The Good, The Bad, but No Ugly
I don't even know where to start, or how much detail to go into. We'll see how this goes.
For those of you that dont know, I just spend the last two weeks in Europe, 5 days in Holland and 7 in Germany, attending the 10th World youth Day. I want to say the trip was fabulous, or awesome... but those words arent really in my vocabulary, so I think the phrase 'good times' will do.
I was a little apprehensive at first because I didnt know anyone on my part of the trip, Trip 2, and only knew 2 people, one of them being Nick Campbell, on the other part of the trip, Trip 1. But when I look back I couldnt have asked for a better group. Just about everyone there was the exact opposite of me, bubbly and outgoing and very openly religious. At the same time they were the nicest group of people you could ask for, even though 75% of the group were friends previous, everyone was very welcoming and open with the few of us who didnt know anyone. At first I was a little surly with all the singing, the majority of them are in a choir together and the brought a few guitars and a bongo, but, much to myself surprise, I found myself joining in after a fashion. Their happiness seemed to be contagious.
I also though I'd be a bit to old for them, there seemed to be two seperate age groups, 80% of the pilgrims were between 16-19 years old, and then 15% were parents and chaperones.... with two or three of us falling in the 20's. But again everyone was welcoming, and I made some great friends.
In Holland almost everyone spoke perfect English, and my host family was a guy Harm, who is 25, and his girlfriend Leonie, who is two weeks yougner then me. They were great peoples and we spent many hours talking late into the night over a bottle of wine.
My German host family was a little older, both 65, and only he spoke English, albeit broken, but they were both very nice, and she actually cried when I left Sat morning for Marienfeld.
Just to give you an idea of numbers that I heard, there were 50,000 at the opening mass in Dusseldorf, 80,000 in Cologne, and another 50,000 in Bonn, with almost another 100,000 who couldnt make it into any of the football stadiums because they were at capacity. Catechesis, which was Wed-Fri mornings, was at another stadium in Leverkusen, and there were 10,000 people there. At the closing mass on Sunday there were 1 million people, with about 250 million watching it worldwide on TV. And they gave out Eucharist at all of these events.
I saw the Pope on three seperate occasions from fairly close range, and then of the big TV screens at MArienfeld for the closing Mass. I dont find him as charismatic as John Paul II, but he still gets the crowds going all the same.
There's so much more I want to say, little anecdotes and stories about the trip itself, the people I met, thje places I saw, but that would make this already too long post ten times the size. So if you want to hear more, or so pictures for that matter you'll just have to ask in person.
Fonz
For those of you that dont know, I just spend the last two weeks in Europe, 5 days in Holland and 7 in Germany, attending the 10th World youth Day. I want to say the trip was fabulous, or awesome... but those words arent really in my vocabulary, so I think the phrase 'good times' will do.
I was a little apprehensive at first because I didnt know anyone on my part of the trip, Trip 2, and only knew 2 people, one of them being Nick Campbell, on the other part of the trip, Trip 1. But when I look back I couldnt have asked for a better group. Just about everyone there was the exact opposite of me, bubbly and outgoing and very openly religious. At the same time they were the nicest group of people you could ask for, even though 75% of the group were friends previous, everyone was very welcoming and open with the few of us who didnt know anyone. At first I was a little surly with all the singing, the majority of them are in a choir together and the brought a few guitars and a bongo, but, much to myself surprise, I found myself joining in after a fashion. Their happiness seemed to be contagious.
I also though I'd be a bit to old for them, there seemed to be two seperate age groups, 80% of the pilgrims were between 16-19 years old, and then 15% were parents and chaperones.... with two or three of us falling in the 20's. But again everyone was welcoming, and I made some great friends.
In Holland almost everyone spoke perfect English, and my host family was a guy Harm, who is 25, and his girlfriend Leonie, who is two weeks yougner then me. They were great peoples and we spent many hours talking late into the night over a bottle of wine.
My German host family was a little older, both 65, and only he spoke English, albeit broken, but they were both very nice, and she actually cried when I left Sat morning for Marienfeld.
Just to give you an idea of numbers that I heard, there were 50,000 at the opening mass in Dusseldorf, 80,000 in Cologne, and another 50,000 in Bonn, with almost another 100,000 who couldnt make it into any of the football stadiums because they were at capacity. Catechesis, which was Wed-Fri mornings, was at another stadium in Leverkusen, and there were 10,000 people there. At the closing mass on Sunday there were 1 million people, with about 250 million watching it worldwide on TV. And they gave out Eucharist at all of these events.
I saw the Pope on three seperate occasions from fairly close range, and then of the big TV screens at MArienfeld for the closing Mass. I dont find him as charismatic as John Paul II, but he still gets the crowds going all the same.
There's so much more I want to say, little anecdotes and stories about the trip itself, the people I met, thje places I saw, but that would make this already too long post ten times the size. So if you want to hear more, or so pictures for that matter you'll just have to ask in person.
Fonz