LAST DAY IN ROME

We finished our last day in Rome touring the Vatican City. Wow what a place as we were there over 5 hours and didn't even touch a small part of all you can see. We were able to see where over 2/3 of all the Popes are buried in what is called the Vatican Grotto. There are over 100 people including 91 Popes buried there. John Paul the 2nd that passed away in 2005 is buried there and has to have guards to keep people from trying to get near his crypt. The very main area in the Basilica where the Pope speaks from is directly over St. Peters crypt and is a Bronze structure 98 ft tall. This is called a Baldacchino which is a pavilion like structure immediately under the dome.

1 main entrance to the Basilica from St. Peters Square
2-3 in St. Peters Square
4 Entrance to Vatican City
5-19 Pictures of things throughout the Vatican
20 Nero's bath in Purple Marble
21 Purple monument. Over 1/2 of the worlds purple marble is at the Vatican.
22 Huge tapestry. There were about a dozen like this that were incredible
with detail
23-27 works of art by Raphael or his apprentice as he died before all of his art work was finished.
28-30 pictures from the Sisteen Chapel by Michael Angelo. I am not sure how I got these since they don't allow pictures in this room.
31 St. Peters tomb under the Baldacchino
32-33 Different Popes Crypts that had glass sides. Most Popes you could not tale pictures of their crypts.
34 Dome in the Basilica
35 the Baldacchino
36 Inside the Basilica