I've decided that when I need a break from packing and cleaning in this last week before we exit Stockholm (SIX DAYS!!!), I can spend it blogging about Italy. A productive break, so I won't feel guilty. Note, these breaks are only possible because I convinced Nathaniel that I *must* hire a cleaning service to clean the flat after we leave. I laid in bed for several nights, mind spinning with how I could possibly get the flat adequately cleaned while we were still living in it, and had nightmare visions of trying to get out of the flat as we left for the airport, in a state of complete panic. We may still be in panic mode when we go, but at least it won't be because I'm trying to scrub the oven at the last minute. It's money we don't have, but sometimes you have to invest in your own sanity.
*****
Wednesday in Italy means the morning papal audience! Renee requested our (free but required) tickets months in advance, because she's amazing. Fr Rolling kindly picked them up and delivered them to us at dinner Tuesday. Also at dinner, he gave us some advice on what time to arrive, which security point to enter through, and which seats to head toward for the best views of the pope during his drive through the square. It is SO GOOD to know people in the know.
Nathaniel and I volunteered to go early, around 7am, with a couple of the bigger kids to save seats. Ruth and William volunteered, but come morning, William was still asleep while Henry was awake and fully dressed by the time my alarm went off. I was in awe! So Ruth and Henry accompanied us on a speed walk to the Vatican.
We circled all the way around to the far side to enter at the checkpoint Father had suggested, and waited in line for the gates to open. Unfortunately, just as the line started to move, about 15 minutes after we'd gotten in line and much longer for many of the people ahead of us, the security guards told everyone they had to go through a different entrance and sent us all packing! I have no idea why, but since they run the show and are not required to explain, we headed out with the masses to a different entrance, where we were much further back in line.
As we waited to get to the security point, I could see the seats, and watched people moving in. Father had told us not to bother with the closest two sections, toward which most people would run, but the third section, at the back corner, which the pope would pass twice on his drive. We were nearing security when I saw the first few people heading to that section and taking the seats we'd hoped to score. When we finally got there, there was no hope of being against an edge, but we got seats as near as we could. And we got lucky - someone in the corner had a beautiful baby girl, dressed up in a white christening gown, which was our obvious ticket to extra pope time. Father had even joked, after looking at our kids and noting that none were young enough to be good pope bait, that we should save an extra seat and ask someone with a baby to join us. Pope Francis loves babies!
We settled in for a lengthy wait for the rest of the family. Phil and Renee had a challenge getting to us, as security put them in on the wrong side. We spotted them negotiating with a security guard, trying to get him to let them cross the blocked off center aisle. No go. They had to walk all the way around the back of the square, all the littles in tow, but they made it!
At that point, Nathaniel decided to make a run to the restroom, despite my skepticism about the timing. It was after 9:00, with the audience beginning at 10am, and the pope's drive through the square sometime prior to that. He asked the security guards whether he could expect to get back in and they told him to go. We're not sure in retrospect whether they understood the question, because he did not make it back before they closed things off for the pope mobile. Oops. All that waiting time, and he viewed Pope Francis from much further away. He did still get a view, and he had our videos and photos to enjoy, but bummer.
Pope Francis did, indeed, drive past our corner twice, stopping the second time to kiss the sweet baby girl in front of us, and we all felt honored to be there, so near. A young lady in the row in front of me was in tears of joy. It was moving to see. Once the pope moved up to the podium, the sections were reopened and Nathaniel was able to rejoin our group for the audience.
The audience itself consisted of a reading, read in many (eight?) languages, followed by a short reflection by the pope, which was summarized in all those languages again. It was long and most of it was in languages we didn't understand, but it was an experience we're glad to have had. At the end, the pope offered blessings on all of us and our families and friends back home, so consider yourself blessed! He also offered a blessing on any religious items we had with us. Again, really glad Renee knew about that and tipped us off to do our shopping early. We usually put off souvenirs and gifts to the last minute. This way, we were able to get rosaries and gifts for our godchildren, blessed by Pope Francis.
*****
That was just the beginning of our day! After the audience, Nathaniel and Phil went back to the apartment to drop off all the newly blessed religious goods, while Renee and I found a tiny pizza joint and fed the kids lunch. Delicious! We met the guys at the subway and headed to the Colosseum. Renee had lined up a tour guide to lead us through the Colosseum and Roman Forum. We had a little time to kill, so tried to visit the nearby Basilica de San Clemente, but it turns out many of the church close from noon till 2pm, and we were there at just the wrong time. We spent the time eating gelato and chasing geckos instead. Not the worst swap. I also got stung by a bee - boo! But better me than a kid, or someone with allergies.
As with the churches in Rome, it's hard to adequately describe the ruins and antiquities. You can likely see better photos and get more information online than I can give here, so I won't go into much detail. Our guide, Agnes, was entertaining and great with keeping the kids engaged while still talking to the adults on our level. She walked us around and through the Colosseum, then up Palatine Hill, telling stories and pointing out fun details the whole way, allowing us bathroom breaks as needed (which is often, with nine kids). It was definitely a better experience than when I saw the Colosseum on a trip in college, and we just sort of peeked through a gate, said, "cool!" and moved on (though that's not a hard bar to raise). We happened to run into Agnes several days later, leading a tour at the Vatican Museum, and she was able to point us toward the Raphaels, so it was a good connection to have made. Ha.
I feel like I should have a lot more stories and anecdotes from this afternoon, but my mind is blank beyond the general coolness of the history and the unbelievable cutting edge technology they used in constructing it (they built the Colosseum in just eight years! and they think it had a retractable cover, like the baseball stadium in Phoenix but all manual!). I may have to add more as I remember it.
*****
Our crew (N's and mine) were pretty done by the end of the tour, while Renee's was still up for dining out, so we split up. We headed back to the apartment and sent Marianne and Nathaniel to the grocery store to find dinner food and more breakfast and snack supplies for the next day. A rotisserie chicken and some cold roasted veggies from the deli counter can never taste as good as they do in an apartment in a foreign country after a long day of walking.
No comments:
Post a Comment