In April of 2011, I decided to go to Italy for Holy Week. While I was there, I wanted to see Veronica's Veil ... the image of the Holy Face of Jesus located in Manoppello, Italy.

I didn't have a tour guide and I didn't speak Italian. So, finding my way to the Basilica was a challenge. Praise God I did find it, and my journey to find it was filled with great frustration, as well as great blessing.

I wanted to document the experience for anyone who wants to see the veil of Veronica. Please note that there are no hotels nearby, but I did find a bed and breakfast that, if you're already walking, isn't too long of a walk.

• Take the train to Pescara (from Rome, you start at the Roma Tiburtina station, not Roma Termini). When you arrive, find the bus station outside. You can buy a ticket to "Seramonacesca - via Manoppello" (an ARPA bus). Make sure you stand in the right place where the bus will pick you up (I sat in the wrong place for over 2 hours). Also, buy a bus ticket so that you can return back to Pescara.
• Pescara is a great place to relax for a bit. Walk toward the hotels (directly straight out of the train terminal) and you will end up at the beach. Get a gelato and hang out at the beach for a while.
• When you're ready, get on the bus. You'll be on it for a while. You'll go from the city into the countryside. You will see the Basilica and you can get off there.
• If you want to spend more time there, there are no hotels in the town of Manoppello, but there is a bed and breakfast -
  B & B Carcobaleno (+39.334.367.7255). The price is really good!
• When you're ready to go back to Pescara (from the Basilica), the bus stop is down the hill ... then take a right (before you enter the town area) ... and then you'll hit the bus stop. Actually, you don't really need to be at a bus stop; you can just flag down the bus like you would a taxi, but it helps to be at the stop.

There are a lot more adventures that I could document. My basic route took me from Rome ... to Assisi ... to Loreto (where the house of Jesus, Mary and Joseph is) ... to Manoppello (taking the train to Pescara) ... then back to Rome.