I always enjoy getting a take on the crowd in an unfamiliar church. In this case, St. John Vianney (St. Jean Vianney, patron saint of parish priests, the famous Curé d'Ars), a couple of miles north of our resort. We went to 10 o'clock mass, later than the intended 8:30, so that we could have coffee and take a look at the excellent St. Petersburg Times before heading out.
I don't know much about architecture but the church has a "mission style" look and feel. A lot of Italian names in the bulletin. Parishioners look prosperous and "older", though I saw a number of young families. Weekly collection exceeds $25,000, comparable to our own parish in St. Paul. I didn't get the impression of much economic or cultural diversity -- no Spanish mass, few (if any) people of color. I couldn't really tell the visitors from the regular attendees; the differentiating factor seemed to be cash vs. envelope at offering time.
After mass, we went to breakfast at the Waffle House, a stop Bob likes to make once a year or so. By noon, the sun was getting hot; time for beachwear and an afternoon by the pool
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