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with Fr. Lim September 20-30, 2010 A diary of the Pilgrimage to Eastern Europe and Oberammergau: Day 1 - Sep 20 - Mon - Depart USA San Francisco to MunichWe got up at 2:00 am to get ready to catch the ride to San Francisco International Airport. But this morning was not the usual routine airport hassle, it turned out to be a challenging frustration just how to figure the self-check in procedure. Thanks the Lord for the assistance of a gentleman who helped us check in. For some strange reasons the Delta system simply refused to accept our names because we were members of a group. The flight (Delta 46) from SFO to Atlanta was uneventful. There was no food served on board, except drinks and snacks. Yes, passengers could buy sandwiches. Once we landed in Atlanta it was quite easy to get to the sky train and look for the gate of plane going to Munich. Delta 130 took off from Atlanta to Munich as scheduled. The plane was fully loaded, the service was fine and one had access to news and other TV events. Movies and documentaries were not free. Two meals were served on board and compared to other airlines Delta rates about 4 on a scale of 0 to 10. Day 2 - Sep 21- Tue, Arrival in Munich We got into Munich early in the morning. Judith Dettinger, our Swiss guide, was there to meet us at the arrival area. After the usual customs procedures, Judith encouraged people to exchange money before we went to the hotel. The hotel in Munich is Hotel Mercure, 97 Karl Marx Ring, Munich. Since it was too early to go to the hotel Judith and I decided to go to proceed to the hotel and find out if we leave our luggage and then come back when the rooms are ready for us. But as it turned out Mercure was simply unable to accommodate us. So off we used the bathrooms and then took off to visit the city of Munich. Our driver from day one is Jaromir from the Czech Republic. He is kind, but he doesn’t speak very much. Our guide for today was a dynamic and engaging native of Munich, Michael who kept us awake all through the couple hours with us. He had knowledge, humor, wit and charisma. Jaromir dropped us off at the opera house and we walked on foot to visit the city of Munich. Our first stop was the Marian Platz; we saw the Franciscan Church and the clock tower. Lunch was in one of the many restaurants in the town square (Marian Platz). Then it was time. We were back at the hotel at about 3:00 pm ready to get some rest. We celebrated Mass in the dinning hall with tables set for breakfast, but we managed to celebrate the Lord’s Supper with dignity and grace. Dinner was served after Mass. Food was good and the company was pleasant, but most people were tired. Day 3 - Sep 22 -Wed, Munich
/ Oberammergau Breakfast was superb. It was buffet style breakfast and on the table were bacon, cheese, bread, eggs, sausage, fried eggs, fruits, coffee and bread. After breakfast we got on the bus at 7:30 am and met the dynamic and entertaining Munich guide Michael. He was superb and he kept us informed and entertained half of the day. He pointed the significant areas of the city and the connection between Salzburg and Munich. He later brought us to the Nymphenburg Palace, connected with the Wittelsbach dynasty that ruled Bavaria for more 800 years and gave Munich its roots. Michael left us before we said Mass at the Franciscan Church of the Blessed Mother. We had lunch at the Marienplatz and at 2:30 pm Jojamir took us back to Neuschwanstein Castle. It was a challenge for many to climb the tower built by the mad king Ludwig II. Today the palace attracts more than 1.3 million visitors annually. The people of his time actually did not particularly care for this castle, but today it is a goldmine for the government. From the Castle we drove to hotel in the region of Oberammergau. Twenty-six stayed in Hotel Fohrenhof in Bad Kohlgrub while two stayed in Vital-Kurhotel, about five minutes walk from the first one. Dinner was at the Hotel Fohrenhop, but breakfast was each hotel. Day 4 - Sep 23 -Thu, Oberammergau
After breakfast the bus picked Fr. Lim and Geraldine at Vital Kurhotel and then went to get the rest of the group. We were on our way to celebrate Mass at a local church, St. Martin church. Besides the church is a cemetery where the dead of the village are buried. It is a quaint little down, something we can remember when we come home. The drive to Oberammergau was about 40 minutes. We passed by gorgeous meadows and admired the beauty of the Bavarian landscape. The town of Oberammergau has 5000 people. Judith brought us to the meeting place where we would gather to go for lunch. In the mean time we were free to roam around, do some shopping, visit the museum. It took quite a while to find a place to purchase a tape for the camcorder. The directions were given were not that clear. Finally, it was time for lunch and everyone met at the designated spot and headed for the Rose Garden. The menu for the day was pork chop, Potatoes, some kind of vegetable and ice cream. The Passion Play started on the dot. No one was allowed to take any photo or video of the play. It began with the entry of Jesus sitting on a donkey entering Jerusalem. Even if the play was in German if you had Scriptural background of the Passion you can follow the play. The first intermission came after three hours of play. Then came the two hours for dinner. When we came back to the hotel it was about 11:00 pm, ready for most of us to get some rest. Another driver using another bus picked us up from the bus stop. Day 5 - Sep.
24 - Fri, Oberammergau / Altoetting We left the beautiful town of Bad Kohlgrub this morning where people come for spas. The bus picked up Geraldine and Fr. Lim at the Hotel Vitel Kurhotel run by a lovely couple. The room was comfortable, breakfast nutritious and the atmosphere very pleasant. On our way to visit the church in the Meadow we stopped a restaurant for coffee break. A group of pilgrims from the parish of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in San Diego joined us for Mass. After Mass there was time to do some shopping for religious articles and souvenirs. We had lunch at one of those self-service restaurants along the auto bahn. From there it was another two hours of driving through beautiful hills and farms on our way to the well-known German pilgrimage site Altoetting. Judith showed us the main chapel, the treasury and the museum dedicated to Pope Benedict. We stayed at the Hotel Zwoelf Apostel for the night. Day 6 - Sep.
25-Sat, Altoetting / Salzburg Wale up call was much later since Mass was next door and we did not have to do any walking. We celebrated Mass at the Capuchin Church located in front of the hotel. Breakfast was typical European style – fruits, cheese, bread, salami, coffee, milk and jams. Then it was time to get on the bus to move on to Salzburg, the birthplace of Mozart. When we got to Salzburg the local guide was very helpful in pointing out the significant historical as well as cultural aspects of the city of Salzburg. We walked and admired the Mirabel Gardens where parts of Sound of Music were filmed. We spent some time at the Dwarf garden. The local guide took us to the main streets of Salzburg and showed us the cathedral of Salzburg. We visited the Hellbrunn Palace built for Bishop Marcus Stiticus and is famous for its trick fountains. We headed back to Mercure at about 6:00 pm and we had dinner at 7:00 pm. But everyone enjoyed that day. Day 7 - Sep.
26- Sun, Salzburg / Vienna Early wake up call this morning so we could have breakfast and we were on the bus at 7:30 am to roll. Our new driver today is Frantisek, a Czech Catholic who spoke English and German. Our first stop was the famous Abbey of Melk. It was a long drive and we passed by beautiful Austrian landscape and meadows. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant along the highway before reaching the Abbey. When we got to the Abbey a student, Michael, was our guide. He gave us a short history of the Abbey and led us to the impressive museum of the monastery. We celebrated Mass in the chapel of the monastery. We visited briefly the thriving monastery of Heiligenkreutz (Holy Cross Abbey) a Cistercian monastery that has been in existence for more than 800 years. It has 85 monks with an average age of 41 and it serves 41 parishes Frantisek brought us to Hotel Ananas in the heart of Vienna sometime before dinner.
Day 8 - Sep.
27- Mon, Vienna Judith had the wake up call early today to make sure that we avoided the awful city traffic. Mass at St. Stephen’s cathedral was 8:30 am and we had to be there at that time otherwise we would not have been able to celebrate the liturgy in the cathedral. But fortunately traffic was very light and we got to the Cathedral square without any difficulty. Mass started at 8:30 am and after Mass, Margaret showed us the significant features of the Cathedral. The cathedral was heavily damaged during the Second World War but it has restored to its glorious past. After Mass Margaret took us to Schobrunn Palace, one of the most celebrated cultural monuments of Austria. The gardens and the elaborate rooms rival that of Versailles. When the visit was over we went to the Opera House to see briefly the workmen preparing the set for the coming production. We were back in the hotel at about 5:30 pm ready for a good meal. Day 9 - Sep.
28 - Tue, Vienna / Prague Today we begin our trip to Prague. After a short prayer it was time again to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Austrian landscape all the say to the Czech Republic. It rained as we traveled, but it didn’t matter since we were on the bus. Our first stop was Brno, a city of the Czech Republic. The church of St. Peter and Paul was located on a hill and it was challenge to most of us to get up to the hill. But it was worth all the effort going up the hill. The sacristan who met helped for the celebration of the liturgy was very kind and gracious. A group of Japanese pilgrims from Tokyo and Hiroshima joined us for the Mass. It was a wonderful experience of the universality of the Church. We passed by the town of our driver Frantisek and he blew the horn as he passed by his apartment. Passing by the small town gave us a better feel of the people of Czech rather than just going through a freeway. The bus arrived in Prague about 5:00 pm and Diplomat Hotel is located outside the city of Prague. But it offers free Internet access to customers and we were able to use the Magic Jack phone to call the US. It has been a long but an enjoyable day. Day 10 - Sep.
29 - Wed, Prague Today we visited the city of Prague. Our guide first took us to see the magnificent Cathedral of St. Vitus and we proceeded to look at St. George Church. Then we moved on to see the Prague Castle. Along the way there were opportunities for picture taking. There were memories of people in front of the St Vitus Church, next to the sentry guards, St George basilica and other places. We celebrated Mass at Our Lady of Victory Church where the Infant of Jesus shrine is located. Unfortunately Luisa Garcia fell and had some minor injuries, but by God’s grace she was able to come home safely. The blessing of the religious articles was done before the meals in a dinning room. Frantisek had to leave us and another driver would come and pick us from the hotel to bring the group to the airport. Day 11 - Sep 30, 2010, Thu - Prague / San Francisco We woke up ready to leave for the airport and when we got the airport
the Delta people told us that the group could not fly directly to San
Francisco from New York. So we were routed to all directions. Some of us
arrived in the Bay Area two days later than expected. Delta Airlines
didn’t do well in caring for stranded passengers.
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