All Eyes on Rome

For the first time in more than 600 years, the world awoke to the first full day of the vacancy of the See of Rome, despite the fact that the Pope was still living. Benedict XVI announced his resignation earlier in February, stating that his resignation would become effective at 8 PM local time on February 28th. Full text of Pope’s declaration

He is now known as Pope-emeritus, and will be residing temporarily at Castel Gandolfo, in the palace used by Popes as a summer retreat until renovations of the monastery inside the walls of Vatican City are complete.

World Leaders Reacted 

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano praised Benedict's "extraordinary courage" in making the announcement that he will resign because he lacks the strength to continue in the post.

Spain's King Juan Carlos on Monday acknowledged the hard work and dedication shown by Benedict during his pontificate, and he emphasized the "special relationship" the pope has maintained with the Iberian nation, as "reflected in the three memorable visits" he made to the country.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel thanked Benedict XVI for his years of work at the helm of the Catholic Church and wished him the best after his resignation, a "difficult decision" that she said deserved "the greatest respect."

"On behalf of Americans everywhere, Michelle and I wish to extend our appreciation and prayers to His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI. Michelle and I warmly remember our meeting with the Holy Father in 2009, and I have appreciated our work together over these last four years," U.S. President Barack Obama said.

"The Church plays a critical role in the United States and the world, and I wish the best to those who will soon gather to choose His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI's successor," the president said in a statement.

Great Time to Visit Rome & the Vatican

We can't think of a better time than now, during this historic transition in the Vatican,  to visit Rome and the Vatican.  Whether you are Catholic or not, the Vatican is a beautiful destination within the historic center of the Roman civilization of old.  Everywhere you turn is history.

There are several cruises and land tours that begin and/or end in Rome or nearby cities.  For those opting for a cruise vacation, we encourage you to extend your stay in Rome so that you can visit its many attractions including the Vatican.

Here are some related articles and photo albums from a recent cruise that included time in Rome.

	Port	Blog Posts	Photo Albums
1	Pre-Cruise Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy	Our Rome Adventure Begins Day 1 Pre-cruise in Rome Exploring Palatine Hill and Roman Forum When in Rome Relaxing at Trevi Fountain Visiting Vatican Museum St. Peter's Basilica - Vatican Special Vatican Exhibit Pope John Paul II Walking Tour of Rome from Vatican As Night Falls in Rome Rome to Civitavecchia by Train Sail Away From Civitavecchia	Rome - Colosseum Album Palatine Hill - Roman Forum Trevi Fountain Vatican Museum Line Vatican Museum Part 2 St. Peter's Vatican Pope John Paul II Exhibit Walking from Vatican Piazza Navona  Rome at Night

Happy Easter 2012

Easter Greetings

Today marks the most solemn day in the Christian calendar. Unlike Christmas, Easter is a movable feast occurring the first Sunday after the full moon following the vernal equinox. It can therefore occur between March 22 and April 25. We hope that you saw the full moon two nights ago - it was fabulous.

Christians gathered in churches today, across the world, and rejoiced because He is Risen from the Dead. This Good News has been handed down from generation to generation and is based on the scriptures recorded more than 2000 years ago.

Cruising Europe

We have had the good fortune to cruise in Europe on several occasions.  Our most recent European cruise was to the Mediterranean and Greek Isles.   We began our vacation with a pre-cruise stay in the ancient city of Rome.   

One of the highlights while in Rome was our visit to the Vatican.   We began with the Vatican Museum and continued with St. Peter's Basilica.   This image was from one of the murals in the museum.

Throughout Europe one has the opportunity to visit many impressive churches and basilicas.   These structures have withstood the test of time.  Many of them were damaged during the World Wars and rebuilt.

This year there are many cruises to chose from ranging from just a few nights to several weeks.  You can select from large modern ships which hold thousands of passengers to river cruises with about one hundred passengers.  We suggest extending your stay in Europe before your cruise.   This gives you the opportunity to immerse yourself in the history of the region.

Visit our Facebook Fan page for images of Europe.

Severe Winter Weather in Europe and Beyond

Nuns having fun: Sisters take pictures
in the Vatican's St Peter's Square

Vatican - Rome, Italy 
Blanketed by Snow  

The top picture appeared in the Mirror story entitled Snow Pictures: Winter weather moves in on UK as Europe shivers. Click the link for more pictures.

The lower picture was taken last Spring when we toured the Vatican during our Mediterranean & Greek Isles Cruise.

Impacting Transportation 

Motorists have been urged to take extra care in treacherous conditions as snow across much of the UK turns to ice.

The Met Office has issued nine warnings for ice after disruption to road, rail and air travel following up to 16cm (6in) of snow in some areas.

Half of the 1,300 scheduled flights at Heathrow were cancelled and some trains and Tube services also disrupted. Almost 400 transatlantic passengers are stranded overnight in Ireland after six London-bound flights were diverted.

Ice is likely to be a hazard on roads and pavements across parts of southeast Wales and much of England, except the southwest potentially leading to the risk of disruption to travel on Monday morning. Fog patches are also likely to form overnight in many areas, adding to the risk of disruption to travel in parts of the UK.

BBC News - In pictures: Europe snowstorms 

BBC News - Europe snow: Your pictures
The Telegraph Readers' snow photos

As Europe is hit with one of its worst winter storms in decades, much of the United States is experiencing unseasonably warm weather and no snow. Colorado and Nebraska was hit by a major winter storm over the weekend, snarling transportation in that part of the country.

If you are flying internationally, be sure to check with your airline to see if your flights have been impacted by this weather system that has been impacting Europe for several days now.

Merry Christmas 2011

Merry Christmas

One of our favorite cruise ships is Celebrity Constellation.  In preparing this column we searched the web for an image that had the grand staircase decorated for Christmas.   Click on the image to go to the album on Flickr.  Thanks to gailf548 for sharing these pictures of the holiday decorations.

Images like this usually stay with you for some time and when you close your eyes, you can sometimes see them again as if you were seeing them for the first time.

We've had the good fortune of being able to add other images to our memory banks this year.  Our major cruise adventure this year was a 12-Night Mediterranean & Greek Isles Cruise.   We've posted stories on our blog and pictures on our Facebook Fan Page.  If you've not read our posts yet, see Diary of Cruise with Chris to Greek Isles
for links to individual blog posts and the various photo albums.

One of the many highlights of that cruise vacation was visiting The Vatican during our pre-cruise stay in Rome.  Last night the Pope celebrated midnight mass inside St. Peter's Basilica.   The mass was broadcast across the world to millions of viewers. The alter was setup in front of the entrance to St. Peter's tomb which can be seen in this image.  This year's mass had a special meaning since we had actually been there just over six months ago.  See more images in our album: St. Peter's Vatican.


For those that have never been to Rome, we highly recommend adding this to your bucket list of places to visit.  We actually stayed in central Rome and explored the city by mainly walking from one attraction to another.   Our hotel was near the Roma Termini Train Station, so we transferred to the ship by train. Rome is one of those destinations which you could spend days exploring and still not see it all.   That shouldn't stop you from seeing the popular attractions during a pre-cruise stay.   Make sure to throw a coin into Trevi Fountain, so that you'll return one day.

Holidays are a time for family and friends and a good time to share vacation photos and stories. My wish for you this Christmas Day is that you are sharing the day with those that you love and care about, and who have mutual feelings for you. For those that are away from home, such as cruise ship crew and those serving their countries in the armed services, may the peaceful images in your mind help you to be close to those you love, if only in your heart and mind.

Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your lives by sharing our adventures and cruise industry information.   My blog and Facebook fan page are my gifts to you.  I hope you enjoy them.  Merry Christmas to all.

Walking Tour of Rome from Vatican

Castel Sant'Angelo

Castel Sant'Angelo is located in the heart of the city of Rome, on the banks of the river Tiber. It is close to the Vatican, so it became our first stop after we left the Vatican and had some lunch.

This Fortress was built as a mausoleum for the Emperor Hadrian (AD130-139), but it has also been a prison and a papal residence. It was used by former Popes seeking  protection in times of danger. There has been a covered passageway which still connects Castel Sant'Angelo to the Vatican. 

Via della Conciliazione (Road of the Conciliation) is the main street in Rome that runs from the Castel Sant'Angelo on the western bank of the Tiber River to Saint Peter's Square and Saint Peter's Basilica as seen in the distance.

The National Museum of Castel Sant'Angelo inside retraces its history. The castle has various exhibits ranging from Renaissance paintings and pottery to antique military weapons.  We didn't have time to view the interior of this fortress - perhaps on another visit we will.

The Sant'Angelo Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in Rome, built in the 239 AD. Many medieval pilgrims made their way to St. Peter's walking along this bridge to cross the Tiber at Ponte Sant'Angelo.

Several Bernini Angels line the bridge on either side. Nowadays, this is a pedestrian bridge which connects  the rioni (Roman districts) of Ponte and Borgo.

Angel with the Column (Throne)
Angel with the Whips
Angel with the Crown of Thorns
Angel with the Sudarium (Veronica’s Veil)
Angel with the Garment and Dice
Angel with the Nail
Angel with the Cross
Angel with the Superscription
Angel with the Sponge
Angel with the Lance

 More Photos:  Walking from Vatican Photo Album

 Palazzo di Giustizia 

(The Hall of Justice), Rome

Continuing our walk along the Tiber River, we came to another bridge that leads to the Supreme Court of Cassation (Italian: Corte Suprema di Cassazione) which is the major court of last resort in Italy.

From here we made our way to Piazza del Porto di Ripetta and continued from there to Piazza Navona (view photo album).

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




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Special Vatican Exhibit Pope John Paul II

Tribute on Occasion of  Beatification

Pope John Paul II

“Dear Brothers and Sisters,
as you know, next 1 May
I shall have the joy of beatifying
my beloved Predecessor,
Venerable Pope John Paul II.
The date chosen is deeply meaningful:
it will in fact be the Second Sunday
of Easter, which he himself entitled
Divine Mercy Sunday, on the eve of which
his life on earth ended.
Those who knew him,
those who esteemed and loved him,
cannot but rejoice with the Church
in this event.We are glad!”
Benedict XVI – 16 January 2011

The coffin of Blessed John Paul II, which had been exposed for veneration in the front of St. Peter's basilica during the weekend of his beatification, has now been moved to a final resting place in the chapel of St. Sebastian.

The final resting place of the newly beatified Pope is marked with a simple marble tombstone, inscribed Beatus Ioannes Paulus PP II. The chapel of St. Sebastian is located near the main door of the basilica, just past Michelangelo's Pieta.

John Paul II, a Global Pope

It could be said that John Paul II was the first “global Pope” in the sense that throughout his almost 26 year pontificate he was able to visit local churches and peoples on the five continents from one part of the globe to the other.

In his Introduction to JOHN PAUL II - A tribute from Benedict XVI on occasion of the beatification. Giovanni Cardinal Lajolo writes, "This spiritual, intellectual, and also physical commitment can only instill a great sense of admiration."

He continues, "This exhibit dedicated to him as a homage by Benedict XVI on the occasion of John Paul II’s beatification shows only some of the moments in the life of this great Pontiff. Although there are many other facets and events, also significant, it is not possible to show them all here. These other events include: the many Heads of State he received, the Ambassadors who presented their letters of credence, the many eminent political, social and cultural leaders received in audience. And yet, even more, he met so many humble persons to whom he offered paternal and fraternal words of friendship, consolation, encouragement, and hope, which had an unforgettable impact on their lives."

Visit our Facebook Fan Page for photo albums from our Rome visit including our Sunday visit to the Vatican.

More Photos:  Pope John Paul II Exhibit Photo Album


Additional References

John Paul II Tribute Site
John Paul II Beatification Site
Vatican City State Site

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




Click on the image to the left for more Blog posts about this trip.

Connect With Us On

        

Sign-up for Exclusive Email Offers


Where have you explored? 

Gather your travel and food pics and join us every Wednesday night for the latest installment of #FoodTravelChat