I seriously love the breakfasts from this hostel. Look at this gorgeous apricot jam Cornetto (Italian croissant):

Then it was time to attend the finale for the Jubilee for Healthcare Workers – Sunday mass! I left two hours early and it was a good idea, because even with so much lead up time the crowds were INTENSE.

Remembering how I got scolded for being in the wrong line the day before, I then tried to get to the area where Jubilee pilgrims were supposed to be, and then I got scolded for doing that and told to go back in with the general admission. ????? I did, but as with yesterday I quietly followed along with people wearing neck bandanas – I realized that this was identification that most pilgrim groups had, and which I didn’t, because I’d never been given any kinds of instructions or details lol – until I got to the right place. Thankfully I got to sit down.

The group I followed had little costumes – old fashioned nurse caps made of paper, and red or white nursing scrub dresses. I sat unobtrusively behind them, but then more and more of this huge group filled in all around me until I was totally surrounded. Some of them gave me looks, but once again as I was humbly doing nothing but sitting there, they left me alone at first. Then I asked where they were from, and they said, Poland! Ooooh, that’s why all the red and white.

They were from the Polish Catholic Nurses Association, and there were seriously so many of them. I started trying to tell them that I was a nurse, but they didn’t speak any English. They yelled for their one English speaker, who came over and helped me translate. They were, I think, as excited to meet an American nurse as I was to meet Polish nurses. I said I did oncology, and others did NICU, geriatrics, and so many other specialties. They said they were from the area near Krakow. They even brought HUGE signs, and as they left, they all sang:

Rewinding back to before the mass…at around ten, an announcer led everyone in praying the rosary, which is the most Catholic way I can possibly imagine to pass the time.

The mass itself was so interesting, because it incorporated so many languages. I heard English, Spanish, Tagalog, French, Italian, and I think one or two more that I couldn’t identify. It was definitely a full mass, with the full complement of smells and bells – the Vatican choir was so, so, so good. I reveled in it as a singer myself, appreciating the beautiful talent and skill on display. The mass was really long – it started at 10:30a but didn’t end until noon. A full half hour longer than regular mass, even though it was just the usual procedure! Not only did it take longer because of all the added pomp and circumstance, but also because Italian prayers take so much longer than English ones. Like, I’d say the prayer in English, and then wait for another 15-30 seconds for the Italian version everyone else was saying to finish.

It was so powerful to be surrounded by tens of thousands of people practicing the same protocols and worshipping the same way as me. It’s something that’s sometimes hard to explain to people, that being Catholic when you’re born into it is a cultural thing as much as, perhaps more than, a religious thing. It’s a place of belonging for me. It’s a space where I feel connected to my history and my ancestors, and through that the entire history of humanity. To be able to pray in this sacred place where millions have prayed before me, for hundreds of not thousands of years…I can’t explain how beautiful it was.

And, at the end, Pope Franky came out!!!! There was a huge wave of applause as everyone got to their feet, and impulsively all of us cheered. The image that stays stuck in my head was a group of children on the stage, jumping and dancing when they caught sight of him. He’s definitely a Pope beloved by all, especially children. I love him. 😭

The funniest part was how the second he appeared, the press corps to the side of me CHARGED to the front near the dais so they could take photos. Flat out running with all their gear flapping.

There he was!!! I’ve seen my favorite Pope in person!!!!!

It was also a huge relief to us to be able to see him. We were all so worried.

He didn’t stay long, but he said that he thanked us all for praying for him when he was sick, and thanked us for being there. He said that we were blessed and pardoned of all our sins for the jubilee, and that this blessing also extended to all of our families. 😭

After mass, the Polish translator nurse came and told me she’d pray for me, and also gave me a pamphlet about their founding nurse, who they were trying to canonize. They said I should visit Poland. I’d love to one day!

After the mass, I picked up the official Jubilee decree, and also a green jubilee bandana so that I’d have some kind of thing to wear around my neck. Also, I like bandanas, and also also, you need a hand towel when using the facilities in Italy because they often don’t have any way to dry your hands, so I could use it for that purpose too. Then I took a selfie with my big bestie.

Afterwards, I was exhausted from the high emotions of the previous two days. So I came home, ate some European candy (very tasty!), and took a nap.

I really needed the nap, but I felt stressed about wasting my limited time in Rome, so I bolted out to see as much as I could! I followed this site’s walking tour guide, starting at the Pantheon since I had seen the other days beforehand. But it was a little fraught, as far as days go. I was still tired, and the crowds in these most popular tourist areas was intense. Still, I saw what I could:

Photo 1: A randomly beautiful shopping gallery I found.

Photos 2 and 3: The Pantheon! This is the one ticket I couldn’t purchase beforehand, and the crowds were so tremendous that I didn’t even bother trying to get in. Next visit (because I’m definitely coming back)! But it was just so amazing. When you come around the corner and see it, it stops you in your tracks. It’s so huge, and the signs of wear on the building really make you feel the passage of time. It’s incredible.

Photo 4: the Palazzo Madama, the seat of the Italian Senate. Soooo many policemen, haha.

Photos 5-10: Piazza Navona. This is my favorite piazza (square), because it has so many beautiful Berninis, it’s huge, and beautiful. The vibe was fun and happy there.

Photo 11: the statua di pasquino. This Google review gives an excellent explanation-

Photo 12: I noticed that this museum is having a special exhibit of YOSHITAKA AMANO ART OMG I’M GOING TO GO (but not today)

Photo 13: Campo dei Fiori. It’s an open air market, but by the time I went in the evening, it was empty of stalls. I loved this brooding, imposing statue. To quote the walking tour blog, “That statue in the middle of the square honors the philosopher Giordano Bruno, burnt at the stake on this spot for heresy in 1600.

“He was later exonerated for his ‘crimes’, hence this statue of him.

“Staring hard, straight across the Tiber river at the Vatican.”

Photos 14-17: The site of Julius Caesar’s assassination, it’s now also a cat sanctuary!!!

I had a weird experience at the cat sanctuary, where some weird people kept trying to talk to me, so I hurried away before I could fully take in the site. It was a shame, but I felt better once I was away from them. They didn’t seem malicious specifically, and they were well dressed and seemed like tourists, but they kept following me and trying to talk to me and I did not like that. I’m safe, obviously, as it’s three days later and I’m writing this blog post! It was just uncomfortable.

It was kind of fortunate that I got spooked off actually, because I ran across a museum with a Munch exhibition!! It was so amazing to go in and see Munch paintings in person. It was a beautiful exhibit with really thorough explanations. I enjoyed every bit of it! Also, I couldn’t believe an art museum stayed open until 9pm, wow!

I got totally mesmerized by the Munch paintings and lost track of time. By the time I left, it was 9pm and I was ravenous, but I was also in the most tourist trap area of the city, and because it was Sunday night all the buses were jam packed. I ended up walking the entire way home at a slapping New Yorker’s pace. It took me 42 minutes, and hey, remember how Rome is built on seven hills…? I sure did not forget that for a single second, whew! But I made it safely in the end.

As a New Yorker, I feel pretty comfortable in other large cities. I felt comfortable in Tokyo, and I feel comfortable in Rome too. I don’t have to learn an entirely new social language as much as learn the specific local modifications to an already existing big city language. I’m much better at negotiating with traffic now to let me cross, for example, I’ve learned the subtle differences in weaving through New York vs Rome tourist crowds. But I still tip even though that’s not as normal in Europe, because the world is on fire and everyone’s struggling, so I’m just going to tip. That’s just how it is. 👍

I tried to find a place to eat as I walked home, but by keeping my Roman waiter friend’s advice at the forefront mind, I discovered that everything was just tourist trap after tourist trap. I gave up and ate pizza from a trusted place close to my hostel. I was so hungry that I just ate it right there on the street, half a pizza straight without stopping to even drink water, and nobody bothered me at all.

I was so hungry and in such a hurry that I didn’t even take a photo of the pizza before I inhaled it. That’s how you know I was super hungry!

I saw this beautiful late night flower shop on the way home. I wish I could paint, I feel like it would make for such a nice painting. I couldn’t capture it properly with my camera.

When I finally got back to my hostel, I was thirsty and I wanted something sweet, so I had a Floreale Spritz mocktail and it was sooo tasty. “Martini floreale, lime juice, elderflower syrup, prosecco.”

After that I had no energy for anything but showering, brushing my teeth, and pouring myself into bed; and that’s how I came to be so far behind on my blogging. I really crammed a lot into Day 4! I did ~19.5k steps!

This is a tangent, but I’ve been listening to Flavor Foley’s first album, Cardiac Contrepoint, on heavy rotation. On day 3 I had “Weathergirl” stuck in my head, and today on day 4 it was “Weiward Romance.” If you like vocaloid music, definitely check their album out, it’s fire. They’re definitely going to appear on some friend mixes in the near future.

I’m still behind, but Day 5 and 6 were a lot less jam-packed so hopefully writing their blog posts goes a little faster, and I can catch up.

Arrivederci! (I don’t use as much Google translate as I expected, because everyone is a polyglot here)