The Race Wrecks Our Plans

Next on our list of things to do was to go to the Catacombs of San Callisto. We asked the concierge about the best way to get there, and he explains that it won’t be very possible because of the bike race (part of the race route went right by the front door of the hotel). He told us that maybe if we went out of the race area we could maybe get a taxi. He showed us where to go and we headed off. It took a little walking, and asking around, but eventually we found a taxi stand where there were some taxis. The first guy we asked thought I was asking him to take us to the hotel (I showed him the name of the catacombs on a piece of note paper from the hotel). The second guy we asked spoke a little bit of English and said he could try but it would be difficult because of the race. So we climbed in the cab and off we went. It seemed like every corner he wanted to turn at was blocked off and he was growing frustrated. Eventually he told us he could not do it, unless he went all the way around Vatican City which he did not want to do (I don’t know if this was because he way trying to save us money, or because he wasn’t likely to get a fare back, and he would be out some possible revenue). Whatever the reason he explained he would take us to an alternative we would like which was only 5 minutes away. Not knowing what else to do we agreed. He dropped us off in front of a very large church, pointed out where we could catch a bus or taxi back, collected his 10 Euros and headed off.

Beth and I headed up to the church, not knowing what exactly we were seeing, but it was big and beautiful, and free, so we went in. It turns out this church is the San Giovanni Lateran (Saint John Basilica) which according to the guidebook was the first building of public worship in Rome. In the portico was a large statue that I thought at first was of Julius Caesar, but when we got up to it we discovered it was actually a statue of Constantine, the first Christian Emperor of Rome. It was Constantine who issued the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, allowing Christianity to become an officially accepted religion of the Roman Empire after centuries of persecution. It was none other than Constantine who commissioned this cathedral.

The next thing we noticed were the huge metal doors, at least 30 feet tall. We didn’t use these doors to enter the church, but rather some normal sized doors to the side. Once inside it was the ceiling and the disciples that grabbed my attention. The ceiling was covered with gold symbols and designs. All around the nave were large statues of the 12 disciples which were created in the early 1700’s by French artist Pierre Legros. Up near the altar was a tomb set in the floor, and amazingly this is claimed to be the tomb of Saint Peter - the same Peter who walked and talked with Jesus.

So Beth and I wandered around this sacred site, looking at all kinds of artwork and features of the building. There was a tile floor at one point that functioned like an optical illusion. There were little worship services going on in little side chapels, and there were people testing a sound system and setting up for what seemed to be a large service (perhaps something to do with Pentecost).

When we left the Basilica of Saint John we decided that we could walk back. It turned out to be a manageable walk giving us a good taste of Roman streets. Actually the good taste was the gelato we stopped to get at one point. Another thing that I found interesting is how many people in religious garb were walking around, at one point we came across a flock of young priests in black cassocks, looking like something out of a movie as they walked along the street.
After a short breather in our hotel room, which found us each nodding off, we decided to head out for supper. We started at the Spanish Steps which were right by our hotel, then we wandered down a street with all the fashionable shops (names like Versace and Jimmy Choo). Eventually we found a restaurant that seemed promising, a place called Caffè Leonardo. There we had a pizza topped with spinach, artichoke, mushrooms and mozzarella. Then back up the steps, another gelato cone (I can’t get enough of that stuff) and back to our room to sleep. A full, tiring and pleasing first day - even if we didn’t get to the Catacombs.