Italy Day 24 {Rome to Home}

Basilica of St. Peter at dusk

Come Holy Spirit!

Peter, Bridget, Tim and Joseph in St. Peter's Square on the day before our departure

Approaching Rome for a final 2 night's stay before our departure for the US, we drove to our hotel in under four wrong turns.  Located within a 10 minute walk of the Vatican, we were happily back in our old stomping grounds.  By God's grace, just as we ventured out of our hotel to buy a large cardboard box to package a newly acquired treasure (Icon of St. Lucia) for the flight home, a set of giant doors opened adjacent to our bus stop, and a sister wearing a great red cross upon her white habit appeared.  Next to her, a hospital employee carrying a dozen large cardboard boxes, bound for recycling.  Slightly stunned, we asked if we could take the boxes, and they gladly agreed.  Mission accomplished!

Our final day in Rome gave us an opportunity to re-visit a few of our absolute favorite places:

• Basilica of St. Praessade: section of the pillar upon which Christ was scourged; St. Charles Borromeo's chair; unbelievable Byzantine mosaics; place where St. Bridget of Sweden came to pray
• St. Mary Major: mosaic of the Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Santa Maria Della Vittoria: Bernini's marble masterpiece of St. Teresa in Ecstasy
• St. Peter's Basilica: Apse Chair of St. Peter, Tomb of Blessed John Paul II, Pieta
• Santa Susanna: Palm Sunday Anticipatory Mass in English 

Joseph and Peter with Cardinal Martino, whom they met at St. Peter's Basilica.

Mosaic of the Coronation at St. Praessade, Rome, Italy

Scaling the Vatican walls... Peter and Joseph on their final day in Rome

Speeding to the airport as passengers of a (deranged) Roman taxi driver after dark is an experience we will never forget.  Hitting speeds of over 110 MPH, careening up on slower vehicles as if they would evaporate before collision, our airport transport was surreal.  We survived to tell the tale, and it proved to be an exhilarating way to cap off our Italian adventure.  

NOTEWORTHY:

• There's nothing like a pile of cardboard and a roll of packaging tape to construct make-shift luggage.
• A bit of TLC applied to the bruises on a rental car could save a lot of dough.
• God is SO GOOD!