6 AM came early, but I was up and refreshed. I let Susan and the kids sleep while I finished the first trip report. I snuck down for a couple cups of coffee and started to get hungry when I saw the breakfast buffet.
I didn’t want to eat alone so it was up and at’ em. We still had a full day ahead and needed to leave by 9:30 at the very latest. Susan and I went down and got a table and by time the kids got there we had eaten. They had showered so we went up and did the same. After a good full breakfast (our next meal would be around 5) we headed out slightly behind schedule. We didn’t care we just re-arranged the day.
First stop was mass in Colomajaro, close to Prado, where our dear friend Father Guillermo was stationed after his ordination last year. (Parking “the beast” was another problem, until I finally saw a handicap spot. I limped getting out of the truck till we got around the corner.) We had been with his dad, Tony as we call him, yesterday and met him and Carmen, his wife, for Mass. Lots of hugs and kisses again and we settled in for mass in a very full church.
(editor’s note: Tom likes to name his rental car for each pilgrimage, so in this case it is “The Beast”)
It was Corpus Christi Sunday and all the churches in Spain have processions before or after mass. With rain threatening they had the procession first, so we left our hard-to-find seats and processed out behind the first Holy Communion children and Fr. Guillermo and Jesus. I stayed back after a short walk, this time really limping, and took photo’s.
After the procession we stood in the back of the church, for our seats were gone. Mass was beautiful and the children receiving Jesus for the first time is always special to see. Another priest said mass and Fr. G sat in the confessional for those who needed it. Sam and I both went to confession after the service was over. They wanted us to have lunch with them but we had a tight schedule and promised we would on June 19, when Susan and I came back to Madrid.
We came here also for a special reason. Last year the sisters gave us the rosary that Amparo the visionary prayed with until she died.. When she died she gave it to Florita, our adopted mother who died before we got to see her last year. They all decided that we should have this precious relic, including Fr. G. so they gave it to us. We spent a year with this delicate and special rosary using it with great joy, but we felt it should be home in Spain with Fr. G, who new Amparo so well and was very close to her. So with great love and bitter sweet joy we gave it to him before we left. He was shocked and excited and argued with us only a little. Again more tears, hugs and kisses and we finally departed our loving friends.
The kids wanted to go back to Prado to say prayers for intentions and get some pictures and holy water so we did before it started to rain again. When we were there the caretaker we had come to know over the years came out and gave us some new brochures they had done finally in English. Susan asked him if we could venerate the tree under which Our Lady stood and he went for the key. The kids got to go first and were overwhelmed and they will have to tell you their own feelings. As for us it never changes, we get light headed and the emotions flow freely ( I need some visine) to be able to touch that sacred place.
We all stood around and split up the 10 pages of intentions we carry and prayed for each one before the place of the Apparition of the Virgin and each of us left those sheets and put them in Her intention box. Pictures were done and we collected some miraculous water from the spring and left just as the rain came.
Off to the Basilica of the Valley of the Fallen (Valle de los Caídos, only 15 minutes away, and we arrived as the rain stopped. This place is incredible as many of you know that have been here. The kids were pretty speechless as we explored this giant underground basilica. It still takes your breath away each time you come. (see Photos below) I almost got thrown out again, as I got caught 3 times sneaking pictures, but I managed a few.
Closeup of the entrance to the underground Basilica of the Valley of the Fallen
Tapestries line the walls of the Basilica of the Valley of the Fallen
Time to eat!! So we headed to Madrid and to Consuela and Umberto’s home for dinner. Never got lost and parked “the beast” 100 ft from her home. They gave us each a cross of Christ made from wood from the tree of the apparition at Prado, so we got something special for giving away something special. Our Blessed Mother is so good. It was a great afternoon of good friends, good food and a lots of laughs. (also more hugs, tears and kisses. But, we had to leave rather early since we had to get up at 3 AM to catch our flight the next day for the Holy Land. We bid farewell, Susan and I will see them again before we leave to come home, and headed for the hotel to pack, load the beast and hopefully sleep.
See you tomorrow.
God bless all of you,
Love,
Susan Tom and the Kids
Mary, Help of Those in Need
Holy Mary,
help those in need,
give strength to the weak,
comfort the sorrowful,
pray for God’s people,
assist the clergy,
intercede for religious.
Mary all who seek your help
experience your unfailing protection.
Amen.
Tonight it will be back to “Hi” and English after our trip home. We can’t believe our “Personal Pilgrimage” is over already. Although it was an arduous trip at times … the 33 days flew by.
We spent yesterday in the apartment hotel that I had booked outside of Paris and we packed and caught up on e-mails and the like. I even made veal goulash for dinner, since we never made it back to the restaurant in Krakow to have real Polish Goulash. It was pretty good if I do say so myself.
Got all the ingredients for goulash together…here goes!
Our flight leaves at 7:00 AM your time and we get home around 9:00 PM if everything runs on time. It will take several days to shake jet lag, do laundry and go through the stacks of mail. But I look forward to that, at home, watching American TV. If we could stay any longer, we would be back to Krakow. Did I tell you I love Krakow?
Spiritually, this was a very rewarding trip. And, as we saw so much suffering of pilgrims visiting so many Shrines, we offered up all of our Prayers, pains and suffering for so many people that it made our problems seem small. We have been blessed to have been able to make so many of these “personal pilgrimages” and see and experience so many things. We thank God and Our Blessed Mother every day for their Blessings.
We hope your journey with us was as rewarding for you, and we thank you for the Special Intentions many of you sent to us to Pray for, as well as all of the support that we got from your e-mails as we traveled. The back seat of the car was filled with all of you, though … and you were all very orderly.
Our plane from Paris to Philadelphia was on time after we spent a little time in the American Airlines Lounge relaxing. I tried to spend the last of our EURO but the cheapest thing I could find at the airport was $ 3.5 EURO (less than 4 bucks) and all I had left was $ 3.41 EURO … I was 12 cents short so if anyone needs some EURO, I have some. Susan and I shared many laughs on the flight from Paris and relaxed and had some fun. The laughing stopped in Philly!
Only a few euros left.
Relaxing in the lounge before the flight.
Once in Philly, we went through customs before heading to our connecting flight to West Palm Beach. DON’T EVER CONNECT THROUGH PHILLY! Customs was bad (but not as bad as Miami International). Going through Security to get to our connecting flight was a nightmare, but we finally got through. Our flight was late in boarding which was a good thing … the walk/run to get to the other side of the terminal and to our gate was far, far away!
The plane from Philly to PBI was a 1970-1980 “Vintage”. My seat was broken and I got yelled at twice when we finally were ready to take off 1-1/2 hours later because my seat was not in the “upright position”. The Attendant finally realized it was the plane’s problem … not mine.
Good thing we were still on pilgrimage because I thought the plane was going to blow up at any time … the engines sounded like they were on their last legs. (See Last of the Photos). So I calmly put our “safe flight back home” into God’s hands (thank you, God, for the safe return home).
Sam & Johna waited patiently for our return flight and they had planned to pick us up when we landed. They were there when we had retrieved all of our luggage. It was more than rewarding to see both of them after the flight on the Wright Brothers 3rd Plane!
Sam & Johna had stocked up our refrigerator with “vulture” eggs, bacon, English Muffins and all of the goodies one needs when they arrive home after a long trip. They had turned our water back on and collected our mail for us … what great friends! They had also brought along some wine, so the four of us tasted it together until it was gone. Then we graciously “threw them out” because “Jet Lag” had overtaken both of us. It was almost midnight … almost 6:00 A.M. in Paris. A long, long travel day was finally over.
On Friday we managed to get unpacked (somewhat), got the laundry done, sifted through the mail and I made a feeble attempt at the supermarket to get a few things … nothing was an easy task with our brains and bodies still “jumbled”. We spent most of Friday and Saturday in our “jammies” except for Morning Masses to offer our Prayers of Gratitude. I thought about wearing our “jammies” anyway but decided against it.
This morning (Sunday), we surfaced at our normal 8:45 A.M. Mass and we were very happy to be back at our “Cathedral Home” with so many friends who have followed us on our journey. Still jet-lagging, we finally returned home after the 10:30 A.M. Mass and have been looking at the stacks of ironing still left to do … while both of us are complaining that we brought too many clothes with us … oh well … the joys of returning home after a long journey. We still have to unpack some small gifts and the “trinkets” we bought for our “Pilgrimage Shrine” at home but all will be done when we return to normal.
So, as always, I end with a review of our “Favorite” and “Not So Favorite” moments, memories and experiences from this, our “7th Personal Pilgrimage”. It wasn’t easy deciding on them after driving approximately 3,000 miles during our journey, but we will give it a try …
OUR LIKES, LOVES AND FOND MEMORIES
Mountain Range Driving (Alps, Cantabrian, Pyrenees) (TOM LOVED)
Supermarches – Carrefours (Supermarkets)
Lots of King-Sized Beds and Big Showers
No cell phones, no voice mail, no texting
The opportunity to join the Sisters for Mass in their Monastery Convent at Notre Dame de L’Hermitage in Noiretable, France, reverence the Statue of Our Lady, being invited to join them for lunch and to learn to communicate between French and English. Meeting Father Jean (Rector), Sister Marie Paul and Sister Susiac “a/k/a Sister Flower” (the happy Nun).
Mountain Climb, Mass & Lunch in Orcival & Olby, France with our Cathedral friends, Brigette & Richard
The “Wine Cellar” in Fougaron with “Be-Be & Bob” at their B&B
The kindness of Sister Patricia Mª of the Trinity of Jesus in Agreda, Spain
A return to Our Lady of Prado Nuevo Shrine (outside Madrid), Florita’s Grave, Father Guillermo and his Parents, finally meeting Consuelo & Humberto, Mass in the Capilla, the Rosary, seeing Sister Pilar again, “Amelia”, the Religious Sisters and the Senior Residents at “The Ship” in Prado Nuevo and receiving Amparo’s/Florita’s Rosary Beads.
Visiting our friend, Beatriz, at her Hotel Rural la Concordia in Monzon de Campos and having her surprise us with news of her pregnancy … wonderful!
Our 5th trip to San Sebastian de Garabandal, the Parish Church, Father Rolando, Sari & Papa, Los Pinos, Michael & all of the wonderful memories. Our gratitude to Father Rolando for all of his “special kindnesses”.
Meeting Father Robert Witwicki at the Basilique Notre Dame de Verdelais, France and his time and kindness spent with us (although much too short).
When arriving at La Solitude Holy Family Shrine in Martillac, France, we were surprised to be told that a Sister Catherine was awaiting our arrival to show us around. Just sorry we didn’t have more time to spend with her.
Cracow, Poland – EVERYTHING … Visiting Cardinal Dziwisz, Father Tomasz (our memories together, dinner, laughs and friendship), the Churches, the Saint John Paul II Experiences, Divine Mercy Shrine, Wadowice, Kalwaria and our driver & new friend (Tomek). DID WE TELL YOU WE LOVE CRACOW (KRAKOW) AND THE ZLOTY (?????)
Wonderful friends, Sam & Johna, for taking us to the airport when we departed, watching over our home and picking us up on our return. If they were reading the Trip Reports, they would know that we have thanked them (LOL, Sam & Johna!)
All of the friends … old friends and new friends, that we met along our journey that were so kind and gracious to us … we are forever grateful to all of them.
33 Days of Prayer & Reflection with little interruption and all of the Sacred Shrines we were Blessed to travel to and Pray in.
OUR DISLIKES AND NO-SO-GOOD MEMORIES
Mountain Range Driving (Alps, Cantabrian, Pyrenees) (SUSAN SERIOUSLY DISLIKED)
Avis Rent-A-Car in Paris – Aggravation picking up and returning the “BMW” (Not the Mercedes I ordered and extra charges I am fighting)
Finding a Laundromat in France or Spain
It’s lazy of local shop-keepers in Spain and France to close in the afternoons! I often needed to buy things during “Siesta Time”. This should be banned (LOL – STUPID!)
Motorcycles and Traffic Jams on Highways
When we were in Spain, there were too many Spanish people there (only joking). The receptionists spoke Spanish, the food was Spanish, everything was Spanish. No one told us that there would be so many foreigners in Spain. (LOL – STUPID!)
Parking Garage in Zaragozza and the $ 350.00 scratch on the “Beemer”
Disappointment that our time did not permit us to stop at the Church of St. Eulalia in Bordeaux and meet Father Didier Monget. The Church were the father of St. Therese de Lisieux was Baptized.
Arriving at Santuario del Cristo de la Agonia in Limpias, Spain to find it closed again … our fourth time traveling there and only gaining entry twice … that’s too bad. (But we stayed outside and Prayed in front, knowing that Jesus and the Miraculous Crucifix were just inside the door.
Driving the treacherous roads to get to Our Lady of Lekitio, Spain
U.S. Customs “Welcome Home” Attitudes
Philadelphia Airport, Security and Delays
The “Antique” Plane from Philly to PBIA
THE END OF OUR PILGRIMAGE AND RETURN TO REALITY … SINCERELY DISLIKE!!!!
Well, it’s our last day in Poland and we decided to hire a tour guide to take us to the places we wanted to go and couldn’t get to. Specifically, the birthplace of Saint John Paul II, and the church where he offered, and committed himself, to Our Blessed Mother at the age of 9.
The army coffee was great and we were packed and out front to wait for our ride just before 8:00. Promptly at 8:00 our car drove up and Tomak our driver loaded our stuff. He was a wonderful guy and spoke perfect English. I informed him of the change of plans, that we had to go to the new Shrine of Saint John Paul II at Divine Mercy. He said it would take too much time, because it was a long walk, but I told him we could drive right there. I don’t think he believed me, but off we went and drove right up to the front of the Shrine.
I didn’t tell him we had a priest meeting us at 8:30, which was the exact time we arrived. He had never been there and was as amazed as we were at the magnitude of this tribute to St. JP II as well as the fact that we had a personal guide. He took the camera and we went off with the priest for our private tour and it was great and he followed a little stunned as he told us later. This is a must if you ever come here but unfortunately it is not finished and they are short of funds and need help to complete the project but I think it will get done.
Father was wonderful but had a doctor’s appointment and had to go to, so did we, in order to make the 2 shrines we had yet to see and get to the airport on time. Tomak was a great driver and I just totally relaxed as he chauffeured us to our next stop.
It is a tradition here to have a slice of “Pope’s cake”
We arrived at the home of St. JP II and after a coffee and some Pope cake we went to the church next door first where he was baptized and went to mass most of the time.
We got to touch his Baptismal font as he did when he first returned here as Pope. It was pretty special. I needed a toilette, and when I got back, it was so crowded at the home of St. JP II that we had to leave and head for the shrine at Kalaweia and the weeping Madonna.
The exterior of the church here in Wadowiche
As usual, we lit a candle for all of your intentions
When we finally got up the hill and entered the church, Mass was in progress and Susan and I just went in to attend. Our Photographer had the camera and we didn’t care or worry, we had what we wanted, Mass and the Eucharist.After Mass we didn’t have much time but we did get to visit all 13 chapels in the shrine that St. JP II said we all very special in their own way and they were.
Not wanting to go, but knowing we had to, we headed out for the airport about 1 1/2 hours away and our flight back to Paris. We had decided that even though we had a free day tomorrow, we were not going anywhere and were just going to relax before the flight home Thursday.
Our final trip reports…we hope you have enjoyed traveling with us.
We arrived and managed to find the hotel shuttle and got our room and the luggage we checked here and spent the night in. I wrote trip reports and Susan started to organize and pack for the trip home. We had a pizza and some pasta for dinner and a couple glasses of wine and were asleep by 10, I guess.
We slept in a little longer today, since our visit with Cardinal Dziwisz had changed from 9 AM to noon. If it were 9 AM, we would have missed it since we are finally relaxed after the past month’s journey.
Mass at Saint Mary’s Basilica in Krakow
I made the army coffee and it wasn’t as messy as I have gotten the procedure down and woke Susan and we checked our e-mails, showered and headed outfor Mass at St. Mary’s Basilica. They had a Mass every 1/2 hour until noon, and the one before us was crowded, as well as ours it was nice to see.
What do you get for a Cardinal? Flowers seemed like a good choice.
Mass, as always, is the best way to start the day and after Mass we stopped at the flower mart in the square and bought some flowers for the Cardinal. We had brought T-shirts from the Diocese for world youth day, and trying to figure out what to buy a Cardinal was impossible, since we had tried to do this all along our journey.
Father Tomasz gave us a warm greeting and a very special tour
We got to the residence with two minutes to spare and were ushered in to the2nd floor and the offices. Father Tomasz, the Cardinal’s Episcopal Secretary, heard us and came out immediately to greet us with a big hug and buziaki’s.(kisses) We haven’t seen each other in over 3 years but it seemed likeyesterday. The Cardinal was still in with some guest, so Fr. Tomasz took us on a special tour of the residence.
He first took us to the Private Chapel of St. John Paul II, where he was ordained and resided before being Pope as the Bishop of Crackow. He used this chapel for his office with a desk to one side as Bishop and when in Cracow as Pope. He spent many hourspraying there, and just being there brought tears to our eyes.
A relic of Saint John Paul II’s blood on the altar
Fr. Tomasz left us alone for a few private moments as we prayed to the beloved Saint and venerated the relic with his blood. The depiction behind the altar follows the life of the Saint and is beautiful. Fr. Tomasz explained it to us and said we could take pictures knowing we send them out to all of you at night as he has been following our journey as well.
The window where John Paul II greeted the young people
We then went to the famous Pope’s window, where Saint John Paul II first welcomed the youth of Cracow, arriving to meet him. This continued each time he was in Cracow, as it became a tradition. We saw it from where he stood. How good is that?
Tom & Sue with Cardinal Dziwisz
The Cardinal was done so he came out to greet us, and again, it was just like yesterday from when we met him at a reception after his Mass on PalmBeach. I was not sure if he recognized us, but he smiled as if he remembered, slapping my hand when we first met him in Palm Beach, when I just wanted to kiss his ring. Today I finally got to and so did Susan. She was so nervous being so close again to St. John Paul’s best friend and confidante of over 40 years. Who would know him or love him better better?
A special gift…a rosary given to him by Pope Francis
We went into his private office and he went to a box on his desk to get something out and thought otherwise and went into the next room and came back and presented Susan with a Rosary from Pope Francis. He gave her one the last time we met from Saint John Paul II,, I think he remembered.
He gave a Pontificate Medal of Saint John Paul II to me. We were both speechless. We gave him his flowers and the world youth day T-shirts which he looked over and threw the smaller of the two at Fr. Tomasz.
The Cardinal has a great sense of humor and I told him he had the devil in him. Fr. Tomasz reminded him how we met while waiting in line at the reception in Palm Beach waiting for the toilette. Now you know why I always check out the toilettes wherever we go, because you just know who you are going to meet and where it will take you.
The Cardinal nicknamed me “BIG TOM” and Fr. Tomasz was “LITTLE TOM”. We spent a couple more minutes and took a photo op and the traditional 3 kiss good bye since the Cardinal had a new Pastor waiting for him. He promised a much longer visit next time and we went back to Fr. Tomasz’s office to solidify our dinner plans for tonight. More hugs and busiakis and we left much elated for the opportunity given us and to have been so close to the life of Saint John Paul II.
When we got to the ground floor and the Guard gave us some literature from the Cardinal and asked us if we wanted to see the exhibition of St. John Paul II. We thanked him and told him we where here yesterday and saw the whole exhibit and left.
Walking up to Wawel Castle
Susan had to sit down, I think she was emotionally spent and needed to regroup. We rested and talked for while and then headed for Wawel Castle and the Cathedral where St. JP II said his first Mass. Talk about tight security and no photos allowed it was even hard for me to sneak one. We spent over an hour there and could have spent the day, there is so much to see, but wehad not eaten and it was almost 2:30.
Stopped along the way for a bite….great sausage!
We stopped at food stand in the farmers market and had a sausage to hold us over for our 7 PM diner with Fr. Tomasz. We went back to the apartment and rested before leaving for dinner. (I’m getting used to this resting)
Dinner with Father Tomasz
We arrived at the restaurant at 7:00 and Fr. Tomasz shortly after casually dressed in jeans and a shirt. We discussed dinner and wine for the evening and then proceeded to have a great time, with a lot of laughs and a couple minutes of serious conversation.
Georgio with Father Tomasz
Georgio (from Italy) who knew Father, came over to the table to greet him and introduce himself. He sent us a Sambuca and I sent him our bill. LOL He laughed, but he didn’t pick it up. Hugs and kisses with Georgio and we departed the restaurant and walked with Fr. Tomasz for awhile.
He told us we had to go back to Divine Mercy to see the John Paul Center being built and that it was on our way to Wadowice and Kalwaria, where we were going tomorrow. He called a priest friend of his and told him we would be there around 8:30 and asked him to meet us and show us around.
It was time to say good bye and we all hugged and buziaki’d, promised to keep in touch and God willing meet again soon. It was a great night with a great friend.
Couldn’t get back to the Apartment fast enough and before I could lock the door Susan was sleeping clothes and all, she did manage to get her shoes off. That’s my baby, when she’s tired she’s fast.
Dobranoc,
The Three O’clock Hour of Mercy
Immerse Yourself in My Passion
At three o’clock, implore My mercy, especially for sinners; and, if only
for a brief moment, immerse yourself in My Passion, particularly in My
abandonment at the moment of agony. This is the hour of great mercy for the
whole world. I will allow you to enter into My mortal sorrow. In this hour, I
will refuse nothing to the soul that makes a request of Me in virtue of My
Passion … (Diary, 1320).
Love, Hugs and Buziakis,
Susan & Tom
Thank you for sharing our 2015 “Personal Pilgrimage” with us!
Tom & Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)
E-Mail:
_TSMelillo13@aol.com_ (mailto:TSMelillo13@aol.com)
We had a great night’s sleep and I got up first and made some coffee. That was a job since the coffee maker was absent. They did have a kettle that boiled water quickly so I made it army style. Throw the grounds in the boiling water, then filter it. I made a mess, but the coffee was good.
Susan smelled the coffee and got up. We had no food and wanted to make Mass and have breakfast, so we headed down to the main square. We were planning to go to Kalwaria and Wadowice, the birthplace of St. John Paul II and hopefully have Mass there. They are both close to each other and about 35 miles away. We figured, no problem and then it became a problem, since we found out that the bus took over 3 hours to get there with stops and transfers. We tried a couple tour agencies and nothing was available until the next day. We felt like two country bumpkins lost in the city and very stupid after traveling 3000 miles on a precise plan that went without incident. Now we are standing on a street corner going which way do we go!
Peroiges are a Polish specialty….dumplings stuffed with a variety of options.
When in doubt, eat. So we headed for a restaurant that we passed that served only peroiges. For those who don’t know, peroiges are dumplings made with unleavened dough and stuffed with such things as potato, sauerkraut, ground meat, cheese, or fruit. We each ordered a different kind and waited patiently as we further discussed our dilemma. The peroiges came and there were a dozen on each plate. We left when they were gone, after paying the 19 Zlotys or $6. Did I tell you I love Krakow?
It was very hot today and we were already sweating so we made an executive decision and decided to go to Saint Faustina’s and Divine Mercy. Sounds easy, but we couldn’t figure out what tram to take and where to get it. It was the weekend and all the corner tobacco stands that have schedules and sell tickets were closed, as it was, there was hardly a car on the streets. Have no fear, we took a taxi and 25 minutes later we were at the Shrine. The cab was 20 Zloty around $6, you should know that by now, it cost more than that to go 2 blocks in a city in a cab and it was air-conditioned. Did I tell you I love Krakow?
Praying here in the Chruch at the hour of Divine Mercy was such a special experience.
This place was spectacular and very spiritual. Everyone there was there to pray and honor Jesus in their own way as well as through the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3 PM. This devotion to the Divine Mercy of Jesus is a powerful Prayer and take a simple 7 minutes to say each day at 3 if possible. The chaplet can be said anytime and is a powerful pray for saving souls who have lost their way at the time of death. Jesus promises to save anyone who says this chaplet at the time of their deaths no matter how great a sinner they were.
Below there is a link to all the information about Divine Mercy and I pray that all of you who are not familiar with this devotion read it and consider were you want to be for eternity.
Saying divine Mercy in the Chapel at Sister Faustina’s tomb at 3 PM and knowing that Our Savior was here many times appearing to her is beyond words. The chapel was packed as well as the large Basilica which we found out since we went there for Mass after the Chaplet. Earlier I had gone to confession and I felt like it was Divine Mercy Sunday all over.
The Saint John Paul Center is being constructed on the grounds a short walk from the major Basilica and we didn’t know, so we missed it but we both decided if we are able to take another trip, Krakow will be on the agenda.
A view of the cell of Saint Faustina (behind glass, of course)
We visited the cell of St. Faustina where she slept and did penance and was visited by Jesus many, many times. There is a book about her life and Susan finished it and Said it was wonderful. It had to be for she read it in a couple days and Susan doesn’t take time to read a book often.
When we left the grounds and headed for we don’t know where we walked down the hill and hoped to find a cab or something. The tobacco was closed, but the tram tracks were across the street and a nice gentleman explained to us that we could get back to Old Town on the #10 but we had 1 minute to get there. I’ll never forget Susan running and trying to stop the tram from leaving and watching it leave her in the dust. We stood at the station and tried to figure to what next when a nice young lad explained to us that you can buy tickets on the tram but not the bus and there is a board telling when the next tram #10, which was ours, was coming, 10 minutes to go. The tram came and we were now pros. At the stop we needed to make, I led the way through a maze of exits and we were back at our apartment in 10 minutes. I now feel like we conquered this city!
We had drink and we took another shower to cool off and after relaxing for awhile we went to dinner. We walked to the square and it was crowded so we went off to a side street and ate at a great polish rest. We met a great couple from Denmark or Norway and took pictures of them and e-mailed them to him since he left his camera at the hotel. We also met another group at another table and had a great conversation. This town is very friendly and almost everyone speaks some English or is very fluent in it. They even have American TV in our language, which is where we ended the night in our bed as we fell asleep to a Tom Cruise classic.
Well we made it. We are in Krakow. Getting here was not bad after we got rid of the car. I was honest and showed them a small scratch I made in Zaragossa and they were ruthless charging us almost 310 Euro for repairs. I could have painted the whole car at Earl Scheib’s for that. I went in and argued with the manager about the cost for an up grade when they were going to give us a downgrade for the type car we paid for and lost that battle too. Oh well we will see when we get home who wins when I get the credit card company going.
We checked in to our flight at the wrong window and got scolded because we we paid for premium and were in the regular lane. She weighed the luggage and it was 2 kilos over and she wanted 36 Euro’s more. I told her to wait a minute and I opened the suitcase and whipped out the Publix bag that already had about 5 pounds of stuff in it. The best 99 cents ever spent on that green Publix bag. I’m going to send them a picture.
We went through security and after they checked every tube of stuff we had they let us through. I had to take off my shoes and belt after I set the alarm off. My pants almost fell down and Susan took a picture and Susan was accosted by 2 security guards and we had to erase the picture even though they were laughing as well as everyone else.
We went to the wifi room and plugged in, and none of the plugs were working so we went to go down to the lower lounge to try there. The escalator was coming up so Susan said to press the button and it will go the other way, so I did and it stopped and nothing happened after multiple presses of the button, so we ran and got a beer and went back to the upper lounge hoping someone would fix it. People were no too happy walking up that huge flight of stairs.
We had entertainment on the plane with some college kids doing their pledging and it was funny and we arrived in Krakow right on time. Our bag was first off and we went to the curb to wait for our ride I thought I had confirmed but didn’t so after 30 minutes we hopped a cab. A nice new Jaguar and I enjoyed the ride in the BACK SEAT. I didn’t have any Polish money, it didn’t matter they take euro’s.
The hotel didn’t look like much from the out side but we were very surprised at the space and the gigantic bed. Couldn’t wait to give that a spin. We ventured out for Polish money, Zlotys water, some wine, juice and coffee and vodka just to have on hand. We bought a bag of chips but that was it for food, I’m not eating a sandwich for a month nor cooking in Krakow.
We didn’t explore to much because my leg hurt and we were both tired so we went around the corner and found a cute little Italian rest. We ordered 2 pizzas and a chicken and broccoli that was absoultly the best I have ever eaten. The didn’t have a liquor licence yet so we took it to go and went back to our apartment and had our wine with dinner. Our shopping spree and dinner cost almost 150 Zolty, which works out to around $40. Did I tell you I love krakow?
That night was the last trip report we sent out so we will catch up before we leave. We have been out a lot.
Dobranoc
Prayer to Our Lady of Czestochowa
O Mother of God, Immaculate Mary, to thee do I dedicate my body and soul, all my prayers and deeds, my joys and sufferings, all that I am an all that I have. With a joyful heart I surrender myself to thy love. To thee will I devote my services of my own free will for the salvation of mankind, and for the help of the Holy Church whose Mother thou art.
From now on my only desire is to do all things with thee, through thee, and for thee. I know I can accomplish nothing by my own strength, whereas thou can do everything that is the will of thy Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Thou are always victorious. Grant, therefore, O Helper of the Faithful, that my family, my parish, and my country might become in truth the Kingdom where thou reignest in the glorious presence God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, forever and ever.
Amen.
Well, we leave tomorrow for Krakow, and today we decided to again make only one stop before going to our airport hotel and repack for Poland.
We survived the night without incident, although I did have to go down stairs around 3 to get a pill for my knee. Susan woke hearing me climbing down the stairs “backwards” for safety and so that my feet would fit on the winding steps, so we sat up for a few minutes and went back to sleep.
Breakfast at 8:00 and we were off to Chartres via the back roads of France. The ride was great and the sun was shining. We parked in the underground lot near the Cathedral and walked the short distance to our destination which was under re-construction.
Some of the magnificent stained glass windows…the color knows as “Chartes Blue”
Susan and I both love these grand old places of worship but the worship has gone by the wayside as tourism has taken over.
There is no reverence shown by most of the visitors, who are only there to see and photograph the beautiful stained glass windows throughout the Cathedral.
After walking around the building, we finally found the entrance to the crypt area
We knew there was a Mass soon, and finally asked, knowing they wouldn’t have it in the main area. We were directed to the crypt via outside and after walking totally around the building we found it. The man at the door wouldn’t let us in because it was 15 minutes before mass. That didn’t make sense, neither did arguing with him, so we patiently waited until a little old lady came and was immediately let in.
Entrance was strictly controlled
I think this guy thought we were just tourists, maybe because I had a camera around my neck, and just wanted picture. Reluctantly he let us in and when mass started we saw him checking us out as we sat in the front seat of the crypt. It was cold in there and we were glad we had brought a jacket which we put on quickly. Mass was beautiful in this unique setting well below all the hustle and bustle of the upstairs.
We decided to have a pizza at one of the local cafes and realized that we just fell into the tourist trap routine, but we didn’t care at this point. The pizza was good and we left Chartres without having to worry about food, since we still had a rather large sandwich in the back seat.
We arrived at our hotel around 3:00 and spent the next 4 hours, after we emptied the car of everything, packing and re-packing. We were only bringing one suitcase and there weight limits so decisions had to be made. We checked out the weather and it is hot in Poland, so we packed light stuff and a heavier jacket and whatever else we need we will buy.
It will be nice not to have to worry about driving again until we get home which is only a week away.
Well, we woke up at Jackie’s and mom’s. after a great, great night’s sleep. Being “at home” as Jackie wanted us to feel, we left our room and went out to get coffee in our “jammies”. There were 4 other guests at the B&B this morning so we all sat in the Breakfast Salon together since it was set for 6. The other 4 guests were all dressed up as we sat there in our “jammies”, perfectly comfortable.
We had an array of fresh breads & croissants of all sorts, French cheeses, homemade jams which were local, Caribbean and other selections. During breakfast, one of the other women wanted coffee and I saw that Jackie was on the phone. So, I immediately went into the kitchen, grabbed the pot of coffee and returned to pour the woman more coffee. She looked at me “shocked” because I was a guest. It was apparent that they were all shocked …including Jackie when he saw me return with the pot. We laughed with him about it later as the three of us sat our on the back patio and chatted before our departure.
We said our farewells to Jackie…mom was still upstairs asleep.
We returned to our room, showered and packed up the car before going back to chat with Jackie a bit more since it was obvious he didn’t want us to leave … his English-speaking new friends. Mom was still upstairs fast asleep since the four of us had stayed up pretty late the night before laughing and talking (and getting her to speak English which she did a great job of). We bid “farewell” to Jackie and he told us that when/if we ever return to their home, we will always have the “Martinique Suite” … even if he has to kick someone out of it. After fond good-bye’s, we departed.
Our first stop of the day was La Solitude – Notre Dame des Bois – The Holy Family of Bordeaux in Martillac, France. We were in the hopes of seeing the Eucharistic Miracle of Bordeaux Relic(s) in Bordeaux, but through emails to the Church of Sainte Eulalie, Father Didier Monget had suggested we also visit La Solitude which we did put on our Itinerary. When we arrived at the Spiritual Center at La Solitude, we were quite surprised that our name was on their schedule of pilgrims. Susan had emailed them before our trip to request information, but we had no idea they were waiting for us. One of the greeters told us that Sister Catherine had been awaiting our arrival and that she was now in the Chapel of the Tomb of Father Pierre Bienvenu Noailles, the founder of the Order, and that 11:30 A.M. Mass was about to begin. She invited us to stay to attend Mass with the Sisters and she brought us in to Sister Catherine.
Mass in the Chapel at La Solitude
It was a beautiful Mass in a small Chapel. The Chapel was filled with Religious Sisters, elderly residents (this, we found, was another home for the elderly) and guests. Communion was very special … we received the Eucharist along with the Congregation but I noticed that everyone was walking up to the Altar after receiving so I nudged Susan to do the same. On the Altar were two Chalices which some “tinctured” their Host and others consumed and then took the Precious Blood. After Mass, we all sat silently for a while in deep contemplation.
The two of us did not see Sister in the foyer after Mass so we walked back outside to look around the grounds. Sister came around the corner and, lo and behold, she spoke wonderful English. She asked if we would like to join them for lunch, but we were still full from breakfast, so we graciously declined. The she informed us that the only remaining item from the Eucharistic Miracle was the Monstrance that had contained the Sacred Host at one time. Sister was on her way to lunch and said that she would return to us afterward. We told her we would walk the grounds and determine the rest of the schedule for the day because I had it jam-packed full on our Itinerary.
After plugging in our remaining destinations for the day and on to our next B&B for the night, I realized that we did not have enough hours in the day for the driving, the visiting of the Shrines I had scheduled and then getting to our next destination hotel so I had to make the “executive decision” to depart. We didn’t know where Sister was having her lunch, so we left the Monastery and headed towards Notre Dame de Talence.
Talence, France is on the outskirts of Bordeaux. We had not been there before and we never expected the traffic to be so crazy and busy. It took us quite some time to reach our destination through the myriad of traffic.
Sue miraculously figured out how to work the parking meter–very hi tech
Once we arrived, and fortunately, I found a parking place almost directly in front of the Shrine. I couldn’t figure out how to use their parking meter, though, so Susan took a whack at it and, miraculously, she got us a parking ticket for one hour … for “free”.
As we walked to the Shrine, however, I took notice of the very large “parking lot” for the Shrine … no parking meters … oh well!
The pieta in Notred Dame de Talence
We really didn’t know what to expect atNotre Dame de Talence. As we entered the Shrine, we noted that some parts were very, very old while up near the Altar and Sanctuary, it appeared to be very ultra-modern. There were beautiful, old stone Stations of the Cross as we proceeded towards the Altar in search of the Sacred Statue of the Pieta.
Praying for all of our intentions at the Pieta in Talence
On the right of the Sanctuary was a very old and small Chapel with the very, very old “Pieta” statue of Our Lady and the Crucified Christ lying on her knees. It was breathtaking! We knelt and Prayed before the Pieta for what we felt was a very long time.
We leave your prayer intentions at every shrine we visit, if at all possible
Then, as always if it is available, Susan entered your Intentions in their Prayer Book and we lit a candle before Our Lady on your behalf. We then sat in front of the Pieta and Prayed our Rosary and our Daily Litany of Prayers in quiet. There were a few others around us …also in deep Prayer.
After leaving the Shrine, Susan and I both agreed that there was something “quite special” about the Shrine and the “Pieta” Statue … a great sense of tranquility had filled us both.
Knowing that Susan’s “free time” on the parking meter was running out, we
knew that it was time to depart for our next destination so we walked back to the car. We realized that we were parked almost directly in front of a train station stop that “could have” taken us in to Bordeaux and to Eglise Sainte Eulalie where the Father of St. Therese de Lisieux, Louis Martin, was Baptized. He and his wife, Zelie, will be Canonized on October 19, 2015. We had looked forward to visiting this special Shrine and meeting Father Didier Monget whom Susan had communicated with before our trip, but looking at the time … having been told by Jackie at our B&B that one does not want to get caught in the “rush hour traffic” in Bordeaux … and knowing that we still have a long two hour drive from Bordeaux to get to our next Bed & Breakfast, we knew that we had to put this Shrine on our agenda for our next journey through France. Reluctantly, we departed to La Creche, our next night’s stay.
We headed to our next destination and hoped to find a place to stop and eat along the way. We were driving on the hectic Autovia (Toll Road of France) and didn’t realize how difficult it would be to find a restaurant without a major diversion. I finally decided to get off the Autovia in a small town along the way.
With all the cafes closed, we had to improvise. Thank goodness for those good French breads
Almost an hour later … and walking in to cafe’s to be told they had stopped food service until the evening, we left the small town with the only thing we had found available to eat … a large slice of French bread with one slice of ham, one slice of cheese and some dijon mustard … at that point, we didn’t care. We were both starving and chowed it down.
Once our headaches were gone, we both agreed that finding somewhere to eat in France and Spain during the afternoon is not an easy task. After heavy traffic and numerous toll stops, we finally arrived at our next Bed & Breakfast in La Creche (where we realized later we should have just driven to in order to have a nice, casual lunch.) Once we had checked in, the lovely young woman who owns the B&B told us that there was a fabulous Pizza Cafe and a Cambodian Restaurant a “stone’s throw” away and that both had been open until a short time ago … two places we “could have” eaten today if we hadn’t stopped in that small town with no food except a “sang-wich”!
We had very nice accommodations again at this lovely B&B. We settled in and decided that we should try our “Google Voice” that I had set up before our departure from home. I was hoping that these calls will be “free” as we were told … otherwise, we’re going to have one HUGE phone bill when we return home. Especially since many of our family/friends did not answer
when we called, because it shows an “850” area code, so they probably assumed it was a tele-marketer or two.
We made a very special point of calling Barry & Corinne but she wouldn’t answer either. So, I called our Cathedral to have their daughter, Monet, call them directly and tell them to ANSWER THE PHONE! Monet told me that Jim F. was over with Barry so, after I tried to call Corinne’s cell the second time and she still didn’t answer, I dialed Jim’s number and he did “take a chance” and answered his phone (thanks, Jim). The 5 of us (on speaker phone) shared a lot of laughs and a great conversation.
Susan then IM’d our friend, Johna, to tell her to answer her cell phone with a strange number (which she had not done before but she did tonight). So we had laughs and we realized that we are missing all of you very much … well, truth be told, wish you were here with us! Oh, I forgot … you all are and have been here with us (vicariously) in the back seat with our Angels.
I briefly thought about going out for dinner after 8:00 P.M. when everything will re-open. As we worked on our computers, we noshed on our left-over potato chips and cheese-doodles and put our heads on our pillows just around 8:30 P.M. … lights out and no dinner again!
Until tomorrow … Au Revoir!
O Most Holy Virgin, Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ: by the overwhelming grief you experienced when you witnessed the martyrdom, the crucifixion, and the death of your divine Son, look upon me with eyes of compassion and awaken in my heart a tender commiseration for those sufferings, as well as a sincere detestation of my sins, in order that, being disengaged from all undue affections for the passing joys of this earth, I may long for the eternal Jerusalem, and that henceforth all my thoughts and all my actions may be directed toward this one most desirable object. Honor, glory, and love to our Divine Lord Jesus, and to the Holy and Immaculate Mother of God. Amen.
Love Susan & Tom
Bon-Bon (LOL):
Well, we woke up at Jackie’s and mom’s. after a great, great night’s sleep. Being “at home” as Jackie wanted us to feel, we left our room and went out to get coffee in our “jammies”. There were 4 other guests at the B&B this morning so we all sat in the Breakfast Salon together since it was set for 6. The other 4 guests were all dressed up as we sat there in our “jammies”, perfectly comfortable.
We had an array of fresh breads & croissants of all sorts, French cheeses, homemade jams which were local, Caribbean and other selections. During breakfast, one of the other women wanted coffee and I saw that Jackie was on the phone. So, I immediately went into the kitchen, grabbed the pot of coffee and returned to pour the woman more coffee. She looked at me “shocked” because I was a guest. It was apparent that they were all shocked …including Jackie when he saw me return with the pot. We laughed with him about it later as the three of us sat our on the back patio and chatted before our departure.
We said our farewells to Jackie…mom was still upstairs asleep.
We returned to our room, showered and packed up the car before going back to chat with Jackie a bit more since it was obvious he didn’t want us to leave … his English-speaking new friends. Mom was still upstairs fast asleep since the four of us had stayed up pretty late the night before laughing and talking (and getting her to speak English which she did a great job of). We bid “farewell” to Jackie and he told us that when/if we ever return to their home, we will always have the “Martinique Suite” … even if he has to kick someone out of it. After fond good-bye’s, we departed.
Our first stop of the day was La Solitude – Notre Dame des Bois – The Holy Family of Bordeaux in Martillac, France. We were in the hopes of seeing the Eucharistic Miracle of Bordeaux Relic(s) in Bordeaux, but through emails to the Church of Sainte Eulalie, Father Didier Monget had suggested we also visit La Solitude which we did put on our Itinerary. When we arrived at the Spiritual Center at La Solitude, we were quite surprised that our name was on their schedule of pilgrims. Susan had emailed them before our trip to request information, but we had no idea they were waiting for us. One of the greeters told us that Sister Catherine had been awaiting our arrival and that she was now in the Chapel of the Tomb of Father Pierre Bienvenu Noailles, the founder of the Order, and that 11:30 A.M. Mass was about to begin. She invited us to stay to attend Mass with the Sisters and she brought us in to Sister Catherine.
Mass in the Chapel at La Solitude
It was a beautiful Mass in a small Chapel. The Chapel was filled with Religious Sisters, elderly residents (this, we found, was another home for the elderly) and guests. Communion was very special … we received the Eucharist along with the Congregation but I noticed that everyone was walking up to the Altar after receiving so I nudged Susan to do the same. On the Altar were two Chalices which some “tinctured” their Host and others consumed and then took the Precious Blood. After Mass, we all sat silently for a while in deep contemplation.
The two of us did not see Sister in the foyer after Mass so we walked back outside to look around the grounds. Sister came around the corner and, lo and behold, she spoke wonderful English. She asked if we would like to join them for lunch, but we were still full from breakfast, so we graciously declined. The she informed us that the only remaining item from the Eucharistic Miracle was the Monstrance that had contained the Sacred Host at one time. Sister was on her way to lunch and said that she would return to us afterward. We told her we would walk the grounds and determine the rest of the schedule for the day because I had it jam-packed full on our Itinerary.
After plugging in our remaining destinations for the day and on to our next B&B for the night, I realized that we did not have enough hours in the day for the driving, the visiting of the Shrines I had scheduled and then getting to our next destination hotel so I had to make the “executive decision” to depart. We didn’t know where Sister was having her lunch, so we left the Monastery and headed towards Notre Dame de Talence.
Talence, France is on the outskirts of Bordeaux. We had not been there before and we never expected the traffic to be so crazy and busy. It took us quite some time to reach our destination through the myriad of traffic.
Sue miraculously figured out how to work the parking meter–very hi tech
Once we arrived, and fortunately, I found a parking place almost directly in front of the Shrine. I couldn’t figure out how to use their parking meter, though, so Susan took a whack at it and, miraculously, she got us a parking ticket for one hour … for “free”.
As we walked to the Shrine, however, I took notice of the very large “parking lot” for the Shrine … no parking meters … oh well!
The pieta in Notred Dame de Talence
We really didn’t know what to expect at Notre Dame de Talence. As we entered the Shrine, we noted that some parts were very, very old while up near the Altar and Sanctuary, it appeared to be very ultra-modern. There were beautiful, old stone Stations of the Cross as we proceeded towards the Altar in search of the Sacred Statue of the Pieta.
Praying for all of our intentions at the Pieta in Talence
On the right of the Sanctuary was a very old and small Chapel with the very, very old “Pieta” statue of Our Lady and the Crucified Christ lying on her knees. It was breathtaking! We knelt and Prayed before the Pieta for what we felt was a very long time.
We leave your prayer intentions at every shrine we visit, if at all possible
Then, as always if it is available, Susan entered your Intentions in their Prayer Book and we lit a candle before Our Lady on your behalf. We then sat in front of the Pieta and Prayed our Rosary and our Daily Litany of Prayers in quiet. There were a few others around us …also in deep Prayer.
After leaving the Shrine, Susan and I both agreed that there was something “quite special” about the Shrine and the “Pieta” Statue … a great sense of tranquility had filled us both.
Knowing that Susan’s “free time” on the parking meter was running out, we knew that it was time to depart for our next destination so we walked back to the car. We realized that we were parked almost directly in front of a train station stop that “could have” taken us in to Bordeaux and to Eglise Sainte Eulalie where the Father of St. Therese de Lisieux, Louis Martin, was Baptized. He and his wife, Zelie, will be Canonized on October 19, 2015. We had looked forward to visiting this special Shrine and meeting Father Didier Monget whom Susan had communicated with before our trip, but looking at the time … having been told by Jackie at our B&B that one does not want to get caught in the “rush hour traffic” in Bordeaux … and knowing that we still have a long two hour drive from Bordeaux to get to our next Bed & Breakfast, we knew that we had to put this Shrine on our agenda for our next journey through France. Reluctantly, we departed to La Creche, our next night’s stay.
We headed to our next destination and hoped to find a place to stop and eat along the way. We were driving on the hectic Autovia (Toll Road of France) and didn’t realize how difficult it would be to find a restaurant without a major diversion. I finally decided to get off the Autovia in a small town along the way.
With all the cafes closed, we had to improvise. Thank goodness for those good French breads
Almost an hour later … and walking in to cafe’s to be told they had stopped food service until the evening, we left the small town with the only thing we had found available to eat … a large slice of French bread with one slice of ham, one slice of cheese and some dijon mustard … at that point, we didn’t care. We were both starving and chowed it down.
Once our headaches were gone, we both agreed that finding somewhere to eat in France and Spain during the afternoon is not an easy task. After heavy traffic and numerous toll stops, we finally arrived at our next Bed & Breakfast in La Creche (where we realized later we should have just driven to in order to have a nice, casual lunch.) Once we had checked in, the lovely young woman who owns the B&B told us that there was a fabulous Pizza Cafe and a Cambodian Restaurant a “stone’s throw” away and that both had been open until a short time ago … two places we “could have” eaten today if we hadn’t stopped in that small town with no food except a “sang-wich”!
We had very nice accommodations again at this lovely B&B. We settled in and decided that we should try our “Google Voice” that I had set up before our departure from home. I was hoping that these calls will be “free” as we were told … otherwise, we’re going to have one HUGE phone bill when we return home. Especially since many of our family/friends did not answer when we called, because it shows an “850” area code, so they probably assumed it was a tele-marketer or two.
We made a very special point of calling Barry & Corinne but she wouldn’t answer either. So, I called our Cathedral to have their daughter, Monet, call them directly and tell them to ANSWER THE PHONE! Monet told me that Jim F. was over with Barry so, after I tried to call Corinne’s cell the second time and she still didn’t answer, I dialed Jim’s number and he did “take a chance” and answered his phone (thanks, Jim). The 5 of us (on speaker phone) shared a lot of laughs and a great conversation.
Susan then IM’d our friend, Johna, to tell her to answer her cell phone with a strange number (which she had not done before but she did tonight). So we had laughs and we realized that we are missing all of you very much … well, truth be told, wish you were here with us! Oh, I forgot … you all are and have been here with us (vicariously) in the back seat with our Angels.
I briefly thought about going out for dinner after 8:00 P.M. when everything will re-open. As we worked on our computers, we noshed on our left-over potato chips and cheese-doodles and put our heads on our pillows just around 8:30 P.M. … lights out and no dinner again!
Until tomorrow … Au Revoir!
O Most Holy Virgin, Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ: by the overwhelming grief you experienced when you witnessed the martyrdom, the crucifixion, and the death of your divine Son, look upon me with eyes of compassion and awaken in my heart a tender commiseration for those sufferings, as well as a sincere detestation of my sins, in order that, being disengaged from all undue affections for the passing joys of this earth, I may long for the eternal Jerusalem, and that henceforth all my thoughts and all my actions may be directed toward this one most desirable object. Honor, glory, and love to our Divine Lord Jesus, and to the Holy and Immaculate Mother of God. Amen.
On Friday, we will be traveling to Krakow (Cracow), Poland and I don’t have a clue what my greetings will be yet.
But today is Wednesday! After a good night’s sleep, we were still very tired this morning. I think we are wearing out. We showered and loaded the car, had a lite breakfast and headed out to a very special Shrine to Our Blessed Mother in L’Ile Bouchard, France, which we had visited on one of our earlier pilgrimages.
It was cold and raining, very difficult driving at times, so we took the back roads and avoided the highways and toll roads. It was a peaceful ride through the countryside except for a few very narrow roads which I could tell Susan wasn’t too happy about (with her “total silence). I kept telling her that there were no cliffs and I could pull on the grass at the shoulder of the road if I had to … but she didn’t hear me or elected not to respond to me.
We were running early for Mass so I stopped in the village before L’Ile Bouchard to have a cup of Hot Java to warm us up. There were people around the Cafe’ and I really wanted to show off my Grey Cargo Pants that are now Rust Colored because of the bleach I used as laundry soap when we were at Rosa’s Inn (testing to see if you remember!). I realized today that my cargo’s are now actually “tye-dyed”, but I am wearing them again tomorrow so that we don’t have to do laundry again (left the bleach with Rosa)!
We lit a candle for all your intentions…as we always do.
We had changed our aggressive plan for today and decided to make this ouronly stop and, hopefully, make it with the bad weather in time for the 11:15 Mass. There is a beautiful story below about the apparitions here …but this Shrine had special meaning for me.
It was here that I first started to pray for Karina to Saint John Paul II before he was canonized … a young girl we had met at our Cathedral many, many years ago who was severely challenged in many ways .. and I Prayed to Saint John Paul for the first time, here, for Karina to speak and have a normal life. Six years later it happened…..and Karina speaks!
So, when we entered the Church of St. Giles and Our Lady of Prayer at L’Ile Bouchard Church today, I immediately saw a Side Chapel Shrine in honor of Saint John Paul II and went to his Shrine to thank him. It was a special moment for me and it was emotionally rewarding to thank him. I know that Our Blessed Mother also had a hand in it so Ithanked her too.
A group of school children came in to Pray the Rosary with their Religious Instructors as well as for Mass and we figured out that they were going to receive their First Holy Communion this weekend. During the Homily, the young Pastor of the Church instructed them on the how to receive Communion. Several times the adults in the Congregation would laugh at Father’s demonstrations of what not to do … don’t hold both hands over your head … don’t say “Merci” instead of “Amen” … don’t grab the Host and start chewing on it, etc.
After Mass we sat in the back to finish our morning prayers and the Father came over to greet us. He was very glad that we had come from America to the Shrine and astonished when we told him that this was our second time. We told him we were going to Krakow to visit with Cardinal Dziwisz and his Episcopal Secretary, Father Tomasz and he asked us to tell him that the Relic of Saint John Paul II that the Cardinal had gifted him with the Shrine of Our Lady of Pray in L’Ile Bouchard was being encased alongside a relic of Mother Theresa in an elorabate setting and would soon be installed in the Parish Church …before the upcoming Synod. We promised to deliver his message.
We went for a coffee and hopefully a toilette down the street so we could Pray our Rosary calmly back at the Shrine. The Cafe with Creme was one of the best we have had. We finished and returned to the Parish Church of St. Giles.
We were all alone back at the Shrine before the place of the apparition where we had lit candles and entered your intentions and peacefully spent at least another 1/2 hour (if not more, but who is counting) with Our Blessed Mother.
When we left we programmed the queen for our B&B and added a stop for a restaurant so we could eat along the way. Didn’t happen, so we stopped in a supermache and purchased today’s lunch, tonight’s snack, and tomorrow whatever. We had food and a bottle of wine of course.
The ride to our B&B was 2 hours and I finally got tired of the rain and the sound. I wanted to jump out of the car but managed to make it there. Susan felt the same.
Working on today’s trip report
This B&B is lovely and our accommodations are great although, a bitdangerous with the spiral staircase. I’ll bring a bucket up because once I’m upthat’s it until the morning. We worked on these reports and after a bite to eat we retired for the evening.
In complete faith, you received the message of the Archangel Gabriel
and became the mother of Jesus, the only Son of God:
Teach us to pray, in order to grow in faith.
At the Visitation, you exulted with joy in the Magnificat:
Teach us to give thanks to God.
At Cana, you asked Christ to provide wine for the wedding-feast:
Teach us to intercede in favor of our brothers and sisters.
Standing at the foot of the Cross, you suffered with Jesus for the love of
sinners:
Teach us to welcome the mercy of the Father.
At Pentecost, you prayed with the Apostles when they received the
plenitude of the Holy Spirit:
Teach us to ask the Spirit to help us bear witness to the Gospel.
You are the Mother of the Church and the Protectress of families. May you
watch over each of our families:
Teach us to love each other faithfully.
You are the Mother of humanity and the Patroness of France. Open our
country to the universal love of God:
Teach us to serve with generosity.
Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you !
Our Lady of Prayer, teach us to pray.
December 8, 1999
André VINGT-TROIS
Archbishop of Tours
Love Susan & Tom
May God bless all of you … Always!
Editor’s Note: Tom and Sue Melillo traveled extensively to Catholic shrines and have graciously shared their experiences with us via their daily “trip reports”. Sadly, Tom is no longer with us, but his trip reports live on…and so do the memories of this faith-filled man.
Bueno Dias:
Sure you thought we were going to take the day off, we almost did but it’s Sunday and going to Mass every day doesn’t count as much as we just wanted to stay in our apartment. We woke up fully refreshed, as Susan slept on the large sofa and I had the bed. I think she got the better deal. I made breakfast with the vulture eggs we bought and some ham and cheese and toast and a pot of coffee and we headed out at 9 AM in order to make the 10:30 Mass.
This shrine was only 24 miles away but we didn’t know what to expect as far as the drive. It was a good thing we left early, the road was awful although the ride was beautiful along the northern coast of Spain. The narrow roads were treacherous and the bikers and walkers didn’t make it any easier. Susan developed a headache early on and I also did 1/2 way through.
This ride made the Amalfi Coast look tame with so many blind corners, S-Turns and the like … that at the end I just wanted to jump out of the car. We had to park over a mile from the Basilica of Our Lady of Lekeitio and walk back. I didn’t care, I was out of the car yet, I was plotting our course back for the next 2 hours, there had to be a better way.
Today was first Holy communion
The church was quite spectacular and old, right near the ocean. Today wastheir First Holy Communion Service and the children were precious…..Theadults, another story. Mass was hard to follow since the priest kept stoppingat the most important parts and would talk for 5 minutes. We were hoping he was instructing the children if not he needs a friend to talk to.
The children went to receive Communion the same time everyone went to theside altars to receive from the EMOCH’s. They needed some guidance fromsome of the ushers to pull this off properly but Susan and I kept our mouths shut and sat there.
The Corpus Christi Procession through town
At the end of Mass they began the procession of the Blessed Sacrament intothe town. We took a couple of photos before the church emptied, saw thefamous miraculous statue of sailors and made our way along the route. Wesnapped a couple of photos in the Basilica Plaza but we didn’t want to spendanymore time than we had to because we had another 2 stops so we made our way back to the car and headed out, gratefully via another route.
Winding roads, once again
The next stop was only 12 miles away in Markina-Xemein (The Parish Hermitage of San Michel the ArchAngel and Saint Pallonia (the local Saint). Butit took forever with construction and treacherous “S Turn” (Welcome toBasque Country roads). I think we were both thinking it’s time to go home to our cozy apartment.
Tom standing under the giant rocks
We were glad we went to this famous shrine, where it is said that St. Michael cast Satan into hell and placed the rocks on top that are believed to be 40 million years old. As I walked under them, I was hopeful that they had at least another 1/2 hour to go before they crumbled.
(See Photos.)
Our next stop that we had planned … we skipped. We were done for the day. We headed back to our “hacienda apartment” and arrived by 2:00 P.M. after 5 hours it took us to attend Sunday Mass and drive a total of 60 miles.
Our first line of business after arriving “home” was a Sunday cocktail to get rid of the terror shakes from the drive up and down. Susan then began to expedite the drying of our laundry via the hair drying in our apartment. Our laundry had been out on the “dry rack” for two days and was still wet.
Susan typed our daily trip report while I chilled out on the couch
I began preparing for our dinner this evening before I “faded” and Susancontinued trying to type as I lie here on the couch “chilling” after a grueling drive. I realize I love this sofa … maybe I’ll let Susan have the bed tonight and I’ll take the oversized couch with my “body pillow”.
The makings of a great dinner
We had a great dinner of steak, mushrooms (for me), corn (for Susan on her potato), nuked potatoes and a nice bottle of 2008 “something Tinto”.
After cleaning up, we locked up our apartment for the last evening, sat andtried to find English speaking TV for about 30 seconds and retired for the evening … looking forward to tomorrow.
In the morning, we are back in France.
So, Au Revoir … Adios from Espana!
Hail, White Lily of the ever peaceful and glorious Trinity! Hail Vermilion
Rose, the Delight of Heaven, of whom, the King of Heaven was born, and by
whose milk He was nourished! Do thou forever feed our souls by the
effusions of your divine influences.
Amen.
Love Susan & Tom
Bueno Dias: Sure you thought we were going to take the day off, we almost did but it’s Sunday and going to Mass every day doesn’t count as much as we just wanted to stay in our apartment. We woke up fully refreshed, as Susan slept on the large sofa and I had the bed. I think she got the better deal. I made breakfast with the vulture eggs we bought and some ham and cheese and toast and a pot of coffee and we headed out at 9 AM in order to make the 10:30 Mass. This shrine was only 24 miles away but we didn’t know what to expect as far as the drive. It was a good thing we left early, the road was awful although the ride was beautiful along the northern coast of Spain. The narrow roads were treacherous and the bikers and walkers didn’t make it any easier. Susan developed a headache early on and I also did 1/2 way through. This ride made the Amalfi Coast look tame with so many blind corners, S-Turns and the like … that at the end I just wanted to jump out of the car. We had to park over a mile from the Basilica of Our Lady of Lekeitio and walk back. I didn’t care, I was out of the car yet, I was plotting our course back for the next 2 hours, there had to be a better way.
Today was first Holy communion
The church was quite spectacular and old, right near the ocean. Today was their First Holy Communion Service and the children were precious…..The adults, another story. Mass was hard to follow since the priest kept stopping at the most important parts and would talk for 5 minutes. We were hoping he was instructing the children if not he needs a friend to talk to. The children went to receive Communion the same time everyone went to the side altars to receive from the EMOCH’s. They needed some guidance from some of the ushers to pull this off properly but Susan and I kept our mouths shut and sat there.
The Corpus Christi Procession through town
At the end of Mass they began the procession of the Blessed Sacrament into the town. We took a couple of photos before the church emptied, saw the famous miraculous statue of sailors and made our way along the route. We snapped a couple of photos in the Basilica Plaza but we didn’t want to spend anymore time than we had to because we had another 2 stops so we made our way back to the car and headed out, gratefully via another route.
Winding roads, once again
The next stop was only 12 miles away in Markina-Xemein (The Parish Hermitage of San Michel the ArchAngel and Saint Pallonia (the local Saint). But it took forever with construction and treacherous “S Turn” (Welcome to Basque Country roads). I think we were both thinking it’s time to go home to our cozy apartment.
Tom standing under the giant rocks
We were glad we went to this famous shrine, where it is said that St. Michael cast Satan into hell and placed the rocks on top that are believed to be 40 million years old. As I walked under them, I was hopeful that they had at least another 1/2 hour to go before they crumbled. (See Photos.) Our next stop that we had planned … we skipped. We were done for the day. We headed back to our “hacienda apartment” and arrived by 2:00 P.M. after 5 hours it took us to attend Sunday Mass and drive a total of 60 miles. Our first line of business after arriving “home” was a Sunday cocktail to get rid of the terror shakes from the drive up and down. Susan then began to expedite the drying of our laundry via the hair drying in our apartment. Our laundry had been out on the “dry rack” for two days and was still wet.
Susan typed our daily trip report while I chilled out on the couch
I began preparing for our dinner this evening before I “faded” and Susan continued trying to type as I lie here on the couch “chilling” after a grueling drive. I realize I love this sofa … maybe I’ll let Susan have the bed tonight and I’ll take the oversized couch with my “body pillow”.
The makings of a great dinner
We had a great dinner of steak, mushrooms (for me), corn (for Susan on her potato), nuked potatoes and a nice bottle of 2008 “something Tinto”.
After cleaning up, we locked up our apartment for the last evening, sat and tried to find English speaking TV for about 30 seconds and retired for the evening … looking forward to tomorrow. In the morning, we are back in France. So, Au Revoir … Adios from Espana!
Hail, White Lily of the ever peaceful and glorious Trinity! Hail Vermilion Rose, the Delight of Heaven, of whom, the King of Heaven was born, and by whose milk He was nourished! Do thou forever feed our souls by the effusions of your divine influences. Amen. Love Susan & Tom
