Vatican City

VATICAN CITY

A walled enclave encircled by a 3 kilometer border with Italy and with the domed masterpiece that is St. Peter’s Basilica at its core, the Vatican City has many reasons that make it stand out. It is the world’s smallest sovereign state covering an area of about half a square kilometer, making it one-eighth the size of New York’s Central Park. It is also a religious powerhouse, once known as the Papal States, that is the home of the Catholic Church and the Holy See. Buildings monumental in religious importance are found here, like the Sistine Chapel, that house some of the world’s most celebrated artworks. The city-state only has around 600 citizens almost all of whom predominantly live abroad so practically everyone seen there is a foreigner working or touring for the day.