Rome/Vatican - December 27, 2011 - Which Way to the Vatican Museum?

Obelisk on Ponte Sant'Angelo

After the embankment we opted for the Ponte Sant'Angelo which leads to the former tomb of the Emperor Hadrian (now the Castel Sant'Angelo). The baroque statues of angels are fantastic and double-plus it has obelisks at each end! Yay! Don't know why (and don't get all Freudian on me) I like obelisks...and octagons.

If I remember correctly the bridge was constructed at the same time as the tomb of Hadrian. Though the arches that reach the banks on each side are newer as are the flamboyant angels all wrapped in their billowing stone draperies.

I had checked earlier and found that the entrance to the Vatican Museums are a wee bit to the north (about ten minutes or so) from the entrance to St. Peter's so we walked towards the cathedral in hopes of seeing some sort of signage...oh we did, and it confused the dribble out of me.

Your task today is to find the Vatican Museum...This image
will self destruct in...

However at that point I realized we were outside of a hotel I inspected near a decade ago and had to do the happy dance. The 14th century Hotel Columbus, right on the street that leads to St. Peter's square. When I visited (and when I sold it as a destination for pilgrims to St. Peter's) they said that it was once an ambulatory monastery and "technically" still part of the Vatican city, though I have always doubted that unless it is part of the Lateran Treaty and still part of the Holy See (such as the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore on the Esquiline hill). What I do remember is that it had delightful painted ceilings, old masters on the walls and a confusing but exciting floor plan. There were plain rooms (like monks cells) and fantastic rooms (like those for high ranking visiting clergy). I contemplated this hotel when booking but really didn't want to spend the extra money.

One thing I missed the last time I was here were the twin fountains on either side of the entrance to the hotel. Grotesque, for me undatable to a specific century, 15th? 16th? 17th?

Fountain outside Hotel Columbus

Finally after following one sign that I thought was in the right direction we were accosted by dozens of people trying to get us into the Vatican Museum on a tour, or a private tour, or a private tour with the Sistine Chapel.


Up next...dum..de..dum..dum..dum...the Vatican Museum or at least in the places we were able to take pictures and a vivid description of where we were not.