So we all know that the Pope lives in Rome, but did you also know that he takes about a 2 month vacation in a summer residence in the quaint town of Castel Gandolfo? As soon as we found this out, we worked on getting in to the special audience he has once a week here. After asking for directions at least 5 times, having the police pretty much refuse to help us, AND dealing with my mom's credit card getting stuck in the parking meter machine, we FINALLY made it Hotel Castel Gandolfo - a small hotel with the most amazing owners... Frederico & his wife run the hotel and have a cute little baby who sits with them at the front desk. His father is visiting them & is such a sweet man! Frederico was nice enough to help my mom by talking to the parking attendant, paying for parking, and then moving her car to another spot... they are the best! We had a yummy dinner overlooking the lake & then it was time for bed!
In the morning, we joined a HUGE crowd of people waiting to see the Pope. When it was time to go inside, it was literally a stampede!!!! I held onto my grandma for dear life as I pushed through the crowds of people all trying to get in. It was insane, but we made it through & it was absolutely amazing to see the Pope right in front of me. (Nurse Lee & I stepped in again to help a girl who was starting to feel faint)
After this, it was time to leave our wonderful hotel... but little did we know that we would be back very, very soon. ....
When we got back to Rome, my mom realized that her passport was missing!! After panic mode, she called the hotel and gift ship in Gandolfo, but no one had seen it. I thought it might have been in the hotel copy machine and guess what.. it was! I guess we would be heading back to our favorite hotel in the morning. So we went back & were able to enjoy a less crowded Gandolfo so that was nice!!
Yesterday we went to Assisi & went into St. Francis of Assisi's Basilica. It was less ornate than St. Peter's but still very beautiful. Then we had a crazy drive through traffic, confusion, darkness, and to top it off RAIN, but we finally made it to La Spezia (I was beginning to think it didn't really exist because we never saw signs for it). So today we took the ferry to Porto Venere & walked around, went in the shops, & had a delicious lunch (I had penne with salmon.... so good!) My mom & I went to 2 of the Cinque Terra pieces of land & it was really cool to see their old-fashioned and simple lifestyle.
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