On the way to church in the Belarus countryside

Me and Bishop Wladislaus Blin of the Diocese of Vitebsk, Belarus

Belarus countryside - Hammer and sickle with a statue of the Blessed Mother in the background

Vitalij and Mike at the WWII Memorial in Vitebsk

Belarus -

View from my Flat

Zakopane in October

Flagler in the Morning

Under the Tuscan Sun

Need I say more

Antinori Villa

After leaving Florence we drove to the Antonori Villa in Montefridolfi. This town is 14 miles south of Florence, but due to the lack of signage, it took us two hours to get there.
The views here are absolutely majestic. The villa is surrounded by vineyards (used to produce "Santa Christina" wines). A great place with a great restaurant.

Abbey at Monte Cassino

This Abbey, founded by St. Benedict, has been destroyed four times since its founding in 1205. The last time was during WWII when the German's were believed to be using it as a lookout for their line of defense known as the "Gustav Line."
In February, 1944 the allies sent 256 fighter/bombers to destroy the Abbey and move out the German troops. During the bombing one bomb penetrated the tomb of St. Benedict, BUT FAILED TO GO OFF. Talk about devine intervention!
Unfortunately, durin the bombing, many Italians lost their lives as they sought refuge in the Abbey.
The current Abbey has been rebuilt along the original specifications and contains many arficacts going back to the original Abbey.

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