Italy Day 12 {Rome}

We thought we were in a lane; only the fittest will survive a drive on the Autostrade in Italy.

Pulling into Rome after 9:30PM without hotel reservations made for an intersting evening.  Plan A had been to head back to our flat (which was being held for us), but finding it in the dark after the terrible back up at the toll station entering Rome was beyond our capabilities.  We settled on a clean pair of rooms at a hotel next to Termini train station in the center of Rome. Unfortunately, there were no triples, so the 3 boys had to share a double bed, which was actually twin beds pushed together.  Not the best night's sleep; beyond the cramped quarters and lousy matresses, the night life outside our window lingered on, but thankfully the carousing was in a foregin language. 

Breakfast in the train station, espresso and pastries, before catching the Metro to get back to our flat.
Another gorgeous day in Rome, we stopped at the local grocer for lunch supplies and picnicked in our garden patio.  Tim studied the map of Italy and charted out the final week of our pilgrimage, set to begin after Zachary's departure for the US.

Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, Rome, Italy

Art on the ceiling at Santa Croce, Rome

Back on the Metro for an afternoon excursion to Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, suggested as a "must see" by our friend, Oana.  In the Chapel of Relics, we prayerfully contemplated the Passion of Christ, while gazing upon the sacred relics (nail, thorn, section of true Cross and the pillar).  A full-sized, exact replica of the Shroud of Turin was on display, and Tim quietly taught the boys about the Shroud.

Oana, Bridget, Joseph, Peter and Zachary; evening tour of Rome, Italy

St. Peter's Dome over Peter's dome

Our evening outing, organized and led by Oana, involved a few miles' walking tour including Trinità dei Monti and the Pincio Terrace in villa Borghese where many flock to view St. Peter's in the sunset. A quick bite at the Autogrille (buffet style Italian fast food) and a bus ride back to Cipro Station, a few blocks from our flat.

Italy Day 11 {Monte Cassino}

Main altar at Monte Casino Basilica, Casino, Italy

Bridget and Tim decend to the crypt below the main altar at Monte Casino.

View from the front steps at the Basilica of Monte Casino

Metalwork on the gate leading into the abby

Our Zachary with Pope Saint Zachary at Monte Cassino, Cassino, Italy

Perched atop a rocky cliff above the town of Cassino, the Benedictine Monastery of Monte Cassino dates to the 500's.  However, the structures were largely rebuilt after being bombed in WWII.  Unbelievable beauty greeted us in the Basilica of Monte Cassino; just as we arrived evening prayer (Vespers) was beginning and all tourists were ushered out.  Glad for the opportunity to enter into reverent community prayer with the monks in this holy place, we found seats and shared in evening prayer.  Imagining the thousands of holy people who have worshiped in this place was awe inspiring.  Finding the crypt of St. Benedict in the hidden underground church below the Basilica gave us another spot for quiet and prayer.

Noteworthy:

• Pulling into Rome on the Autostrade on a sunny Sunday evening could mean waits of up to one hour simply to pay the toll and drive into the city.
• Aggressive drivers may only wait half as long.
• Emergency vehicles may use bumper car style driving to literally push other cars out of the way so that their wait is lessened (whether or not there is an actual emergency).

Italy Day 10 pt 2 {Subiaco}

Monastery of Saint Benedict, Subiaco, Italy 

Nestled in the cliff side, towering over the town of Subiaco, the Benedectine Monasteries of Subiaco  brought us right to where St. Benedict lived in prayed in a cave as a hermit for three years. 

The irregular shape of the inside of the St. Benedict Monastery, where the chapels and churches seem to grow out from around the rocks of the cliff-side could not be photographed, as it is protected as a "no photo" area.  The grotto, reserved for prayer and meditation, offered a quiet oasis amidst the crowds visiting this holy place on a Sunday afternoon.  Being one of Zachary's "must sees" in Italy, he hadn't waited til morning to come and visit, he took a short run/walk from our room at St. Scholastica's Monastery on arrival night to get his first peek at St. Benedict's Monastery.

In formation with the Passionist Order in Rome, on retreat at St. Scholastica, Salvadore came to visit in the morning.

Peter and Joseph join a game of soccer in the play area (parking lot) at St. Scholastica.

Tim enjoys the view from the steps leading to our room at St. Scholastica, Subiaco, Italy.

Who knew how much our younger boys would miss playing with other kids?  The looks on their faces when we pulled into the parking area at St. Scholastica, filled with kids around their age filled in the blanks. Within moments of exiting the vehicle, Joseph and Peter had been invited to join the game, and Joseph even scored a goal.  They were the willing daredevils who volunteered to retrieve the ball when it flew over the hedge (a sheer cliff below, but somehow they managed).  The fun and games ended when one of the older boys proudly shared the English (swear) words he knew.  Joseph and Peter took that as a cue to exit the scene.

Noteworthy:

• "Speak Italy" means, "If you want to talk to me, don't use English and your stupid sign language; speak Italian!"
• Being guests at a monastery does not necessarily mean solitude and an escape from the everyday: especially if a group of middle-schoolers are visiting at the same time.
• Joseph was the first male on this excursion to voluntarily do his own laundry!

Italy Day 10 {Cascia: St. Rita}

Family snap shot in Cascia; taken with auto timer on our point and shoot.

St. Rita of Cascia's life is an inspiration to many, and her intercession is often sought for hopeless causes and difficult marriages.  Her incorrupt body is displayed at the Basilica of St. Rita in Cascia, a small town on a small road somewhere between Assisi and Subiaco.  We drove through a 4K tunnel (2.5 miles) en route, and found ourselves on freakishly high cliff-side hairpin turns, one after another, our abdominal muscles sore from the ride.  "We'll have time for a full act of contrition if we go off the road here!" Zac offered on one of the exhilarating switch backs.  Funny thing is, the map showed this journey as a straight line!  All the twists and turns paid off, as our brief visit to St. Rita's Basilica gave us a break for prayer, contemplation and a family picnic with territorial views of the region.

Many miracles are displayed in Cascia's basilica, including two incorrupt bodies and a 700 year old Eucharistic Miracle.  If anyone doubts the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, this Eucharistic Miracle could ignite his faith.

In 1330, a consecrated Host (the Holy Eucharist) was hastily removed from the tabernacle and placed in a prayer book (breviary) by a priest on his way to administer the sacraments to a dying peasant.  After hearing the sick man's confession, the priest opened his breviary to retrieve the Holy Eucharist, and to his astonishment found that the white host has bloodied the pages of his book.   Father knew he had been irreverent and went immediately to Siena's Augustinian Priory to consult with Fr. Simone Fidati of Cascia, known for his holiness.  The Sacred Host was put on display to teach Christians about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.  Seeing this miracle was a powerful experience for us, and a call to prayer for Christian unity.

Twisted photo of the backseat gang.