Vatican train to Papal Estate from The Guardian

A post on FB from The Guardian dated 9/11/2015 shared this news.

"Vatican launches rail service to papal 

summer estate

New papal portrait gallery in Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo features oil paintings of popes dating back to 16th century

A train leaves St Peter’s railway station in Vatican City. Photograph: Angelo Carconi/EPA          

With a deafening whistle and a plume of smoke, an antique train departed from the Vatican railway station on Friday to inaugurate a weekly service to the papal summer estate in Castel Gandolfo, which Pope Francis has opened to the public.                      

Starting from Saturday, the public will be able to visit both papal estates – the Vatican museums and gardens in Rome, and a new papal portrait gallery in the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo – travelling on the service launched by the Vatican and Italy’s railway, Ferrovia dello Stato.       

The portrait gallery features oil paintings of popes dating back to the 16th century and their vestments, thrones and even the enormous slippers of Pope Clement XII. It also has on show the fancy costumes of the onetime papal court, officially abolished by Pope Paul VI in 1968 and now exiled for good to Castel Gandolfo by the simplicity-loving Francis.                                 

Tour packages run from €16 to €40 (£12-£30) and must be booked online in advance through the Vatican Museums.                  

For the inaugural press run on Friday, Ferrovia used its century-old, coal-burning locomotive to pull historic passenger cars. The regular service will use modern trains.

Popes past have kept Castel Gandolfo as a summer getaway, and Benedict XVI closed out his papacy there on 28 February 2013 when the big wood and bronze doors on the main palazzo slammed shut after he left the Vatican for the last time as pontiff.   

Photograph Vincenzo Pinto AFP Getty Images

            
Francis, a workaholic and homebody who hates being alone, has decided not to use Castel Gandolfo, preferring to spend his summers at the same Vatican hotel where he lives.       

Last year he decided to open Castel Gandolfo’s gardens to the public, in part to help offset the economic downturn the town has experienced now that popes are no longer holding weekly Sunday prayers there in summer."

Above is a repost from a facebook post today

Rome: Vatican Turns On The Lights

See Rome with a Roman.


The Last Judgement in The Sistine chapel, Rome
Photo thanks to Bing post*

 
On my recent trip Home to Italy,  Laura Massoni Travel. arranged a great day with an amazing Rome expert Giovanni.
I do not take tours (one exception was a day in Russia) but this event to see the Sistine Chapel with Giovanni was more like:  spending the day with a scholar, a local and a very interesting new friend.



The new lights illuminate all the panels
Photo thanks to Bing

Marking it's 500th year, the Sistine Chapel is on any list of must sees in Rome.  During every visit I am amazed by the sheer scale of the chapel, the countless individual figures each with a different expression and the colors.     

Each ceiling panel is an astounding work of art.
Photo thanks to Bing*

It was a thrill to see the chapel this time with a knowledgeable licensed tour guide with a masters in Architecture, trained in sculpture and plastic arts and a for art history teacher.  Giovanni is part of the Laura Missoni Travel group.
 

Our guide, Giovanni

New LED lighting was being added during my October visit and scaffolding was everywhere.  Now completed,  I asked Giovanni, who has visited as many as 150 times during the past 12 years, what comes to his mind when he now enters the 'illuminated' room:  'good job Michelangelo'.  

He tells me that first time visitors often react with:  "it's overwhelming, grand, larger or smaller than they expected.  I would say all visitors feel admiration and real curiosity."

Photos don't do this massive work of
art justice and you are not permitted to take photos within the chapel.    The photos here are from Bing* and show the incredible improvement after the installation of the new lighting.   * http://bit.ly/1y3F0ab

A BBC report explained that in this room that is also famous for the election of each new pope, that there are now 7,000 Led lights.    With 20,000 visitors a day the yearly toll on the room might require some future limitation of the number of guests.   I observed guards preventing visitors from staying too long.  There are seats around the perimeter of the room but I still leave with the bent back strain from trying to see everything in a very short period of time.  

The crowds can be massive
Photo credit Bing*

 

There is now an opportunity via special reservations to visit the chapel at the end of the day when it is less crowded.  

Alice Capitolo

Thank you Laura Massoni Travel arranging this tour.
Alice Capitolo is a member of the Laura Massoni Travel team and never tired of answering endless questions about Italian life.  Grazie

For your unique travel experience in Italy contact  www.lauramassonitravel.com for one of their many adventures in Italy.