Our life, the fairytale

We're finally here!!

Piazza del Popolo

It didn't quite sink in at first. Even once we'd arrived. Even once we were at the hotel. Even once we walked around and Graham had his first glimpse of St. Peter's. Even once we found our apartment, moved our bags in and gave the deposit. It wasn't until we spent our first night in our own bed and awoke to the sound of the Italian ambulance on the streets outside and the hollers of our Italian neighbors that I began to understand what we are actually experiencing.


I live with a boy. Yesterday I ironed his shirt and slacks and set them on the bed. Later I made dinner as he napped from our adventures of the dinner. Playing house with him would be enough. We unpacked our bags and filled our first closet together. That was as much of an adventure as taking him to Piazza Navona or explaining the symbolism of Borromini's work at St. Ivo alle Sapienza. Simply spending everyday with him would be enough to keep a perpetual smile on my face. But to do it in Rome... is it too much of a cliche to say that I have to keep pinching myself to make sure it's real?


Yesterday we went to St. Peter's. I've been there practically a million times, and feel more at home there than in many places in LA, but it was an entirely new experience to share it with Graham and see his reaction to everything. It was like seeing it for the first time all over again.

We didn't take anything too seriously in the Piazza before we went in. Apparently Christmas is a season-long celebration here, as they still have the big Christmas tree up and an AMAZING nativity scene. But after all, this is the Vatican, if anybody is going to do a nativity right, is should be here. Decorations are up all over the city too, they even have buildings wrapped like presents!


I feel like I may be bombarding Graham with a bit too much art history all at once. It seems everywhere we go I'll stop him, point something out, explain it's meaning, context, purpose, and relation to every single thing around it. He humbles me though, and at least puts on a good front that he enjoys it. Occasionally I do have genuinely interesting things to add :) Like...
The pope gives his weekly papal addresses from the top floor, second window from the right.

Once we made it through the metal detectors, it wasn't long before Graham continued his habit of spotting superior quality speakers :)

Apparently the Vatican really does buy from Bose! (Ok, I may have been more excited about this than him). My favorite part was that they painted the speakers inside so that they blended in with the marble they were up against.

Inside we were instantly speechless. It's hard not to be. We probably stood for a good 5 minutes, motionless, and just took it all in. St. Peter's is so massive that I don't even know how to articulate in words or capture in photos. Imagine a 10 story mall, empty out EVERYTHING so that it is one GIANT room, and you might get some sort of fuzzy glimpse. No matter your beliefs about religion, you can't help but feel humbled and reverent within its gilded and marble walls.

We spent a good couple hours slowly exploring everything. I think it might have awoken the good little Catholic boy within Graham. He became somber and serious. We both became very calm and aware. There weren't any jokes or giggles. We left them outside. We then went downstairs to the tomb of the popes. We saw the grave of John Paul II and the altar for the remains of St. Peter. When we came back up, mass was starting in the front of the cathedral beneath Bernini's Chair of St. Peter. We stopped to watch. No pictures. After a while, the attendant motioned for us to sit. So we did. While a may have no words to describe the beauty of St.Peter's, I have even fewer to describe experiencing mass there. It was magical and brought me to tears. Uncontrollable tears. To be there. Under Bernini. In Rome. With the love of my life. I cannot begin to tell you how much it moved me.


Today we went to the open market. It's like a gigantic farmer's market. I went there all the time when I was here studying abroad. It's such a buzzing vibrant environment full of bustling locals. They sell everything from fruits and veggies, to fish, to pizza, to flowers and sheet sets. It's absolutely amazing, and we had so much fun!

Graham even found "perfect" tomatoes :) Judge for yourself... the picture we took of them is now the page header!