Rome

Last Sunday, I got the opportunity to go to a Mass in Rome. Held in St. Peter's Square. Presided by Pope Francis.
We arrived early, as in an hour early. And it was HOT. And we were in the sun. When the Mass started (at  9:30), we couldn't see much, but Pope Francis was wheeled around in his "Papamobile". That was the first time that I was glad that we got there early, because he passed me about ten meters away -- close enough that I could see him, despite the fact that everyone was standing on chairs. The Mass was long and multi-lingual (including Chinese and Korean) and the entire Gospel was sung. Pope Francis's benediction ended with "buona Domenica e buon pranzo" meaning "good Sunday and good lunch!" but it sounds better in Italian and it makes more sense too. After the Mass we visited the basilica and then we split up into two groups: one climbed the dome, the other visited a nearby church (I was in that group).
Ciao,
Florence