Rome: Pantheon and St. Angelo Castle

On June 29^th, after my tour of the Vatican, I decided to take another walk around the city. I went back to the Pantheon in the hope that it would be open! (I had tried to visit it the day before but it was closed for a religious holiday).
It was open!! I was thrilled! It was built around 118 AD.
It is a very vast and spectacular cylindrical room with a large dome ceiling. The dome is equal in radius to the height of the cylinder. The oculus (the circular hole at the top of the dome), and the front doors of the building let in the only light.


I then visited Castel Saint Angelo, which is best described as a massive cylindrical fortress. It was actually closed for the day, I’m not sure why. All the entrances were blocked off with police tape. Luckily I went back the next day (July 1) and it was open, so I had a chance to walk around inside.


From the top of the castle is a nice view of St. Peter’s Church in Vatican City.

After exploring the castle, I walked back over to St. Peter’s square. It was packed with people and the lines were very long to get into the church!! I was so grateful that I decided to visit it super early in the morning!!