A visit to Vatican City can cause a neck sprain due to its 360 degrees of sheer beauty. It is simply a visual feast.
Despite being the world's smallest country both by land area and population, Vatican City is of great religious, historical and cultural significance. Located within the Italian capital city of Rome, the Vatican is an independent city-state. It has its own laws and is governed as an absolute monarchy with the Pope, the head of the Catholic Church, at its head.
The papal state has a population of 801, according to the United Nations' World Population Prospects. It covers an area of only 440,000m², according to the World Atlas, smaller than Bangkok's CentralWorld. But despite such minuteness, the state is visited by millions of tourists a year regardless of religious background. The Telegraph reported in 2016 that the Vatican Museums received nearly 5.5 million visitors. That explains why part of its economy comes from the sales of postage stamps and souvenirs, books, posters, tourist mementos and admission fees at museums.
The River God statue.
Statue of the Nile God. Photo: Melalin Mahav ongtrakul
Without a doubt, the Vatican -- the centre of the Catholic Church -- immortalised in dozens of films like Angels & Demons, Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible III or even Netflix's biographical mini series Call Me Francis, is a grandiose city, with those movies serving as the inspiration for many to pay a real visit. But seeing the city-state with your own eyes is something else. Michelangelo's frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, including The Creation Of Adam, achieve an unprecedented artistic vision, not to mention St Peter's Basilica, which houses some of the most significant artworks of the Renaissance such as the world famous Pietà sculpture.
Despite the fact that the Vatican is a holy, sacred place supposed to be engulfed with a peaceful, religion-oriented atmosphere of sorts, the reality is a far cry from such an imagination. The huge crowd. The cameras. The noises. The mobile phones. The tour guides' fluttering flags. All these make the Vatican a bustling tourist destination.
If you plan a visit to the Vatican, give yourself an entire day. Exploring the city cannot be rushed. Booking a ticket into the Vatican in advance is strongly advised. Otherwise you could end up waiting for hours in a line in front of the city's entrance.
Mummies displayed in the Gregorian Egyptian Museum inside the Vatican Museums.
The focal point of the Vatican is the Vatican Museums. The museums comprise 20 galleries, or sala, including the most-anticipated Sistine Chapel. The Sistine Chapel is where a papal conclave -- a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Pope -- takes place. The latest conclave took place in 2013 when Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires was elected and took the name Francis.
The Sistine Chapel is packed with tourists even on weekdays. It's quite hard to allow yourself to fully appreciate the sacred ambience and ceiling frescoes without being interrupted by other travellers or being asked to step aside to make way for others. Nevertheless, the Sistine Chapel alone is a trip of a lifetime. Just find yourself a nice standing spot and keep calm. Mobile phones and cameras are strictly prohibited in this part of the Vatican Museums.
There are more to the Vatican Museums than just elements of religious significance. Mummies, for instance. At the 179-year-old Egyptian Museum, visitors are able to learn the relationship between Egypt and the city-state. Although the Egyptian Museum spans across nine rooms in total, the highlight is mummies and the mummification process.
Frescoes inside the Vatican Museums. Photos: Melalin Mahav ongtrakul
The idea behind the mummification concerns the preservation of the body so that -- according to the funerary thoughts of Ancient Egypt -- the ba, or soul of the deceased, should be reunited with the body after death.
The museum displays several jars of internal organs and provides tutelage about the embalming process. Over a 70-day period, the body was entrusted to priests. It was washed, eviscerated and covered with the mineral salt natron for about 40 days for it to become completely dehydrated. The empty thoracic cavity was then refilled with bundles of bandages and packets of resins. The skin was softened and perfumed with oils and other fragrant substances. The body was then wrapped in linen bandages. Before the mummy was put in the coffin, a mask was placed over the head to protect the face.
Later in the tour is the Arno Statue or the River God, one of the art pieces that receives the most attention from visitors. Displayed in the Courtyard of Statues or Cortile delle Statue inside the Vatican Museums, the River God is seen in its traditional reclining post. The statue was repaired and restored so many times by various Renaissance artists, who replaced many parts including the head with its expressive bearded face.
The Hall of the Animals or the ‘stone zoo’.
Then comes the Hall of Animals, which houses ancient statues that have been much often, sometimes to the point of completely distorting the original.
Watch your neck at the Gallery of Tapestries because all the walls are adorned with the most valuable tapestries in the Vatican Museums' collection such as The Life Of Christ woven between 1524 and 1531. The series originally consisted of 12 tapestries, nine of which are displayed at the current Gallery of Tapestries and can be divided into two groups. The first group is dedicated to the childhood of Christ and the second group to episodes following the Crucifixion.
If you book an open, non-guided tour inside the Vatican, it is highly recommended that you rent an audioguide headset which costs €8 or around 300 baht. This way, you can fully enjoy strolling around while being simultaneously educated -- either for a few hours or a whole day -- so that you don't walk past the Sistine Chapel without realising you've reached the most significant masterpiece of the entire tour.
St Peter’s Basilica houses the Pietà sculpture. Photos: Melalin Mahavongtrakul
Other Ro me highlights
The Trevi Fountain
The stunning Trevi Foundation reopened to the public in 2015 after more than 17 months of a €2.2 million renovation. The restoration was sponsored by Rome-based fashion house Fendi.
The Spanish Steps
One of Rome's most popular tourist spots, the Spanish Steps featuring 135 steps are the widest stairway in all of Europe. Because of its great width, friends and families usually gather here, making this place crowded even on weekdays. Neighbourhoods around the Spanish Steps are great places to shop both for local goods and brand-name items.
The Colosseum
The main symbol of Rome, the Colosseum is visited by over 6 million visitors a year. With almost 2,000 years of history, the Colosseum was listed as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World in 2017 by the New Seven Wonders Foundation. It is the largest amphitheatre in the world and has a capacity of 87,000 people, according to Guinness World Records.
Rome's art and architecture
Art and architecture of Rome is food for the eyes. A stroll around the city allows visitors to see shows from buskers as well as street art.
Travel info
- Thai Airways operates a direct flight to Rome's Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport three times a week. The flight is operated on Airbus A350-900 with live TV on board both for economy and business class. Visit thaiairways.com.
- There are various kinds of tours in the Vatican City to choose from, for example, open or guided tours of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, Pontifical Villas and Gardens and so forth. Prices vary. Visit museivaticani.va.
- Entry to the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, St Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Gardens is permitted only to appropriately dressed visitors. Low cut or sleeveless clothing, shorts, miniskirts and hats are not allowed.
- The use of mobile phones is strictly forbidden in the Sistine Chapel.
