DAYS 7 & 8: Humble Francis, Incredible Vatican & The Renaissance Masters

Quotes of the days:  

Assisi - “The Franciscans know how to do it right.” JM after a beautiful visit to Assisi where St. Francis started the Franciscan order which greatly reminded JM of the incredible Santa Barbara Mission in California which was also founded by Franciscans.

Rome – “I got a very good picture of a very attractive priest.” HM upon discovering that her Popearrazi zoom lens garnered her a photo of Pope Benedict’s personal secretary, Archbishop George Gänswein, as he said morning prayers at the Pope’s Vatican City apartment.

VM: It’s hard to believe another two days has flown by! We headed out from Florence yesterday with our gracious and friendly chauffer, Salvatore (shout out to Jeannine McDonough who had recommended the company he works for to us (www.yourtourinitaly.com).

In just about 2 hours, Salvatore took us through Tuscany and into the Umbrian region where Assisi is located. Assisi calls for another shout-out to Silvia Herman, who had highly recommended it as a 

Assisi is gorgeous from afar.

day trip on our way to Rome and we’re so glad she did. Assisi is a mystical spot. While it is certainly modern in its amenities, the beautiful stone of which it was crafted so many years ago is exactly as it was then and it sits overlooking some of the most beautiful landscapes we’ve ever seen. It reminded JM and I of Napa Valley & Sonoma.  It is simply beautiful.

It is no wonder that this is where Francis founded the order of the Franciscan priests and that Saint Clare followed him.  She launched the order of nuns who followed the Franciscan way of taking vows of poverty and living the Gospel.

In a small town, there were many incredibly spiritual places to visit. We started with the Sanctuary of San Damiano which is where a praying Francis heard God speak to him via the crucifix and tell him to “go and repair my house, which as you see, is falling into ruin.” 

It is easy to see why Francis was so inspired here. 
Photo creds: HM

Taking a moment to gawk at the landscape. Photo creds: HM

Franciscan priest at work.

The cloister area was beautiful.

That same crucifix has been moved, but is today in the Church of Saint Claire, which is where we visited next after getting a bit lost walking in the city (Salvatore must’ve thought we were the dumbest Americans ever!).

The original crucifix which "spoke"
to Saint Francis hangs today in
Saint Clare's church.

At the base of the Basilica of Saint Francis.

Regardless, it was very moving to see the cross and to see where Saint Claire is laid to rest permanently. We went on to the Basilica of Saint Francis that is equally awe-inspiring.

Basilica of Saint Francis.

The front lawn of the Basilica of Saint Francis facing Assisi.
Peace was for Francis the greatest ideal. He wanted all his friars to share God's peace and told them that
"The Lord revealed that we should use this greeting:
May the Lord give you peace."

Salvatore was great company.

As it was now nearly 1:30pm, our stomachs were talking. Rather than eat “in-town,” Salvatore recommending a restaurant just on the outskirts that they refer to here as “agri-turismo.” It’s literally farms run by families who cater to visitors and locals alike with typical family-style Italian fare.  Not fancy, but really good. It was a fun, relaxing meal that fueled us for our last two stops.

The Assisi air got the girls in a
dancing mood.

Upon our request, Salvatore drove us to the top of Assisi so we could explore Rocca Maggiore, a medieval fortress which sits above the town.  It has the most incredible vistas of the Umbrian valley below and for some reason, also inspired the girls to start doing the “Nae-Nae” (for those who have never heard of it, think of the Macarena for this generation or a country line dance)! I’m guessing there might’ve been a few feudal ghosts rolling in their graves at the sight.

We ended our day in Assisi at The Hermitage where Francis would supposedly seclude himself in prayer and meditation. We could all see why. Hiking up to this peaceful spot was really something. The breeze was blowing, the birds were singing and the vistas are beyond compare. It’s absolutely the most perfect spot to commune with God, whether Catholic or not.

All in all, we were all really happy we got to experience Assisi. It was special.

JM and his girls: Assisi edition.

We were sorry to say good-bye to Salvatore, but happy
to say hi to Roma!

After our full day, Salvatore drove us safely on to Rome where we met our Rome landlord, Giovanni, promptly at 7:15pm. He showed us around our fabulous apartment and we were thrilled to FULLY unpack and call it home for the next few days. We are in a great part of the city known as Prati. I picked it due to its vicinity to the Vatican, only a 10-minute walk away, but it really is a neat area. We went to our local supermarket for breakfast fare and called it a day.

Today we met our newest guide, Grace. We have been incredibly lucky to have wonderful guides who are passionate about what they do. Grace appears to be in her late 20s and is an incredibly knowledgeable art historian (another shout-out to Ryan who recommended her company, Access Italy, http://www.accessitaly.net to me). Grace is an authorized Vatican guide and whisked us over to the Vatican to be dazzled.

I can’t do the Vatican and its museum justice in words. As Grace explained it, the Vatican Museum is the second largest in the world, only after Paris’ Louvre. It houses 75,000 pieces of art / artifacts. It is estimated that if you were to see each of those pieces, giving them only 60 seconds each, it would take you 12 years. Now, I haven’t checked Grace’s math, but suffice to say that we were all overwhelmed and we were only there for 3 hours!

Our first close-up view of the Vatican as we arrive at the Museum.

There are a zillion pieces of sculptures in the Vatican Museum which were excavated in earlier times. We all liked this random "toe" that was found, but not its owner.

Everywhere you go, there's examples of
Christianity toppling paganism.

A restaurant menu from Roman times.

A Greek statue of Hercules which was in
bronze. The Romans didn't like the way
he was depicted. Personally, I'm thinking this is what
inspired Picasso's cubism.

Can you see the resemblance????

Grace did a great job of gearing the tour towards the girls and engaging them. She even took EM to see a real Egyptian mummy which she deemed “creepy.” As was mentioned before, HM loves Greek mythology and has an incredible recollection of it, so she could really relate to Grace’s stories of how the Romans “adapted” some of the Greek beliefs to make it easier for people to convert to Christianity.

Grace’s love of art history and Catholicism also made her the perfect guide to teach us about some of the most important works at the Vatican painted of course, by Raphael and the man himself, Michelangelo.  

Raphael's School of Athens masterpiece which hung in the Pope Julius' dining room.
(not our pic, reference pic from Google.)

Raphael is second from the right posing for a "selfie."

One of Raphael's most important works, The School of Athens, was particularly fun to check out as it depicts truth acquired through reason. It has Plato and Aristotle strolling together, but two other details really caught our fascination - 1) Raphael painted himself into the corner of the work. The look on his face literally made me crack up.  I call it the first "selfie." 2) Paying homage to the man himself, Raphael came back after the fresco was completed, took down a part of it, and repainted it to include Michelangelo smack dab in the middle of the painting. It was supposedly a sign of great respect for him.

Mike is smack dab in the middle of Raphael's work. Do you recognize the face on the
far left of the painting on the right? YO ADRIAN!

Another favorite fun moment for JM and I was when Grace pointed out that one of Raphael's characters had an incredible likeness to Sylvester Stallone. Maybe it's an old family relative!?!?

After seeing the Sistine Chapel, there is no denying that Michelangelo was an absolute genius. While Raphael would sketch out what he was creating and even hire workers to help him complete it, Michelangelo worked alone.  In fact, today I’m pretty sure he would be characterized as a bit of “diva.” He wouldn’t show any of his work to ANYONE, not even the commissioning Pope until it was complete.

He also added some cheeky moments, including depicting the Papal Master of Ceremonies who annoyed him as one of the three judges of the underworld in the famous “Last Judgment” painting at the one end of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo also painted himself into this painting. But instead of putting himself obscurely in the corner as many artists of the time would (including Raphael) he put his face squarely in the center of the painting on a skin in Saint Bartholomew’s hand (which was also supposed to depict the horrible way in which this saint died).  I’m thinking ole’ Mike felt he had left everything he had up in this painting, as he was 78 when he completed it.

While there are no pics allowed
in the Sistine Chapel as it's a holy place
we got to marvel over the Last Judgement
and Michelangelo's thumbing of his nose
at the Papal Master of Ceremonies of the time
by depicting him as one of guards to Hell.
(reference image from Google).

Overall, we were in awe of the Vatican. I have mixed feelings, especially as I see it compared to the humbleness of Saint Francis and Saint Clare, but I also have a lot of respect for how this place has been the epicenter of the Catholic Church and the spread of Christianity.

Michelangelo left some skin up on them walls.

And of course, this was an incredible day to be here as the Vatican was fully preparing for the Papal Mass this Easter Sunday. Grace was kind enough to help us find our way to the bronze door where we were to pick up our tickets for Sunday’s mass. After inquiring from several Swiss guards, we finally found the right spot.  It looks like we have tickets for out on the Plaza with a few thousand of our friends, but we are excited to see what’s in store.

The Pope's tush was going to be sitting in this
white chair for Good Friday mass.

They were busy, busy, busy readying for Sunday's mass.

Swiss Guards guard the Vatican in uniforms
designed by Michelangelo. I'm not sure
he was being nice when he designed them.

After leaving Grace, we trekked to find a pizza spot recommended by another friend called Romeo (shout out to Lisa Prestwich). This was a hip, contemporary Roman eatery and it was delicious.

Yummy piece from Romeo's.

We made our way home to change as the weather keeps yo-yoing & then headed out to find what else – GELATO. Yes, the family is fully addicted. Even I indulged this time as Grace AND Salvatore claim it’s the best in town. Akin to a “Soup Nazi” experience (Seinfeld fans will understand) this was the “Gelato Nazi.” It was an incredible cacophony of locals & visitors vying for their favorite flavors.

But I will say, it was YUMOLA.

We then went to see Trevi Fountain, which is still under restoration, but impressive nonetheless.  The crowds were a bit much here so we decided to take a taxi to Borghese Gardens for what I thought would be some rest & relaxation at the park.  Of course, HM and EM had other ideas and insisted we rent a four-person bike to drive all over what is the Roman version of Central Park.  It was really fun, but I will admit I was fully WIPED OUT after walking for more than 5 miles this morning and then the one-hour bike ride.

What you can do with a selfie stick!

We made it home to have a light supper in our apartment and call it a day.

Tomorrow it’s off to the Colosseum!

JM and his girls: Rome edition.

HM: I really liked how charming Assisi was. Seeing Saint Claire’s tomb was not what I thought it would be, but now understanding that they cover the face of the saint with a wax mask, I understand better. It was fun to explore the city and we even got a little lost. Our tour guide was great and I’ll be helping him plan his trip to Disney in Orlando this December with his girls. And he gave us tips on EuroDisney! He took us to an authentic, family-owned Italian restaurant with phenomenal Tiramisu.

After parting from Salvatore, we met Giovanni, our Rome host & saw our amazing little apartment here. It is located in the heart of Rome’s shopping district.

Today we met our fabulous tour guide, Grace, who shares my love in Greek mythology and Catholic history. We traded notes about the Greek Gods while appreciating statues from the Greek & Roman era.

Archbishop Georg even made it on to the
cover of Italy's Vanity Fair.

Grace pointed the home where Pope Benedict now lives. He is the Pope who resigned voluntarily before Pope Francis. His “retirement” home is at the Vatican. When Grace pointed it out, I looked up and noticed a figure reading the Bible while pacing the top floor. Thinking I had spotted the former Pope, I zoomed my camera lens to 120 and snapped a picture. It turns out I got a photo of his #2, who’s also known as the “George Clooney of St. Peter’s.” It was really neat.

HM shows off her Popearrazi skills.

After finishing our tour of the Vatican, we parted from Grace, but luckily, we’ll see her tomorrow to see the Coliseum. We had a delicious lunch at Romeo, recommended by our friend Lisa Prestwich. They had the best zucchini pizza.

We then walked to the best gelato place in downtown Rome, Giolitti’s, thanks to a recommendation from Salvatore and Grace. It truly was awesome.

HM finds a bust of her new high
school's patron saint, Saint Thomas
Aquinas in Borghese Gardens.

We got a quick peek at the Trevi Fountain before heading to Borghese Gardens where we enjoyed a bike ride through the Gardens. It was a fun way to show that we could actually work as a team.

And finally, Papa indulged me to a trip to one of my favorite shops, Brandy Melville. It was a great way to end a full day; I can’t wait to see what is yet to come on our “Roman Holiday!”

EM: It was really cool seeing all the saints’ churches. Assisi is a neat little town. Our driver was really nice. It must have been troop week, there were a lot of girl and boy scouts there.Seeing the Sistine Chapel was cool because you could see where Michelangelo painted the ceiling but the cool thing I learned about him is that he wasn’t really painting laying down, he was kind of leaning. But it was still amazing. Our tour guide, Grace, is really nice and friendly. 

I loved the gelato at Giolitto’s. It was worth the wait in line.  The gelato was amazing. When we went on the four-person bike, it was a little scary. I thought we’d crash into people because we kept going up hills and down hills & they would not pay attention or listen.

EM finds a car just her size!