Today we had the Abbot Primate for Eucharist - he couldn't stay for lunch as there was a celebration back a San Anlsemo's for his birthday. To night we take the group to the churches of St Prassede and Prudentia, two early martyrs of the church, believed to be the daughters of the senator Pudens who offered hospitality to both Sts Peter and Paul. The mosaics in both churches are stunning. A little known treasure of Rome
After that we go to the Trevi fountain - a place who beauty and attractiveness has be promoted by the person who gets to clean the coins out of the fountain each evening. That place is not only overrated, it is very overpopulated by people going there because if you go to Rome you go there. Yes, yes I know I'm going there but there has to be some sufference in this line of work.
By the way storms are around and we may get drenched. At 8pm Michael Kelly, one of the monks from Arcadia is meeting us and we hopefully teach us how to buy drinks in a bar here. We try to give all aspects of educations. PArt of the gruop going to the Borgese Gardens Gallery got to see a drug deal and police bust on the way. All cultures included in this program.
Mind you the sister who spotted this has worked with some dysfunctional people so what she saw this sweet innocent probalbly would have missed. Or rather at least the first part. I was told that the police bust was made with maximum public viewing.
Last night's dinner conversation was nteresting. We have two sisters from the Grace and compassion Congregation of Benedictines. This group started in England in the 1950's caring for poor and neglected elderly. There aim was to have a religous community caring for them as though they were a family. The community did it all by doantion and at the last I heard refused government funding. Sr Alice was telling us how 3 years ago the group opened a Nursing school in India. Till now their work has been in Aged CAre, children with disabilites etc. The Nursing school if a new venture into education. Alice, herself, like a number of her sisters did her nursing training in Ireland and the UK. Even though she is qualified for those countries, and probably our own, she and her sisters cannot practice as trained nurses in India. India refuses to recognise the nursing qualifications of nearly every other country. Even though her UK training was longer than comparable Indian training. So Alice can only do the equivalent of work of an enrolled nurse. Another challenge they have had as regards training was that the congregtation had their religious formation in tEngland, then they would do their nursing training and go home. The could not retrain as in India you cannot start any tertiary studies if you are older than 24 years.
So now the sisters do their formation in India and start studies ver soon after entering the congregation. They are now beginning to have some of their sisters trained as doctors.
Sr Alice is administrator for the Nursing school. That way she can use what she knows but not really in the way she would like. You know she loves nursing. One of her disappointments is the attitude of many of the students. She says very few come to be 'like florence Nightingale". Rather at the interivews for getting into the school, the paretns are present and obviously see nursing as a way for the daughter to make money without having to do demeaning work - mus to go the others are leaving