Sunday morning with the papa

We got up just in time to hear the last 30 seconds of the pope's speech this morning. What an amazing experience to get up, walk to the Vatican and see the pope himself, in person, wishing thousands of Italians and visitors a happy Sunday. Here is a picture of him in the window where he delivers a speech every Sunday morning.

We walked to our favorite store with specialty foods from around the world. I couldn't help taking a picture of the American section, as the Skippy and Hershey syrup made me nostalgic for my childhood and my American home. We also bought a panetone, to join in the holiday spirit. It was wrapped in shiny, glittery, yellow paper and tied closed with red and green Christmas ribbon. I almost felt like I should wait until Christmas morning to open it because it was wrapped so nicely. Instead we opened it right when we got home and ate some. It is about 20 lbs of sweet, moist bread, complete with raisins and other dried fruits. We were hoping to find a Christmas tree to liven up our apartment, but couldn't figure out how to get one home on the bus...another time a car would be useful. Either way, we had a nice Sunday walking around the center with the rest of Rome doing their Christmas shopping. The Tevere river is officially overflowing because we have had so much rain, but the last 2 days have been gorgeous meno male (thank goodness). Christmas lights are flooding Trastevere, making the city even more beautiful at night. Tomorrow is a holiday and we are both welcoming the time off from teaching! We have both vowed to not mention our lessons until Monday night.