Our accomodation in Rome was at Domus Australia.
It was the most unbelievable accomodation and an absolutelty wonderful experience to stay in such a beautiful place. It was just perfect!
I first saw mention of Domus when we dropped into St Patrick’s in Gundagai – there was a brochure on a table. I picked it up and thought nothing of it until we returned to New York and remembered the brochure. I checked out the website online and Domus wasn’t even open yet! But it would blessed by Pope Benedict and open by the time we were planning to go… so as soon as we had dates, I booked.
You don’t need to be Australian to stay there… in fact there were a fair few Italian people there at the same time as us. The location is awesome – close to Termini but far enough away to feel like a normal neighbourhood. Everything is new and spotlessly clean. The beds are comfy and the bathrooms are HUGE.
View from our room –
They also provide breakfast. An included breakfast is something that I really look for in accommodation as it can help save time and money and really helps to get your day started off on a good note! For Italy, an included breakfast normally means a roll and some cheese or cereal. Not at Domus… eggs, bacon, baked beans, lamingtons, cheese, cold cuts, coffee, juice, yoghurt – this is definitely not the norm!
Then there is the Chapel of Our Lady Queen of the Most Holy Rosary and Saint Peter Chanel. It was breathtaking – from the portrait of Mary McKillop to the portrait of Mary with the Southern Cross in the background. Nothing was overlooked and it offers a place of peace in such a busy city. Going to Mass there was intimate and and yet, familiar. The restoration is absolutely beautiful.
The Rector of Domus is Father Anthony from Melbourne. He is also a Pies supporter and is studying in Rome at the moment. How he gets the time to do all he does, I have absolutely no idea! But, it was like staying with family. Everyone was so nice!
This is what is looks like from the street –
This is the view looking up towards our room –
The beautiful al fresco dining area and water feature – beautiful chance for quiet reflection!
Looking down to the dining room –
The walkway to the accommodation –
The attention to detail and planning of Domus has been amazing. An example was our floor was named after former Bishop for the Diocese of Sandhurst, Bishop Grech. For that connection our hallway was full of historical photos of churches from around the Bendigo region.
Many of the Australia dioceses have contributed to the development of Domus and there are tokens of appreciation everywhere. To tie in with this, in the foyer there are beautiful pictures and information of prominent Australian Catholics. You can see how this is unlike staying in a random hotel or apartment… Domus offers so much!
On our first morning, we were at breakfast and looked up and Cardinal Pell was there having breakfast at the next table! We told him how appreciative we were of his work to make Domus happen and how impressed we were with everything. Later on after Mass one night, he blessed all of our medals, prayer cards etc for us. It was truly humbling!
The staff at Domus were exceptional. Every question we had was answered wtih a smile and they provided a great amount of useful resources – not just stacks of touristy brochures. They are all locals but they really do ‘get’ the Australian thing. On the morning that we were going to the Papal Mass at St Peter’s the kitchen packed a to-go bag of breakfast goodies which came in very handy seeing as we were there for so long.
Apart from the Italians also staying there, there was also a group of Australian travelers who had just been to Anzac Cove and were on a bit of a pilgrimage. Cardinal Pell spent a whole evening with them all downstairs in the dining area having a great time! I am sure it will be something they will always remember!
I cannot recommend Domus highly enough. Speaking to other people we met along the way and hearing about their tiny rooms and lack of breakfast… we knew we had come across something great. It is a credit to Cardinal Pell, all of the Bishops who supported this and all of the Australian parishioners that made this happen. We know that it was part of the reason we loved Rome so much and we cannot wait to get back there. It really did feel like home!