More Rome stories and a weekend in Germany!

Rome at night, with a view of the Tiber river and the Castle of Sant'Angelo

Hey everyone! I hope everything is going well back home. I know you have all been dealing with lots of snow, so I've been thinking about you and praying you all make it through. You should see the way Italians bundle up in big coats, scarves, hats, and glove for 50 and 60 degree weather! It makes me laugh because I think about you and how they would never make it back in good old ND. So congratulations on being troopers. :)

I've had a full and fun couple of weeks! We've finally gotten into the routine of classes an homework, so that's been keeping us pretty busy. For class we made a couple of excursions in the last couple of weeks to some different sites in Rome. We were able to see the "Ara Pacis," the altar of peace that was built during the reign of Augustus. It's a huge altar with detailed reliefs and images. We were also able to tour Santa Maria in Trestevere, the oldest church dedicated to Our Lady! There are many stories and legends regarding the church and the area over which it is built, which gives the church even more significance. Not far from Santa Maria we visited the chapel in which is the room where St. Benedict stayed while he was a student in Rome. You would never believe how small the room was...it was smaller than a twin sized bed with walls and floors of stone! It's amazing to think that St. Benedict lived there such a long time ago!

A bunch of us visited Orvieto last weekend, which is probably one of my favorite little towns so far. It's a medieval town build high on a mountain. You can still walk on the old city walls and climb down the famous well that was build so long ago. The well is famous for its size and winding sets of stairs leading to the bottom. The view from the city of Orveito is amazing...it's surrounded by fields and mountains in the distance. The city of Orvieto is also famous for a famous Cathedral, in which is kept proof of a Eucharistic miracle. The miracle took place when a doubting priest was celebrating Mass and the host started bleeding during the consecration. The blood dripped onto the corporal beneath it and to this day the corporal with the visible blood stains remains behind glass in the Cathedral in Orvieto. It's an amazing experience to be able to pray in front of such a miracle. Aside from the miracle, the cathedral is just simply beautiful, and probably one of my very favorite churches yet!!

Last weekend, three other girls and I made a trip to Germany for the weekend, and we all had a blast! We were able to spend a good amount of time in Frankfurt, and also in Marburg, a smaller and older German town. The first thing we did when we got the Germany, I must confess, is go to Starbucks! Italy does not have Starbucks, or any flavored coffee at all, so I've been missing my usual flavored lattes and such. A Starbucks stop just seemed essential. :)

In Frankfurt we saw a beautiful Cathedral and a Communications museum. We also saw some beautiful gardens that Frankfurt prizes. At the gardens were several building set up with different climate rooms in each building. It was fun to walk through the different climates and see the different plants and things that lived in each one. My favorite would probably have to be the rainforest room. We spent some time shopping in some places in Frankfurt as well. We climbed a tower-like building and were able to get an amzing view of Frankfurt at night. (on the left)

The second half of the trip was spent in Marburg. We got to go inside an old castle there! The castle is a museum now and had many different articles of clothing and furniture from that era. It was also on a big hill, so it offered to us a beautiful view of the city and countryside. We saw the cathedral at Marburg as well, which is actually the first gothic cathedral in Germany! It is named after a certain St. Elizabeth who used to be buried there, and so I definitely thought of my dear mom, Elizabeth, when I was there. :) It was nice to spend time just walking the streets of the city, because Marburg is one of the few little cities that wasn't completely destroyed during World War II. There were many old building and houses from before the war.
I learned a few German phrases while I was there, and it really made me think of home. After all, Germany is a big part of who I am! There was even a little slush on the ground, which made me think of your snow back home. :) One thing that really surprised me was the difference of the Italian culture from the German culture. After living a few weeks in the chaos of the Italians, I began to think that all of Europe was this way. But Germany was much more ordered, clean, and polite overall. It certianly resembled America more than Italy does. I am now beginning to understand that Italy is really in a league of it's own!

So my first trip out of the country of Italy has been a great success and pleasure. We made it back for our regular community night on Sunday. We were able to watch the super bowl live with you all that night, though it only started at about midnight our time! Many of us ended up going to bed around half-time, but we tried for a while at least! :)
We have been able to finally meet some other students from the USA studying here in Rome at different colleges. We actually are just a few minutes from another Catholic American college, and we have been able to spend a little bit of time with the students there. We were also treated to lunch one day at the North American College by the seminarians studying there from North Dakota.

Today we made a trip to Subiaco and spend the day there. Subiaco is the place where St. Benedict fled the world and lived in a cave for three years and eventually started his first monastery. We just finished reading the life of St. Benedict for class, so it was powerful to be able to see the place where it all started. It was definitely a hike up a mountain, but all worth in the end. The weather was so beautiful up there, and I was able to lie in the sun in my t-shirt and relax and read and pray for a couple of hours. I might have even gotten a little sunburn on my face! :) What a beautiful and fulfilling day!

Well I hope these few little updates can entertain you all a little. I think of you all often, and you are in my prayers!

The four of us in Germany!