TravelswithCharie

Nave of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme (Holy Cross in Jerusalem) We had an extra day in Rome and decided to see one of the seven pilgrim churches. Santa Croce was our fourth pilgrim church after we visited Santa Maria Maggiore, St. John Lateran, and St. Peter’s. We chose Santa Croce for the simple reason that it was not too far from our hotel. The other three which we sadly missed were St. Paul Outside the Walls, St. Lawrence Outside the Walls and St. Sebastian Outside the Walls. Main Altar Santa Croce in Gerusalemme is so called because when St. Helena came back to Rome after her trip to Jerusalem, she brought with her some soil from Mount Calvary where Jesus was crucified. This soil was spread under Santa Croce when she was building a chapel to house the Holy Relics, hence “in Gerusalemme”. St. Helena is the  mother of Emperor Constantine (306-337) who was the first Roman emperor to embrace Christianity. He issued the Edict of Milan which granted his people the right to practice thei...

UPDATE : Odette Aquitania Ricasa just completed visiting all 193 UN countries on August 24, 2022 in Erbil, Iraq (her last country). She is the first Filipino to visit all 193 UN countries. She has also visited 301/330 TCC countries and territories. Congratulations! Odette Aquitania Ricasa Odette Aquitania Ricasa is poised to be the first Filipino American to travel to all 193 United Nations recognized sovereign countries. She has visited 189 countries, just four countries shy of 193. These travels have been rigorously validated by NomadMania. She is also a member of the Travelers Century Club (TCC) having visited 295 of 325 countries and territories on the TCC list. Odette is the author of six books*, an accomplished painter, a motivational speaker and a pianist.  Odette Ricasa has received numerous awards including First Prize in an International Speech Contest sponsored by Toastmasters Club and several Best Speaker awards from the Los Angele...