There was recently one more Madonna in the Vatican.
A week after her 66th birthday, Madonna gave her fans a glimpse of her family trip to the Catholic Church’s headquarters via Instagram on Friday (August 23). During her stay in Rome, she snapped glamorous photos in a chic floral dress, hat and gloves, posed in front of the ancient architecture of Vatican City and admired some of the beautiful marble statues and religious paintings that are immortalized on the walls inside the holy buildings.
“Arrivederci Roma!!!” she captioned the post. “A perfect end to a wonderful birthday celebration with friends and family! … Ciao Italia!!!!”
The “Material Girl” singer also posted a snap of her 11-year-old twins Estere and Stella wearing matching polka-dot dresses for the outing, as well as a photo of her standing next to her rumored boyfriend Akeem Morris. In the latter, Madge cools off with a delicate fan while the football player wears a white scarf as a veil over his head.
The post comes nearly four months after Madonna wrapped up her Celebration Tour in early May, concluding a career-spanning concert that began later than expected because the superstar had to be hospitalized for a bacterial infection in June 2023. On July 4 of this year, the Queen of Pop looked back on her recovery in an emotional Instagram post, writing: “One year ago today, I had just come home from the hospital after surviving a life-threatening illness. I could barely stand in my garden with a sparkler in my hand.”
“I made a miraculous recovery and had a fantastic year,” she added at the time. “Thank you, God. Life is beautiful!”
Later that month, Madonna and her twin daughters walked the red carpet at the Deadpool and Wolverine premiere to celebrate the icon’s 1989 hit “Like a Prayer,” which was used in the superhero film. In an interview with SiriusXM shortly before the premiere, the film’s star Ryan Reynolds and director Shawn Levy talked about the process of getting the song approved for the project, which apparently included a personal visit to Madge’s home.
“It was a big deal to ask for it and an even bigger deal to use it,” Levy recalled. “We went and met with her and showed her how it was used, where and why.”
“She made a great pitch,” Reynolds added. “She saw it, and I kid you not (she said), ‘This is what you have to do.’ And damn if she didn’t hit the nail on the head.”
