Vatican City. I am undecided if this should be considered another country or not. Part of me thinks it should be so that the number of countries I am visiting will increase (to about 21 if you try to keep track), but since there was no need to take my passport it may not count.
Anyway, important musings aside. Vatican City. The Pope's city. Where the road signs are slightly different and the Swiss Guard in their finery hang out. Once again, it is 35 degrees and a blazing sun and these guys are wearing full dress (ie long sleeve shirts, pants, hat all covered in medieval decoration). Now that is dedication. Personally I would have melted into a little puddle. It is bad enough that I have to wear something to cover my knees and shoulders, out comes the long skirt and I took a shirt to put on over top (no way I was wearing a shirt all day).
We were lucky with the crowds. Monday is supposed to be the busiest day (apart from Pope days) as the museums are closed. I think the heat has kept a lot of people away, plus the warnings that Mondays are terrible to visit so the lines were fairly painless (very little queues in the sun). Had to pass through security and be scrutinised to ensure we were dressed modestly enough (we were).
St Peter's Basillica is so richly decorated it is almost sickening. Not to take away from the beauty of the basillica, but when you put the gold covered carvings next to some of the beggers that are outside the basillica (behind it), the wealth gone into this building kind of makes you uneasy. There is no denying it is a work of art and viewed simply as that, it is stunning. Gold leaf is everywhere, statues and alters, huge bronze structures, ceiling paintings, marble floors etc. With the sun streaming in one of the windows it is beautiful.
Then you go outside. And walk out of the square and towards the museums. I have seen a few beggers in Rome so far-the devoted women prostrating themselves on the street (and yes that is prostrating as in on their hands and knees, head down praying-not prostituting), dirty men eyeballing you, a man with a kitten, children who busk on the trains, or collect money for their parents who busk on the train (this generally occurs between termini and colosseo stops) and the pushy beggers. It wasnt until Vatican City that I actually felt unsafe and that I was likely to be relieved of my wallet in any fleeting moment of inattention (either covertly or overtly). You could feel the anger. Some of the saddest beggers including those with disabilities were in the Vatican City near the basillica. I hope some of that wealth filters its way down, rather than becoming another gilded frame.

As all cities face the issues of homelessness I will criticise no more.

On to the museum and the Sistine chapel. The museum is huge (I actually think there are three all joined together or something).
The one I wanted to see was the Egyptian collection. There was everything you could want in an Egyptian collection including a mummy. I think most of the artifacts are from Rameses II rein. There are also some statues from when the Romans took over Egypt so youvstumble across Anubis (think, head of a jackel god of underworld I think) wearing a toga.
The path to the Sistine chapel is long and lined with paintings and tapestry. Gold on the ceiling. Mosaics on the floor. Eventually you get there and no photos are allowed in the chapel. I have been told this was because Nippon paid for the restoration and in turn were given the rights to the images (not sure whose they were to sell in the first instance but, possibly private residence and all), therefore you cannot take pictures. And they are very uptight about it too.
The chapel is not large (especially compared to other churches I have seen) but is richly decorated. The paintings are impressive, Michealangelo was certainly talented.

I finally got to eat proper gnocci. When that stuff is made properly its luke little pillows of heaven (compared to the stodgy blocks I have had previously). Covered in five cheese sauce-delicious!

I do need a point where I comment on infrastucture and traffic patterns. I love the way Italians drive. As a pedestrian you take your life in your hands. They say you should cross a busy street in a group, prefereably with nuns. That comment is not far off the mark. Also when you do cross, if you hesitate its all over. Parking is bedlum. Double parking common. From my vantage point at a street front cafe I watched as someone double parked, everyone got out, the driver signaled at someone in the restaurant across the road. A man in a chefs outfit came out, crossed the street to the car next to the where the driver had double parked, performed a uturn and parked on the other side of the street. The driver then got back into his car and turned up a driveway (which the chefs car was originally in front of, took three or four goes to straighten up to go into the driveway and immediately after a woman in a black car parked across the driveway. Its like musical cars. Or someone who pays for other people to park across his driveway so it would be difficult, if not near impossible, for anyone else to use the driveway (given that people park anywhere, this may not be far off the mark).
There are also what have been named 'ghetto trains'. Generally every second train on the metro us a nice new looking air conditioned train. So 50% of the time tracel on the metro is quite plesant. The other 50% of the time you ghetto train. These are completely covered in graffiti (some very artistically so). Air con doesnt work. Interior decorating consisting of handdrawns works of art. Good luck seeing out the windows to see what station you are at-those are graffitted too. Odd to have such a drastic contrast between trains (and the regularity). The temperment on the ghetto trains is also different, I guess the atmosphere created does provide a threatening element not existing on the other trains.
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