The Pantheon

When we turned the corner and saw the Pantheon in the middle of some apartment buildings and shops, I was amazed - photographs cannot do the Pantheon justice. The size of the Pantheon completely astounded me. I will never understand how they were able to construct such a large building with such an expansive dome - not to mention the incredible oculus in the center- around 125 AD. I felt so small and insignificant (in a good way) while standing in the Pantheon. Michelangelo was inspired by the Pantheon's high-rising dome and applied this inspiration to his design of the dome in St. Peter's Basilica. Some of the bronze from the Pantheon was transferred to St. Peter's Basilica for "Bernini's baldacchino." Although it was first a temple dedicated to "all the gods," it is now dedicated to the Virgin and all the martyrs.

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/italy/rome-pantheon

I already posted about Rome so here are some links for places we visited in Florence and Paris.

One of my favorite attractions on the trip was the Duomo in Florence. It was a beautiful church that I was able to climb that provided a breath taking view of the city of Florence. Here is a link I found with more information about it. http://www.wga.hu/database/churches/duomo.html

Ironically my favorite thing we visited in Paris was the Notre Dame Cathedral. The size and beauty of it was breathtaking. It made me feel very small as I walked around both the inside and outside taking pictures of this massive building. Here is another link I found with more information on it. http://www.notredamedeparis.fr/-Cathedral-for-art-and-history-

Repetto

In Paris Linda pointed out a shoe store to us on our bus tour that a few of us went back to check out. It is called Repetto and it is the place where the ballet flats originated. The store was gorgeous and so were the shoes however they are ridiculously expensive. However, if you wanted to check out the shoes or buy a pair for yourself I have attached a link.

http://www.net-a-porter.com/Shop/Designers/Repetto/All?cm_mmc=GoogleUS-_-Designer%20-%20Repetto-_-Repetto_Alone-_-repetto

Piazza de Michelangelo

In Florence the Piazza de Michelangelo hands down had the best view of the city. It was a bit of a walk across the river and a hike up the Capitoline Hill but it was completely worth it for the view. I have attached a link at the bottom to learn more about the Piazza de

Michelangelo.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piazzale_Michelangelo

The Colosseum

In Rome I found the Colosseum the most fascinating attraction for me. Below I have attached a link to a website the talks in details about the type of events held within the colosseum because I at least wanted to know more about them.

http://www.the-colosseum.net/idx-en.htm

Here are links that were submitted by Sara Tarantino 

http://facts-about-italy.blogspot.com/2008/04/facts-about-italy-gelato.html - Video on how to order gelato / tell which places are good and just tourist attractions! The video even takes place in Florence

http://www.parisescapes.com/paris_no.html - This is article is about the do's and dont's of paris! ( would of been helpful before we went, but is very interesting now that we know the city!)

http://www.italylogue.com/featured-articles/top-10-things-to-do-in-rome.html - This last article is about the top 10 things to see in Rome and we hit almost all of them in that jampacked four days !

Spanish Steps in Rome, Italy

What a beautiful photo of friends at the Spanish Steps in Rome Italy!! The photo includes Linda, Chris, Danny, Vikki, Stephanie, Ena, Michael, and Shelly. Hard to believe that this group was standing on steps that were originated in 1717 that includes 138 steps . The view at the top was worth the climb.

A trip to see the Vatican

Being able to walk around and through the Vatican was simply amazing. The atmosphere was calming and unreal to me as I walked towards the actual steps where the Pope gives mass to hundreds and literly thousands of people in Rome. These two photos that I took outside the Vatican was rather large in size. You would have to actually visit this beautiful site yourself to capture the massive size of the venue where the Pope speaks and prays. All different types of people were their the same day as I was visiting, and all different types of languages were being spoken around me. I knew I was in a place where God was spoken about daily and I felt so lucky to have been in this space of worship!

Remembering mass in Italy.

I have two very memorable events that I want to share on the blog. How many people in their lives can say they went to mass and took communion in the Basilica Di San Francesco in Assisi, and at the Cattedrale Di S. Maria del Fiore in Florence Italy all in the same week?? These two holy events mean a great deal to me spiritually and I will always treasure the experience of walking though these doors in my life.