This morning I woke up exhausted on about 3 hours of sleep, but I was happy to hear that Brooke was feeling better. The boys decided to stay in bed instead of getting in line to go through the Vatican museums. Both Brooke and I have been through the museums and the Sistine chapel before so we decided against going through without the boys. Instead, we went to the Spanish steps for breakfast while boys slept. I had a weird ham and toast sandwich with the crusts cut of? Brooke had coffee, fresh orange juice, and a croissant.
After breakfast we went and sat on the steps of Sant'Ambrogio e Carlo al Corso basilica and I wrote yesterdays post. A little before mass was about to start we made our way inside. I was in somewhat of a bathroom emergency... so went and asked a sweet old woman that appeared to be a local if she could help me locate one. She brought me back through a roped off area and then the sacristy to a small courtyard holding the bathroom. I was so blessed that she allowed me to use them or I would've been late for mass. On the way back to my pew through the sacristy, the priest was by the sacristy alter preparing for mass in prayer..... I'm not sure what was different with those floors or my shoes but the sounds my boots made against the floor with each step was like something from a cartoon. So I had to sqeak my way all the way past the priest and blocked off area until finally I was back on the normal floor. I'm sure Father was not a fan. It was a beautiful mass all in Italian and we followed along as well as we could.
While we were in mass the boys had woke up and gotten ready. We both boarded the metro and arrived at St. Peter's basilica at exactly the same time. St. Peter's is absolutely breath taking and I was happy to be back after about 10 years. Some of my highlights were Michelangelo's Pieta, my favorite piece of art ever and the tomb of Saint Pope John Paul II. Our friend that joined us Friday is getting his masters in Architecture and it was fun hearing a new point of view. We also visited the tombs of the popes below the basilica.
As we left we tried looking for the fire station for Jaydn to exchange a patch. The Swiss guard let him know that the fire station was off limits for the public but was happy to give him the patch of the Swiss guard and take Jaydn's in return! After some gelato we returned to the Spanish steps and got some lunch. Some of us were fond of our food, others not so much. After eating the boys headed to the pantheon and it was my goal to skip it and go take an hour nap.
The pantheon was closed so instead we decided as a group to visit the Piazza Novana. There was some crazy street performers there as well as another beautiful church. Then we rushed home to get Joe a bathroom and pack his suitcase for his flight home. Joe made it to the station with 4 minutes to spare as Brooke and Logan sent him off.
Logan and I napped while Jaydn went to mass at St. Mary Major and Brooke joined for another round as well. After mass Brooke and I rested for a bit while Jaydn went to visit the city fire station closest to us. When they finished up at the station we all met at a highly recommended restaurant Abruzzi. (Thanks Father for the recommendation) the carbonara was to die for and the company was just as good. We ordered house wine and cappuccinos and it was perfect.
During supper we also became friends with the wonderful couple next to us. Rob and Linda were on a early 45th anniversary trip to the area and shared with us highlights of their vacation and we did the same. We bonded over being from the US and wine. They even shared a bottle with us and a couple shots of dessert liquor... a little to strong for us. Between our new friends and our meal and one last look at the Trevi fountian it was pretty much a perfect way to wrap up our weekend in Roma.
Notables/highlights:
•Today we didnt do anything that we planned really, but we were so happy to go with the flow and it felt right.
•Seems like bathroom emergencies are getting more common...
•Logan made an enemy with a bird at lunch that seemed to like dripping water from its beak from the roof above onto Logan and his food. Lucky guy.
•We are so bummed to see Joe Kenny go but also so excited to see him Wednesday in Zurich! Crazy how the trip is flying.
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