Castel Sant'Angelo

On Sunday, a group of us went to attend mass at St Peter's basilica, however not all went as planned: the line was very long and we ended up not getting in because the pope was actually there for mass this Sunday. We stayed in the courtyard for a bit to watch the service on the screens that were set up, but it just wasn't the same. And it was really hot in the direct sun. So we went back home with plans to try next Sunday.

Then, around 12 we headed out to do some touring when we walked by St. Peter's and remembered the pope makes an appearance and gives a blessing and message called the Angelus, so we quickly made our way over to the square to see him appear from the balcony on the side.

This picture doesn't do the greatest job of showing it, but we could actually see his outline in the window and could also see him on another screen that was set up. Below, you can see part of the crowd that came out for this 15 min ordeal.

Next, after being really glad we got to see the pope and redeem ourselves from this morning, we headed off to Castel Sant'Angelo.This was once a mausoleum turned into a pope getaway when times were bad. Now it functions as a museum on the inside and you can climb up to six levels of the castle for some great views on the outside too!

some views from the lower level

The path you can see running through the bottom right of this picture is the passageway that runs all the way to the Vatican. It's what the popes used to escape in times of danger or conflict.

some ceiling details from the covered walkway

views of the Tiber from a middle level of the castle

statue of Michael the Archangel that tops the castle

on top of the castle with St Peter's in the distance

We also saw some cool cannons and fake cannonballs.

This is a picture of one of the 4 bastions. They are the four corners of the outer walkway of the castle and are each named for one of the Evangelists: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Side view of the castle; try scaling those walls!