All,It has been far too long since I've written you. I guess I'll start from the beginning...Greece is my new favorite place on earth. After our overnight ferry ride (complete with a Greek disco!) I arrived in Greece. I visited the cities of Patras, Olympia, Athens, Delphi, Epidaurus, Corinth, and Napflion among others. There is so much to say that I will just comment on my favorite events:In Olympia we saw the famous Temple of Zeus as well as the site of the Olympic foot races. We were even allowed to race as a class! Even our professors joined in the fun! Back at the hotel I learned how to do some traditional Greek dancing and saw an amateur group perform some more difficult steps.Delphi was amazing. We saw the site of the Delphic oracle, the bellybutton of the world, and many temples and treasuries of Apollo. The view from the cleansing spring was awe-inspiring as well.Athens was your typical big city. There were shops and vendors galore and plenty of opportunity to have real Greek gyros. People bought traditional Greek jewelery. One evening I was able to see a Greek folk music show put on by four of Dr. Hatlie's musician friends. The music was from all corners of Greece and was influenced by the people of Crete, Byzantium, Magna Grecia, and even Persia. Beautiful. Ancient Athens was the best, though. We saw the Pnyx, Areopagus, Mt. Lykkabetos, and Acropolis all of which I could imagine seeing robed Greeks walking through today.Along the road we stopped at the Byzantine monastery of Hosias Lukas. We saw two amazing Byzantine churches and learned about their traditions, architecture, art, and beliefs. The body of St. Luke was located in one of the churches.We also saw the site of the old Mycenean civilization from the years 1600-1200 BC. We saw the supposed location of Agamemnon's murder, his palace and tomb, as well as the tomb of Clytamnestra (with PERFECT acoustics).At Epidaurus I saw the famous theatre. I stood on the point in the middle of the stage and spoke to find that my voice came booming back at me. Those tricky ancient mathematicians were darn good...Napflion is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. The beach and cliffs were set below the ancient fortress of Napflion...wow! The seaside cafes were most enjoyable, too.I can't write more about Greece now because my time is short. I regret that from now on in the semester spare time will not exist. There are too many assignments to be done! But two last notes:Easter is coming. Now that UD's Papal audience is past (which was amazing...the Holy Father talked about Boethius, an author we were reading in classes at the time!) everyone started thinking about getting tickets during the Tritiuum. I managed to get tickets for the Good Friday services and Easter morning mass. I won't be attending the Easter Vigil because one of my friends, Cody, is being received into the Church that day. Please pray for him! It should be the most amazing time in all my spiritual life. I ask for your prayers as I pray for all of you during this most glorious time.10-Day starts Easter night. I will be traveling Europe with one friend. We will be hitting every country in Western Europe minus Denmark and Hungary. It should be a wild ride! Please pray for our safety during this time as well. I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories when I return. Have a Happy Easter.Until next time,Dan
All, I apologize for not writing a blog in a couple weeks. School work has picked up and so I have several papers and tests to deal with. Anyway, on to the good stuff... Last weekend I went to the small town of San Giovanni Rotundo, home of the late St. Padre Pio. After a grueling trip (over the course of which I traveled from bus to train to bus to bus!) I was able to walk up to the hill on which sits St. Pio's old church, the church of Our Lady of Grace. Upon entering, I immediately saw the confessional the Padre Pio used over the course of his life and at which lines would stretch on and on. (Word has it he would sometimes hear confessions for days at a time!) The original altar was still in the church along with a couple small side altars, all of which were gorgeous. I also saw the new church which was built next to the old one and was even able to attend mass there, under the giant mosaic of Padre Pio adoring Christ and venerating Mary. But, the most amazing portion of the trip was seeing the various 2nd class relics of Pare Pio. I saw tables, chairs, shoes, gloves, books, monstrances, vestments and even some band-aids he used! I saw his bedroom, too, which was totally unaltered from when he lived in it. After finishing the "Padre Pio museum" I went into the gift shop, bought some trinkets, and had them blessed. I also requested a mass to be said for my family back in the United States and received some 2nd class relics of St. Pio's gloves to take home to them! After my visit to San Giovanni Rontundo I stopped by Monte St. Michele, the mountain on which St. Michael appeared to several popes beginning in the 4th century. After a long bus ride up a mountain and through the beautiful vineyard-laced Italian countryside I arrived at the Church of St Michael. Upon entering the tiny door I was greeted by about 6 flights of stairs leading straight underground. On the way down I noticed several frescoes on the walls dating to about the 6th century. At the bottom of the steps were an altar with an enormous gold statue of St. Michael and adoration chapel as well as two apparition sites! After praying MANY St. Michael prayers, an adoration hour, and listening in on a German Mass being celebrated in the church I walked around the small town and enjoyed the relaxing pace. Thus went my trip to eastern Italy! The week following the San Giovanni weekend was also nice. I payed a visit to the Capitoline museums as well as the Roman Forum, both with my Art and Architecture class. Among my favorites in the Capitoline were the giant statues of Constantine, the She-Wolf with Romulus and Remus, The "Brutus" head. In the Forum, we learned about everyday Roman life, honors and dishonors, and saw the many buildings including the Temple of the Vestal Virgins, the Temples of Jupiter, Saturn, Castor and Pollux, and Vesta, the Senate house, the Triumphal Arch and several others. Immediately following this tour I went to the Church of Santa Sabina on the Avantine Hill, the oldest church held by an order of priests in all of Rome, and saw the fresco tombs, famous carved wooden doors, famous orange tree of St. Dominic that always bears fruit. I also saw St. Peter's through the keyhole at the embassy of the Knights of Malta. What a week! This most recent weekend, after a gratuitous amount of school work and Rome tour-age, I headed for Barcelona in hopes of using some of my Spanish. My hostel was in Placa Reial, just off of La Rambla. Unfortunately, it was loud, smelly, and had no showers (yes, I had to wait 3 days to shower!) but that's another story. I was able to see the Christopher Columbus monument on the sea, Parc Guell (by Gaudi), La Segrada Familia (also by Gaudi), the Arc de Triumf (no, they didn't move it from France...Spain has its own), as well as a Picasso museum and the beautiful gothic Basilica of Barcelona. The street life was amazing, too. I was roped into helping hold up a pole so an acrobat could do tricks up and down it (see the pics)! Crazy! I ate real Spanish tapas and was able to order in Spanish. Even the metro system with its 10 or so lines was an adventure! I guess that gets you caught up for now. I will write more soon. Also, check out the new Where's Wesley pics! I'm praying for you all.Dan
Everyone, Friday and Saturday of this week were spent in three cities south of Rome; Naples, Stabiae, and Pompeii. Our bus left campus bright and early in the morning and arrived at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale of Naples after passing the infamous Mount Vesuvius. The art instructor, Dr. Flusche, led us around the museum and showed us its masterpieces. Among my favorite works were the Farnase Hercules, the Farnase Bull, Vestagian's head (that's the guy who commissioned the Colosseum to be built), the famous Doryphorus or “Spearbearer”, the famous Alexander mosaic, the Marathon runners, the Daniades (those eternally damned to carry water for killing their 49 husbands. Yikes!), an Apollo, and an Athena Promachos. Also housed in the museum were various artifacts from Pompeii including silverware, pottery, hairbrushes, and keys. After our tour of the museum the group was taken to the “hotel” which was actually a school for the international study and excavation of Stabiae in Stabiae. The room I stayed in had an amazing view of the Bay of Naples. After a brief exploration of the town, in which was found only trash (Naples and the surrounding area are under a trash strike), we had a nice dinner. At the dinner, a small group of musicians performed song and dance using “ancient” instruments and costumes. Afterward, we all went to sleep, eager to see Pompeii the next day. Pompeii was so much more exciting than I ever would have guessed. We saw the Theatre of Pompeii (the home of gladiator battles and hunts), the Palestra (or gym), the Pompeii forum, the Basilica (law court), the Temple of Zeus the Great and Powerful, and the famous Villa of the Mysteries and House of Faun. We walked down ancient streets with grooves of carts' wheels and elevated crosswalks. We saw markets, baths, brothels, bars, and, yes, people. Thanks to a the layer of pumas that rained on Pompeii after the Vesuvius explosion of 79 A.D., an average of about fifteen feet of wall had been preserved, markings and paintings included. What surprised me most about the city was that it so closely resembled a city today. They had graffiti (though more eloquent than today's), places to relax, bars, sections of stores, graveyards, and basic, everyday stores. I really felt as though I was walking in ancient times as I strolled down the streets looking at the roofs, beds, and items left by the people who evacuated. It was during my time in Pompeii that I most felt as though I was part of a greater human history and the grand scheme of God's eternal plan for all time. Until next time, take care.In the spirit of the ancients,DanP.S. Just to dispel a rumor about Pompeii, only about 10% of the population died in the eruption, mostly because of the toxic fumes.P.P.S. I will upload the MANY Pompeii pictures tomorrow.
