Sojourners in Austria: Roma, part II.

Day 3 -

On Wednesday, we checked out of our hotel and took the train into Rome where we were going to be staying the rest of the week with our good friends from Ave Maria! As they were due to fly in later that afternoon we stopped to see a few places.

Andrew saw this English translation on a warning sign on the train...quite amusing. "In the event of declenchement of audible alarm evacuer the compartiment without precipitation and come into contact with the crew." I'm still not exactly sure what this means. :)

We walked over to the Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore, which is down the street from Roma Termini, Rome's central train station.

Being the largest church in Rome that is dedicated to Mary, I found it quite feminine with a gold rosette ceiling and the paintings with lighter colors and many blossoms throughout.

As this church was being built around the time Rome fell, most of the mosaics still exist from that time period!

Below the main altar is a little crypt where St. Jerome's remains are buried...and...

the pieces of the Holy Manger!

So amazing!

Michael greatly enjoyed the larger holy water fonts found in the bigger churches, especially when he was in good arm's length from Mama's back.

We rested in the square a bit and let Michael run around. Poor guy, he wanted to hold a pigeon so bad.

Why do they keep moving?

Maybe I can trap them with some bread and a cute smile...

A big highlight for Michael on this trip was playing with random children, none of which spoke English. Quite cute to see that the language of fun and companionship is worldwide.

Then it was nap time for Michael so we utilized that time to explore the area northwest of Roma Termini. When the toddler is sleeping, you move faster!

The ancient baths of Diocletian built around 300 A.D. A large section of the baths has since been transformed into the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, particularly by Michelangelo in 1561.

8 of the red granite columns are the original - touching history!

We had time to stop in the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, which houses Bernini's famous St. Teresa in Ecstasy statue and has quite the glorious ceiling as well.

We met up with our friends around 5pm - how good it was to see them and to embark upon sharing this wonderful experience together! Then we ran to grab a bite to eat...our typical fare of salad, pizza and/or spaghetti. And then...finally! We walked through the gates of the Vatican to Piazza San Pietro and laid our eyes on St. Peter's Basilica! What a moment. We spent almost an hour in the square taking it all in and giving thanks for this opportunity, and taking pictures, of course.

Michael was saying, "Big church!"

Heading through the Vatican walls to our street, Borgo Vittorio, just a few blocks away! Very thankful to Peggy V. for her kind invitation to stay with her family! :)

- Day 4 -
The next morning we all ventured out to go inside St. Peter's, mainly for Mass, but the line extended all the way around the square.

So we took some pictures and were trying to decide if we should find another church for Mass, when this nice tour lady came up to see if we wanted tickets for the Vatican Museums. I said no, thank you, and then she started talked to Michael and Dominic and enjoyed it so much she gave us a tip about going to the side and asking the policemen if we could get in for Mass because of the babies. So we tried it, and the policeman looked at me carrying Dominic and ushered us right in! God bless the babies - they are finally starting to earn their keep.

St. Peter's is vast, immense, bustling quietly in most parts, but still filled with an atmosphere of grace and holiness.

Loved being back with these kids, my former students of three years - left to right - Kealan, Madison and Ian!

We didn't take many pictures this time because we were focused on going to Confession and attending Mass, which we did at noon. It is powerful receiving the sacraments on the spot of the very heart of Christ's visible Church!

Bernini's 7 story bronze altar canopy.

Amazing - all these pictures appear to be paintings, but are actually mosaics. A close-up examination was incredible.

We attended Mass is this left side transept built over the spot where St. Peter was crucified.

Then we enjoyed lunch, and lots of chatting and laughs.

The next morning, Andrew and I (and Dominic) snuck out early and were in line for St. Peter's at the time it opened, 7am. We wanted to get to a few more spots we couldn't reach because of the crowds the day before and climb the dome. After a 1/2 hour wait, we reached the entrance.

I was sad to see that two points we wanted to get up close to, Michelangelo's Pieta and the tomb of (then) Blessed John Paul II were blocked off because of a Mass occurring at the JP II's tomb. I suppose that is ok because it was his canonization weekend after all. Next time! Got a quick glimpse of Michelangelo's masterpiece from afar though.

This statue of St. Peter was in the first St. Peter's church built by Constantine in the 4th century! The tradition is to rub his foot and you will return to the Vatican someday. (We didn't make it to the Trevi Fountain to toss a coin in on this trip, but I figure St. Peter's foot is better, holier fortune. ;)

Since we had children with us, we couldn't go on the Vatican's catacomb tour, but standing near the altar in the church, we could look down to St. Peter's tomb! This was the most moving moment for me this whole trip; the truth and power of the apostolic succession ordained by our Lord became real. I felt very close to St. Peter as our true 1st spiritual father, and such communion with the universal church throughout the ages, and peace - didn't want to leave! A tiny, tiny, tiny glimpse of what Heaven will be like when we are united forever to Christ's Mystical Body as a whole.

The Holy Spirit starburst window and Bernini's Chair of St. Peter.

The St. Andrew statue.

The tomb of St. Pope Pius X!!

Pray for us and our children!

After a little while, we exited the church and rounded the corner to climb the dome. We took the elevator for the first half of the distance. Halfway up, one reaches a platform from where you can look down into St. Peter's and get a better look at the inside of the magnificent dome - Michelangelo's last work.