See the handle? At lunchtime and at night... we had to enter through the small door. Can you envision this; bags of groceries, baby in stroller, struggling with keys... OY! 

Outer door of Apartment... during the day the big double doors were left open. 

This is part of the mechanics of the elavator! Erin kept saying that hamsters were running the thing. I just did not want hamsters chewing up the wires! 

Our apartment building as seen from the courtyard inside... nost days there were people or laundry hanging out of windows. 

The cast is greeting one another and checking in... some of the players are returning from last year! They perform in the courtyard of San Clemente's Basilica. Another of the four major churches in Rome. There are two older churches it is actually built on top if!

St Catherine, I believe... 

Shooting photos through metal bars of scaffolding is tricky!  

Ceiling view through the shadows 

Altar  

Christ on the throne giving a blessing. 

The anchor can represent a cross. However, this is the symbol for Clement. There are many anchors around the church. He was tied to an anchor and thrown into the sea... Are you ready for Sainthood?

I believe my Rome guide book says this is Clement being welcomed into heaven. 

Here is some of the restoration being done. 

Mary & Christ in bas-relief on wall 

Front of church. There is restoration going on here and there were parts we could not get into. The "painting" in the background is a mosaic! Notice the anchor... Clements symbol, at the top of the altar.

Mosaic of Christ on the Cross 

Painting from ceiling of San Clemente 

Look at this floor. At one time these circles were Roman columns and they were sliced to make floors in various churches. They came from pagan buildings so it must be ok to destroy them! All for the glory of God, oy! 

The courtyard of San Clemente Basilica... the oldest church in Rome. 

This is a gas station... you just pull right up on the side of the street! 

When we were out walking we caught a quick view of the Colosseum. I have other pictures that show it up close. It was just amazing to turn around and think "oh, my goodness, there's the Colosseum" 

I found this story on BBC news today and I thought it was worth passing along. I hope that you enjoy it.

Roman ruler's head found in sewer



A 1,700-year-old carved marble head of Emperor Constantine has been found in a sewer in central Rome.

Archaeologists found the 60cm (2ft) head while clearing an ancient drainage system in the ruins of the Roman Forum.
Eugenio La Rocca, superintendent of Rome's artefacts, described the head as a rare find and said it was possible it had been used to clear a blocked sewer.
Constantine, who reigned from 306 to 337, is known for ending persecution of Christians and founding Constantinople.
Although most of his subjects remained pagans, he is credited with helping to establish Europe's Christian roots by proclaiming religious freedom.

It could have been put there to symbolise the resentment of a pagan people for their Christian emperor Eugenio La Rocca.

The white marble head was confirmed as a portrait of Constantine by experts who compared it with coins and two other giant heads kept in Rome's Capitoline Museums.
Probably carved between 312 and 325 AD, when Constantine was at the height of his power, it may have belonged to a statue of the emperor in full armour.
"Recovering a portrait of this size and in this state of conservation in the very heart of the city is really extraordinary," said Mr La Rocca.
"We have concluded that the head did not fall by accident into the passage, but was put there on purpose.
"It could have been used as a big piece of stone to divert water from the drain, or it could have been put there to symbolise the resentment of a pagan people for their Christian emperor."
The head's unceremonious insertion in the drain may have saved it from the plundering of the Forum after the fall of the Roman empire in the 5th Century.
It is expected to go on display in Rome's museums after a brief period of restoration.
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/4727391.stmPublished: 2005/07/29 11:27:52 GMT© BBC MMV

St Peter's in Chains Basilica. San Pietro in Vincoli. Erin and I headed to his church next. It one of the four major basilicas. It contains both sets of Peter chains. When he was imprisoned in Mamertine Prison with Paul in Rome and when he was imprisoned years before in Jerusalem.  

View of entrance... can you get an idea of scale? 

Painting 

Peter's chains as viewed from above