12-Jun-2011 Mt Gambier, South Australia and Nearby Attractions

Saturday, 11th of June:

It's long weekend, hence we took the opportunity to take a break.  As usual, Justin's swimming lesson at 10:30 a.m... washed the laundry til 12 noon while making a jello for the party at Grace's house later, then packed the clothes and toiletries for a night getaway. 

We're supposed to pick up Jac and Lorenz at 11:00-11:30 am but arrived at their place at 1:00 p.m.  "Malamang dilat na ang mga mata non!", we thought.

We went to Grace and Dennis Mansion at Pakenham for the celebration of Hennie, LJ, Gwen and Beia's birthday and left there at 3:30 p.m... (Apologies to Egay/Kat, hindi na namin kayo naantay.  Sayang, na-miss namin ang masarap na luto ni Egay!)

Set the GPS to Federal Hotel, Mt Gambier.  It was roughly 6-hr drive from Pakenham.   We stopped at McDonalds around 8p.m. at Warrnambool... dinner solved.  Then drove again... Along the way, we almost ran over a small fox crossing the road or could be possum.. not quite sure.  

From Lorenz's 'school' and 'chikababes' adventures ... to Justin's 'name that tune' and 'guess the movie'... the 6-hour drive went so fast.  We didn't realize the time.  For the first time, Mon was awake throughout the journey.  I didn't have to slap and pinch him to stay awake :-)

South Australia is 30 minutes behind Victoria.  We arrived at Federal Hotel around 9:15 p.m.

Sunday, 12th of June:
We checked out at quarter to 8 in the morning  and started touring.

Mount Gambier, the Limestone Coast of South Australia 

Old Town Hall and Gardiner Fountain.

The old town hall was constructed out of the local dolomite and limestone and was completed in 1882.  Beside the building was the Gardiner Fountain, donated to the city by Captain Robert Gardiner in 1884. It is claimed to be the first marble fountain made in South Australia.

Cave Gardens

Located at the heart of the city centre, next to the Old Town Hall.  It features a sinkhole.  Visitors can walk down onto the suspended viewing platform for  the view of the cave. 

The Extinct Volcano Crater Lakes within Kanawinka Geopark:
Browne's Lake - We kept on driving around the park where it is located and ended up concluding that the lake was now dry as we couldn't find any sign of water from where the map was pointing us.

Leg of Mutton Lake - It's a dry lake bed in a volcanic crater,  now bushy with grass and trees.



Valley Lake - a scenic lake surrounded by hills with playgrounds, bbq and picnic grounds and shelters.




Adam Lindsay Gordon Obelisk
near the Blue Lake



The Blue Lake in winter.

  Blue Lake - The most famous of all  the lakes in Mount Gambier.  It is the source of the city's drinking water.  Each year at the start of summer, the lake starts its colour change from greyish/steel blue to brilliant turquoise blue.  Throughout the years, there had been a number of theories said on why the blue lake changes colours. It's winter time, so we didn't get a chance to see the lake in its most beautiful colour/scenery.

The Rook Wall and Lookout
facing the Blue Lake

We ate lunch at KFC then went to Engelbrecht Cave.  We had to wait for 45 minutes for the next tour and the man at the counter told us that there was really no stalactites/stalagmites there.  It's a dry cave, so was not really eager to wait.  We left and decided to go the next destination---

Umpherston Sinkhole (The Sunken Garden) - similar but bigger and better than the Cave Gardens.  It was once a cave with sinkhole created when the top of the chamber collapsed downwards. The soil on the ground of the cave had been landscaped with terraced gardens and is floodlit at night. It is an impressive garden with  plants hanging over the edges of the sinkhole.  It was originally beautified by James Umpherston where the garden got its name. 

Seeing the 2 honeycombs on the wall of the cave  and a possum that scared Lorenz away were considered a bonus during our visit.   Had fun photo taking on the log truck on display at the park before going back to the car.

Leaving Mount Gambier...

Princess Margaret Rose Cave - the Underground Wonderland. It is located at the Lower Glenelg National Park via Nelson Victoria.   It features stalactites, stalagmites, helictites, columns and pillars with formation of a wedding cake, bacon and egg, shawls, blankets etc.   Been to a number of caves before but our first time to hear the term  helictites. Unlike the stalactites and stalagmites, helictites formed in different directions.. not simply upward or downward.  The jewels underground were amazing as expected.

After the cave tour, we went southeast, heading to Cape Bridgewater, southwest of Portland Victoria.  It was truly a place for paragliders/hang gliders.   'Wish we could take a ride (maybe not for Mon though.)

Cape Bridgewater Wind Farm -  It's part of the Portland Wind Enegry project.  Stopped the car at the side of the road to take a photo... with Jac, making up faces everytime a car came from both directions... only to realize later that there's a dedicated bay ahead for cars wanting to give way or stop.

Cape Bridgewater Blowholes - the force of the ocean was not as spectacular as I had expected.  It was a calm day.  The sunrays over the ocean were beautiful ... it's like stairway to heaven...

Cape Bridgewater Petrified Forest - It's a short trail  from near the blowholes with view of rock formation that resembles a number of broken pipes/tubes.  I found from surfing the net that petrified forest was formed when the forest of Moonah trees was smothered by a large sand dune. Water seeping through the sand formed a crust of sandstone on the outside of the trunks, decaying the organic matter, leaving behind petrified trunks.

Time to go home.  It was already half past 4.  The time flew on the road without us knowing while me, Jac, Lorenz and Mon exchanged stories of our childhood, teenage years, marriage proposals, about our ex-es, siblings, our differences and similarities,  embarassing experiences and many more.    Felt hungry and so we decided to stop at a Chinese Resto at Colac and had our dinner there...  It's a continuation of the past until we got movin and back to the road... 

Had a cup of hot choco at Jac & Lorenz' house while they're chatting with Peter before ending the night.

I don't know if there would be more things to talk about after this trip...  It was a good trip...  all in one fine day.

More Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2013916580469.115787.1020438581

8-May-2011 Hot Air Ballooning Over the Beautiful Yarra Valley

A Birthday or a Mother's Day Treat?   The voucher was my gift to Mon's Birthday last year (March 2010).   Supposed to expire within a year...  but due to popular demand, I was able to get a booking only on the 8th of May this year.  In time for Mother's Day celebration :-).

The forecast was cloudy and rain.  We rang Balloon Sunrise to reconfirm the flight a night before.  It's our first time so a bit excited.  Meeting place was at Belgownie Estate, Yarra Glen at 6:00 a.m. , so we left the house around 5 a.m. 

The pilot was on the phone trying to reconfirm the weather... We're not very confident, current forecast was saying that this trip could be cancelled.  But the pilot announced after a few minutes of waiting that we're going ahead.  He briefed us of what was expected from us. Teamwork.

We left Belgownie Estate and drove uphill to test the wind.   It was foggy and quite cold.  We decided to stay inside the van with 2 good looking men busy taking pictures of themselves.    Meantime, the guys outside released small balloons  twice or thrice...  to check the wind (I guess).   Then, we saw them talking seriously.  'Oh no! Are they going to come back and tell us that today is not a good day to fly?" 

The other passengers and the driver came back... The flight was still on but we needed to find another place.

Later, we saw 2 hot air balloons already flying from afar.  "This is it!", I thought.  They were able so it means we could.

We continued our journey away from the other hot air ballooners... Then stopped.  They let us walked to a grassy vacant land.  Setting up the hot air balloon was done with both the staff and passengers' helping hands.   It's a bit pricey but I think it's a good team building exercise.

We loved it.. being on top.  I'd anticipated that it would be cold up there but it's not.  The Yarra Valley was beautiful.  I'm sure, Mon who is scared of heights, would love to fly again (given another voucher hehe).  The flight was so smooth... great sights..  overlooking the farms, hills, isolated houses.   We saw a big shadow of our balloon surrounded by rainbow over the clouds... an art in which God was the artist. 

We landed after an hour and a half trip.  

Taking the air off the balloon, putting the giant balloon inside the big bag, getting along with other passengers... all these activities made this trip a memorable one. 

The trip ended with a sumptuous Champagne Breakfast inside a reserved dining room at Belgownie estate overlooking the vineyard, along with the pilot and the other passengers.

Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2004092374870.115274.1020438581

24-Apr-2011 - It's Over But Not Quite - A Trip to Rhine Falls ("Huling Hirit!")

Our flight to Melbourne was at 11:22 p.m. from Zurich via Dubai.

I got over with my 'iPhone drama'... we packed our things and took the hotel shuttle bus going to the airport. That was nearly lunch time already. In the airport, we stored our luggage in 2 self service, unattended lockers.  There was a token for each locker which we could use to unlock later.

Schloss Laufen

We still had a fair bit of time to get around, so we had decided to go for a day trip at Rhine Falls.  We took 2 short train rides from Zurich to get to Schloss Laufen.  

The Rhine falls (Rheinfalls) -  It is said to be the largest plain waterfalls in Europe (in terms of width). Similar to Niagara falls in Canada (definitely not as grand as), tourists can take boat trips to go near and enjoy the power of the water falls.  Walking dowhill from outside of Schloss Laufen station was the station for boat trips.  Tickets can be bought there.

We walked uphill, leading us to the viewing platform of the magnificent falls and a small museum.  Then had lunch at a restaurant at Schloss Laufen before coming back to Zurich.

Overlooking the Rheinfalls

Justin had a habit of checking his iPhone and other things every minute after the previous day's incident.  He reminded Mon, "Do you have the tokens of the locker with you?" 

You wouldn't believe it!   Two days in a row- we felt like we're being "jinxed" or something!!!  When Mon checked it out, he only found one.  He said that he remembered putting it in 2 separate pockets.   How can we collect our luggage without the token?  "Thanks to Justin for the reminder.. otherwise, it could cause us big problems later..." 

Zurich Central Station

Instead of doing some shopping at Zurich City Centre, we went to the airport, trying to figure out what to do.  Our flight would be in a few hours, and we had a problem taking our luggage out of the lockers.  We asked the information counter and she directed us where to go and ask for some help.  A guy rang the office that manages those unattended lockers and asked us to wait. 

Wohoo! No sweat!  It was not a long wait but we have to pay of course for losing the token.  Emirates counters were already open, so we checked-in all our luggage. 

Then we took the train again, off to Zurich City centre.  It was around 5:00 p.m. already, walked a bit... but most of the shops were already closed, so just decided to go back at the airport... Bought some Swiss chocs and made our way for our flight back to Melbourne via Dubai.   (Wonderin' why Toblerone, a product of Switzerland, was more expensive if bought in Switzerland (comparing with price in Australia.)

A bit of shopping at Dubai ... then back to Melbourne... Back to reality - unpack, washed the dirty clothes from the trip, tidied up the house, drove to Rey's house for a quick chat and dinner as his Mum/Dad was due to leave Oz the following day... and before we knew it ---- it was already morning.  Time for Justin to go to school for the start of Term 2 and me/Mon to work.

Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2004077934509.115271.1020438581

23-Apr-2011 "Some Good Things Never Last"

We were at Milan quite early, but the train ticket that Mon got would only leave around lunch time.  Had to wait for more or less 3 hours.  We're running out of things to do.  I have a phone number of a relative... 'thought maybe it's a good time to catch up.... tried to call him a few times but couldn't reach him.

We found a bench in the station... Justin was playing, Mon was sleeping, I just walked around the station. I still have less than a hundred Euros to spend before leaving Italy.  Justin was sooo happy with iphone Ferrari case that I bought.   I woke up Mon telling him about some of the shirts and cardigans I saw at Zara... Just want to get his opinion whether I should buy them or not.  Comparing the price in Melbourne, I thought they're cheaper.    I ended up buying 4.. 2 ladies shirts and 2 cardigans... It was only just a few minutes before our departure... I didn't have a chance to try some of them as I was rushing.   The guard at the store reminded me to close my bag before I walked out.  It's like a premonition/warning of the unforunate events ahead of me.

We travelled from Milan to Brig, intending to go back to Geneva before going to Zurich.  

Justin while waiting for his cheese burger at Brig

The train stopped at Brig a quarter past one.  

Gosh! Gosh!  Silly me!!! I checked all the luggage before getting off but missed to take my shopping bag with me.  Hu Hu Hu ;-(  I shopped for nothing.  I felt bad but what can I do.  So I just decided to move on and didn't let this incident ruin my day.

We went out the station...  Nice view, also a good place to stay for a night.   We bought 3 'take-away' cheese burgers for lunch and back to the train platform, heading to Geneva.  As mentioned in my previous blog re:Geneva, we went there to visit the Palais des Nations.

We're pretty much in the train the whole day today.  After visiting Palais des Nations, we went to back to Geneva Central Station to take a train to Zurich airport.

At Zurich airport, we collected our luggage, those we had deposited from St Moritz a few days ago before going to Italy.  At the foodcourt in the airport, we asked Justin to look at our luggage while me-withdrawing some cash at the ATM and Mon-buying dinner.

While eating dinner, I checked my iPhone in the bag.   IT'S NOT THERE!!!  Waaaah!  We're already about to go home... "This can't be happening!"  We all looked everywhere... every pockets of all the luggage... pockets of all our coats... but we couldn't find a trace of my Iphone.  

We started to recollect..
   - The last time I saw it or at least remembered holding it was at the platform at Geneva Station while waiting for the train to Zurich airport.  I was looking for my credit card which I used at Zara... I checked if it's in my Iphone case.  I thought I lost it but I did find it later.
   - The train to Zurich arrived shortly.  I couldn't remember if I returned the iPhone back in the bag or if I put it in my coat's pocket.

Our theories:
   -  Had I dropped it accidentally at Geneva station and could somebody had picked it up?
   -  Was it snatched without me knowing by a robber at Geneva? 
   -  I put my coat at the 'open' overhead compartment in the train above our seat.  Could it be inside the coat and was dropped accidentally at the compartment when I put my coat there?
  -  Was it stolen while Justin was attending the luggage and playing PSP at the same time when I went away for a few minutes to withdraw some cash?
  -  With hesitation, Justin uttered,  "I don't really want to say it, Mum.. but the lady next to us on the same table.  She's acting weird. Could it be...?  Sorry, Mum, she's just acting weird while we were busy looking for the Iphone."  I must admit, it did  occur in my head, as I noticed it myself.  She was acting weird.  I saw that expression before, the way she smiled was similar to what I saw from the  snatcher, sitting next to me before he committed the crime, when I was in a bus a few years ago in Manila.  But I said to Justin, it's not good thinking bad about other people.  He agreed.  He himself was hesistant when he said about his suspicion to us.

 With our experience in Switzerland, highly unlikely for my phone to be in a place with poor reception, even if it's accidentally dropped at the overhead compartment.  I tried to call my number.. but nope, i had not heard a single ring... only heard a voice mail.  It was a sign - telling me that the chance to recover my iPhone would be very, very low.  Whether it was stolen or accidentally found by a stranger... seemed that it had been switched off/disconnected in just of a short period of time.

Tried to send SMS but no response, rang it a few times... all failed.

Twentyt-third of April -  the day when I parted with my dear iPhone ;( .  With it was the Michael Kors case given to me by Mon on my birthday this year.  She's been a great help to me... in tracking Justin's activities, appointments, emails, etc... and I must admit I did miss her.   I had some notes in there that I failed to back-up, history and ugly photos of my medical check up when I was being monitored for a year, photos of my pamangkins, and many more...    When you lose something like your phone or laptop where you store some of your personal infos, we couldn't help but think of the security threat and possible invasion of privacy that this incident might bring.  My phone had a pin... but that should be easy to decode, I guess.   

We checked in at Holiday Inn Express near Zurich airport.  First thing we did was to change our accounts' password - emails, facebook, etc.  I reported at SBB all the items I lost in one day in the train... hoping a person with a good heart might return those.

As what I always say to myself  --- nothing is permanent  --- and as above title "Some Good Things Never Last".   Think of all the material things around you as not yours.   They are all borrowed from your Creator.   When you lose any of them, just think... they're not yours... it's not with you anymore for the owner took it back.  In this way, you won't feel so bad losing them.

This way of thinking normally works for me...  We still had a day to spend at  Switzerland before flying back to Melbourne.  We should not spoil the day.

Additional Notes: 29-May
A few days after we arrived back to Melbourne, I had received a job offer from Germany.  I haven't been updating my CV in the job sites for few years now... hence me and Mon were discussing, could it be related to my lost phone?

I recently discovered a way to see locations of people viewing my blogs and what traffic/operating systems they used... I could tell that some of them could be my friends overseas and some could be visitors who just found me at google.  But I was wonderin, it seemed I have regular follower(s) from Germany. I could see 1 to 3 views everytime I posted a new blog... And just last weekend or so, it was viewed for more or less 25 times in one day.  Is this a coincidence or somehow related to my lost iPhone?  What do you think?

I am not hoping anymore, but if by chance the person who found my phone can read this... you may return it at SBB office if you still want to return it.
 

22-Apr-2011 Pisa, Tuscany

We boarded the train from Firenze SMN to Pisa around lunch time.  Tsk! Got fined for not validating our train ticket.

We were running to board the train on time... It did cross my mind to have our ticket validated while running but I didn't see a machine on the way so 'just went ahead... I didn't think that it was mandatory to validate the ticket... though we always did the last few days.  Well, at least the fine was not too bad... Eur5.00 for all of us.

At Pisa, we left our luggage and bought a map at the station.  Like many others, 'just visited the place to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa, good to know that it's only walking distance from the central station.

A part of the walking path from Pisa Centrale to Piazza del Duomo was being renovated... Further down, we could still feel a good ambience, a street with shops and restaurants at both sides.. It's a busy street, but not so crowded with  tourists walking... (or maybe because it was Good Friday.)

Highlights:

Ponte Di Mezzo - one of the ancient bridge over Arno River at the heart of Pisa.

St Mary's Cathedral - also known as the Cathedral of Pisa... It's a splendind cathedral beside the leaning tower.

Leaning Tower of Pisa - the famous white marble bell tower of Pisa Cathedral.  It was not really built to lean but it did even before its third story was finished.  It was an embarassment for Pisans but come to think of it, Tower of Pisa gained it's popularity from it.  It became famous for visitors of the tower to pose in front of it, pretending to hold it up at jaunty angle to stop it from falling.  I grab the camera and did so for Mon and Justin.   

From where we were, Pisa was leaning to the left.  My head literally ached, doing the same pose, for 15 minutes maybe.   First, it took Mon longer to setup the camera, seemed trying to make it perfect for me, then when I saw the photo.. I said,  "What!? It is supposed to be leaning...  why did you make it look like straight?"   So he tried again.  When I looked at it, I said, "It doesn't look natural.  Look at the bottom.  And why did you make it lean to the right, should it be leaning on the left?"   I posed again, and he tried another shot.  Again it was leaning to the right... I said desperately, "Don't you know your left and right?  The tower is leaning to the left.",  pointing to him the tower and also showing him the shot that I made for them.  And then he said, "I'm just pressured!!!"  He probably tried it for more or less 10 shots of the same pose.  "Hu!hu!  I looked crazy doing the same pose for such a long time... Maybe, let's just have a walk and forget about it."   Justin said, "I'll do it, Mum."   Well, in fairness, Justin got it.  When I remembered this scene... I can't help but smile.  I felt like a child desperately trying to get it perfect... hehehe.  I am being so silly, am I?

We walked around, bought a souvenir and take-away lasagne for dinner.   We hadn't done the laundry for a few days, already running out of socks and undies, so we went to shop... only those things that we would need till we fly back to Melbourne.   I asked the saleslady where to find them... I used the word "boys' undies".. the sales lady couldn't get what I meant.  Then, I said 'brief', still they couldn't get it.  Finally, I said, "underwear", and they understood me.  

We're back to Pisa Centrale... headin' to Milan, hoping to catch a train to Zurich.  Otherwise, 'would stay there for a night.

When we arrived at Milan, it was already late and we couldn't get anymore trip to Switzerland.  The train station would close at 1:00 a.m. according to one of the guys we spoke with.  Thanks to SYGIC Iphone Apps!  Very useful and doesn't require any WIFI signal... It was a big help for us in searching for the phone numbers and addresses of nearby hotels.  Most of them were already fully booked... But thank God, we're lucky to find one!   The fate didn't let us down... we didn't have to sleep in cold night in the street outside the station.

More Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1982966686741.114067.1020438581

22-Apr-2011 Florence, Tuscany

21-Apr.  It was already past 6 in the evening when we left Rome, going to Florence (or Firenze in Italian; Florentia in ancient times).  Our hotel was walking  distance to the station.  Hehe! Mon ran over somebody's foot on the way to the hotel.  Ooops!  

Our hotel  -- like my granny's old house, with 'antique' furnitures inside :-) ... it's comfy though.

Had dinner in a Chinese restaurant for a change.  For a few days, we hadn't had rice and asian dishes, we kind of missed it a bit. 

It's a few hours before Good Friday.  We did Visita Iglesia until 1a.m., spending a few minutes inside to pray and give thanks to our Creator.  Justin said to his Dad , "When are we going to stop?  Maybe, Mum is 'mana' to Lolo!  She always loves walking!"    Well, I uttered, "It's nearly Good Friday... yet we're out on a holiday.  This is our penitence."

We were in Italy, not surprised to see a number of people, visiting churches this lenten season, though it's already midnight.   The churches were still open, one of them was with a group of parishioners  praying and singing.

Highlights:

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella - This dominican church is situated opposite the main railway station - Firenze S.M.N.

Basilica di San Lorenzo -  in romanesque style, one of the largest and oldest churches in Florence.  Behind the altar was a door leading to a domed room, with extra ordinary paintings around the walls and ceilings.  Cameras were not allowed inside.

Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore -  in Gothic style built in over six centuries.  It is also known as the Florence Cathedral (Duomo).  

Battistero di San Giovanni (Baptistry of St John) - situated accross the Florence Cathedral; an octagonal baptistry - signifying 6 days of creation + 1 day of rest + 1 day of re-creation through the Sacrament of Baptism.

Pictures of two churches we had visited (can't remember the name; these were also situated in the city.)

Palazzo della Vecchio ('old palace') (originally called as Palazzo della Signoria) - This is the town hall of Florence overlooking Piazza della Signoria.  We stopped over to take some photos and at the same withdrew cash from the nearby ATM.

Opposite Palazzo della Vecchio was Loggia della Signoria (also known as Loggia dei Lanzi).  It was built between 1376 and 1382 and houses a number of Rennaissance and Roman sculptures and statues.  Among them are the bronze statue of Perseus- holding Medusa's head, the Abduction / Rape of the Sabine Virgins, Hercules beating the Centaur Nessus, etc.

Ponte Vecchio - a medieval bridge over the Arno River...  Known with its goldsmith shops.  This was our last stop... Headed back to the hotel... a bit nervous at times... trying to avoid drunk on the streets...  and at the same time avoiding streets with hardly any people.  We arrived safely in the hotel, tired but it's worth it.  I probably lost a few pounds, so did Mon.

22-Apr.  Still at Florence, before checking out, we spent hours looking for a hotel at Venice via internet. Most of them are already fully booked.  We thought we're just wasting our time finding for a place to stay there, so we had decided to just skip Venice. We could always come back... Next time, maybe.   Plan B, we would go to Milan after our trip to Pisa and see if we could buy a ticket there back to Zurich Switzerland.  If not, we would find a place/hotel to stay for a night at Milan.  We checked out and asked the hotel staff to keep our luggage.

We walked around, hoping to see the Galeria dell'Accademia to see the original statue of 'David' by Michelangelo.  

Our first stop was Basilica di San Marco.  Mon went inside.  I was wearing shorts so I don't think they'd let me in if I did go.    

T'was a very very long queue at the Galleria dell'Accademia.  This time, we didn't attempt to queue up. 

We kept on walking and reached the Street market near Basilica di San Lorenzo.  We bought Justin a new jacket and I bought 2 scarves.   We're not able to enjoyed it much though... with Justin - keeping on reminding us how the time was wasted staying in the market.  "Hmmp!  Give him what he wants!"  We decided to go back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and go.

MORE PHOTOS:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1981230843346.113977.1020438581

21-Apr-2011 Maundy Thursday at The Vatican

D'Rocios visit to the smallest state in the world -  The VATICAN.

We couldn't believe it!!!  It would be a long wait to queue up to enter the Vatican Museum... about a million people (hehe, just kidding maybe few a thousands coming from the different parts of the planet)...   We would be staying for a night at Florence and we didn't want to stay in Rome longer.   We decided to join the queue hesitantly... We’re wonderin, with the rate the queue was moving, we might not be able to go to St Peter’s Basilica which was also our destination for the day. Just when we needed it...  A miracle suddenly appeared from nowhere!!! A lady approached us and asked if we want to join the group tour, so we can skip the long queue...  All we needed was go to their office and book the ticket for the 3 of us.  We probably wouldn't if we don't badly need it ... we thought it would be worth to try if we want to visit the Sistine Chapel at Vatican before leaving Rome.

Eur91.00 for the 3 of us.  We joined the other ‘English-speaking’ tourists,  who like us, had found the ‘redemption’.  We followed the guide to this special line dedicated for those with group booking  (passed the long queue, "sorry guys") and started (free and easy) the very long journey inside the Vatican Museum to the Sistine Chapel.

Highlights:



Entrance/Long queue at Vatican Museum



Museo Vaticano.   It was grand...  artistic... very rich in history.  We walked for hours from one museum to another, always anticipating the entrance of Sistine Chapel.   There were so many sections inside, all of them are quite interesting...  most of them with very intricate ceilings,  gallery of paintings, sculptures, maps and tapestries in 15th and 17th centuries with religious images that took years for the artists to finish... We couldn't imagine how the people in ancient times, with hardly any technology, can produce so many collection of fine artworks, such as those found inside the Vatican Museum...  



Spiral Stairs at Vatican Museum



We literally been to a number of rooms/sections... We can hardly remember all the names ... To name a few are the Room of the Immaculate Conception, Room of Raphael Stanze, Egyptian Museum, Classical Greek and Roman antiques and scuptures, gallery of the many statues of animals and a lot more. 

Inside was a real beauty that I didn't realize immediately that my dress was starting to fall... I just had it tied in one of my shoulder.  Thank God!!! I have a long sleeve with me and I noticed it before it fall.  I went to the ladies room close to the Room of Immaculate Conception... tied it again... and this time, I made sure that it's really secure!!!  Haaayyy!    

Sistine Chapel

 Sistine Chapel.  We were already dead tired by the time we arrived at this chapel, made famous by Michelangelo’s ceiling painting ‘the creation of Adam’. A lot of people were also inside the chapel, all looking upward, marvelling at this famous artwork. By the way, cameras were not allowed...  We stayed there for about 15 mins... Managed to get a few shots from outside, pass the exit.... before munching a quick lunch at the cafeteria.  Thanks to Canon's prime lens :-)

The Carriage Museum.  The museum contains a collection of carriages and automobiles used by popes and cardinals... from Gala Berlin to automobiles. 



St Peter's Square and St Peter's Basilica



Piazza San Pietro (St Peter's Square).  It is an open space located in front of the St Peter's Basilica.  In the centre of the square is the Egyptian obelisk brought to Rome in 37 B.C. by Emperor Caligola.  On top of the obelisk is a bronze globe. We initially thought that it contains St Peter's ashes  but later read that the people in the Middle Ages believed that the one preserved in there was Julius Caesar's ashes... which is also not true.



Walls separating Vatican from Rome.



From what we read, the collonade around St Peter's square is composed of 284 columns and 88 pillars in a quadruple row, seen as 1 row from a precise point  of the square, closed to the obelisk, indicated by a stone.  I am still asking Mon, which of them are pillars.  The colonnade symbolises 'gathering of Christianity'.

Basilica Papale di San Pietro (Papal Basilica of St Peter).  There was a long queue.  Justin wanted us to get movin' to Florence, as holiday time is running out and he really wanted to go to Venice the following day.  Ramon wanted to go inside the St Peter's Basilica.  Finally (Justin was probably not too happy about it),  we decided to join the long queue.   

 It is believed that St Peter was crucified in the same place where the basilica was built during Nero's great Christian persecution in 64A.D.  It is regarded as one of the holiest Catholic sites and said to have the largest interior of any Christian church in the world.  

Appropriate dress is required to enter... Mini skirts, shorts and singlets are not allowed, though the guards were very kind, allowing some teenagers wearing shorts, to enter the church provided they cover their legs with scarves or jerseys or any piece of cloth they may have.  The facade was designed by Carlo Moderno.  And the dome was designed by the great Michelangelo.  He died before the basilica was completed.  Inside were preserved bodies of some of the popes... We were debating if they're real bodies or just images/sculptures, as they looked wax to me, though the fingers looked real.  'Confirmed that they're  real... only their face was covered with mask/wax.

The Grand Avenue of Vatican from
Peter's Square

 The Grand Avenue of Vatican - Via Crucis.  Fourteen life-size stations line the wide sidewalk of the Via della Conciliazione.  By the way, Via della Conciliazione is under Rome's jurisdiction (not Vatican).  It is considered the largest stations of the cross in the world (at the time of writing). 

MORE PHOTOS:

Vatican Museum - http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1979794887448.113893.1020438581

St Peter's Square/Basilica -http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1979819488063.113894.1020438581

Via Crusis - http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1979784087178.113892.1020438581