Pompeii
I can't believe I haven't blogged since Pompeii! Basically, for the first week of spring break, I hung around at Bernardi with about seven other people. We had tiny community meals and plenty of introvert time. A highlight of the first half of break was going to Pompeii. While I certainly needed time to relax and revive (hence, a week without major travels), I think we also all needed a little boost of adventure.
Caroline laid out the travel plans, and six of us headed off of to Pompeii on Monday. (I think it was Monday. This was so long ago.) The train ride there was great. We ladies - Cassie, Caroline, Liz M., and I - basically slept, and the boys - Reed and Michael - got to chat with two, nice young ladies who had super cool British accents and, in my eyes at least, were very sophisticated. I like the Brits.
At Pompeii we had lots of time to travel around. It was the coolest site I've visited, because we literally got to walk into the lives of these ancient people. We got to see their houses, tubs, etc. up close. We could even walk into a lot of places and touch things like what would have been the kitchen table. (That might not sound so exciting, the way I put it, but I assure you it was!) I also got a pet dog for a day. We discovered it was a boy, but, until then, I called him "Lui-e-Lei." I now realize it should have been "Lui-o-Lei," because there was no chance he was both a boy and a girl. I got to pet him a ton and walk through the streets and meadow with him at my side. THAT was a highlight. Dog lovers unite!
We walked to a nearby Church and finished our day with some gelato. Reed and I had both been interested in climbing Mt. Vesuvius, but we were all pretty worn out after hours of walking and whatnot. We took the train back to the station and from there hopped on our train back to Rome. The ride back was rather fun. We read the liturgy of the hours on the train and played the Bacon game :) If you don't know it, you should learn it. I failed miserably on my first try but have improved since then.
The Triduum --> St. Peter's Basilica
Do I want to remember The Triduum? Most of it = yes. Certain parts of it = no.
The Chrism Mass (Thursday morning) was divine. That was my first time being so close to the Pope. When he first processed in, I missed him, because I didn't expect him to be in-between some Bishops blending in. On the way back I made sure to get a glimpse of him though. Just hearing the Holy Father's voice saying the Mass is pretty special and moving. I also loved the books we were given to follow along in. They had Italian and Latin and English translations of pretty much everything! I also had great company: Lizzy, John B., Tasha, and Ryan.
Good Friday was EPIC. We went to a sort of Mass, except that it wasn't a Mass, because it was Good Friday. Anyhow, we got to receive The Eucharist! At the Church we went to, there were relics of the cross, the nails, etc. all from Our Lord's Crucifixion. That was pretty amazing!!! I didn't know we still had access to those things! Afterwards, Cassie, Risa, Ryan, and I climbed the stairs that Jesus was condemned on, on our knees. This was probably the most uplifting experience I've had in Rome yet. We actually got to TOUCH the places were it is assumed Jesus's blood fell. WOW!!! What an epic day. No Good Friday can top that one. So close to Jesus.
Saturday was a combination of Purgatory and Heaven. Waiting in line for the Easter Vigil was a definite Purgatory. I was lucky to have Caroline, JoshW, and Kyle with me, and I made some friends on the way including a super great girl named Mandy who had come for a FOCUS trip. Those were the perks. The hard part was being almost squished to death and being yelled at and having an accusatory finger in my face when a woman kept on shoving me then attempted to throw the blame my way. Oh my. At least Purgatory wasn't alone.
In the end, many of us got separated. It was just Kyle and me when we finally got into St. Peters. We got a good spot to sit in and met some really nice German guys our age! We also learned that the family sitting in front of us was from Mankato and that the father had attended St. Thomas. SMALL WORLD!
Half an hour before Mass, I decided to go to the bathroom. I met two girls in line and learned when I ran into them later (in the presence of the Pope) that they were both traveling with Dr. Klein from St. Thomas. Small world again??? Here's the cool thing --> The bathroom line was long, so by the time I got back into St. Peters, access to the main part of the Church was temporarily closed so that the Pope could...well...have his space and safety. I ended up at the back of the Church and got to watch the Pope from 30 to 40 feet away for at least 10 minutes straight. I was standing behind the Cardinals in the back of the Church when the Pope began saying the Mass and lit the Easter Candle. So basically my bathroom excursion got me the best view of the Pope possible at the most opportune time. WOW!
After Mass we went to my new favorite gelato place --> Old Bridge Gelateria. So that's the gist of my Triduum. We had a lovely, Community lunch at Bernardi on Easter Sunday. I spent most of my day in the computer lab checking flights and chilling. I got to Skype with my mom too. A good day.
On a side note: walking to the Ticket Office multiple times over break ended up being SUPER fun! The first time I went with Tasha and Caroline. The second time, I was proud of myself for managing to go there alone without getting lost and managing to get back to Bernardi without getting lost. There's such a joyful freedom when you discover you can do things on your own.
Spring Break --> KRAKOW
Krakow was the most epic part of my break --> though I may have said that about everything by now. But SERIOUSLY! I expected it to be "ok," and it was more like a heaven on earth! From the start, I loved the atmosphere. I felt like I was in a little old town in a Disney movie. And there were families with little kids everywhere. The food was OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD (particularly the meat). My travel companions were the best.
We settled into Krakow on Monday. This is when we first saw our tiny but adorable and fun B&B. Lizzy and I shared a futon on the lower level while MK and Cassie took the loft. We had a divine dinner that night. Truly epic food and company.
On Tuesday we traveled to the Divine Mercy Chapel. It was a lovely walk there. The chapel itself was super crowded, and MK and I wanted to tidy up after walk. We found FREE! bathrooms and ate our sandwiches outside on some curved steps. It was a WINDY day. We had a lovely walk up the Divine Mercy Tower and a grand time visiting the Church that is being built for JPII. This was another highlight of my spring break, as I actually got to spend time getting to know and really chat with MK. We then went to a Mass in the Divine Mercy Church (which is surprisingly modern). I loved the sound of the Polish words in the Mass even though I couldn't understand them. MK and I joyfully joined in whenever we sang an "Alleluia." That was the one word I knew by heart. :) We met up with Cassie and Lizzy after Mass and figured out the Tram system to get home. We had a mediocre dinner at a restaurant a short way down the river. We also witnessed a stone dragon actually breath fire. (Unfortunately, I was not able to record this epicness, because the dragon got stubborn when I pulled out my camera. So you'll just have to believe me. And, if you haven't been to Krakow, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about anyway........so ya.)
Wednesday was our day to visit Auschwitz. Aside from car sickness, it was a good experience. Naturally, it was a very serious experience. We were shown a rather graphic film about Auschwitz (with actual footage) on the bus ride there. At Auschwitz 1 we saw lots of the belongings of people who died at Auschwitz (as well as their pictures). It was very moving. We even got to pass the grave of St. Maximilian Kolbe. We spent less time at Auschwitz 2, but we did get to see some buildings. It's absolutely insane the things that went down there. It left me aware of the power of brainwashing while still wondering how people could be so inhumane and cruel. On a separate note, we had a wonderful dinner at...yes, an "Italian" restaurant that night. We ate outdoors (blanket and heater provided) and got to spend a lovely two hours out there together.
On Thursday we went to what was/is probably my favorite place in Krakow. (But actually! I mean it this time!) Cassie, MK, and I visited the Salt Mines. Our tour guide was pretty much hilarious. For me, it felt kind of like a combination of Disney World and the log ride at Camp Snoopy. Before we finally got down into the min, we climbed down some stairs that seemed to never end. The things we saw down there were amazing. I thought it was cool that they had wax figures to portray what the miners would have been doing and would have looked like. That was the part that reminded me of Camp Snoopy. In a few of the rooms, the lights were turned off on us, and they prayed movies around us. That was one of the things that reminded me of Disney World. At the end of the tour, we had the chance to stop at shops and eat lunch at an underground cafe. It basically felt like we were in a fancy hotel underground. (P.S. There's an epic Church down there! I forgot to mention that!) In summary, if you ever have the chance to go to the Salt Mines JUST. DO. IT. They have tons of different tours, some longer than others, and I would go back in a heartbeat :) That night, after attending Mass and an amazing prayer service (one that basically felt like a mystical experience and was SUPER well attended), we enjoyed getting dinner at a Jewish Restaurant with John B., Miguel, and Michael. We tried to show them the fire breathing dragon that night. But, yet again, the dragon did not want to cooperate.
On Friday we met up with Tasha and Liz M. and took a train to Czestochowa. Cassie, MK, Lizzy, and I accidentally sat in First Class, but Polish people are super nice and nobody minded (not even when they checked our tickets). First Class is boss. It's like right out of the movies! At Czestochowa, it was a rainy day, and MK and I weren't really feeling it. After seeing the Black Madonna, we got Tasha and Liz M. to leave early with us. We couldn't find Cassie and Lizzy, so they had their own adventure trying to get back home later. (You should ask them about it.) We all went to a great coffee place, and then MK and I chilled at Tasha and Liz M's beautiful apartment. We met up with the other girls for dinner and found some nice, underground dining. The prices were good and the service was pretty awesome. We were going to meet up with the trio: Jordan, Ryan, and Patrick on Friday, but let's just say communication didn't quite work out so that fell through. It's ok. It was a lovely GNO!!!
Wow. This short post is getting long...
On Saturday we went back to the Divine Mercy Chaplet and met Jordan, Patrick, and Ryan there. It was absolutely wonderful to see them. We did some shopping at the Divine Mercy shop. I got lost for a while. Then we went to an interesting 6:00pm Mass. It was good. After Mass we all somehow found each other and headed off to find dinner. We ended up splitting into two groups, and I had a nice dinner with Michael, Miguel, Cassie, Jordan, and Ryan.
On Sunday, Lizzy and I slept in. Then it was departure day. We ran into The Trio on the way to the airport and had a FABULOUS time eating lunch with them at some Festival-Type-Place in the square. Then we were off to the airport. Most of the day went well. The bus ride from the airport in Rome was torture, however, for someone with carsickness like me. That is something I hope to never relive. The day ended with eating the remainder of the Bernardi dinner and trying to get our livelihood back --> (aka, food, showers, and sleep). Then off to bed before a bright and early Dr. Lev across!
We're Actually In School :P
This seems like a good time to introduce the fact that we are actually in school. While the first half of the semester felt more like a vacation with a class period here and there, we are finally getting assignments in more classes than Italian. (Did I say "finally"?) Our first paper is due tomorrow. There is so much to do now. The papers are piling on. Not to mention that finals are approaching...
But thank God for the two months we had that felt like being "on holiday." Now we get to tackle the dirty work (aka, papers and tests to study for).
Travels
Last weekend, all of Bernardi-- aside from the sick ones :( -- traveled to Assisi. We have a trip planned for this weekend as well. I was hoping to take the two following weekends to travel to Ireland and Santorini, but that's starting to look too hectic. I think I would rather maintain my sanity and accept the fact that even if I don't get to travel everywhere, Bernardi is an adventure in and of itself! #SanityFirst
We Made A Movie!
If you haven't seen this movie, watch it. And, if you have, watch it again! :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EITZOcF2OkA
If you read this whole thing, WOW! YOU'RE IMPRESSIVE! Thanks for caring that much! It seems my short post has turned into a long one, so I will leave it here. Laterz!
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