PopeFrancishimselfisalsosome-
thingofavenerableattractionand
canbeviewedinthefleshinStPe-
ter’sSquareonWednesdays,where
hegivesageneralaudience,oron
SundaysduringtheAngelusprayer.
VaticanCityistheworld’sonlyelect-
edabsolutemonarchy,andinthis
modern-daygameofthrones,the
PopeplaystheroleofKing,andap-
pointsthecitizens.Theremayonly
bea fewhundredofthem(andthey
allworkforthePope),buttheygetto
havetheirownpassportsandtosing
their very ownnational anthem. And
theydon’tpayanytax– government
revenueisgeneratedfromsalesof
souvenirsandstamps,publications,
museumadmissionfeesanddona-
tionsfrombelieversaroundtheworld.
ThelocalcurrencyistheEuro,but
VaticanCityissuesitsownspecial
versionsofEurocoins,whichare
muchsoughtafterbycollectors.If
you’reshortofcash,say‘salve’[hello]
toa localATM– theonlyATMsinthe
worldthatincludeLatinamongthe
multilingualinstructions.
TOURISTAPPEAL:thePontiff and
Vatican City’s art.Priceless art treasures draw millions to Vatican City101