4 Cold and Rainy Days in Roma!

Something went terribly wrong and i cannot load my pictures on to my blog anymore! I seem to have lost the Browse command part of the (insert Image), command. How do i get to post my pics if i cannot browse?
Oh well i am sure the wizz kids at the University in Penang or Cyberjaya can help me figure it out when I see them again...bummer! So I will just write for now while things are still fresh n my mind and the aches and pains from the long walks and sitting out in the cold sketching is still in my bones.
In a few words...Rome was cold and wet it was like visiting a crypt of history. It was like being in one large museum of antiquity. So much burial places and worn out buildings struggling to stay standing through the ravages of time; the decay of an ancient civilization; The Glory that was Rome!

 Flying somewhere over Europe via Emirates Airline Boeing 777; I have never ceased to be mystified by the awesomeness of being able to fly. perhaps the child in me has not outgrown himself since the first time i flew in a plane.

Bonjorno!! Buongiorno! (bwohn-johr-noh) (Hello! and Good morning!)

Come sta? (koh-meh stah) (How are you?) (Formal). The Romans of today (the Italians), they are a whole different story; they explode with charm and full of life especially when it comes to eating and drinking.( wine). The Italians, the ones that I had interacted with were very warm and friendly; they id their utmost to make a foreigner feel welcome despite the language and cultural barrier. I had no problem finding my way around Rome and never needed a map but just by stopping someone on the street and asking for help. No doubt this is a tourist city and has been for many generations and as such the citizens of the city are most probably used to getting stopped by dummies who needed the toilet ASAP after walking the entire city blocks on a cold wet day.

 The Vatican City Museum is a must visit for those who wish to look into the history of Christianity and the Romans Themselves.

Rome is or was a City of the Churches where Christianity really took root in the European continent and it was here too that more than anywhere else the early Christians, the Saints and Martyrs had sacrificed their lives in the history of mankind. It was only after the rule of Emperor Constantine that Christianity began to be freely practiced free from prosecution.

"During the rule of Roman Emperor Constantine the Great (reigned 306–337), Christianity became a dominant religion of the Roman Empire. Historians remain uncertain about Constantine's reasons for favoring Christianity, and theologians and historians have argued about which form of Christianity he subscribed to. Although Constantine had been exposed to Christianity by his mother Helena, there is no consensus among scholars as to whether he adopted his mother's Christianity in his youth, or gradually over the course of his life,^[1] and he did not receive baptism until shortly before his death.^[2][3]
Constantine's conversion was a turning point for Early Christianity, sometimes referred to as the Triumph of the Church, the Peace of the Church or the Constantinian shift. In 313, Constantine and Licinius issued the Edict of Milan legalizing Christian worship. The emperor became a great patron of the Church and set a precedent for the position of the Christian emperor within the Church and the notion of orthodoxy, Christendom, ecumenical councils and the state church of the Roman Empire declared by edict in 380. He is revered as a saint and isapostolos in the Eastern Orthodox Church and Oriental Orthodox Church for his example as a "Christian monarch." Wikipedia.

My visit to Rome was my son's idea early one morning (10th of Jan.),
"Dad!, you said you wanted to go to Rome, well you are going to Rome!"
" Oh Ya?! When?!"
"Today! You need to be at the Airport at three, so go pack your stuff!"
And the rest was history... I was on the flight to Rome before i knew it.
I could have insisted that he send me to Mecca instead which is about 45 minutes flight from Dubai, but I refrained as i had the feeling that this was meant to be and that i might learn more about God's religions by visiting their Holy sanctuaries wherever they may be before I am invited to His most holy abode in the Holy land of the Kaabah. Till that day I do not feel that I am ready to visit my Lord in his home, but till the I will visit all the rest of humanity's spiritual sanctuaries; I still would like to visit the Indian continent and Sri Lanka someday. My journeys has always been religiously related in one form or another and having had the opportunity to visit Italy has enriched my understanding of Christianity somewhat deeper. I am spiritually more enriched by having felt the awesomeness of the cathedrals and churches, the resting places and catacombs and most of all the scene of the demise of the city of Pompei many centuries ago.

A visit to the Vatican City State was the first on my schedule while in Rome; it is a must as it is today the Seat of the Holy Christian Church, with the Pope being housed here. I joined a group tour as it is almost impossible to see the inside without having to stand in line in the cold and rain in order to get in and one would be lost if not careful in the whole complex, running in circles. from one room to another. It was massive and impressive no doubt and it humbles one to behold the Master Pieces created by th likes of Michael Angelo,

Vatican City ⁱ/ˈvætɨkən ˈsɪti/, or Vatican City State,^[11] in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano (pronounced [ˈstaːto della t͡ʃitˈta del vatiˈkaːno]),^[12] is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of approximately 44 hectares (110 acres), and a population of just over 800.^[3][13] This makes Vatican City the smallest independent state in the world by both area and population.
Vatican City was established as an independent state in 1929 by the Lateran Treaty, signed by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Gasparri, on behalf of Pope Pius XI and by Prime Minister and Head of Government Benito Mussolini on behalf of King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy.^[14] Vatican City State is distinct from the Holy See,^[15] which dates back to early Christianity and is the main episcopal see of 1.2 billion Latin and Eastern Catholic adherents around the globe. Ordinances of Vatican City are published in Italian; official documents of the Holy See are issued mainly in Latin. The two entities have distinct passports: the Holy See, not being a country, issues only diplomatic and service passports, whereas Vatican City State issues normal passports. In each case very few passports are issued.

The Lateran Treaty in 1929, which brought the city-state into existence, spoke of it as a new creation (Preamble and Article III), not as a vestige of the much larger Papal States (756–1870) that had previously encompassed much of central Italy. Most of this territory was absorbed into the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, and the final portion, namely the city of Rome with Lazio, ten years later, in 1870.
Vatican City is an ecclesiastical^[3] or sacerdotal-monarchical^[4] state, ruled by the Bishop of Rome—the Pope. The highest state functionaries are all Catholic clergymen of various national origins. It is the sovereign territory of the Holy See (Sancta Sedes) and the location of the Pope's residence, referred to as the Apostolic Palace.

The Popes have generally resided in the area that in 1929 became Vatican City since the return from Avignon in 1377, but have also at times resided in the Quirinal Palace in Rome and elsewhere. Previously, they resided in the Lateran Palace on the Caelian Hill on the far side of Rome from the Vatican. Emperor Constantine gave this site to Pope Miltiades in 313. The signing of the agreements that established the new state took place in the latter building, giving rise to the name of Lateran Pacts, by which they are known.
Our guide for the tour was very professional and spoke five different languages and had a great sense of humor to boot. She informed us as we approached the Vatican that this was the smallest country in the world with many very rich (Unavailable) bachelors living inside and  most can wear robes around their offices.. No one had to pay taxes here and that it has its own police and military. And so began my 4 days in Rome, Naples and Pompei.