Italy Pilgrimage: Arrival and Pope Sighting!
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Our Italy Pilgrimage has gotten off to a great start! The travel from Cedar Rapids to Florence, Italy was smooth and uneventful. Our first day in Florence, however, was very eventful! Soon after we got onto the bus to be transported to our hotel, our tour guide informed us that Pope Francis was visiting Florence today and we would have the opportunity to see him. This was exciting news indeed and an unexpected blessing and bonus to our pilgrimage! As soon as we arrived at the hotel we gathered ourselves together to walk a few blocks to the Basilica of the Most Holy Annunciation where the Pope was scheduled to arrive at noon to pray the Angelus. Much to our surprise, we ended up standing near the front of the crowd directly in front of the church. Just before noon, the crowd started going wild and then, all of the sudden, there was Pope Francis riding up in the Pope mobile, smiling and waving at the crowds! We watched as he departed the Pope mobile not more than 50 feet from us and entered the church. After praying the Angelus, the Pope came out of the church and, in typical Francis style, turned his attention to the crowd.
Before we knew what was happening, he was coming our way. The Pope walked down the barricade that was keeping the crowd contained, greeting and shaking hands with those at the front of the crowd as he went. Most of our group was in the third row and within arms length of the joy-filled Pope of encounter. We truly had an unexpected, grace-filled encounter that we will never forget!
The Pope then continued on to lunch and our group dispersed to find lunch ourselves. While some of the group was eating in a Pizzeria, all of the sudden there was some ruckous outside and we got up to see Pope Francis riding by in the Pope mobile! I guess it's just another day in Italy...but for us this has already been the experience of a lifetime.
In addition to seeing the Pope, we had a walking tour of Florence, Mass at the Church of San Lorenzo, and experienced a filling Italian dinner. Now for some rest and then onto our second day in Florence. Prayers and blessings for St. Joseph parish coming from the pilgrims in Italy! And thank you for your prayers for us!