Thursday, September 18, 2008

We're Touring Rome Today

There is so much on the schedule for the last full day in Italy, I'll leave it to the brochure to say what we'll be doing. "Today we'll visit the birthplace of two great pillars of Western civilization -- the Roman Empire and Christianity. With our expert local guide we'll tour the Vatican Museums, a treasure trove of ancient Greek sculptures, medieval tapestries and Renaissance paintings. Our visit culminates in the Sistine Chapel, the room where the Pope is elected. We enter in total silence, not wanting to disturb Michelangelo's famed frescoes depicting the 'End of Times'. You'll be fascinated by which of Michelangelo's contemporaries he assigned to heaven, and which to hell!

Next we visit St. Peter's Basilica, by far the largest church in Christendom. We'll see Michelangelo's Pieta, sculpted when he was just 24, as well as Bernini's 7-story bronze canopy located above the main altar.

After a break for lunch, we board our coach for a panoramic tour of Imperial Rome including Castel St. Angelo, the Roman Forum, Largo Argentina (where Caesar was stabbed by Brutus), the Jewish Ghetto and the Circus Maximus. Then we'll enter the Colosseum, reliving the brutal entertainment of the gladiators and the lions, refereed by the Emperor himself.

Tonight we'll enjoy dinner at our hotel."




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