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| Pilgrimage to Italy ~ Shroud of Turin |
Day 1: Depart USA Depart on our international overnight flight to Italy. Meals will be served on board..
Day 2: Turin Upon arrival at the airport you will be met by your driver and Tour Escort and transferred to your hotel in Turin. Balance of the day is at leisure. Dinner and overnight. (D)
Day 3: Turin After breakfast, enjoy a full day tour of Turin and visit to the Holy Shroud. During our tour of Turin we will see Piazza San Carlo, Po Street, and Mount of the Capuchin Monks. We then have the opportunity to view the Shroud of Turin in the St. John the Baptist Cathedral. Reputed to be the burial cloth of Christ, it is an amazing sight. It is a linen cloth 14 feet, 3 inches long by 3 feet, 7 inches wide bearing the distinct image of a crucified man. The last time the shroud was displayed publicly was during the Jubilee Year of 2000 and was not originally due to be displayed again until 2025. Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has authorized it to be displayed for a brief period in 2010. We will have what is perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to view the Shroud. Return to the hotel in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight. (B,D)
Day 4: Turin / Assisi Early departure for Assisi, home to St. Francis and St. Clare. At the foot of the town, we will stop at St. Mary of the Angels Basilica which encloses the small chapel that St. Francis built (the Portiuncula, or "little portion") and celebrate our Mass together. We also visit the Basilica of St. Francis, which also houses the Cappella del Transito that contains the cell where St. Francis died in 1226. Flanking the cell is the Thornless Rose Garden. Dinner and overnight. (B,D)
Day 5: Assisi Celebrate Mass at St. Clare. Guided visits today of St. Francis, San Rufino where St. Francis and St. Clare were both baptized and St. Clare to see the cross that spoke to St. Francis and led him to a life of piety. Balance of the day is at leisure. Dinner and overnight. (B,D)
Day 6: Assisi / Loreto / Lanciano / San Giovanni Rotondo After breakfast we depart to the great Marian shrine of Loreto to visit the Holy House of Nazareth and the beautiful Madonna of Loreto. More than 50 Popes have made a pilgrimage to the house transported by angels to this hill in central Italy in 1294. Tradition has it that this is the house in which Mary first prayed the Magnificat, in which Jesus grew to manhood, and in which the Holy Family lived. Continue to Lanciano where we will celebrate Mass. Later this evening we will arrive in San Giovanni Rotondo. Dinner and overnight. (B,D)
Day 7: San Giovanni Rotondo After celebrating Mass at the tomb of San Pio, we tour the sanctuary; see the old church and the crucifix from which he received the stigmata in 1918. You will see the confessional where Padre Pio spent innumerable hours with a multitude of pilgrims, directing them on their journey toward God. Enjoy a breathtaking view of the Gargano Peninsula and a visit to the Grotto of Michael the Archangel. Six different popes, St Francis and at least four other saints have knelt in prayer at this grotto, seeking the protection of St Michael. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B,D)
Day 8: San Giovanni Rotondo / Rome Depart for Rome. Upon your arrival enjoy a visit of the catacombs of St. Callixtus, which are among the greatest and most important of Rome. They originated about the middle of the 2nd century and are part of a cemeteries complex which occupies an area of 90 acres, with a network of galleries about 12 miles long, in four levels, more than twenty meters deep. Dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight. (B,D)
Day 9: Rome This morning we depart for a sightseeing tour with focus on "Christian Rome" Touring we will see many important cultural and monumental sights around Rome. Stop for a visit at three major Basilicas: St Mary Major, one of the oldest shrines dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, a shrine that contains a relic from the manger of the infant Jesus. The Basilica of the St John in Lateran is the former residence of the popes prior to their return to Rome in 1377. St Paul Outside the Walls, which houses the remains of St Paul under its main altar. Dinner and overnight in Rome. (B,D)
Day 10: Rome (Papal Audience) Attendance at the weekly Papal Audience this morning (pending the Holy Father’s schedule). Visit of St. Peter’s Basilica (subject to confirmation.) Enjoy a guided tour of the Vatican, including the Vatican Museum, and the Sistine Chapel, where you will view some of the most inspiring works of art, including Michelangelo's magnificent fresco of the Last Judgment. Visit of St. Peter’s Basilica. Farewell dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight Rome. (B,D)
Day 11: Rome / USA Depart for Rome Airport in the morning and arrive U.S. same day. (B)
Included Highlights: • Airfare: Roundtrip from New York area airport • Accommodations: 11 Days / 9 nights Superior Tourist Class Hotels.• Meals: 9 Continental Breakfasts & 9 Dinners• Sightseeing: As listed in the itinerary, including entrance fees.• Also Included: Daily Mass, Airport-hotel transfers, hotel tips & taxes, baggage handling, Touring by Private Air Conditioned Motorcoach, Services of Professional Pilgrimage Escort.
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