The one where I live in a Convent.

Hello I live in a convent.

Pretty blunt, which suggests a feeling of disgust or annoyance. But that is not the case! It is incredible. The building itself is very unassuming from the outside and our living quarters kind of look like an insane asylum, but connected to our building is their church and it's amazing. It could only fit about 30 people but it has vaulted ceilings and huge statues with ornate drawings covering every inch. I'm pretty sure I would be scolded if I tried to sneak some pics but I think I will anyway.

Rome so far is ridiculously outstanding. Right outside of the convent is one of the biggest hangout spots in Rome apparently and each night about 100 people gather around the fountain in the courtyard. It expands to about 300 or 400 on the weekends. All of this is about 2 blocks away from the Colosseum. We found a great Irish pub called "The Scholars Lounge" which has been frequented often since we got here. It also shows football games, but most don't start until about 2a.m. sooo.... We still watched them of course.

We've seen so much already. We toured the Colosseum and the Roman Forum where Julius Caesar (maybe another Caesar, I really should know but I don't) was stabbed in the back. Adjacent to this is a church which sits on the site where Paul was imprisoned in Rome. Whoa. Also there are so many buildings that you don't think of when you think of Rome. Their tomb for the unknown soldier is definitely the most impressive building I've ever seen (Over buildings like the Colosseum, Empire State and the Acropolis). A couple of days ago we went to Naples (the origin of pizza) and Pompeii. Pompeii was unreal. It was so well preserved because of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

For church I have been attending the Basilica of St. Maggiore. It's beauty is almost overwhelming to the senses. It's interest going to mass there because it is such a large tourist destination. Last Sunday I observed the contrast between the reverence of the service and those actually attending mass and the irreverence of the tourists who were filing in and out taking picture and being loud. It challenge me to think more about my impact on the environment around me as we go see sites as a group.

The second day we were in Rome I went to the Vatican to see what's up and say hey to the Pope. I expected Vatican City to really stand out but I never really realized I had entered it. It blends in with Rome until you get to St. Peter's Basilica. The line to get in to the Sistine Chapel was close to 2 hours long so we passed (we are going as a group in a couple of weeks so don't worry). But we went in to St. Peter's Basilica... I was visually dumbfounded. There are a lot of things (everything) that I am struggling to express through words, but this? I can't even begin to describe it. But I will try anyway. First you walk through the huge courtyard (if you can call it that) that you see packed with people every time a new Pope is elected. On the right is the Sistine Chapel but if you walk straight you hit a staircase (right under the Pope window). Walk up these stairs and you enter through one of 3 huge wooden doors that must 20ft tall. The second that you enter the main Basilica I was immobilized by the size of it. The roof must have been well over 200ft. above me. Huge stone statues lean out over a 100ft off of the ground. Gold everywhere. A woman's choir singing hymns in Latin. The main room extends so far back that you can't see where it ends. Paintings cover every inch that statues and gold do not. Tourists file around like ants. And even funnier are the nuns, priests and monks who are with them equally equipped with nikons or cannons strapped around their necks and equally in awe. A statue made by Michael Angelo (I think... man this is bad. I need to get my facts straight before I write these) of Mary holding Jesus is in a room with a glass wall so everyone can see and take a picture of it for some reason. On the righthand side, about half way down the room is a prayer room that I went in to for about a half hour. I felt bad because I first I forgot about praying because I got lost in the beauty of the room. After I left that room, I finally approached the main alter. Gold everywhere with lights shining down and the choir playing, I felt like I have been in Heaven. There was so much.

I am struggling with the fact that the Church could be using that wealth in other ways and have not yet reached a conclusion about the morality of it or what Jesus would think if He walked in there. I did not grow up in a Church that was concerned with making the place of worship imposing or really all that beautiful, but I felt God when I walked in St Peter's. I knew that all of it had been made by man and therefore could not truly convey the beauty of God, but it was kind of a showcase of humanity for me. Like this is what we (humans) can do. God gave us the ability to make something as amazing and as imposing as this building.

I love and miss you all so much. I think of you often and wish you were here.
Not being, but becoming
Chris Costenbader