(Tuesday and Wednesday)
By comparison, yesterday must have been one of our most relaxing days on this pilgrimage so far. After a beautiful night sleep in the B&B Hotel Firenze Novoli, we broke our fast and began our stroll into the timeless city of Florence. Once we arrived in the main piazza, underneath the giant statue of angry Dante Alighieri, we were set free for two hours and given leave to do whatever we want (within the bounds of reasonable moral judgement).
Being in Florence, a city famous for its leather works, a good number of us b-lined straight for Peruzzi, famous for its leather craftsmanship. We watched a demonstration about how to spot genuine Italian leather, how it should feel and how it should smell. Now with a professional eye, I began to inspect their wares. Not wanting to frivolously waste my euros, I decided upon a wallet that would double as a souvenir and a practical accessory. They even inlaid my initials S.M.F. with white gold for free.
Leaving some stragglers behind a small contingent of us went off for a short exploration of the city. Florence is another stunning city, hiding beautiful treasures of art and architecture around every corner.
Here are some shots of the city square and streets.
Eventually it was time to leave and we all jumped back on the bus and departed for Padua. As usual we were briefed on the bus and given a few details about the city of Padua and the life of St. Anthony. We also went in for round 2 of question time with the Bishop. This time the questions focused on marriage and sexuality, exploring the topic of nullity and how to enter into a respectful moral dialogue with others.
When we arrived in Padua, the first thing we noticed was the change in architecture. While the architecture in Florence and Sienna was had Western Renaissance style, Padua seemed to be influenced more by the oriental East. Our faithful tour guide Davor also pointed out that the Piazza in Padua was the biggest in all of Europe.
Try to ignore the mashed potato heads, it is an unfortunate effect of trying to do a panorama shot on the fly.
After a few minutes of walking through the beautiful square, we arrived at the Basilica of St. Anthony. A picture will describe it much better than my words ever could.
Unfortunately, this was another case where photos were not allowed to be taken on the inside, except for the interior garden which I have captured below.
The interior of the Church held over 60 images and frescoes of Our Lady with the child Jesus. All of which were painted in the style where the eyes follow you around. This led to a peculiar feeling of never being alone in the Church.
The most amazing part of the Basilica was the jawbone, tongue and vocal chords of St. Anthony still amazingly preserved in the golden reliquaries. They say the rest of his remains turned to dust while these things remained incorrupt. This is fitting, given that St. Anthony was widely known for his incredible preaching. Also contained within the reliquaries were bone fragments of Saint John Paul II and Saint Faustina, also fitting, given the current jubilee year of Mercy. I also had the opportunity to pray at the tomb of St. Anthony, and press my rosary beads against his tombstone.
Pretty soon we were on the bus again and flying towards Venice, our destination for dinner and sleep. Our dinner was incredibly not pasta or pizza, but a vegetable soup! This was accepted with glee, and a wonderful change from carbohydrates to vitamins.
Returning to my hotel room I noticed the smell emanating from my luggage bag. It was time to wash my clothes. After roaming the streets looking for a laundromat I finally found a little place on the corner. I chucked in all my clothes and let it go to work. When I came back I found a group of fellow pilgrims down trodden with the news that security had come and said the laundry was closing in 10 minutes. With a minute to go in my wash cycle I hit emergency stop and flung my clothes into the dryer on max heat. A few shrunken clothes was better than no clothes at all. Luckily the security guard was late (thank the Lord for Italian smoko) and my clothes were bone dry. Sorting them out I noticed there was a sock missing. Having Anthony on the brain, I, almost half jokingly, offered up a prayer. Funnily enough I found it almost immediately stuck to the top of the washing machine. I dried it overnight by hanging it on a air-con vent and wear it now as a sign of thanksgiving!
God bless
Sam
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