Okay. I thought it was enough to have a rich and ancient city, sprawled over the surface of the earth; let's take it one step further and explore miles of antiquity beneath Rome, the famed and expansive catacombs. It reminded me of Scavi, but colossal and chalkier. Not as dank. Also a thing I didn't know, the catacombs were not a place of hiding; rather, the Christians knew at any moment they could be martyred celebrating there.
The grounds above the catacombs of S. Callisto were also beautiful; it was a grey day, green fields stretched out, sheep grazed, parrots overhead, and miles of crypts underfoot was an eerie thing to take in.
On our way back to the bus stop my poor shoes gave up and the soles fell out. I trekked the bus, tram, and another bus entirely barefoot. It was humiliating, and when we reached the hill it became painful as well. Good thing I never planned on becoming a Franciscan... I am not made of the stuff. It reminded me of the relic of Teresa of Avila in Santa Maria Della Scala- her foot. The foot on which she walked all over Spain, absolutely barefoot.
A new appreciation for her developed today.
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