Even before returning to the school benches, we set out on our last "vacation" trip of the year. You might be wondering where to. And I will tell you: to Roccasecca. And why exactly there? The choice was not random, as the year 2024 marks at least one significant life anniversary of St. Thomas Aquinas, namely 750 years since his death (and possibly also 800 years since his birth – however, we cannot confirm this with certainty as the exact date of this memorable day is not known). It was in Roccasecca where little Thomas first saw the light of this world. However, now only the ruins of the former ancestral castle of the Aquinas family remain here. Nevertheless, there was still much to admire.
To enjoy a bit more nature before our school duties begin again, we set off in the afternoon to the nearby "Peak of the Redeemer" (in Italian, Cima del Redentore). On our way by car to our starting point, we could enjoy unpredictable bends occasionally occupied by freely grazing cattle until we finally stopped at a parking lot by a mountain lodge beneath the ridge. After a pleasant ascent, we were greeted with a magnificent view of the landscape below us with the sea and islands in the distance – all of which was overlooked by Christ the Redeemer placed on the roof of a stone chapel standing here. A place none of us knew until this moment instantly enchanted us all.
Thus, we neatly closed our summer holidays, and the next day we could happily set off for our beloved university.
Vojtěch Švarc, 2nd year theologian
Photo gallery see below