The Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel

 Courtyard  at Musei Vaticani

A visit to the Vatican Museum can be overwhelming, starting with the lines at the entrance! It is an amazing collection of some of the bests works that takes you through a history tour from the ancient world into the Renaissance.

 There are two main buildings connected by a hall. The first building houses the masterpieces of the Ancient world: Rome, Greece and Egypt.

The second houses works of the Renaissance and culminates in the mother of all, Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel.

To get through this gigantic maze with kids in tow and our sanity intact, here's a couple of tips. We followed Rick Steves' Rome 2010 self-guided tour and had also downloaded the audio tour which is available at his website on mp3 format.  We studied the layout of the museum ahead of time and chose the highlights that we wanted to see.  We handed  a camera and a mission to the kids, they were to find and photograph those "famous" items!

So here is our visit to the Vatican Museum in pictures!

The Vatican Museum, Ancient World: Egypt, Greece and Rome

 Egyptian Mummy

The Apollo Belvedere

 The Laocoön

Belvedere Torso

Hercules

On to the next wing:

The Map Gallery

Rodin's Thinker

Then you come to the Raphael Rooms, what were the living quarters of the popes and the best examples of Renaissance art at its best. When going from hall to hall, there are great views into the gardens of the Vatican and  of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica:

The Sistine Chapel

The final destination in this grand tour through history was Michelangelo's  masterpiece in the Sistine Chapel.

It was extremely crowded as would be expected, you only have a few minutes to take it all in.   I was more worried about not losing anybody in our group.  This is not your typical chapel, quiet with pews and altars, this is standing room only, with wall to wall people and you do have to go through the rest of the Vatican Museum to get here.

So what is the Sistine Chapel? This is the Pope's chapel and where new popes are elected. The entire chapel from walls to ceiling is one giant piece of art, all done by one single person: Michelangelo. The frescoes depict scenes from the Bible, from both the Old and New Testament.

The kids did manage to find their assignment, the "reaching hands" in the "Creation of Adam" painting in the ceiling of the  Chapel, the famous image of the hand of God giving life to Adam which has been reproduced in so many works.  (There is no video or photography allowed here, this picture is a public domain picture from the Wikimedia Commons)

Here is a great virtual tour of the Sistine Chapel  from the Vatican website, you can see the entire chapel in 3D, at the very front is the famous scene from the "Last Judgment", Christ raising his arm to judge the righteous and the wicked.

Then on to the ceiling, the main central part contains the nine scenes from Genesis, including Adam and Eve and Noah's Arch.  On the sides of the ceiling are the prophets and the ancestors. 

Can you find the "reaching hands"? Hint:  navigate with the mouse to the ceiling of the chapel and look for this section of the fresco in the middle of the ceiling, you can zoom in and out with the buttons in the lower left corner.

When exiting the Sistine Chapel,  pay attention to the signs and directions in Rick Steve's book  if you want to exit directly to St. Peter's Basilica, otherwise you have to back track all the way  to the entrance and then around to the other side on St. Peter's Square.

If you are pressed for time and would like to make arrangements in advance, you might want to consider these "Skip the Line tours" by Viator, which will save you time and hassle of dealing with the crowds, and the ultimate experience,  a Private Viewing of the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museum.

Skip the Line: Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel Tour Price: US$72.11 Take a morning or afternoon tour of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel - and jump the queue by booking ahead. You'll enjoy a mini coach tour of Rome en route to the Vatican and see Michelangelo's famous Sistine Chapel frescoes, without wasting time waiting in line.

Skip the Line: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica Half-Day Walking Tour Price: US$36.67 Get much more out of your visit to St Peter's Basilica and the Vatican by taking a guided walking tour. St Peter's and the Vatican Museums can be overwhelming, especially if this is your first visit, so allow your experienced guide to lead the way and share the history, architecture, and politics of the Vatican. As an added bonus, you'll skip the long ticket lines when you visit the Vatican Museums (entrance fees payable direct on the day of travel).

Private Viewing of the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums Price: US$339.37 This tour gives visitors an exclusive viewing of the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums. Michelangelo's masterpiece will leave you captivated as you enjoy it minus the huge crowds. A once in a lifetime opportunity so secure a place on this magical tour in Rome. This is a private two-hour small group tour of the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums, for selected nights only.

Skip the Line: Vatican Museums Walking Tour including Sistine Chapel, Raphael's Rooms and St Peter's Price: US$63.56 Take a small group walking tour of the Vatican Museums and St Peter's Basilica, and jump the queue by booking ahead. Numbers are limited to a maximum of 20 people on this small group walking tour, ensuring you'll receive personalized attention from your guide. And by booking ahead, you won't waste any time waiting in line!