St Peters Square - Vatican City

A fountain in St Peters Square - Vatican City 

While we were in Rome, we stayed just outside the Vatican City. On one of our first nights in the city, I decided to have a look at St Peters square with the hope that it wouldn't be too crowded. It was close to  11.00 PM when I walked in and I was surprised with the number of people still in the square. It was by no means crowded but there were at least a couple of hundred people milling about.

More images after the jump.

St Peters Square from the Basilica - Vatican City

The photograph above was taken from the top of St Peters Basilica. The climb to the top is not too bad but is not for people who are claustrophobic. At one stage you have to walk between the exterior wall and the dome of the basilica and you can't really stand up straight through this section of the ascent. On the way down we were able to walk out onto the roof near the statues.

Statues on the roof - Vatican City

The statues above are from the roof that runs around St Peters Square. I used a circular polariser for this shot and it resulted in an enhanced colour in the sky. Some renovations were being done to the square during the time we were there. These sections were covered in some sort of white material and can be seen in the second image on this post.

The Obelisk at St Peters - Vatican City

The Obelisk which stands in the middles of the square originally stood at Circus Maximus. St Peter was said to have been crucified in front of this Obelisk and it is now revered as a witness to the death of St Peter.

All Images on this post were captured with a Canon 7D and a 24-105mm lens. I also used a circular polariser for the two "daytime" shots on this post.