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Mysterious and exclusive - the gardens of the popes

As tourists make their way across St.

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Mysterious and exclusive - the gardens of the popes

As tourists make their way across St. Peter's Square, they are surrounded by the Vatican's magnificent sacral facades. At first glance it is a stone desert. Very few visitors suspect that a kind of Garden of Eden is hidden right behind St. Peter's Basilica.

The back of the Vatican is green. More than half of the 44 hectare state area in the middle of Rome consists of nature. It is the mysterious Garden of the Popes. To get in here, you have to register – usually a few months in advance, because interest is huge and offers are limited. That also makes it special.

Here one does not crowd through the corridors and halls in a crowd, as in the Vatican Museums on the way to Michelangelo's frescoes in the Sistine Chapel. Visiting the Vatican Gardens still has an air of exclusivity.

From the hubbub of voices in the always overcrowded ticket hall of the Vatican Museums, it takes just a few minutes to enter another world where you only hear the chirping of crickets. A green hill of silence. The gardens extend over the Vatican Hill, which rises behind St. Peter's Basilica. This used to be a hunting ground for the popes who, like other princes, wanted to hunt down their own game.

Today there are not even foxes on Vatican territory. The high walls that cordon off the center of the universal Catholic Church form an insurmountable obstacle.

Turtles paddle through a pool of crystal clear water. And everywhere you can hear the screeching of parrots that have made their home here. They whiz through the air like bright green projectiles and then disappear into the crowns of the ancient trees. The best way to get a closer look at them is at a fountain. There they may then sit next to water-spitting stone frog figures.

The complex can be described as an English landscape garden relocated to the south. An artificial grotto, a rose garden, an old villa and an enchanted piece of forest with antique statues from Roman times ensure that it never gets boring. On the Tiber side, the mighty dome of St. Peter's Basilica rises above the palm treetops. A spectacular sight.

The real attraction, however, takes place in the minds of the visitors: it is the idea that the white man can come around the corner at any time – the Holy Father himself.

Especially since old Pope Benedict XVI. made the gardens his home. Since his resignation in 2013, Joseph Ratzinger has spent the rest of his life in the Mater Ecclesiae monastery located here. It is a spacious, villa-like building with a private chapel, the vegetable garden of which is opaquely closed off by a high hedge.

Tour guide Kinga says that one of her colleagues recently saw the emeritus pope. Nuns pushed him across the paths in a wheelchair. "He immediately blessed all the people."

The gardens are also attractive because you occasionally get a glimpse behind the scenes of the Papal States: garbage containers are lined up in an inner courtyard. Seen from here, the Sistine Chapel, where all the cardinals meet in conclave after the death of a pope to elect a new head of the Catholic Church, could also be an old factory building. The world-famous building looks completely inconspicuous from the outside.

An even more exclusive place than the Vatican Gardens is the Campo Santo Teutonici e dei Fiamminghi, the Cemetery of the Germans and Flemings. Although it is officially part of Italy, it is located in the Vatican.

To reach it, you have to go left past the colonnades of St. Peter's Square to a Swiss Guard checkpoint. There you approach the guardsman on duty in his splendid uniform and address him the words: "I wish to be admitted to the Campo Teutonico!" Then you will be let through.

If you speak to him in English, for example, the guard will ask: "Do you speak German?" If you say no, access will be denied. Only Dutch and Belgians are still allowed to pass, provided they can identify themselves.

This is because the Netherlands and later Belgium still belonged to the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation until the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. And the cemetery was originally founded for its inhabitants. People in the Vatican have always thought in somewhat larger time intervals.

Located in an inner courtyard, the cemetery, which is only open to visitors in the mornings, is a gem, an enchanted place of silence that invites you to meditate. A tall palm tree and cypress trees tower against the dazzling white facade of St. Peter's Basilica, making the cemetery a shady spot even in the hottest of summers.

Maintained by the Archconfraternity of Our Lady of Sorrows, founded in the 15th century, the German enclave has many stories to tell. There is, for example, a tombstone for the chef of the ambassador of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, whose culinary skills were apparently so valued that they wanted to create a lasting souvenir.

The church of Santa Maria della Pietà belonging to the complex contains two baroque skeleton statues. One skeleton menacingly holds up an hourglass and seems to be saying, "Your time's up! Memento Mori – remember that you must die!” One might add: Carpe diem – enjoy the day. In this case: the Rome vacation.

But before the relaxation part, a quick detour to the neighboring Castel Sant'Angelo, the traditional fortress of the popes, to which they could retreat in case of danger. In 1527, Pope Clemens VII escaped to the fort, which was considered impregnable, using the Passetto di Borgo, which still exists today.

At that time, Rome was stormed by a poorly paid mercenary army that could no longer be controlled. Two-thirds of the Swiss Guard perished when they bravely faced the far superior attackers. In the villa of the papal banker, a lansquenet left the inscription: "What should I not laugh about - the lansquenets made the baby walk."

The "Sacco di Roma", the sack of Rome, was one of the most traumatic events in the history of the Eternal City. The Swiss Guard commemorates the 147 dead every year with a ceremony on May 6th.

Clemens stayed in Engelsburg for seven months, a bathtub and a later sealed outhouse still bear witness to this. Then he capitulated and became a prisoner of Emperor Charles V, who nonetheless considered himself a faithful Catholic.

Castel Sant'Angelo has a viewing platform with unbeatable views of the Vatican and one floor below a charming little café with outdoor dining in one walking tour. From here you also have a magnificent view. Sometimes seagulls land in hope of a treat.

Another excellent vantage point with a Vatican panorama is the roof terrace of the hotel "Atlante Star". In addition, there is often a gentle breeze, which is very welcome in hot summer.

On the way there you can pass the Piazza della Città Leonina: Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger lived in house number 1 from 1982 until his election as Pope in 2005. At that time, as Prefect of the Roman Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he watched over the purity of Catholic teaching.

The 300 square meter apartment has its own private chapel. Every morning he walked from here, wearing a beret and a worn black briefcase, across St. Peter's Square to work in the Prefecture in an imposing palazzo in the Piazza del Sant'Uffizio.

The café-restaurant "Il Sorpasso" on Via Properzio is ideal for a snack between meals. It is a few minutes walk from the Vatican. And yet it's far enough from St. Peter's Square to escape the crowds and mingle with the locals. The specialty of the house is a kind of folded pizza as street food full of vegetables, called trappazini.

And then? Take the bridge over the Tiber and let it drift. Rome has so much more to offer than the smallest country in the world.

Arrival: There are non-stop flights to Rome from many German airports with various airlines. The Federal Foreign Office offers up-to-date information on entry on its website.

Vatican Gardens: A ticket costs 17 euros (reduced 8 euros), plus the cost of headphones and the guide. Registration is required on the Vatican Museums website: museivaticani.va. Tour of the Vatican Gardens: thevaticantickets.com/en/vatican-gardens/. More information: rome-museum.com/en/the-vatican-gardens.php

Campo Santo Teutonico: Open in the morning from 9am to 12pm. It may be closed on Wednesdays when the Pope is having an audience in St. Peter's Square. Entry is free (camposantoteutonico.va). Vatican information on Campo Santo Teutonico: vatican.va/various/teutonico/index.htm

Castel Sant'Angelo: Open every day from 9 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. To avoid queues, you should buy the tickets online in advance. A ticket costs 17.50 euros (castel-sant-angelo-ticket.com/de).

Information: Italian National Tourist Office (enit.de and italia.it/en)

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