Visiting the Vatican
On day two (April 27th) of our trip we will be visiting Vatican City. We should review some information prior to this visit. This is a great opportunity for our group to visit a site of historical, cultural, and religious significance.
Vatican City is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church and features some great art and architecture. It is the smallest state in the world by population and size, and has also been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
For those of your unfamiliar with the significance of this visit, here is a brief synopsis. Roman Catholicism is a denomination of Christianity, which is itself one of three Abrahamic religions. The other two Abrahamic religions are Judaism and Islam. All three trace their roots back to Abraham as their original patron, Just as Islam and Judaism (and other religions) have major denominations, so does Christianity, of which Roman Catholicism is one. Other major denominations of Christianity are the Eastern Church and Protestantism. There are some great reads on the differences between denominations.
We really do have a privilege with this trip in that, as a college tour group, we get to bypass a number of the lineups for this visit. There are several websites which supply tips on visiting Vatican City (check here and here and here). However, in order to make life a little easier I have summarized some points, below.
- Dress appropriately: Best to represent well. For the men, this means casual dress pants and collared shirts. For the ladies, this means shoulders and midsections are covered and, if wearing skirts or dresses, hemlines are just below the knees. For all, make certain that your footwear is also not too casual. Failure to adhere to these rules may mean that you are waiting outside while the rest of us get to participate in the tour!
- Sistine Chapel: Make certain that you look up! Suggested best views are to cross the chapel's main entrance in the east wall (opposite visitor's entrance).
- St Peter's Basilica: Everyone appreciates Michelangelo's Pieta (sculpture of Madonna holding her lost son - an no, not this Madonna).
- Shoes: Wear good walking shoes - this is scheduled to be a 3 hour tour.
- Don't forget to eat a good breakfast for all that walking.
Looking forward to this first day in Rome!
We had the following question, and below is our answer!
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Hi Matt, Thanks for the update, I'm really looking forward to the trip. For the Vatican tour, can I wear khaki style shorts with a collared shirt and plain running shoes for walking? Walking for that long is dress shoes wont be fun, especially if its also really hot temperature wise.Thanks!
Response: Good question. The running shoes should not be an issue depending on the colours. If they are bright colours such as the one shown below, there could potentially be an issue. As for the shorts, refer to the image in our posting here that shows a sign from Vatican City itself. This gives clear guidance on what is acceptable. As another point, if you have the time and currency, MEC sells great travel pants that are fantastic for warmer weather. I wore them in India and, although I would have preferred shorts, they were quite comfortable!
Additional note: Shoes should be closed toe, which means you will need to leave the cottage flip flops in the hotel!
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