Since the Covid-19 pandemic arrived, travelling has almost been impossible and many of us have had to stay at home, close to our immediate family, but united with the rest of the world through prayer and social media. It is very sad to say that many of us did not make it, in particular in countries like ours. Fortunately, vaccines have been spread all over the world and we know that souls were received by God, amidst the hope and suffering of those who remained in this world. Soon the world will be accessible again, we will be able to reunite with our loved ones and return to travel.
Italy is undoubtedly one of the most famous destinations for art, architecture, food and friendly people. There are so many beautiful cities in this country, from Florence to Venice, but Rome is one of the cities you should visit if you have never been to Italy.
ROME
Rome is one of the places to be, it is the Italian capital, the center of Europe and the heart of the Catholic religion. Within the city is the Papal States, home to the Pope and decorated with some of the most impressive and magnificent architecture and paintings in the whole of the Italian peninsula.
The current Pope is Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires on 17 December in 1936 and he is, since 13 March 2013, the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church and Bishop of Rome, sovereign of the Vatican City State. He belongs to the clerics regular of the Society of Jesus and is the first pontiff from this religious order. Argentinean with Italian origins, his parents came from Genoa, he is the first pope to come from the American continent, despite being a world citizen at heart. He is currently at the center of a major controversy in Italy, because of a bill that the clergy would like not to be approved by the state, opposing on the basis of the 1929 Lateran Pacts, in which the independence of the Holy See from Italy was sanctioned.
THE VATICAN CITY STATE.
The Vatican is the smallest state in Europe. It occupies just 0.44 square kilometers and less than 1,000 people live within its walls, including Pope Francis, who lives in a palace surrounded by gardens that can be visited by public by appointment only.
The Vatican Museums
Thousands of tourists visit this place every year, you can find works collected by the Popes over the centuries. The opening date back to 1503, when Pope Julius II donated his private collection. Since that moment, the pope’s family and other pontiffs increased the museums’ collection, that became one of the largest in the world.
The Sistine Chapel, an incredible spectacle, is part of the museum. If you’re visiting the Vatican area for the first time, you can’t miss this fresco.
Michelangelo’s frescoes are ones of the most beautiful in the history of art. Among them you can admire the Creation of Adam, the most famous in the Sistine Chapel and one of the most important masterpieces in history, or the Last Judgement, the most known part of the chapel.
The Sistine Chapel is an important place for art and for the Catholic Religion. This is the place where new Popes are elected, the conclave being held here. The cardinals are locked inside the chapel until the end of the voting, whether black smoke or white smoke. For about 30 years the Chapel has been restored to its original splendour, its restoration took about 14 years and was completed in 1994.
St. Peter and the square
If you travel through Rome, you have to see St. Peter’s Square, where Bernini’s colonnade welcomes you like two great arms within the beating heart of the Vatican State. The dimensions of the square are astonishing, 320 meters long and 240 meters wide. During important liturgical events, St Peter’s Square has come to welcome more than 300,000 people. The square was built by order of Pope Alexander VII between 1656 and 1667, based on a design by Bernini (as the columns).
At the top of the columns are 140 statues of saints, made in 1670 by Bernini’s disciples and in the center of the square is an Egyptian obelisk (25 meters tall) and two fountains, one designed by Bernini and the other by Maderno.
In front of you, the St Peter’s Basilica, its construction began in 1506 and ended in 1626, and it was consecrated on 18 November of the latter year. Various architects participated in its construction, including Bramante, Michelangelo and Carlo Maderno. It is named after the first pope in history, St Peter, whose body lies in the basilica.
Within it, works and frescoes are precious pieces of art. In example, one of Michelangelo’s best masterpieces, The Pietà. Among the works of art here, you can also find Bernini’s “Baldacchino”, and the bronze statue of St. Peter that has its right foot consumed by the kisses of the faithful.
In the square there is Mondocattolico, a shop where you can buy and ship amazing religious objects. Thanks to its position, upon request, the items purchased are brought to the square during Pope Francis’ blessing on the occasion of the Wednesday Papal Audience and the Sunday Angelus. The square marks the boundary between the Vatican City and the Italian State. On one side you have St Peter’s Basilica, on the other side you have Italy with Via della Conciliazione, the road that leads to the Tiber and Castel Sant’Angelo, another must-see monument in Rome.
The best view in Rome is from St Peter’s Dome, designed by Michelangelo and executed by Giacomo Della Porta and, subsequently, by Carlo Maderno. The dome of St Peter’s Basilica inspired later designs, such as St Paul’s Cathedral in London or the Capitol in Washington.
A trip to Italy without passing through Rome is a real shame, so don’t miss out on the beauty of the Eternal City and fly straight to the capital of the most beautiful country in the world.