilica

Closed doors on Sunday, but...

Well, I indeed was able to skip the whole line on Sunday and I was indeed the first, but, unfortunately, all the effort of hurrying there to be the first wasn't worth it, as the doors to the Basilica and the Museum are closed on Sunday.

At least the effort wasn't completely waste and I had a pleasant visit to the St. Peters Dome and its Dome, the "cupola". From up there, it's possible to see all over the Vatican and very far into Rome. Event the Colosseum was possible to see from up there, which is about 3.5 kilometers away.

Lookout from the top of the dome in the Cupola

Pope shows up at lunchtime

The pope lives in Vatican City and he was there this weekend, as the guardians told me at the entrance when I asked briefly. Unfortunately, he doesn't leave the Vatican just for fun and goes abroad with his Popemobile to Italy for a coffee in McDonald's, which is just outside of the Vatican City walls. But normally on Sundays, the pope is sending his prayers from his apartment window or from the balcony and everybody can watch him from outside waving his hands, giving the papal blessing.

Was in the Vatican for a few hours but didn't have the time waiting another few hours to see this spectacle.

However, if he would have been arriving in his fancy Popemobile, then I definitely would have waited.