A good, very long day in Rome.

We started the morning by walking over toward St. Peter’s Square for a better view of St. Peter’s than the behind-the-dome afternoon sun affords. We weren’t disappointed, thanks to continuing wonderful weather:

As it got toward noon, we met up with Bobby Schindler along the Conciliazione, who had just arrived from the airport. I hailed an Uber for Bobby and me to travel to the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum for a meeting with Fr. Gonzalo Miranda, the dean of the school of bioethics. It sits about 20 minutes southwest of Rome’s downtown. We toured the campus facilities and had a fruitful meeting. It’s considered a “bridge day” (between two Holy Days) so classes were not in session.

After dropping Bobby off near Piazza del Risorgimento, I walked toward Piazza Navona where my mother ended up after errands and leisure. We met at the Fontana dei Fiume and walked a block or so to lunch at La Cantina Romana, a little hole-in-the-wall place that ended up being perfect for lunch, followed by espresso and limoncello.

We walked along much of the rest of the afternoon, starting by peeking into the nearby Chiesa Santa Maria della Pace and slowing making our way back toward Armony Suites. The winding streets of Rome encourage similarly discursive conversation that I’ll remember as long as I live. As we reached the Tiber, we descended a staircase and walked along the slightly elevated river walk.

After freshening up and reconnecting with Luca, the proprietor at Armony Suites, we decided on his recommendation for supper at Ragno D’Oro a short walk away on Via Silla, a few blocks north of Piazza del Risorgimento. Our meal was a good one, in this packed little spot, though service managed to be both more frantic and a bit slower than would seem possible. After tiramisu, I texted Bobby and we walked about four blocks south to Taverna Angelica where he, his family, and our pilgrimage group of eight or so were enjoying post-supper sambuca.

Tomorrow morning my mother leaves, and I’ll check into the Hotel della Conciliazione.