Roma, 2009

The last time that DW and I had someone waiting for us at an airport was in 1997, in Seoul, South Korea. A fellow teacher had met us so that we could find our way to Chŏnju without any difficulty. She held a piece of paper that simply showed our first names, but because she was one of only a few white people in the crowd of people who were waiting for someone, it was easy to see her before we read her sign.

While we were expecting a welcoming person in Korea, we were not expecting one in Rome, on Thursday, September 23, 2009. And yet, a young gentleman in a suit held a sign that had DW's and my blended surname, by which only our dearest friends know us: BROWNFOOT.

The main reason that we chose Rome as our first destination on our Italian vacation was a dear friend who was posted at the Embassy of Canada. We hadn't seen her for a couple of years, since she left Ottawa, and she generously offered us rooms at her house while we stayed in Rome.

And now, we saw, she had also sent a driver to collect us at the airport and bring us to her place.

Our friend greeted us at the door and showed us to our rooms: one for DW and me; another, for the kids. Once we were oriented with her place, our friend had to excuse herself to return to work, with a promise to meet us that evening, for dinner.

The kids wanted to nap but DW and I knew from experience that it's harder to adjust to a time shift if you don't try to stay awake. We freshened ourselves and headed out.

We wandered the neighbourhood and worked our way to where we could find public transit. Our destination was the seat of the Roman Catholic Church. We cut through a part of Villa Borghese and made our way to Piazza del Popolo, where I shot a few photos as we crossed the plaza and headed down Via del Corso, where we caught a bus that would take us to Vatican City.

We were all tired, but our young kids protested until we got off the bus, walked through the archways and stepped into St. Peter's Square. The overwhelming size of it silenced them and they started running around, chasing pigeons, while DW and I got into the line for St. Peter's Basilica. Our eldest even found a worn depression in the stone ground, near the lineup, and was amazed to find that it fit her hand like a glove.

The line was long but moved steadily, and soon we found ourselves inside this enormous church, where I took many photos as we moved through the throng of people. I was especially taken by the light that cut through the windows around the dome, the beams of sunlight like solid columns.

Once finished our tour, we walked out to Via San Pio X, where we caught a mini-bus that took us through the heart of the city, passing the Pantheon, the Altare della Patria (where we could look down Via dei Fori Imperiali and see the Colosseum), the Trevi Fountain, and ended up in a neighbourhood not far from our host. We trudged back to her house to eat and relax for the evening.

The kids were exhausted and retired shortly after dinner. DW and I chatted with our friend until we couldn't hold our heads up anymore, and we also retired for the night.

Tomorrow was going to be our first full day in Rome and had a full itinerary. Stay tuned...