Two things to know about today:

1. It’s Epiphany. Marking the arrival of the Three Kings to greet the Bambino Gesu.

2. It’s really cold. Mid afternoon it was 2degrees with wind chill taking it down to minus 3!

So we had decided to not rush around to get to breakfast by 10:00. So much later when we ventured out. For the first time this trip I’d cracked put the polyprops. Long socks and wooly socks. Beanie. Gloves. Scarf. The works.

Walked over to the Vatican. As we went over Ponte Sant’Angelo noticed some sort of parade flowing past the Castel. Many people in costume: Roman, Medieval, Renaissance, plus heaps of other all heading purposefully somewhere (don’t know where) but clearly away from the Vatican. Judging by the flood of people heading towards us it was the end of the Epiphany celebrations at St Peters.

Watched the Carbarineri load these horses into their floats. A very efficient process. Couple of the horses actually walked themselves in without being led.

Once the crowd cleared we headed on up to St Peters. Some shyster tried to tell us everything was closed until 10:00 a.m. Tomorrow and we should book tickets with him for then for a tour. Instead we looked ahead and saw people going into the Bascilica. So joined the crowd “queueing” at the three security check gates in operation. After a relatively short wait we were in!

It was relatively uncrowded so could have a good wander around. It is a magnificent building with some beautiful art – hardly anyone looking at the Pieta. Quite a number in venerating the tomb of John Paul II. Everyone, including my wife, walking past the memorial to the Stuarts who are buried in the crypt. Some of the very few non popes who are buried there. If you were a Jacobite you would call them James III, Charles III and Henry IX. Or, the Old Pretender, the Young Pretender and Cardinal Stuart.

Pictures will be in separate blog.

It is a staggering building.

We had considered the Vatican Museum but too cold to stand in queues and definitely not a day for standing on the top of the Dome again. So it was time for late lunch and a warmup then a roam home through Rome.