Today was the day that I travelled to one of the pillars of Catholicism: St. Peter's Basilica. Truly it is stupendous, and I had so much more of a sense of being a Catholic there (whatever that means). It's a bit like always seeing Wheel of Fortune on TV, but never actually being on the show. Well now it's like I have been on the show and I've spun top dollar. I had to pay to climb the 600 or so steps to the top of the basilica, but I was well rewarded with the most splendid view of Rome! Also, claustraphobics beware, as near the top of the cupola, the steps become so narrow and the slope of the roof bends you sideways, that it is quite unnerving. Both of your shoulders end up touching the walls, and there is no way back. Completely worth it though.
The basilica itself is the most spectacular thing that I have seen sofar. I mean, the Colosseum is amazing, but if it were my vote, then the basilica would be the next wonder of the world. I can't describe in words or with pictures the scope and immensity of it. Suffice to say that just to walk around the floor of the basilica took around half an hour. There are so many things to take in. every possible corner of space has been painted, carved or frescoed, and statues are everywhere! Truly, truly spectacular, on a scale I had never dreamed of.
If I were a sim in "The Sims" then my culture rating would have just jumped up two notches. As it is, my Cath-o-meter has risen, and the statistics now stand at:
Popes seen: 0
Cardinals seen: 0
Bishops seen: 0
Priests seen: 1 (In the train station)
Nuns seen: 5
Most of the nuns were manning (hehe..) the stores, licking stamps and instructing people not to bring coffee into the shop. Let me tell you, I've seen nuns, and I don't think these ones were pushovers. I felt like if I screwed up, a nuns hand would slap me across the face with the full force of the Catholic Church behind it. As it is, I just bought a postcard and tried not to break anything.
After that, I left the basilica and was trouncing through a souvenir shop, thinking about buying a vatican flag (5 euros? No way.). In the first shop I came to, I almost laughed out loud, as while I was checking out the Pope Benedict XVI plates, "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M. came on over the radio. The irony was totally lost on the sultry shopkeepers, who kept eyeing me with suspicion. Now that was totally worth the trip in itself! You can't buy that kind of irony.
Later on, I took gelato at the Trevi fountain (5 flavours: chocolate, pistachio, raspberry, mixed berries and pineapple). Which was spectacular, but packed with tourists and peddlers. By that time I was exhausted from all the climbing back at the basilica, so I retired back to the hotel, made some calls, bought another cheap bottle of Lambrusca and laid in bed eating biscotti and watching old movies in Italian.
Tomorrow I have to leave Rome, so I guess this is arrivaderci Roma per adesso. I hope to return one day, but tomorrow I go to discover the countryside in Tuscany, which I imagine will be a completely different experience. Ciao Roma!
Baaaa
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