Michelangelo's
Dome
You can just barely make out the heads of dedicated
pilgrims who have scaled the heights (arrow).
She
Doesn't Have a
Ticket to Ride
Senza Ascensore is Italian for "without elevator."
I saved myself a few lire and a wait in the elevator line,
but it was a long trek.
Even with the elevator, there's
still 320 more unavoidable steps to go.
Narrow arching steps sandwiched
between the dome-within-a-dome allow access to the very
top.
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The
dome of St. Peter's is truly a wonder, the largest
of its kind in the world, and definitely worth a climb.
The dome's windows
allow a celestial light to penetrate the sanctuary,
casting a warm glow on the gilded surfaces.
 
They look like paintings, but the decorations
of the domes (as well as the walls) are actually exquisitely
detailed mosaics. When I got to the roof, I could
see the mosaics up close inside the dome--each tiny tile,
cut, shaped and set by hand.
Scaling an iron ladder to reach the cupola balcony,
I emerged at last into the light. Standing at the
highest point in Rome, I surveyed the scape below,
exhausted and exhilarated.
(survey by mousing
over the small pictures for larger views)
Next:
A Visit to the Vatican Museum
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