St Peters square, designed to be an embrace to visitors. Has an egyptian obelisk interestingly

It is hard to process the scale of this place, even in person. So. Much. Gold.

So many of these little domes covered in beautiful art

I thought Iacobo was the latin for my name, but apparently its James

There is an actual pope embalmed in there!

Michelangelo's first commissioned work and the only one he signed

One of the Pope Innocents, justice, and charity

This structure lies over St Peters actual tomb

My favorite part - amazing how the stone looks soft. Skeleton with hourglass: death is inevitable

Would you believe if I said this is not a painting?

It's a mosaic, as are almost all of the "paintings" there

St Peters basilica

May 20, 2022 in Vatican City ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

This was the highlight of the Vatican for me and easily one of the most amazing places I’ve ever been. It is a church built around St. Peter’s tomb at the site where he was crucified. Most of the popes are buried here, most in underground tombs but some are embalmed on the main floor. Pictures don’t do this place justice - it is so massive, detailed and ornate that it is difficult to look at, there is too much for your eyes to focus on. It is more than 2 football fields long and about 150 feet high. According to my guide from the pantheon, most of the building materials were taken from ancient Roman monuments, which the Catholics essentially destroyed because they were Pagan and using up valuable resources. So much of the metal comes from the colosseum, forum, etc. so it is very historically interesting. Most of the paintings (I think all except 1) are actually mosaics which is incredible.Read more