We got up bright and early this morning to head out (something like 7:20 am) and go to the Vatican for Easter Mass.
You could tell it was a holy day because of the HORRIBLE
TORRENTIAL
FREEZING
RAIN.
As soon as we left the apartment it started drizzling. By the time we got to the Vatican, it had turned into rain. By the time we sat down (yes, we got there early enough to get seats) it had turned into a downpour.
At first it was funny. We laughed about it. But we were there three hours early, and after about an hour and a half of being in crowds, getting splashed by rain, and finding out your coat wasn't waterproof, just water resistant, we stopped laughing.
The week had been seventy degrees and sunny up until now. It wasn't even a warm rain. God was mocking us.
And we were all in these seats super close together, so we couldn't all fit our umbrellas in enough space, so the rain pouring off of someone's umbrella would pour right onto someone else. We were all soaked and miserable.
You know what I was thinking here? Something like "I am going to die here and I'm not even going to mind because then at least I won't feel cold anymore"
Our view for most of the ceremony.
Spot the pope
HOWEVER, even with all the griping and cold, it was still a really awesome event to go to. It was really powerful, and they even threw in a phrase in English now and again. People really love Papa Franceso. It's sort of an overwhelming thing. My catholic friend was near-tears for part of it.
I was still getting over a touch of bronchitis and at some point the shivering and the cold made my chest feel really tight, so I left early, as did one of my friends who couldn't feel her feet anymore. I got home, took a warm shower, and hung everything up to dry. I had to hold my hands in warm water for a few minutes to get feeling in my fingertips back.
Then that night we all got together in our apartment for an Easter dinner. Paige, my roommate, had some friends in from home, and we invited some neighbors, so we ended up with eleven people there. Danny had to bring over some silverware to have enough for everyone! It was really nice. Danny made some wonderful steak, which I guess is Easter tradition where he comes from, and we also had some salad, green beans fried in olive oil, pasta, bread, this mushroom-onion spread for the steak…it was divine. It wasn't fancy, just what you'd expect from a bunch of broke American kids living in Rome, and it was just really nice.
Paige's friends went out that night and asked if we wanted to come, but most of us were so exhausted from the cold and full of food that we just spent the rest of the night quietly relaxing and falling asleep early.
