Rom Ist Sehr Schoen!!

( Basillica of St. Paul)Well Hellooooooooo Everyone!! I'm sorry I've been so bad at keeping up with the blog lately. I really don't have a great excuse either. I've been traveling a lot, but there's been time to blog I just haven't gotten to it. St. Paul's Basillica was massive. None of my pictures inside came out because the lighting wasn't too good, and the ceiling was soo high. In this Basillica there are portrait paintings of all the Popes, including the present Frederick.
( The Basillica of St. Paul - the Mosaic)So I went to Rome, the weekend of the 13th of May, sort of right after my Birthday. I really can't put into words how beautiful of a town it is. It's amazing to me to think that the Apostle Paul walked the same streets, almost 2,000 years ago. And I guess the unofficial age of the city is like 3600 years old - pretty crazy. This mosaic was re-made in 1850 because the original was destroyed in a fire. One thing I didn't know about mosaics, is that they are made entirely from pieces of different color stone, so they are almost eternal in the keeping of their color because the pieces of stone are in and of themselves the color they possess.

(The Colosseum)Sorry about having the wording jump all over the page, but BlogSpot has gotta update there software, this is just not too user friendly. So the pictures don't do Rome justice either. I took many more, but it would have been too much. Basically you have to go to Rome someday. The Colosseum, was no exception. My tour that I took the first day, ended at the Colosseum, and I think one of the ladies on the tour said it best - "It doesn't look real". Das Stimmt, it really was like some had placed drops behind and in front of us. Sitting in the Colosseum was incredible and sobering to think of how many of our brothers and sisters have been mardered there.
(Most of Rome from St. Peter's Basillica)

This was from St. Peter's square. It was so awesome to be here, in the same square where so much Christian History has taken place. Also inside the Bascilica, are all the Pope tombs, and these were absolutely crazy ornate. I mean each Pope ( or at least many of them) were barried here, and each tomb is unbelievably ornate. Sculptures, gold, paintings, massive entrances - it is crazy!! It was neat to see this, but I had to think that if I wasn't a Christian, seeing this would not have made me want to become one. I mean I can appreciate the tribute they are paying to God and Jesus, but I don't know it's not the most comforable place.

So anyway I ended up just being in Rome two full days - no where near enough. But like I've said after every major city I've visited - it was enough to want to come back someday. Well God bless you all. I'm running out of energy just yet. I'll try to turn out a better blog on the next city - Berlin.

Tschuess:-)