Sunday, we had a slow morning and ordered a taxi back to St. Peter’s square. Orginially, we had planned to attend the Pope’s blessing at noon, but was afraid that we would not find a place to sit/stand. We decided to go to the square around 10am to catch Mass and then stay for the blessing. Mass was little tedious for me, but it was neat to watch it on these massive jumbo-tron TV’s in the square. After Mass, the Pope walked to a pulpit outside the church and blessed the crowd in at least 8-10 different languages. That was amazing.
After the blessing, we walked back across the river and had lunch at a café on the corner. It was alright. We were really only there to use the restroom! You learn to stop and have food/drinks several times a day so that you can use a clean facility. The toilet bowls in Italy are….interesting. They do not have lids. It’s basically just the bowl (in Rome at least). Note for future travelers: take seat covers, tissue, and wet wipes. You will be REALLY glad you have it when you discover a facility without tissue OR soap.
Anyway, from there we headed over to see the Pantheon. I have been wanting to see this my whole life and I was not disappointed. It was beautiful and very well preserved! It was originally built as a temple to all the gods of acient Rome, but was rebuilt in the 2nd century A.D. It is the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome. The oculus is massive.
On our way back to the hotel, we walked along part of the Roman forum that faces the street. Carlyn was not able to do the Roman Forum walk with Rico and I, but at least she was able to see some of the ruins along the way. Rico and I ended up going into the Roman Forum while Mary Lou and Carlyn went out for shopping. 
The Roman Forum was very interesting. It is difficult to imagine how massive the buildings were until you are actually standing in front of one. The Bascillica of Constantine just towers over everything else.
No comments:
Post a Comment