Happy (belated again) New Year 2025!

Another belated Happy New Year! Once again, I was on travel over the holidays, this time for a lovely Mississippi River cruise starting and ending in New Orleans. Fortunately I was not in the Big Easy for the tragic event at the turn of the year. I have no words there....
I should, however, have words about my annual goals, and so off we go!

Progress bar goals
• Read 20,000 pages - Between books and audiobooks, I read nearly 39,000 pages last year. That was 72 books. Well, more than that considering some of them were omnibus editions like Sabaa Tahir's Ember quartet and Susan Cooper's _Dark is Rising_ series. Books ranged from Emily Wilson's translations of the _Iliad_ and _Odyssey_ to Dennis E. Taylor's Bobiverse series. In any case, I'd call it a resounding success
• Lose 25 pounds - Let's just call it for what it is, an Abject failure

Other goals
• Finish one large needlework project - I finished three! Liz Almond's _Save the Stitches_, and two Chatelaines: _Poison Garden_ and _Universe Mandala_, so success.
• Finish one medium or small needlework project - I finished Just Nan's _Christmas Jewel_ in January, for a small success.
• Inventory my crafting supplies - Some attempts at organization, but no inventory yet.
• Complete one yarncrafting project - I completed two: Scheepjes "Book Lovers Wrap" (knit) and Mark Roseboom's "Code of the Rainbow" (crochet). Certainly a success.

Habits
• Drink at least 1.5 litre of water a day - I've been hit or miss with this.
• Continue Duolingo and Lumosity daily exercises - My Duolingo streak has stayed active, but I've missed the occasional day on Lumosity. I need to get that streak going again.
• Do some form of exercise daily - As of this typing, my daily exercise streak is now at 829.
• Make sure the dishes are done daily - i've been doing pretty well with this also.
  

So...obviously there are areas I'm doing well on, and some not so much.
Also not sure why my javascript on the sidebar has stopped working, possibly something on the backend.

Anyway, on to 2025 goals...

Progress bar goals
• Read 25,000 pages - Since I blew away last year's goal now that I'm counting audiobooks as well, I'll increase this from 20,000 to 25,000. I'd like to listen to or read all of Agatha Christie's works this year, which should account for a lot of this.
• Lose 25 pounds - With each year, this gets more important, so I really need to buckle down this year.

Other goals
• Finish two needlework projects, at least one medium or larger - I don't know that I have any active project that I would consider "large", but I do have several medium ones.
• Inventory my crafting supplies - I need to inventory what I have, and possibly cull a bit, and didn't do that this past year. Or the year before...
• Complete one yarncrafting project - Either crochet or knit. This is a good recurring goal, in much the way the reading goal is, and I just started a brioche knit scarf.

Habits
• Drink at least 1.5 litre of water a day - Maybe I should start a streak for this too.
• Continue Duolingo and Lumosity daily exercises
• Do some form of exercise daily
• Make sure the dishes are done daily
  

Here's to a successful 2025!

Monday miscellany - 12Nov2018

Forgive me, reader - it's been 5 weeks since my last update.

Life has been busy, although mostly in good ways. Since my last update, DH and I have been on a lovely two-week vacation to Europe. One week of that was a Rhine river cruise on Uniworld (highly recommended), followed by a few days knocking about the Netherlands and Belgium. I may write more about it later, but right now I'm still fighting an unplanned and unwanted souvenir in the form of a head cold. Fortunately I was able to get some good medicine overseas and other than keeping DH awake with my congested snoring, it didn't slow me down much. Now that we're back home, it's taken more of a toll on me but I hope that I'm on the mend.

Anyway, on to the update!

What I've been reading.... Travel is usually good for a reading binge, and this time was no exception. I finished _Straight Outta Tombstone_, and have also read Shirley Jackson's classic _The Haunting of Hill House_, Brandon Sanderson's _Legion: The Many Lives of Stephen Leeds_, and a short story collection edited by Ellen Datlow called _Haunted Nights_.
My current read is Evangeline Walton's _Mabinogion Tetralogy_, and I'm about 40% through. I've had it for years and somehow it had never bubbled its way to the top of my TBR pile despite my love of mythology. I'm familiar with many of the stories, but Walton's treatment really does bring them to life.

What I've been stitching... I've made some progress on Fantasy Triptych over the past 5 weeks, but nothing significant. I don't usually travel with larger stitching projects, so it's been several weeks since I've picked up a needle. I did finish a small crocheted throw for DD, but that's about it.

Fumbling toward fitness There have been some good weeks and some stumbles. I did clock about 42 miles of walking while we were in Europe, for an average of 3 miles a day, so that's a positive development. Hopefully I can keep up the increased activity level, once I've recuperated from this cold.
On the mental fitness front, my Duolingo streak is still going strong, but losing track of time one night cost me a 285-day Lumosity streak, and I haven't yet managed to get back on track with that.

One Little Victory We had gotten a call the week before our trip that there was a chance the ship might not be able to sail the entire path due to the Rhine being at record lows. We went anyway, and saw enough rain on the trip to be able to make the entire voyage. And it was spectacular.

Monday miscellany - 9July2018

The one downside of vacationing away is that in a sense you need a vacation to recover, especially when you have laundry and other tasks to catch up on. We're pretty much caught up now, though.

What I've been reading... I don't think I've read at all for leisure the past week, so I'm still about 45% through _Wrath of Empire_.

What I've been stitching... Now stitching, I did do, and am continuing to make good progress on Dark Shards. I'm hoping to finish this month, which seems an achievable goal.

Fumbling toward fitness... Much fumbling, little fitness. I didn't make it by Curves or on the treadmill last week. I've already made it by Curves today, though, so I'm already ahead for this coming week. I'm still keeping up my Duolingo and Lumosity streaks, though. I've also started using the MyFitnessPal app again as of today, so hopefully that will be as helpful as the last time I used it regularly.

One Little Victory For the Fourth, we watched the Boston Pops on the Bloomberg channel. Their coverage was almost as good as A&E's used to be back in the day, and far better than when the major networks were covering it. Also, Rhiannon Giddens has an amazing voice, and I had never heard of her before last week.

Monday miscellany - 2July2018

It's a bit hard to believe that the year is half over already.

There was no update last week because DH and I were on vacation. I had a long weekend in Phoenix visiting with stitching friends, then we spent a wonderful week in Austin visiting his sister and her family. We enjoyed the visit and having downtime, as well as plentiful samplings of Austin's best food and craft brews.

Back to the grind today, however, and back to my normal routine.

What I've been reading... Flying almost always provides me ample time to read, and I read Brian McClellan's short story "The Siege of Tilpur", Brian Staveley's _Skullsworn_, and Jim Butcher's _Brief Cases_. I'm now about 45% through Brian McClellan's _Wrath of Empire_, the second book in his second Powder Mage trilogy.

What I've been stitching... Visiting stitching friends meant a fair bit of stitching time, and I'm now about 2/3 through Ink Circles "Dark Shards".

Fumbling toward fitness Being on vacation meant there wasn't much fitness happening, although I probably did manage to drink a litre of water every day. My Duolingo and Lumosity streaks are still going strong, so there's that.

One Little Victory Austin has some really neat craft breweries, ciderworks, and meaderies. Our favorite brewery visit this trip was to 4th Tap Brewing - all of their beers were great, and we really loved the vibe.

Monday miscellany - 21May2018

We're just coming off a wonderful long weekend spent down in Key West. DH and I went down this past Thursday night for a concert - Styx and Blue Öyster Cult as a double bill, which was every bit as awesome as one might expect. When the concert was first announced, we decided to just make a long weekend of it, since I'd never been to the Keys before despite living in Florida the past 27 years, and DH had only ever been on business.

As long as we were there, we visited the Hemingway House, Ripley's, the Little White House, Fort Taylor, and a number of very good food and drink establishments both in Key West and along our route. We ended our time in Key West with Mass at St Mary Star of the Sea. Local legend holds that as long as its grotto, built in 1922, still stands, Key West will be spared the worst of hurricane damage. That legend has held up so far, including Irma last year - Key West got off very lightly considering Irma made landfall only 20 miles east, so perhaps there is something to the legend. All in all, we had a wonderful time in the Keys, and will likely go back someday.

What I've been reading... I did bring my Kindle with me, and so Father Brown did accompany us, although I didn't spend much time in his company - I'm on page 539 of 761.

What I've been stitching... I didn't stitch at all over the past week, and so didn't quite reach my goal of finishing the camel by Pentecost, but I am within a couple hours of doing so, and with a long weekend coming up, I expect to have completed it by next update.

Fumbling toward fitness... I did continue my Duolingo and Lumosity streaks, but I neither went to Curves nor treadmilled last week. According to Google Maps, though, we walked about 8 miles over our trip, not counting time on our feet inside museums. Hemingway's polydactyl cats may not care about the "Do not sit on the furniture" signs, but we obeyed them.

One Little Victory Despite the heavy rains besieging much of Florida, we had wonderful weather while we were out and about in Key West - we only saw rain on the way there and as we were departing.

Monday miscellany - 8Jan2018

Happy New Year! Life got quite busy toward the middle of 2017 and I just fell out of the habit of updates. It's a new year, and time to get back on track.

First, a quick review of last year's goals:

• Read 10,000 pages - For the first time in many years, I actually failed to make my reading goal, coming in at just under 5000. If I count graphic novels, that adds another 3500 or so, but still puts me short. Still, hopefully I can reach 10,000 pages this year.
• Do 10 101List items - To be honest, I lost sight of the 101List that served me well for a while. My latest 1001 days expired and it was a month before I even noticed. I probably did complete several of the tasks, but I think the time has come to move away from the 101List and perhaps start a more general to-do list or bucket list. I won't be carrying this goal forward anymore.
• Isengard to Minas Tirith (Gandalf and Pippin's path) - I'm at 337 of 517, so there was some movement over the year, but I stalled out for a while. I should get there this year though.

So, with that said, my goals for 2018 are:

• Read 10,000 pages
• Isengard to Minas Tirith
• Lose 25 pounds - There is a number I'm trying to reach, but I'll just put it as how much I want to lose rather than admit that number.
• Put together master to-do/bucket list

Moving on to the weekly update format:

What I've been reading... Since last update, I finished Brian Staveley's _Providence of Fire_, and read Neil Gaiman's _Norse Mythology_ and Brian McClellan's _Sins of Empire_. I also read the entirety of Neil Gaiman's Sandman comics, including the ones not on the main story arc, such as the Death compilation. Adding to my graphic novel tally was Alan Moore's _Watchmen_, which was fascinating but perhaps slightly dated in a post-Cold War society.
My current book is Brandon Sanderson's _Oathbringer_, book 3 in his Stormlight Archive series. I'm on page 796 of 1248. Yes, you read that number correctly. I'm very glad I'm reading it on Kindle.

What I've been crafting... Since last update, I finished the Star of Donegal crochet afghan, and Papillon Creations' _Around the World in 80 Stitches_. I finished the knight panel of Teresa Wentzler's _Fantasy Triptych_, and will work on the castle panel later this year.
I am currently stitching on the shepherd boy panel of the gigantic MarBek Nativity.

Fumbling toward fitness The remainder of 2017 was pretty much a loss as far as fitness goals. I am trying to climb back on that wagon, and did make it to Curves today. I am trying to get back into a Monday/Wednesday/Friday routine with it.

One Little Victory DH and I capped off our 2017 with an empty-nest trip to Asheville, NC. We had a wonderful time, seeing a family friend and enjoying lots of good food and good beer - we visited 3 breweries and 2 cideries, and there is so much more we could have done. We will have to go back sometime.

Monday Miscellany - 25Jul16

It's been 3 weeks since I blogged - I could have sworn I blogged the 11th, but apparently not.

However, I did not blog last week because we took a family vacation to Toronto! We had a great time, a good mix of seeing/doing and relaxation. We even did an escape room one day.

DD is relatively recently vegan (though DH and I are not), and she had a list of vegan restaurants to visit. We did make it it all but one of them, and other than a rather disappointing exception, all were pretty good. We even found a few places (both vegan and vegan-friendly) that weren't on the list that were worth the trip. Toronto was lovely, and at least at the beginning of the week, the weather was nice. There was a bit of a heat wave toward the end, but it was still cooler than back here in Florida.

Some highlights of the trip:

• Doomie's - vegan 'junk food'. So good we went there twice, and still haven't figured out what wizardry they used to create an amazing vegan creme brulee.
• Gardens! We visited the Toronto Botanical Garden, the Toronto Music Garden, and especially the Royal Botanical Gardens. All beautiful, and the RBG was quite extensive - we didn't see everything because it was just too hot outside, but greatly enjoyed what we did see.
• Taste Bistro in St. Catharine's. Not a vegan place, but very vegan-friendly in that menu items that were vegan or could be veganized were very clearly indicated. DD had some very tasty dishes so done, DH had an arctic char and I had an Alberta beef tenderloin. We all enjoyed it very much, and it was an excellent surprise - we had driven to St. Catharine's to visit a vegan place that we weren't able to get into because they were packed. But as long as we were planning to visit St. Catharine's anyway, we signed up for...
• The Hour - an escape room venue. The three of us did one of the harder rooms (since she'd done an escape room before), and we nearly solved it in time, and had a blast doing it.

No matter how good a vacation is, it is still good to be back home, so back to business at hand. With a bit of catch-up, of course.

What I've been reading... I finished _As You Wish_, read two Doctor Who themed short story collections (_Legends of Ashildr_ and _Time Lord Fairy Tales_), _Jane Eyre_ by Charlotte Bronte (one of DD's summer reading assignments), and I'm 2/3 through _Great Expectations_ by Charles Dickens (DD's other summer reading assignment). I've actually enjoyed the summer reading more than I expected that I would.

What I've been stitching... I've done a few more hours on Ink Circles "Tapestry", but that's it. I took Tapestry on vacation with me, but didn't stitch at all.

Fumbling toward fitness... I only made it to Curves 3 times in the two weeks before vacation, mostly due to trip preparations. I did 389 minutes for 20.27 miles on the treadmill, and about 14 miles walking around in Toronto over the past week (not counting airports). So I've not been a total slacker, but I need to get back into routine this week.

One Little Victory A fun family vacation and a safe homecoming.

I go back to work tomorrow, and hopefully will be able to get back into the groove readily enough.

PostWIPocalyptica - June update

This month's WIPocalypse update is late, even for me. It's closer to the new moon than the full, and it's not even June anymore. What happened?

Vacation happened, primarily. We went to the UK for two weeks and had a wonderful time. I'll post the travelog later - unlike previous trips I didn't write it as I go. So that might be a while in the works.

Other news is that I have another grandson now, born at the end of June.

But back to my stitching update. There really wasn't much progress this month, only a mere 21 hours on Nativity, for a total of 230:

(Click for larger image)

At this point, even 250 hours for this panel may be an underestimation. The star itself is done, but the side rays need to be done, and the whole upper halves of the angels as well. I'm kind of kicking myself for being so off the mark on this, but it is what it is.

I did no other stitching this month. I kitted up Ink Circles' clef series ("Here Comes Treble", "Alto Gether Now", and "First Bass") to work on while overseas, but never started it.

I am really hoping to finish Nativity this month.

---

In non-stitching achievements, I'm up to 412 consecutive walking days. I can't really say 'treadmill' anymore, because there wasn't one for miles around when I was in the UK. However, I did walk every day - a total of 25 miles over that two weeks, much of that on hills or uneven ground. Definitely a great calf workout. It's been solely treadmill since I returned, although I had a bit of a worry a couple days ago when it had a belt slowness issue. Fortunately I was able to adjust it and all is fine again.

Hopefully July's update will actually happen in July, and that I'll have a finish to show off!

Mangia, mangia! (Rome 2010 - 8/9)

Madri Pie, 30 June 2010

Back at the hotel, and it's after midnight. We had a formal lunch at the Archbishop's hotel, and a very nice reception tonight at La Perla in Castel Gandolfo. It was a 6-course dinner, and several priests gave speeches. One of them did an absolutely hilarious impersonation standup of Harry Carey and Howard Cosell describing the Pallium Mass as a sporting event, and he was spot on for them, as well as the Holy Father, the Archbishop, and several presidents. The whole room was in stitches.

We also got served some nice wine, and prosecco - the rose processo was especially nice.

This was our fourth multicourse meal this trip - we had dinner at Cecilia Metella last night, and I learned a new card game from a couple of boys at my table - a pickup/match game called Scorvo (Ed: this turned out to be Scopa with an American deck...). It definitely passed the time between courses.

Madri Pie, 1 July 2010

This morning we had Mass at St.Peter-in-Chains (S. Pietro in Vincoli), built around the two sets of chains that held St. Peter in Jerusalem and in Rome. S. Pietro in Vincoli dates from the 5th century, but most of the interior is newer. This most famous art here is Michelangelo's "Moses", which was neat, but I found inspiration for future design work in the borders and mosaics. I'm finding a lot of inspiration as we visit old basilicas. Yesterday we had Mass at the cathedral in Albano, near Castel Gandolfo - there was some inspiration there as well, despite it being a somewhat more modern interior. There were some neat frescoes of St. Helen, and Constantine seeing the cross in the sky.

Today after St. Peter-in-Chains, we walked through the Colosseum and the Forum. I'd seen both before, but we had a wonderful tour guide, art historian Dr. Elizabeth Lev, and it was very cool seeing how these places intertwined with early Christianity. Liz also had an engaging speaking style and sense of humor.

Live...from St. Peter's Square... (Rome 2010 - 7/9)

St. Peter's Square, 30 June 2010

We're in St. Peter's Square, waiting for the Papal audience to start. We're three rows from the front, so we have an excellent view. The cameras and security are being set up, and a marching band just came in. They look Austrian with bright red vests, short black pants, and brown feathered caps. They sound great, and are a pleasant distraction from the sun beating down on us.

....

We've been here 90 minutes, with 60 minutes left to go before the Holy Father arrives. I can't even begin to estimate how many people are here. My ticket number is near 18000, though, so 20,000 could be a modest estimate.

Thirty minutes out, and the brass band has been joined by a pipe-and-drum band dressed in black medieval-looking robes and frilly collars.

There was also an impromptu performance by a boy's choir behind us, and the Panamanian contingent nearby was just singing. Not sure if it's Battle of the Bands, or Vatican Idol, but it passes the time.

---

The Holy Father's address was in Italian, after a reading from Paul's letter to the Romans in Italian, French, English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Polish. After the address are greetings and prayers for groups by language, with a shorter address in each language by the Holy Father - he has a definite German accent to his English. In the callouts, I learned that the brass band was indeed Austrian, the boy's choir behind us is from Ireland, and the pipe-and-drum band from Spain. There are several other choirs in the audience, all of whom have sung when called out.

With music in her heart... (Rome 2010 - 6/9)

29 June 2010

This afternoon we went down to Trastevere - by taxi this time because of the heat - to visit St. Cecilia's. We'd been there before, but it is a nice little church and we wanted to visit again, since St. Cecilia is DD's patron saint. St. Cecilia's is connected to a Benedictine convent, with a small garden in front. Inside, it's a little baroque, with some white and gold, and vivid frescoes and mosaics. There were lilies everywhere, and the side aisles had painted murals and ongoing restoration.

What made the trip most worthwhile was the crypt area. St. Cecilia's is built atop the original 4th century church, which was built on St. Cecilia's own house and the site of her martyrdom. This time we were able to get into the original crypt chapel - last time we were here, it was locked.

It was amazingly beautiful - floor to ceiling mosaics in red, blue, and gold, with more muted mosaicwork near the ceiling on the walls.

We could see the area behind the altar, where the remains of St. Cecilia and her husband are, stone sarcophagi stacked atop each other. It was very still and cool, since it was underground. Other excavations outside the chapel are ongoing, and it's cool and damp. Some of the original mosaic floors from the Roman house are visible.

Looking at the bits and pieces of old and new (where 'new' means 'only 4 centuries') I got a few ideas for cross-stitch designs. I had an idea in St. Peter's as well, inspired by the marblework on one of the columns. I'll have to explore this further.


(Ed: This is the place I most regret my photos not turning out. There are some photos online, at least. Too bad there's no VR tour for this one..)

"..et super hanc petram aedificabo Ecclesiam meam" (Rome 2010 - 5/9)

Madri Pie, 29 June 2010

We're taking a break - after Mass we went to the Pontifical North American College (a seminary near the Vatican) to a reception for the three North American archbishops - besides Miami, Milwaukee and Cincinnati also got new archbishops.

The Pallium Mass was lengthy, but rather neat - most of the Mass was in Latin, but the homily and greetings were Italian. The Prayers of the Faithful were a varied collection of languages, including Korean and Vietnamese. It was fitting,though, considering the 38 new archbishops are spread throughout every populated continent except Australia (which is small enough that they probably don't need new archbishops very often).

Communion was a slightly chaotic affair - although there were quite a number of priests dispensing, spread throughout the nave, it seemed like people would still try to shove their way forward. I suppose, though, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Exiting the basilica was demonstration of that! I got separated from my family several times in the press of the crowd. Kind of embarrassing being cut off by packs of diminutive nuns, but I suppose I probably cut folks off myself trying to catch up to my family. There seem to be two kinds of people when it comes to crowd control - those who tend to queue and wait, and those who just shove their way forward without regard for others. But I suppose that's human nature.

Other than the crowd issues, it was enjoyable. On both the procession and recession, groups of folks applauded or cheered their archbishop as he passed, and of course the Holy Father was the center of attention. And of security - the rather colorful Vatican guards preceded and followed the procession, and a number of other, less conspicuous, men in suits were spaced throughout the nave, keeping people from hanging over the barrier or standing on chairs. I imagine it's a very restrictive mix, being spiritual leader of a billion people with numerous public responsibilities, combined with the necessary security protocols for a head of state.

"Tu es Petrus..." (Rome 2010 - 4/9)

I'm sitting in the nave at St. Peter's, waiting for the Pallium Mass to start. Archbishop Wenski is one of 38 archbishops from around the world receiving a pallium from the Holy Father today. The archbishop held Mass here yesterday, and beforehand we got to wander around a bit and take pictures. There was a sweeper driving around here keeping the floor clean - it looked like a miniature zamboni.

St. Peter's is quite huge, and also makes much use of marble and bronze. Where St. Maria Maggiore was vividly decorated, St. Peter's is primarily white and gold,with more muted tones used in the marble.

Yesterday's Mass with the Archbishop was actually a capella, because the musicians had gone with the other half of the group to Assisi. Since we'd been to Assisi in the past, we opted to stay in Rome. We had a large block of free time yesterday, so DD and I wandered around a bit through St. Peter's Square and around. Lesson learned: don't buy from the vendors directly near the square - they charge outrageous prices, and a block's walk can get the same items for half the price. If it's water you want, there are public fountains all over, free-flowing and surprisingly cold. Quite refreshing!

Yesterday evening we attended Vespers at St.Paul-outside-the-Walls, celebrated by the Holy Father. Seating was 90 minutes beforehand, and security was pretty tight. The choicest seats were right beside the aisle, and we managed to sit two seats in from there. We got a very nice glimpse of the Holy Father as he passed by. He seems a bit on the short side, but at 83 that's perhaps to be expected. He did seem to be in good spirits.

Vespers was in Latin, although the prayers and readings were in other languages - each intercession in the Prayers of the Faithful was in a different language. Everyone in the congregation got a booklet to follow along and participate, and it makes a good keepsake. Pope Benedict XVI has a nice cadence to his speaking voice, especially during his homily. Many of the Mass and prayer parts are sung, especially in Latin, and either he is a merely adequate singer, or his voice isn't well-suited to Gregorian chant. Or it could be age - the oldest priest at our parish is of similar age and vocal quality.

St.Paul's looks even better with the lights on inside, and I could see details I'd missed the day before. One neat feature it has is portraits of all of the successors of Peter, running clockwise around the nave, with the current pope's portrait always lit.

After Vespers, we walked to Trastevere, about 45 minutes from the hotel. We ate at Taverna de Mercanti, a very nice restaurant across from St. Cecilia's. I had a mixed grill with chicken, quail, pork, beef and lamb, and a very good house wine. For the most part, you can't go wrong with just having the house wine in Italy. I've discovered that the reduced effect I see from Italian wines is because most don't contain sulfites. Why would they, when wine is so prevalent that it doesn't need preservation?

(Virtual tour of St. Peter's Basilica)

...Back to Basilicas... (Rome 2010 - 3/9)

(27 June, continued)
After Santa Croce, we went to St. John Lateran, the oldest legal church in Rome. It was founded by Emperor Constantine in 313, on the site of the battle that made him emperor after a vision showing a cross and the words "In hoc signo vinces" ("In this sign you shall be victorious"). Roman emperors would often build temples to gods when they won battles - in Constantine's case, this was Christ, so the Christians in Rome got their first church...and got to stop being persecuted.

St. John Lateran, considered the mother of all Roman churches, doesn't completely resemble its 4th century origins - it was severely damaged by fire in the 16th century. It is the same size, which is rather large, and some of the mosaics and frescoes salvaged from the original were incorporated into the new. The nave is quite large, with marble tiled floors, and larger-than-life sculptures of the Apostles in ornate marble niches on either side.

The apse has a very large gilt mosaic of Christ and the apostles, reaching up into the dome. There are also two ornate side chapels, at least that I saw. The one downside to being on a tour is that there really wasn't as much time as I'd have liked to just explore the place further.

The next stop in our whirlwind tour of really early churches was St.Paul-outside-the-Walls, built on the site of a shrine that housed the mortal remains of St. Paul after his martyrdom. This church was also rebuilt after a fire in 1823. Unlike Santa Croce and the Lateran basilica, it didn't get a kitschy neo-classical facade in the 18th century. Apparently when tourists looking at classical history started outnumbering the pilgrims visiting Rome, the government put neoclassical facades on the more popular tourist spots. (Until then, the Lateran was just a boring brick building on the outside and beautiful on the inside.)

St. Paul's actually has a large courtyard in front, as initially designed, with a statue of the Apostle in the center. The facade has some nice gilt frescoes, and the nave is quite beautiful, with mosaics and frescoes from the life of St. Paul. At the time of its building, it was the largest church in the world, a title it held until the building of the cathedral in Florence. There are two side altars of malachite, and impressive works in stone and marble.

Before the high altar area, a little staircase leads down to where the sarcophagus of St. Paul is. There's unfortunately not much of Paul left (gee thanks, pirates...) but the chains that bound him are on display. Like the Lateran, I wish we'd had more time.

The one I most regret not staying longer at was St. Maria Maggiore. Like the Lateran and Holy Cross, it ended up with a neoclassical facade, but inside it was absolutely beautiful. It is quite opulent, with mosaics and guilding, but I was most struck by the use of a staggering variety of colors of marble in the decorations.

We had Mass with the Archbishop in the Pauline (Borghese) Chapel there, so I had time to admire the use of marble and sculpture in that small space. I got to see very little of the rest, though, and would love to go back again.

After our all-too-brief tour, we attended a reception for the Archbishop at the home of the US Ambassador to the Holy See, Miguel Diaz. With all the august personages there, I felt a little out of my depth, but it was a nice reception anyway. And the Archbishop was joking about matchmaking DD with the Ambassador's 13-year-old son, which was amusing but embarrassed DD a bit.

The evening after then has been quiet - a gelato and some dinner, and tomorrow will mostly be free.

(The Vatican website has some very nice virtual tours:

St. John Lateran

St. Paul outside the Walls

St. Mary Major

Very good picture quality, and a blessing since most of my interior pics didn't turn out...)

Vacations

Just got back from a week's vacation up in the mountains of Virginia. We've been up there before, and we really love it up there. (I wouldn't mind retiring there, to be honest). I really like getting to where there is real weather and terrain.

The only problem with vacation is coming home. I'm glad to be home, but I don't miss having to learn to breathe water again, and I *certainly* didn't miss the mid-90F that is outside temperature today. Or the unpacking and trying to get resettled into one's routine that always follows vacation - one needs a vacation to recover from vacation!

Surprisingly, I didn't miss net access much. Maybe that's a good thing.