Rome Trip: Day 1

We landed in Rome around noon local time and arrived at the apartment just in time for Nelson to join the guys at the only non-spiritual activity (although my brothers may beg to differ on this point) planned - a European football game (okay, soccer for all you Americans).

Since Aaron thought it may not be the best atmosphere for Mackenzie, she and I stayed behind and hit the streets of Rome. After window shopping and our first, and unfortunately nowhere near out last, gelato, we walked into Saint Peter's Square. I held her hand and made her close her eyes until she was standing directly in front of it. When she opened her eyes to see St. Peter's Basilica for the first time, her response was a very dramatic, "Oh my!"


While waiting for the guys to meet us, she had fun chasing some pigeons while I gave away my Southern accent and ended up talking to two guys from Louisiana who had rented bikes to see Rome. And, after seven full days of walking the cobblestone streets and hills of the city, I think they had the right idea.




I love this picture. I call it BIG CHURCH, little girl. It speaks volumes to me.

After meeting up with the gang we headed to the Pontifical North American College (the seminary where Aaron lives and hereafter referred to as the NAC) for mass and a trip to their roof. How's this for a daily view?

This is from a different angle. We could see all of Rome from up there. If you look over Aaron's left shoulder, you can see the Victor Emmanuel Monument, referred to by the locals as the wedding cake because of its shiny white marble.
After the priest who was traveling with us said mass, we did something that no other women are allowed to do barring family members on the week of ordination. We got to see Aaron's room. I felt very privileged to sneak a peek into the life of the seminarians. To tell you the truth it looked like a lot of college dorms I've seen except that every one had his own room, there were a lot more religious pictures hanging among the college banners, and, oh yeah, you can watch the Pope’s bedroom light go off at night.