Our family passed by the outskirts of Rome in 2018 but didn’t really get to see the city. This time, we are using Rome as a hub to fly back to the US, so we decided to take advantage of it and stayed in Rome for two nights. We spent the first day walking in the historic heart of city. The second day, we did a pilgrim’s walk which began at the Coliseum and ended at the Vatican.
We took the high speed train from Naples and arrived in Rome in a little more than an hour (max speed at 300km/hour).
Day 1: Heart of Rome Walk
We dropped off our suitcases in the hotel and are now having lunch near the Spanish Steps.The Spanish Steps The Trevi FountainThe ceiling frescos inside the Church of St Ignatius of LoyolaThe Pantheon, built more than 2000 years ago, is the oldest functional building in Rome. A view of the dome from inside the Pantheon
Day 2: Pilgrim’s Walk
We had breakfast in our hotel balcony and are ready for our last day, Day 38, of our Sabbatical Trip!The ColosseumOur Pilgrim’s Walk in Rome began at St Clement’s Basilica, a short walk from the Colosseum, a church that was built on top of a 1st-century house church.We then visited the Basilica of St Giovanni in the Lateran, also one of the oldest churches in Rome, which served as the cathedral of the Bishops of Rome for 1000 years until St Peter’s Basilica was built.St Peter holding the keys of hades in his left handConstantine’s mother, St Helena, went to Jerusalem in 327 and found Potius Pilate’s residence. The Pilate’s Stairs, or the Holy Stairs, were 28 steps of marble stairs in front of his house, on which our Savior climbed as he was being led before Pilate. (The holy blood stains were covered under the glass windows). Pilgrims climb the steps on their knees, reading the Gospel narrative while meditating on Christ’s suffering. It was a powerful prayer experience.
The Vatican
Inside St Peter’s Basilica, the first thing that caught our attention was Michelangelo’s Pieta. We were overwhelmed by the vastness and brightness of the space. The Pieta was created by Michelangelo when he was 24.Both St Paul and St Peter were martyred in Rome, and Peter’s bones were buried underneath the church’s altar.We sat through our first Latin Mass (I have attended Mass in Cantonese, French, and English). Our beginner’s Latin helped us make out some of the words. We have learned parts of the Lord’s Prayer as well so I could follow it. It is another once-in-a-lifetime experience to attend Mass inside the largest, one of the most symbolic Christian churches in the world (the other would be to worship at the Patriachy of the Greek Orthodox Church in Istanbul, but it was a bit far away and we didn’t have the time). I’m sure it was true for the many pilgrims who traveled there from all over the world.The nave of St Peter’s BasilicaThe facade of the Basilica of St Peter in the VaticanSt Peter’s Square
