Rome...ah! So many stories and sights and spiritual things I could tell you all about! Here is just a little highlight of some of the things I saw and experienced. The first day I walked into St. Peter's Square. It was probably one of my favorite and most meaningful moments since I've been in Europe. The columns on the side are supposed to symbolize mother church welcoming you home and into the church. We had a Latin Mass inside St. Peter's which is one of the most beautiful things to partake in. I was able to wake up each morning and pray around 8am in St.Peter's before all the tourists arrived. My favorite image to pray in front of is the Pieta- Mary holding the dead body of Jesus. We had a tour of St. Peter's by some Seminarians that graduated from Franciscan or just from the U.S. that are studying at the North American College in Rome. There is so much symbolism in that church. One of the most exciting moments as well was to see Pope Benedict XVI!! We said the Angeles with him on Sunday after mass! :) I felt right at home in the Vatican and the Pope spoke so lovingly in 7 different languages to all of us in the crowd! We were able to take a tour underneath the Vatican to see the original foundation of the basilica and all the tombs underneath the ground including the bones of St. Peter! It was incredible! We were able to see touristy things too like the Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, etc. We had exquisite Italian meals every night and gelato!! They know how to make pasta that is for sure! All in all, the highlight and most amazing moments were spent praying and just being at the Vatican!
The photos: Pope Benedict XVI, St. Peter's Basilica, and a group of us standing with the Basilica in the background!
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