On Monday November 5, we had a walking tour of Laterano area of Rome led by two of the students. They did a great job. We visiting San Clemente, the Sacred Steps, and San Giovanni Basilica. San Clemente, or St. Clement, is a 14th century church built on top of a 5th century church, that was built on top of a pagan temple. It was great to wander down to these lower levels. the church does not allow pictures. which was probably good because the students and I were able to focus on what we were looking at. sometimes the camera gets in the way of truly seeing a place.

After San Clement, we visited the steps. I posted pictures of the steps in my last blog. The mythology of the steps is that they are the original steps Christ climbed to meet Pilate before his execution. The steps are covered with wooden boards because no one is allowed to step on the original stairs. Also, everyone is expected to proceed up the steps on their knees. Another legend is that Martin Luther started climbing the stairs on his knees. Only to stand up and walk the remaining stairs as a protest. I did manage to climb the stairs on my knees in 2010. Not so sure I could do it again. It is very difficult. One is expected to say prayers on each step and not race to the top on your knees. I decided to complete the task again. It was very challenging until the last 6-7 steps. At this point it actually became easier. Not exactly sure where this strength came from. Only one real explanation.

After the steps we visited San Giovanni. the church of the Bishop of Rome, the pope. While the Vatican obviously exists, it is not in the city limits. therefore it is technically not the "Cathedral" of the Bishop of Rome. The church is beyond impressive, and I have posted picture before. The picture posted below are from the walls and floor of the portico, or porch, of the church.

After we left San Giovanni, we went to the site of some of the catacombs. We were early and they had a nice pavilion, and so we held class outside. We needed to get a class in because we left campus earlier than usual to reach the churches and steps before they closed. This is becoming a common occurence on walking tour days.

The catacombs do not allow pictures. And again this is probably a good thing. The catacombs are massive. Four stories, 17 km of aisles. Over 150,000 graves. But more than 150,000 people because many graves held entire families. the exact count of people is unknown. The spaces in the wall are small and you get a real sense of the small stature of these early Romans.