Back Home Again

 "Where we love is home - home that our feet may leave but not our hearts."

Our travel adventure ended with an amazing warm and wonderful airport homecoming welcome!!!

Oh, how we love this family of ours!!

After a stressful though successful baggage check-in we flew on time from Rome to Amsterdam. And then came the delay while the airplane's technical problem was repaired. The three hour wait in the beautiful Amsterdam airport wasn't so bad once we made the discovery of a hidden area with a view of the tarmac from very comfy lounge chairs.  

The Mission Office staff provided us with a ride to the airport. 

Each of those big suitcases weights just under 50 pounds!! 

Packing them was a challenge and lifting/loading them took super strength!!

Final dinner al fresco on our balcony in Rome.

The Last Roman Hurray

 The ruins of the Baths of Caracalla was the location of our last hurray!!!

A little history...constructed around A.D. 215, and in use until about 530, the Caracalla complex spread over 62 acres and served more than 6,000 citizens per day. It was a massive, ornate space that included public baths, exercise centers, swimming pools, public libraries, and more. What remains of this once magnificent facility is now a tourist attraction and venue for concerts.

The event of our last hurray was a concert by our long-time favorite trio - Il Volo!!! 

A little more history.....We have been fans of this group for over a decade. We have watched them grow up from 15 year old boys to men now in their 30's. We love that each has a unique voice; Gianluca is a crooner like Bing Crosby, Ignazio has an easy to listen to tenor jazzy voice, and Piero has a rich operatic style. Together they describe their genre as "Popera" (pop-opera). Their concert did not disappoint!! 

We were surprised at the number of familiar American tunes mixed in with the traditional Italian ones. What was really fun was hearing the audience members around us sing along in English!!

Our favorite music performed with a backdrop of spectacularly lit ancient Roman ruins was a great way to wrap up our Roman Adventure!! It was a beautiful goodbye....bella ciao!!!

Olive Trees and Olive Oil

 One of the great educational experiences we have had in Italy has been learning about the olive tree.

This is a picture of one of the olive trees on the Rome Temple plaza. It is 400 - 500 years old. As we come and go we have seen how the gardeners carefully care for these trees...pruning, digging, grafting and harvesting the olives they produce. 

"In the olive tree you can feel the wisdom of the ancient world" - Carol Drinkwater

These observations, along with our study of the Allegory of the Olive Tree in the Book of Mormon (Jacob 5 - 7), have increased our admiration for these olive trees.  The age of these trees is a witness to the future-thinking person who planted them and the generations of people who have cared for them.

We have also grown in our understanding and appreciation for the olive and for olive oil. We had the chance to experience an olive harvest, watching the workers shake the olives off the limbs and on to the massive nets carpeting the ground below. We even got to help a little! 

Our education continued as we toured an olive oil processing plant and saw the olives unloaded from the baskets, washed, crushed, purified and saw the golden oil come out and poured into containers. 

An Olive Oil lecture and tasting event filled our minds to overflowing with facts and figures about this fascinating and flavorful product that has been used for centuries for food, medicine and religious rituals.

Olive trees are one of the things we will miss greatly. They have added to our ever-growing love of Italy. However, we will bring home our new-found knowledge of good olive oil and allow it to keep us connected to the ancient roots of this great tree!!

The Light Within

 

"Cultivate the light you have within you, and it will shine through as a radiant expression that will be seen by others.

"There is something of divinity within each of you. You have such tremendous potential with that quality as a part of your inherited nature. 

"Every one of you was endowed by your Father in Heaven with a tremendous capacity to do good in the world. 

"Train your minds and your hands that you may be equipped to serve well in the society of which you are a part. 

"Cultivate the art of being kind, of being thoughtful, of being helpful. 

"Refine within you the quality of mercy which comes as a part of the divine attributes you have inherited."

- President  Gordon B.  Hinckley 

A Special tour of the American Embassy in Rome

 

Thanks to the kindness of a friend, who is an Embassy employee, we were able to take a tour of this fascinating complex. We learned that there are three American Embassy branches housed here... 

1. Embassy to Italy

2. Embassy to the U.N. 

3. Embassy to the Holy See (the Vatican)

Since WWII, when one of the buildings was the headquarters of the U.S. Special Forces, the U.S. Embassy campus has been housed here in seven very interesting buildings, some from the Boncompani Ludovisi family estate and gardens.  

These three pictures are of one of the buildings which was the former palace of Queen Margherita of Savoy. She might be familiar to you...the Pizza Margherita is named after her! Not surprisingly, security was very tight and we were unable to take our phones into the complex. The above photos are not from our cameras but were found online.  

However, our Embassy friend did have permission to take this photo of all of us. We are near the statue of Venus by Giambologna sculpted in 1583 and located in the grand stairway of the palace. We loved this very special field trip to the American Embassy in Rome!!

Almost Speechless!

We can't find adequate words to comment on... 

...the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill... so we will use only a few words and pictures.   

Layers of stories, Heaps of stones ...

....Millenniums of history,  Enormous egos......

                                                                                                       ...Amazing art, Clever craftsmanship...

... Countless lessons, Fascinating facts....

...Worldwide influence, Monumental memories...

...Stunning successes and Fatal failures.

                                        One must see it to believe it and we are so glad that we did!!

A Sabbath Day Stroll in Rome

After church on Sunday we visited several religious places with our friends, Art and Sherrie Kline, and found respectful, reverent feelings there. Our top three favorites were....

1. Michelangelo's "Christ Bearing the Cross" in the Church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva. This has been our favorite sculpture since we first discovered it. Each time we see it we are moved by the courage and strength the artist captured in the countenance of the Savior of Mankind. 

2. Finding this presepe/scene, displayed in that same church was a surprise. It was similar to a Christmas manger scene, with multiple vignettes depicting events in the life of Christ.  

 We found depictions of His birth, baptism, teaching, healing, washing the feet of his apostles, sharing the Last Supper, being tried, hanged on the cross, and then our favorite scene.....a tomb with a circular rock that mechanically rolls away to open the tomb!!! 

We had never seen anything like this before!!

3. Behind these normal looking doors we discovered a really unique place....The Holy Stairs.

This was FASCINATING!! The Catholics believe that the Emperor Constantine’s mother, Helena, brought back from Jerusalem, the 28 stone steps that Jesus walked as he entered Pilate’s palace to be tried and eventually condemned. They are in a sanctuary with three staircases, each with frescos of Bible scenes painted on the ceilings and walls. The center stairway contains the 28 stone stairs and is reserved for those who want to crawl on their knees to the top, pausing to pray on each one. We admire those who make the long, painful, faith-filled crawl.  It was a very tender sight! 

We were greatly moved by the statues at the base of the stairways depicting 

stirring moments from Jesus’ final days…

The Latin inscription translates to "Not my will by thine be done" - in the Garden of Gethsemane

"You betray the Son of Man" - the betraying kiss from Judas Iscariot 

" This is your hour and your tender power" - Pilate presenting Jesus to the angry mob

"Pilate seized Jesus and scourged Him" - the judgment and condemnation is carried out

Jesus' corpse is received and cared for by his family and friends. 

We have gained historic and spiritual learning from our strolls through Rome. What an education!!

Refreshing Friendships

A group of missionaries and co-workers gathered to say goodbye to us and two other couples. There is a special richness that comes from knowing and loving people in far away places.  

Four women who started out as strangers but blended their skills in service to the workers and patrons in the Rome Temple and in the process became dear friends. 

 Melanie and Bill were traveling through Europe in time for a very special visit just one month before our departure. “A sister is a gift to the heart, a friend to the spirit, a golden thread to the meaning of life.” – Isadora James

Art and Sherrie Kline came to Italy and we were able to explore with them!! 

Sharing the hidden treasures of Rome doubles the joy of discovery!! 

Tami and Tauna made time during their European Tour for a quick visit. We knew them when they were teens in the Bountiful 7th Ward. Now they are beautiful grandmothers!! Tami surprised us by bringing a cardboard cutout of AJ and Cami to include in photos on the Temple Grounds. 
Friends make life a lot more fun!!

 Diana Marchetti was serving as a missionary on Temple Square when we first met her in about 2013 and we have kept in touch ever since. She lives near Rome which allowed us to visit a few times since we have been here. What a delightful surprise it was to "bump" in to her and her family as we left the temple recently. This sweet friendship refreshes our souls! 

A Renaissance Ramble in Rome

Via XX Settembre is a road worthy of a ramble!! There are few tourists but LOTS of amazing things to see, especially if you enjoy the bubbly fountains, imposing obelisks and charming churches from the mid-15th to mid-16th centuries.  Here are some of our favorite things from today's stroll that we do not want to forget:

FOUNTAINS

Our walk started in Piazzo di San Bernardo at the Moses Fountain. After 1,000 years of living on well water, the citizens of this neighborhood finally got fresh water (c. 1585) and Moses is just the person to help them celebrate. It was he who performed God's miracle and brought forth water in the desert for the wandering children of Israel. 

Bernini's Fontana del Tritone (Triton fountain) made from travertine stone, has had a place of honor in Piazza Barberini since 1642.

Our stroll took us to an intersection along the "Pilgrim's Path" that boasts four fountains ...

where weary pilgrims and their horses, tired from their long journey, could quench their thirst. The fountains depict river gods relaxing in shade. From this intersection, those making a religious pilgrimage could look down the long roads to see either a grand church or an obelisk (from which you could see another grand church).

 

OBELISKS

This ancient Roman obelisk sits in the piazza on top of Quirinale Hill, the tallest of the Seven Hills of Rome. It is only one of thirteen ancient obelisks in Rome, the most of any city in the world. Eight were taken from Egypt, the other five are from Ancient Rome. 

The obelisk stands in front of the Palazzo del Quirinale, built in 1583, and is the home of the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella. You can see that he was in residence on this day because his personal flag is flying next to the Italian flag and the European Union flag. This 1,200 room dwelling has been described as a combination of the U.S. White House and Versailles. The massive building is always very well guarded by fancy-dressed and armed soldiers at every gated entrance and corner. 

CHURCHES

Where do we begin to share and capture the charming churches we visited on our Renaissance Ramble?! Don't know how we will do it, but we are going to try!!

The circular Church of San Bernardo was built in 1598 in one of the corner towers of the Baths of Diocletian. 

It is similar in shape to the Pantheon. The only light source is the oculus in the dome. 

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Next stop, Santa Maria della Vittoria 

which houses Bernini's best-known statue, the swooning St. Teresa in Ecstasy. 

The space is loaded with Baroque architecture...highly opulent...very artistic...lots of detail...marble...large scale decoration and bright colors. This style originated in Italy in the 17th century and then spread to the rest of Europe. 

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The next stop, the Church of San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, was possibly our favorite of the day with its wavey lines, arches, polygons and circles!!  

The church looks rich but the designer, Borromini, used lots of 3-D tricks to give his patrons  - an order of poor monks with little money - a structure they could be very proud of. He kept it small and used simple materials while at the same time he shook up the Baroque world with the introduction of using the oval!  

(Rumor has it that the architects of our beloved oval-shaped Rome Temple got much of their inspiration from this beautiful church!)

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Next stop, Sant'Andrea al Quirinale, the "Pearl of the Baroque".

This exquisite church was designed in 1661 by Bernini as a chapel for the pope whose palace was just across the street. Unlike the Church of San Carlo mentioned above, Bernini's patrons were RICH!! No money was spared in the construction and decoration of this structure!! 

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In contrast to the beautiful church just described...by happenstance... we rambled into this plain and simple presbyterian church....The Kirk of Rome. We happened to catch a small orchestra rehearsing for a program that would be presented on Easter Sunday.

Its full name is St. Andrew's Church of Scotland in Rome. It has had a presence here for more than150 years, though in the early years they had to worship secretly for fear of persecution. Today many countries are represented in their congregation. Scots, of course but also Koreans, Ghanaians, Cameroonians, Italians, Americans and Kenyans.

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Living in Rome for more than 18 months has given us a chance to ramble off the beaten tourist path. We have not been in a hurry to cram "it all in" to just a few days. In the course of our ramblings we stumble upon some of Rome's hidden treasures. It has been a real pleasure and a rare blessing to be a leisurely tourist!!