The Polizei and I

Well, mom and dad, I will just get strait to the point: I have had my first encounter with German law enforcement since being abroad. Now that your hearts have skipped a beat or two, I am happy to tell you that I was not in the wrong, nor did anything happen, but this is how it came about...

It all started with the German Stare. I'm not sure how many of you know what the German Stare is, but it is widely known and slightly feared by all that have traveled within Germany. Basically, the Germans don't tend to be the most outgoing and friendly of people out on the street or in public settings (unless there is beer/wine involved, but that is another story). So, that being said, it is not uncommon to walk down the street, and where Americans would pass a stranger and throw out a little "hi" or "hello", the Germans stare. Simply stare. Into your eyes. Into your soul. Into your past, present, future, and everything you are. They stare. 

Würzburg Hauptbahnhof from the outside

I decided upon coming here that I would not be bullied by the German Stare, I would resist and fight back. So, when I arrived at the Würzburg Hauptbahnhof a week ago, around 21:00, and a Polizist began to stare at me from the other side of the hallway...I stared right back. 2 seconds have gone by, the stare continues. 3 1/2 seconds, the Polizist looks away. VICTORY! Nope. As I get within a couple feet of the policeman and am about to head down to the Gleis for my train. "Entschuldigung. Halten Sie bitte. Haben Sie ein Personalausweis?" Oh, ok, well that was a short-lived victory. To make a longer story short, I basically got to spend 10-15 minutes with the two police officers as they asked me questions, went through every single one of my pockets (themselves), and checked my backpack. They were very polite, though, never rude or anything. At the end they said that it was just a routine check that they do during the nights at the station, looking for drugs that many times people have on them. 

I may have lost that battle, but I was able to sleep a little bit better that night feeling as if I could claim victory in the war. While the situation was a little annoying, I was able to carry the whole conversation in German. The officer had asked me towards the beginning, after I had told him I was from the U.S., whether English or German was better. I told him that my German wasn't great and that English would obviously be a little better. I guess the feeling wasn't mutual, because he didn't switch. However, at the end of the ordeal the officer told me, "Dein Deutsch ist sehr gut." That was definitely enough for me to be able to claim the whole event as a success! 

Hallway with all of the Gleise of the trains. The staring contest finished in the corner right behind where this photo was taken from...that's where I was checked as well.

On a cultural note, the police presence is something that is often very controversial in Germany, and in particular in Bavaria, the Bundesland which I reside in (which tends to be quite conservative). Many times the local people feel like they shouldn't have to see the police around so much. You hear especially a lot of complaining in Würzburg, because there is a police academy in the city, which means that there are countless police patrolling, learning the ropes, and having to practice routine operations on the locals. However, in my opinion, I tend to like the police presence in Würzburg, it means the city is much safer...and indeed it is. You never hear about any violence at all...for example, women have no fears walking through the streets (in the majority of the city) at literally any time of the night, even alone. The police here also seem to be a lot more respectful than those that I have encountered in the U.S. for the most part. I think that in the U.S. we have a slight problem with the abuse of police power and rights, especially when it comes to the poorer, those on the streets, or minorities. Here, at least from what I have seen, it seems that this isn't the case at all. Multiple times I have seen police chatting respectfully with people begging/living on the streets (and not being unnecessarily forceful), or having a conversation with a superbly intoxicated person here or there. I'm not sure if it is representative of all the German police or if I have seen anything that would give me an accurate picture, but nevertheless it has been nice to see, and nice to feel that you are surrounded by police that are fully and simply interested in the protection of the people and safety of the city.

It is now Christmas holiday here in Germany, and that will be the subject of the next entry!

Birthdays Before the Big One

Well, Christmas is here (at least the Christmas season) in Würzburg/Karlstadt, and so is the snow! I am writing you from the warm security of my bed this Sunday afternoon, as I watch the snow continue to fall on top of the couple inches that are already on the ground. Here's the view:

The Weihnachts Markt is in full swing now, this will be the second week that it is pumping out the Christmas spirit via Glühwein, Crêpes, Mandeln, and other delicious foods! It also sports a decently large array of various Christmas crafts, artwork, and the like, including a stand from the world renowned Kathie Wolfhart Christmas store. This brand is one of the most well known Christmas brands and is based in Rothenburg, a nicely preserved medieval town with its wall still erect. I have heard a lot about the Weihnachts Markts here and there and which are supposedly really good, but have arrived at the conclusion (which was slightly validated by the agreement of my host family) that the markets are for the most part the same wherever you go in Germany. They are still going to have the same foods and crafts, they will just vary in size and size of selection. 

The other big news is that this week has been the week of birthdays. Mine was on the 4th of December, Stefan's (Xenia's [my host sister] boyfriend) was on the 7th, and Arved's is today, the 9th! So, that being said, I can now drink! ...well, in the United States that is. I have had a few months to get a head start and a little bit of practice in here.  I missed my family being there, however it was still an absolutely amazing birthday! Arved and Susanne gifted me with a scarf and a beanie, much appreciated and very much needed! They are always worried about the ignorant New Mexican leaving one morning and not coming back because he has died somewhere of the temperature. I understand this, in fact more than understand, I have felt this. It is so cold here. A wet cold. Not the dry, freezing cold of New Mexico. The kind that slowly creeps through your clothes until you are freezing right down to the bone. But anyway, I have received a bunch of supplies for the German winter now and I feel adequately prepared to weather it. Thilo, Xenia, Amelie, and Stefan also gave me an amazing birthday gift: Würzburg champagne, a chocolate St. Nicolas, and a Gutshein (voucher) for a plate of enchiladas and a cocktail at the "texican" restaurant in Würzburg. Looking forward to that also! Alcohol and calorie consumption are also effective against the cold. 

I never had worn a scarf in my life before now and had to ask Susanne how a male goes about putting it on. I won't lie though, I do feel much more classy in it.

I would also be neglecting to mention a huge part of my birthday celebrations if I failed to tell that I received a Gonzaga University t-shirt from Mackenzie! Now I can represent for my sister with a bit of official apparel while practicing my German at the same time, since I know there will be numerous questions about the bright garment with the ferocious animal on it! I have yet to add the word "bulldog" to my vocabulary  but it is now an absolute must. I also received some socks from the family in Farmington, also much needed and a great addition to this clothing themed birhtday! 

I think it is about dinner time over here, and then afterwards I think Arved and I are going to go to a Christmas concert that is at the local church, St. Andreas. There should be live music and also cheap Glühwein...two things that go amazingly together!

St. Andreas church with its Christmas tree

Also, while being on this Christmas theme, I want to pass on something that my grandmother sent to me. It is The Christmas Story as told by a group of children from a New Zealand parish, and is quite easily the cutest thing that I have ever seen. If you have 3 minutes to spare you NEED to watch it! Here is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWq60oyrHVQ

Have a great rest of the week everybody and I will talk to you within a week this next time, promise! Happy holidays from Karlstadt! 

Something's Brewing Over Here

Well, a bit has been happening this past couple weeks! I haven't always taken my camera with me and taken pictures, and that has possibly been part of the reason why this post is so tardy...I know how much people love the pictures! However, I have been informed by a quite reliable source that the pictures are indeed not a necessity, (especially if a shortage of them results in a shortage of blog entries) and that my readers are much deeper than that and enjoy a little bit of unillustrated prose here and there as well! That being said, my last excuse is now off the table and I will have to start trying my hardest to write weekly as I promised way back in the beginning of this whole thing. Wow! The beginning. It's been only/already almost 3 months that I have been in Germany. Some days it feels like an "only" is the best word for the situation and other days an "already" fills the blank much more accurately.

On the subject of time, it is getting to be that time of year again. Weihnachts!!!! Germany is well known for its Christmas spirit and you can already see seasonal decorations going up around town. In the Festplatz (festival square) the stands for the Herbst Markt have been taken down and replaced with the stands and proper ornamentation for the Weihnachts Markt that will be opening up in about 5 days and be going for close to a month, until the 23rd of December.

This is the main street area of Würzburg, no Scrooges here! 

The entrance sign to the Weihnachts Markt

Now to the talk of classes. I don't have time to go over how each one is going, so I will just stick to one that has been going unarguably well: German World Culture and Heritage. This is a class taught by Dr. Süß, pronounced Suess and meaning "sweet", fully in English (no, we haven't asked him whether he likes Green Eggs and Ham yet, but it will potentially happen). Anyway, his class is very interesting and you learn all about  the many different German Historical Heritage Sites, but that is not what I would like to talk to you about. Dr. Süß also leads a few excursions out into the German world each semestre and one which I recently partook in was a visit to, tour of, and sampling at the local brewery. The local brewery is called Würzburger Hofbräu, also the name of the primary beer produced there, and is quite impressive to see. For a 5 euro fee we were able to take a tour of the facility, learn a little about how the beer was produced, and then at the end kick back a little and sample 2 beers of choice from the seven or so which they brew there. I tried one pils and then one dark wheat beer. Both were satisfactory. All German beers seem to be great, and I think that stems in a huge way from the fact that beer has a deep history here and the Germans (particularly the Bavarians) have an old, rich beer culture. Germany has had its Beer Purity Law, stating the 4 ingredients which are allowed in beer as well as other guidelines which must be followed while brewing, since the 1600's. Impressive, I can prost to that! 

The facility. If I remember correctly each one of those silo like units holds about 20,000 L of beer while it is fermenting.  

I never thought that I would ever see a light beer in Germany...maybe people are right about the world ending in December

Just an interesting car I saw on the street

We decided that this sign means "Emergency exit this direction" and not "Go through this door and you will be killed"

This truck is equipped with 2 taps as well, in case of an emergency where quick consumption is necessary

Just the backyard of the brewery

Well, I hope all those Americans out there had a happy Thanksgiving and ate a little extra for me! Meanwhile, I was over here giving thanks for my Würzburger Hofbräu! Happy holidays (I think it is legal to say it now that Thanksgiving is over) and I will be in contact again soon!

A Gathering of Globetrotters

I am sorry for keeping everyone in the dark for these past few weeks, there have been quite a few things happening around here! By far the biggest news is that Allison came and visited for a week. It was amazing to see her and take a little break from the whole long distance relationship routine! She had just spent 2 weeks working in a clinic in Kenya with a group of fellow nurses and her return flight had been scheduled to include a layover  in Amsterdam. She was able to negotiate a bit and arrange to take a different flight that would leave from Amsterdam on the morning of the 28th instead of the 21st.

It was a great visit! The only unfortunate thing about it was that it fell on the first week of classes for me, which meant that I wasn't able to 'be sick' for any of my classes. (Professors had made it quite clear that any students who didn't show for the first classes would be dropped and promptly replaced with a student on the waiting list.) This inconvenience of having 8 classes to go to throughout the week dramatically reduced what we were able to do, however it didn't stop us from seeing a lot and having a complete blast! Here are some of the pictures from the visit.

Needless to say, toting a few pieces of baggage along, the trip from the airport to Karlstadt and then, at the end of the stay, from Karlstadt back to the airport were a couple of the longest trips of our lives...

Spaghetti Eis was one of the highlights of the trip. This is vanilla Eis (ice cream) with a berry sauce and some ground white chocolate on top

A snack for the train ride. What Allison is holding is a popular drink in Germany. It consists of cola mixed with orange soda. The brand name one is called Mezzo Mix and is a fusion of Coke and Orange Fanta. 

Susanne and Emile were kind enough to make Allison and I an ultra traditional Bavarian breakfast: Weißwurst (white sausage), Brezels (Prezels), and a beer.

Date night! We found this really awesome restaurant and pub to eat dinner at one of the evenings. Throughout the whole restaurant there were tons of little crevices and corners with tables and such to sit at. In the cellar was the pub, which was set up in the same fashion

Mmmmm....Schnitzel on the left and a sweinsteak cooked in a white wine sauce on the right.  One of the most delicious meals I have ever had the pleasure of partaking in!

Allison and I in front of the Würzburg Residenz, a World Heritage Site, as declared by UNESCO. It is home to the largest ceiling fresco in the world and hosted the Würzburg Price-Bishops, very powerful rulers who had both political as well as religious power/leadership of Bavaria

The Herbst Messe (Autumn Fest) in Würzburg. Home to some delicious crêpes, cooked nuts, and wursts, among other foods. 

Glühwein: A delicious drink that is all a man needs in the winter. It is a spiced wine that is served piping hot and it absolutely perfect for the cold days of the German autumn and winter.

One last picture before Allison headed back to the Land of Enchantment

Well, it is now 22:24 here and 14:24 in Albuquerque and it is time to turn in for the night! I have a class tomorrow morning at 10:00...yes, on a Saturday. My professor will not be here for the Spanish class on Monday so she scheduled a class Saturday morning in order that we wouldn't have to miss out on any valuable Spanish instruction. It shouldn't be all that bad though, we are going to have a small Frühstück (breakfast) during the class and are each supposed to bring a little something to share. I think that I will bring some good old American Jif peanut butter, something that Germans don't really have, and see if I can wake up a few taste buds with a whirlwind of adventure.

30m and Counting

Well, as promised, here is the last of my little fit of entries. I am writing you from Frankfurt airport, where I am waiting for Allison, who will be here visiting and staying for this upcoming week. I only have 30 free minutes on the airport's wifi, so procrastination is now not an option. "21m 13s" and counting. Allison's flight is supposed to arrive at 22:00, I hope there are no complications. Speaking of complications, I got on the wrong train attempting to get here. Not a huge problem, it wasn't like I got on the wrong train at the beginning of the trip and ended up in München or something, I made it to Frankfurt before getting lost. I arrived in Hanau from Würzburg. Ok, off to a good start. I arrived in Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof Süd from Hanau. Awesome, almost there! I arrived at Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof instead of Frankfurt Flughafen (Airport). Fail. Now, it is important to notice that I did NOT somehow go from Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof (Train Station) to Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof, it wasn't THAT bad...one was Süd (south) and one was wrong.

"14m 08s". Anyway, I am here early and waiting. So I have plenty of time to think of the classes that I started this past week. I only started 3 of the 8, the language courses don't start until this coming week. This past week I had a class that is in English about German National Historic Sites, I think it will be easy but also interesting. There are also some cool extra stuff that go along with it. Like wine tasting, tour of the Würzburg Residenz, and an informative session about beer culture at the Würzburg Hofbräu brewery. I had a German-English translation class. That is going to be immensely difficult, considering that it is geared towards Germans that are fluent in their mother language and basically fluent in English. However, it was extremely interesting and I look forward to the rest of the sessions. I also had a second class in English about German Scientists and Inventors, again it will be easy.

You might be thinking "Wow, he seems to have a lot of easy classes." Not quite. I am also taking a Spanish class, French class, German class, German hearing comprehension class, and German reading comprehension class. I will make sure to give you the update on those, as well as Allison's visit next weekend!

It's kinda crazy because I'm so used to posting pictures now that this post looks like it's missing something! It's good to practice my English though :) I have noticed myself sounding a little less intelligent when speaking in English at times. My grammar sometimes is a little backwards, and depending on what I am trying to say I might come up with very interesting syntax. Syntax, solid word, I guess I haven't lost it all yet.

I have been watching a lot about the candidates to prepare for the upcoming election, which I can proudly say I will be voting in! It'll be my first. I received my absentee ballot just yesterday, printed it out, and will fill it out and send it in sometime this coming week. By fax, you're right, it wouldn't make it in time by mail. "3 min 09 sec" Well, I better go for the sake of being able to send this! Just on a quick political/comedic note, it can be easy to get sucked into rivalries during election times. Check out this video. It is very entertaining and definitely refreshing! Both candidates speak also in it:

http://www.c-span.org/Campaign2012/Events/67th-Annual-Alfred-E-Smith-Memorial-Foundation-Dinner/10737435020-2/

Until next time! You're all in my thoughts and prayers!

Pavlik...Back to the Source

For those of you who do not know, my ancestors on my father's side came from present day Czech Republic. So you can imagine that one of the destinations on my "To Travel To" list was Prague, or Praha in Czech (simply Prag in German). Robert's son David has also never been to Prague, and so when Robert told me of an idea that he had to visit it 'on our way' back to Würzburg so that we could both experience it, I readily accepted!

It was about a five hour drive from Stuttgart to Prague, somewhat shorter with the help of the autobahn, which doesn't have a speed limit. As we approached the capital, we could smell it before seeing it. As Robert informed me, being that Czech Republic is still a relatively young country attempting to recuperate after a long and hard communist occupation, it is still quite poor in many parts. As a result, new forms of energy production are still young (we did see a few solar farms) and coal is still the primary fuel burned for warmth. The smell was definitely intensely noticeable, however I didn't find it unpleasant. We checked into our hotel around 21:00 (yes, I have been converted to a military time supporter now due to it's lack of potential confusion) and then had a quick dinner up at the second level of the hotel. The hotel was two buildings. The first had 8 levels, this was the one we stayed in. The second had I think some of the extravagant suites, as well as the restaurant, and was accessible from the first building by way of a tram. We asked our waitress how to say "thank you" in Czech, a potentially helpful phrase, and the answer is "děkuji". Yes, it looks intimidating, but phonetically is not pronounced "dah quee" ...or at least fairly close to that, she understood well when I repeated it that way. I must say, my heart beat with a couple proud pounds as the words of the 'Pavlik' language came out of my mouth.

We would only have around 6 hours in Prague the next day before we would have to race back to Würzburg to drop me off and then Robert and David would return to Stuttgart so we turned in for the night and in order to prepare for an intensely packed following day.

We woke up the next day and partook in a truly amazing breakfast offered by the hotel. After this we packed up our things, drove into Prague, exchanged a little money, and began the tour of the city...

Adam and Eve Church...Adam is the slightly larger one on the right.

Tower modeled after one in Venice. The good king captured the clock maker  who created the one in Venice in order that he could make one equally as beautiful there....and then after completion gauged his eyes so he couldn't make any more.

Why use a file for your feet when you have 32 degree Celsius water with hungry fish in it? 

National Museum

St. Charles Bridge

Statue on St. Charles Bridge

View of the city from Pražský hrad (Prague Castle)

Entrance way to the fortress and cathedral

St. Vitus Cathedral

It had the most gorgeous stained glass I have ever seen

Into the dungeon 

Hmmm....doesn't look like the most enjoyable toilet 

Just enough room for a criminal to fit into

There was also a small street fest going on in the more downtown part of the city. We scouted the booths, filled with tantalizingly delicious smelling foods of many sorts, and were able to somehow make a choice as to which we wanted for lunch. We then made our way back to the car and returned westward, back towards Deutschland, work for Robert, school for David, and the first of classes for me. Many thanks to them for hosting me for an amazingly fun week and a couple priceless excursions!

 I can say that Prague was easily one of my favorite places out of all those that I have visited. I am not sure exactly what it was about it, but I felt completely at home there and loved the architecture, history, and culture of the capitol. An extremely interesting and beautiful city which I definitely hope to return to at some point in my lifetime!

Just Rome-ing Around

Ok, well I suppose I need to begin this post with an apology: I'm sorry. I have been ludicrously busy traveling recently, thanks to Robert Humphreys, a family friend who taught with my parents when they taught for the Department of Defense Schools (DODS). Not only have I been traveling, but I have been attempting to cement my spots in various classes for this coming semestre, as well as organize a visit from my girlfriend, Allison, who will be arriving in Frankfurt on the 21st. So, I will give you a quick overview of how I am going to go about attempting to cover everything that has been going on:
     a) this current entry will be about my trip to Rome, Italy
     b) I will create a second entry (within the next couple days) about my trip to Prague, Czech Republic
     c) by Sunday the 21st I will post a very short piece about the general events going on as the semestre starts up here
     d) then we will be back on track and I will fall back to the weekly updates

So the plan was to take the train down to Stuttgart on the Friday the 5th, in order to arrive at Rebert's house that evening. However, there ended up being an accident with one of the trains near Karlstadt and so all of the following trains were delayed. As I was not yet packed (imagine that, a college student procrastinating) I decided that it would be more prudent to wait and leave the morning of the 6th and arrive around 11:00 a.m., because I didn't want to be navigating new areas during the evening/night. All went well this time and I rolled into Stuttgart at about 11:15 a.m. Robert was kind enough to pick me up from the Hauptbahnhof (main train station) and we went back to the house. David, his son, was participating in a soccer camp, so I had the afternoon to relax and unpack. With regards to lunch, Robert asked if I would like a burger...the heavens opened and God proved to me his existence. It was the most amazing burger I have ever eaten. After being deprived of American food for so long the burger was my Mana and Robert my Moses.

That evening we went to the Cannstatter Volksfest, the second biggest fest in Germany (behind Oktoberfest). Robert and I happily ate our way through the fest as David and his friend rode some of the rides. On Sunday while David was participating in his last day of camp Robert took me to mass on the base and then afterwards to the store on base. It was amazing, I was able to stock up on American food staples as well as grab a couple gifts to cook up for the host family. Such a brownies, cornbread, Oreos, Reese's, and a couple jars of salsa. Fun little side note: While shopping for a salsa there I saw a brand which hailed from New Mexico, Albuquerque nonetheless! Pride for my state was boundless.

Fish frying

Crêpes...yes, we donated to the cause

My plane for Rome departed the Stuttgart airport on Monday afternoon and my return flight was on Friday afternoon. This gave me 3 solid days in the Eternal City, as well as a couple half days. I am going to stick with the format that I have been using to document trips, mostly pictures with a few stories or commentary here and there. However, if you have any questions or comments about anything, or just want to go a little deeper with the details of something, feel free to shoot me an email, or if you have Facebook obviously I am there too! Here we go!

DAY 1: Monday, October 8th

My plane touched down in Rome at about 6:00 p.m. local time. I tracked down my baggage, navigated the airport, and slowly sniffed out the airport train station, where I rode the Leonardo Da Vinci Express into the heart of Rome...Termini Station. Termini Station is basically the train station, as well as where all of the metro lines begin and/or pass through. I was aware of pickpockets, however I had no trouble with anything the entire trip through. Upon checking in to the American Palace Hotel EUR, I dropped my stuff off at the room and then decided that I had just enough time to explore the immediate area of the hotel. It was very interesting and I ended up finding a market to buy a bottle of water. I also stumbled upon a shop where I ordered a calazone for dinner. It was different than the American one though...it had almost a sweet bread and was mostly bread with a little bit of filling. 

DAY 2: Tuesday, October 9th

This day was huge. I spent 11 hours hitting some of the biggest names in Rome as well as just walking around and exploring the city a bit. Also, I want to warn you that you are about to see an army of pictures of the Colosseum...I'm sorry about that. It makes for quite the photo subject though and it seemed like every time I saw it the lighting or angle was different and inviting.

The first site to greet me after ascending the stairs to the city from the metro station.  You cannot see it in this picture (there is a better one later) but this is Circo Massimo...the site of all of the ancient races and such

Ruins on the Palatine. These next few pictures were taken on the Palatine Hill, the location of the houses of all of the great nobles that lived in the city

The Colosseum from the Palatine 

Another picture from the Palatine...my favorite picture of the Colosseum actually, maybe the tree does it for me.

The city of Rome

The gardens of the Palatine

From the Palatine: If you strain your eyes and look into the distance...

...you can see the big boy himself. Hello St. Peter's!

Palatine stadium

The Colosseum from the temples by the Foro Romano 

The Foro Romano (Roman Forum)

Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II (National Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II)

I finally actually made my way to the Colosseum for a tour

The innards of the Colosseum. It actually legitimately had lifts which were used to raise animals or props up onto the competing surface of the arena

The colosseum from the inside. It had something like 80 entrances/exits, held around 60,000 spectators, and could be completely emptied in 15 minutes.

Arch of Constantine 

Fontana Trevi

The Spanish Steps

"Holy Moses! There's a baby in the river!"

Rome had some of the most beautiful bridges

A statue on one of the bridges

Even though I told myself I was saving the Vatican for Wednesday the Catholic inside of me could not hold back....I just wanted to make sure it was still there after having seeing it on the Palatine Hill

Circo Massimo

Old aqueduct, if I'm not mistaken, on my way back to the metro

DAY 3: Wednesday, October 10th

Just to give you an idea of what separates Vatican City from Rome

Inside St. Peter's Square

Chairs are all set out and people begin to fill in for the papal audience, of which I was lucky enough to be a part of, thanks to a free ticket from Robert via the USO

Papa! 

Benedict XVI throwing a quick blessing down

Now within the Vatican Museum

Just a normal Vatican ceiling

Herakles

Supposedly the sarcophagus of St. Helen

I think this picture shows the difference between Vatican City and Rome well. The street to the left of the wall is Rome. 

The famous Map Room of the Vatican

The ceiling

The entire wall was covered in these paintings of maps. One of the former popes had every region of Italy documented on these walls.

St. Peter's from one of the museum windows. I unfortunately never made it into St. Peter's Basilica. However, I made it everywhere else and I think I made it to potentially a better place...I will show you later.

Holiness is always on sale near Vatican City

The Pantheon 

These pictures cannot even begin to describe how huge this building is. This is the most expansive dome I have ever seen

DAY 4: Thursday, October 11th

Thursday I was quite tired of all of the people, lines, and hecticness of the main Roman haunts so I decided to have a more relaxed day. I slept in a bit, then leisurely explored a different area of the city, specifically on a quest to find the Basilica of St. Paul. St. Paul, as some of you may know, holds a very special place in my heart as he is my patron saint.

In my search I ran into this Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul. This stood out in a huge way because, as you can see, there is a lot of open space here...something that you almost never find in other parts of Rome, or at least the heart of the old part of the city

My boy St. Paul with his Sword of the Spirit

St. Peter...see the keys there?

How my buddy St. Paul left this world.

Things didn't work out quite that well for St. Peter either.

Here it is. The site I had been searching for. The site that I would be prepared to argue is more worth a visit than the St. Peter's Basilica. This is the Basilica of St. Paul.

Here is one of the ceilings, who knows how high up there

One of the nice small side passages

The famous painting of the conversion of St. Paul

If you can see all of the small gold circles on the wall just over 1/2 of the way to the ceiling, those are all popes. The basilica had a profile of every single pope since St. Peter on the wall.

Peter snuck into the Basilica also...but I guess he does have the keys 

"Lord, where else would we go?"
"You will go on the wall of St. Paul's Basilica, Peter, that is where you will go."

There's Benedict, he made the cut for the wall too

Courtyard of the Basilica

This is supposedly the tomb of St. Paul...back in that hollowed out area there

By the way, St. Peter's is still on my list of places to get to, don't think I am not interested. However, if you don't feel like battling a crowd and if you want to be in a place of worship that actually feels like a place of worship and not simply a tourist destination...St. Paul's is not a bad second. It is also the second largest basilica in the world, second to St. Peter's of course.

DAY 5: Friday, October 12th

Friday my plane left at around 4:00 p.m. Checkout was at 12:00 so I lugged my baggage to St. Paul's for one last rosary and prayer session before the commute back to Termini and then to the airport. I landed in Stuttgart around 5:30 p.m. and was welcomed by Robert. We then drove home to rest until the next afternoon, when we would continue on to the next destination in the queue...Prague.