Our Worldwind Tour in Italy

We had so much fun on our trip in Italy. We decided to just drive our car and be spontaneous. We didn't even have hotel reservations for every night, which ended up working in our favor!!

We left on Wednesday, April 30, and in one day, we drove through 5 countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Italy)!!! Instead of taking interstates/autobahns, we took the long route to our first stop in Como in the north of Italy. We saw such amazing things on this part of the trip. From spring and summer temperatures to 3 meters of snow in the Swiss Alps, we had such an adventure driving to our destination. We stayed one night in Como (just a pit stop), and then we set out for Cinque Terra.

Cinque Terra is one of the coolest group of towns I've ever been to or seen. It's 5 towns connected by hiking trails, and it's on the Ligurian Sea. We had some of the best pizza, croissants, and cappuccino there. Plus, the views from everywhere were like postcard photos. We were able to relax and lay out on the beach. We hiked 4 of the 5 towns. The weather was gorgeous. In all, it's one of my favorite places on earth.
 

Our next stop was Florence. Initially, we weren't going to go here, but we had a few friends convince us that it was worth a night or two. Booking a room here took some time and effort, though. Thankfully, we had this room booked before we left. Anyway, we were able to get tickets to Accademia, which is where Michaelangelo's David is located. Holy moly!! It was truly the most amazing sculpture I've ever seen. I am no art buff, but I was just captivated by Dave. Michaelangelo was literally given this huge slab of marble and told to create something fabulous out of it. I mean, the veins in his arms, feet, and hands were dead on. His face and his eyes were mesmerizing. I so wish I would have broken the rules and gotten a photo, but it still wouldn't have captured the sheer magnitude of this work. This alone was worth the trip to Florence. Other than that, we walked a lot, ate a ton of gelato, and I found out that there's a crazy bug to which I am incredibly allergic (still don't know what that bug is, unfortunately). After 2 nights in Florence, we were pretty ready to get on the road to Rome.
 

Rome is pretty much the coolest city on earth. It even beats Paris!! Maybe it was because I knew so much more about Rome, but this place was truly like taking a walk through time. But, unlike Florence, it felt like Rome was still a very modern city. It seemed like Florence had just stopped somewhere in the 1700s or something. I couldn't believe we were able to walk where so many early Christians, who died for their faith, had walked. Even Peter, the Apostle, was here and was martyred here. I realized how blessed I am to live in a country (even in Germany) where I can worship Christ with all that I am whenever I want and not be afraid of the consequences. How blessed are we?! We went to the ancient Forum, where people like Julius Caesar strolled the streets, made laws, conducted all sorts of business, and was eventually murdered and cremated. We saw temples to the gods that the Romans worshiped, and I was thankful that the One, True God decided to make His temple in me (and you).

We also saw the Colosseum, which was pretty cool, but for some reason, Danny and I both said that we thought it would be bigger. I guess it really is pretty huge, but with all of the other really huge buildings around, it just doesn't look so large. A few months ago I read The Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers in which many scenes take place in the Colosseum. Even though the books are fiction, I could still imagine the real life horrors that some Christian martyrs faced being sent into face lions and other wild animals. After Rome defeated the Jews in Jerusalem, they took over 50,000 prisoners, and many were forced to either fight (the men) or be fed to the animals when the crowd got especially bored. Can you imagine looking into the eyes of a hungry wild animal, praying to God that He takes you fast enough that you don't feel anything? It was heart breaking!! And then I think about the day that may come where I am tested in my faith, and I pray that I have the strength to stand in the face of the worst possible death.
 
 

We also visited one of the catacombs on the Appian Way (remember the movie Spartacus?...ewww gross). I was so impressed by our tour guide. He was Slovakian, and he spoke very good English. We could tell that he was truly passionate about teaching the people about everything including the symbols early Christians used to identify themselves and Christians. He told us stories of the people who were buried here. One that struck me was the story of Cecilia (beautiful name!!) She was a martyr, and over her tomb was a sculpture of her lying on her side, face down. In one had she held up 2 fingers, and in the other, she held up 1 finger signifying the trinity, yet one God!! There was an area down in the catacombs where people could have communion and small memorial services. As we were down there, a group of people were having such a service, and they were singing Praise to the Lord...the Almighty, the King of Creation...in Latin (I think). It was so incredible. I felt so much more close to Jesus than I ever could have in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City (more on that later). It was just such a powerful experience that we'll never forget.

So now on to happier subjects....

My absolute favorite thing in Rome was the Pantheon. We both just thought there was something special about it. The columns were so incredibly huge. I cannot even explain it. There's a huge opening in the dome, so when it rains, the church is totally exposed. But there are drains in the floor, and the floor naturally slants to allow the water to flow out. Ok, this is the thing...this church is soooooo old!!! So old, in fact, that it sits 15 feet below street level. In other words, Rome has literally grown or risen around the Pantheon. Maybe you just have to see it for yourself, but it's incredible.
 

We spent one day in Vatican City, which was pretty cool. We visited the Vatican museum where we saw the Sistine Chapel and many ancient Christian pieces of art. We saw entire rooms painted by Raphael. It was such an incredibly huge museum. I think Danny and I were a little overwhelmed. After the museum, we went to St. Peter's Basilica...the largest church on earth...I believe. There are markings on the ground where the next largest church would fit inside St. Peter's...crazy. The Apostle, Peter's remains are here under this crazy huge canopy. I wonder if he would actually like all that attention being that he lived only to serve and promote Christ. I don't know. What do you think? I know I don't really understand all of the seemingly saint worship that takes place in the Catholic church, but then again, maybe there's something that I'm missing. Feel free to comment and let me know. On a kind of funny note, there was a painting, The Transfiguration, by Raphael that really made me laugh. (I hope I am not being sac religious). So, Jesus is busy transfiguring, and the people who are observing this are really hysterical. There's one boy or teenager in the painting who looks like he's fainting, and the other people on the ground are so busy looking and tending to him that they fail to really see Jesus transfiguring. I think maybe Raphael was trying to say something...think about it.
 

Two minute Soapbox (sorry): While we were in St. Peter's Basilica, I overheard a woman saying, "Man, this is the closest to God you can possibly be." That really knocked the wind out of me. Among all of the decor and gold, bronze, and silver, I can honestly say that the one thing that I didn't feel or see was the Spirit of God. I found myself feeling really sad in the Basilica. I felt the presence of the God so strongly while we were many feet underground in the catacombs. I felt His presence as we were driving through the amazing, God-made mountains in Switzerland and Italy. I feel His presence everyday when I pray and worship. His Spirit cannot be contained is such an earthly container. How dare we think that we can put Him within 4 (really decorated) walls!! Jesus didn't die so that we would make incredibly elaborate temples to saints. He died to SAVE the lost!! How is it that we have missed the mark in such a huge way? I have really wrestled with this since we got back. I just don't understand it. I have a lot of respect for the Pope even though I am not Catholic (He was educated in the university town next to Reutlingen). Why is it that someone whose entire life is dedicated to learning and knowing Christ doesn't get it that it's all wrong?!? Am I the one who is wrong? Ok, end of soapbox...
 

We left Rome pretty early on Friday morning, and I MUST say that I am so proud of my husband for having the patience to drive in Rome. It's absolutely nuts!! We are so used to Germany where there's so much order and structure. Well, in Italy, as soon as you cross the border, it's utter CHAOS!!! Danny did great, though!!

Our next destination: Bolzano/Bozen to see the Ice Man. That's right, the Ice Man. Let me tell you a little about Bolzano/Bozen first. It has two names, because one is Italian and one Austrian. In WWI, a war in which Austria started and lost, Bozen was given to Italy as payment of war damages. So that meant that lots of people were suddenly not Austrian citizens anymore. They became Italians, even though the spoke German, ate Austrian food, built Austrian-style houses, and had blond hair and blue eyes. Over the years, more real Italians moved to the area, and were a little upset that everything was still so Austrian, and the Austrians have tried many times to break away from Italy and rejoin Austria with no success. So you have a entire section of Italy that is truly more German/Austrian than Italy. Most of the people are pretty much forced to speak both languages. The tv is in German and Italian. Menus are in German and Italian. It's just crazy. We had NO idea what language to speak. It was fun, though, trying to figure it out.
 

Ok, so back to the Ice Man. He was found by German hikers in 1991. The hikers just thought that he was one of the many non-ancient people who lose their lives in the Alp/Dolomites every year, but as it turns out, he was from about 5000 b.C. His clothes and equipment were still in pretty good shape. Apparently, the ice preserved him and his stuff very well. Scientists could even tell what color his eyes were...blue. Pretty cool stuff. He was pretty gross looking, though, and this is coming from a NURSE and one who has dissected cadavers before...ewwww.

Our final destination was back in our temporary "heimatland"...the Bodensee (Lake Konstanz) in southern Germany. We met our friends, Kyle and Karen Dresback, there to spend some time with them before they left Germany for good. (They left yesterday...booo). It was really nice to have structure and order again. I didn't realize how much I took that for granted in the Deutschland!! Anyway, we had a great time relaxing, eating great fish, and drinking coffee. On top of that, I had the joy of riding a ferry (with the car) for the first time!! It wasn't quite as exciting as I wanted it to be, but it got us to the other side of the lake in a timely manner. In all, we had a really great time.
 

We drove home on Monday, and I must say that I was really ready to be home and not living out of a suitcase. I really missed Germany while we were in Italy. It was strange. For the first 4 months here, I was so homesick, but now I can honestly say that I feel comfortable here. I am not so scared to talk and just be myself. I think Germany will always be a second home to me, even when we are back in the U.S.