Rome: Castel Sant'Angelo

Castel Sant'Angelo is one of my favourite places in Rome, but sadly we didn't get time to visit it last month. But, because I was a bad blogger and never wrote about my 2011 trip to Rome, and I only shared some photos, I'm going to write a memory lane post about Castel Sant'Angelo.

Crossing the Ponte Sant'Angelo takes you to Castel Sant'Angelo, which is also known as the Mausoleum of Hadrian. Though it doesn't look ancient, it is actually another of Rome's ancient buildings, and is a decade shy of being 1,900 years old.

It's super close to Vatican City and, in fact, the Passetto di Borgo is a (not-so-)secret passage that links the two. Costing €10.50 to get in, if you happen to be there on the first Sunday of the month it's free, just like the Colosseum.

You'll find Raffaello da Montelupo's statue of Saint Michael there, which originally stood on the roof of Castel Sant'Angelo. (Raffaello was an apprentice of Michelangelo.)

     

Nowadays, a bronze statue of the Archangel Michael (above, left) stands on top of the Castel Sant'Angelo. Raffaello's statue was damaged, which is why they moved it.

Up on the roof there's a fantastic view of the rooftops of Rome. Look in one direction and you'll see St Peter's; another direction will show you the Vittorio Emmanuel II Monument, also known as the Altare della Patria, and churches galore. Visit it if you can!

(Photos included in this post are a mixture of ones I took in July 2011, and ones I took in September 2014.)