It’s a Company Town

It's Leo's world and we all just live in it — though it's particularly noticeable here in the heart of the Catholic world. There's often a priest at the next table at the restaurant. Nuns from every corner of the globe walk the streets. In the mornings, when I'm getting ready for school, I'm frequently serenaded by friars chanting from the missionary next door. It sometimes feels like a Monty Python sketch.

The Catholic Church is easily one of Rome's largest employers. It's big business: clergy, museums, publishing, schools, hospitals, charities, seminaries, banking, a post office, real estate.

Leo's the pope and CEO.

Exit through the gift shop.