For miracles to St. Nicholas
I decided to spend my first vacation in Greece with benefit. I think that many will support me if I say that just lying on the beach in Greece for 2 weeks is wrong. So I decided to save on the hotel and take more money to go on excursions. What was my surprise when I discovered that I could see not only local sights, but also go to Italy with a tour. Yes, on the one hand, we can say that those who want to see Italy need to go on vacation there, but on the other hand, this is the temple of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. And how can you refuse it?
I'll start from the very beginning. We arrived at Macedonia airport early in the morning. I won't say that I'm a morning person, so this was probably the only negative on the whole trip. Then everything is perfect. We boarded the plane and in 15 minutes we were flying over Greece, looking at the small islands from the plane window, while drinking excellent coffee and eating a sandwich. We flew only an hour, so some did not even have time to finish their coffee. Still, most people went to take communion, and this must be done on an empty stomach. What happened next cannot be described in words. We arrived directly at the church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. Bowing to this saint and leaning against his relics was the place of many who ended up in our group, including mine.
From the outside, the temple does not look very attractive: beige walls. But, going inside, admire this beauty! Very beautiful painted ceilings, candles everywhere. First you get to the Catholic part of the temple, then you go down to the Orthodox part, where the relics of St. Nicholas are kept. After about a half-hour excursion, the liturgy began in the church. I have never seen anything like this in my life. It was in Russian. There was a beautiful three-voice singing of 2 women and a man, I got goosebumps. Of course, it is very difficult to defend the full 1.5 Liturgy. It was a little stuffy, but I'm very glad that we were the only ones there.
We've just been incredibly lucky. When we were near the temple, a wedding ceremony was taking place there. It's extraordinarily beautiful. Considering that none of the visitors saw a real Italian wedding, everyone wanted to watch this action. You know, if you talk about all the emotions, then a day is not enough. I can only say one thing, it is really impressive, and all words will be superfluous.
Then we went to a small but very cozy Italian restaurant. Everything is so delicious that you don't want to leave. I finally tried the famous Italian pasta and prosciutto. As for pasta, that's another story altogether. When we walked along the streets of Bari, we saw women sitting right on the street and sculpting pasta, and then selling them. The sight is simply unforgettable.
After a hearty lunch, walking around Bari was very welcome. We walked through the most beautiful Italian streets. We listened to a lot of interesting things from our guide about the life and life of Italians and finally came to the largest Russian Orthodox Mission in Europe. We did not stay there for long, but this time was enough to pray for loved ones, light a candle and collect a little holy water.
With this, my journey came to an end. I'm not talking about the end, because here I will definitely return. As our guide said, you need to visit the Basilica of St. Nicholas at least 3 times. I was alone. So, there is still more to come. Do not judge strictly for the story. Perhaps it is not as emotional as I would like, but the impressions have not yet subsided in my head. Therefore, it turned out like this.
