Italy “Italia”

Bueuno!

Thanks to the nice people of Italy, the trip members from Akwesasne were able to add a few Italian words to their vocabulary. Not much, but tourist language.

Thanks to a good tour guide, we were able to see spectacular sights. In Venice, participants were able to ride a gondola in the narrow water canals and dine at an outside café. The parts of Venice where there were streets were crowded with tourists, hustlers and beggars. The tour was able to take a two-deck boat to two islands. One island, Murano, was famous for their blown glass. The other island, Burano, is noted for their hand lace.

After staying in Venice for three days, the tour group was able to visit a winery in Tuscany. The winery featured grape bushes and olive trees. We were then treated to a banquet of pasta, bread, salad and the winery’s own white and/or red wine, or water if that was your preference. The scenery was gorgeous and a little warmer than Venice.

After visiting the winery in Tuscany, the bus headed for the Tower of Pisa. It was everything you expected: a huge tower looming in the sky with a slight tilt to it. After some of the group experiencing being pick pocketed, most of the group was a little more conscientious of hiding their wallets and purses.

We stayed in the small city of Montecatini, as place of spas and healing waters. One night we were able to attend an opera. Florence was another city that was toured. Florence was a city known for Italian leather. As well, it was the commercial center for Italy. We were taken to the spot where the south road met the north road to and from Rome. Florence was a magnificent site for cathedrals and statues sculpted by some of the great artists such as Michelangelo.

Finally, our last three days were the ancient city of Rome. This city was more encompassing than any textbook or tour guide could illustrate. The artwork – the sculptures, the paintings, the renaissance and gothic designs were overwhelming. Among the sights was the rich and ominous Vatican City. Its pristine walls held tapestry as large as a two-story house. The columns were ornately decorated. Enormous walls were painted to tell stories of epic proportions. And finally, the Sistine Chapel. The illustrations were amazing.

In the last part of the Vatican, the tour was able to see the church where the Pope delivers the Christmas mass. This enormous structure held tombs of many of the popes. On the outside of this church, the Pope would preside over an outdoor mass canonizing seven people as Saints the next day. One of the seven being Kateri Tekakwitha. After years of praying, North American Indian Christians will have had enough momentum to have Kateri declared a Saint before a crowd of 80,000 people.

Ciao!