Hedgehogs, Christmas Wonderland, and Sisters - Two Days in Budapest

      What a whirl wind of a weekend. I decided the night before that I would go to Budapest with a few of my girl friends. There was an unfortunate misunderstanding of the departure time, and I fell asleep with my alarm set to 7am. I was awoken suddenly at 6:10 and MC was standing over me whispering, "we're leaving in 10 minutes! get up!" In a very confused and overwhelmed state tired me said go on without me i'll figure out a way to get there..... So MC left and I started getting dressed and Lauren comes running up and commands me to hurry and sprint to the bus stop.
      So we sprint, down 4 flights of stairs and down into town. Unshowered, slightly groggy, and on the verge of an asthma attack (Insanity workouts have NOT helped with my running apparently) we got to the buss stop just in time.... for no bus to come. For whatever reason our 6:21 bus still wasn't there at 7, and seeing as our train from Schiebbs (the closest train station to us) left in 50 minutes, we were desperate to get there. Thumbs up, we stood on the road praying we'd get a ride. First car.. doesn't stop. Second car... turns the other way. Then a car stops, and the woman looks in her back seat and realizes it is FULL of stuff and drives away. We're cold, and we really want to get to Budapest so we wait and the next car comes up. MC goes to the window about to ask if the driver speaks English when all of a sudden we recognize her! It's one of our Professors! We hop in and get a quick ride to Schiebbs and make our bus in perfect time!
   After not too long of a travel day we arrive in Budapest and look for the Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.  Did I mention we were staying in their house for free for the night? After a joyful meeting Sister Michelle (from America) and the native Hungarian Sister Audrey we hopped on the Metro and they took us to a cheap sandwich place near the Castle and St. Mathews Cathedral.

      They told us all about their Order and how they got started. They dont' actually wear the traditional habits you think of when you think of Religious Sisters. Because they were started during the war they couldn't wear their habit and when their order was approved, the Bishop told them he would love if they would stay in their uniform dress because it was what God needed them to be. They wear long khaki skirts with white blouses and a silver pin with the Sacred Heart of Jesus on it and they all keep their hair no longer than their ears.

   Anyways, we stood out on this overlook right by the Presidents Residential Apartment (which was interesting because we as Americans assumed there would be more security, but you could practically stand two feet from the building and all that was stopping you was a chain rope.) and we could see the city stretched out along the Danube. Across the river was the Buda side of Budapest and the HUGE Parliament Building stood tall against it's bank. I loved that building  It was glorious looking. We walked down to the river crossed it and by this time the sun was setting (3:30pm!!).

       So, with a little confusion we walked through 'the night' to an Advent Mark. Seriously... CHRISTMAS WONDERLAND! It was right in front of the Cathedral of St. Stephens and there was a giant tree and it smelled like hot wine and i bought candied almonds and we wandered with eyes wide like children through the stalls of baked goodies and home made keepsakes. The sisters bought us this swirly bread which was DELICIOUS and then they rushed us off to yet another Advent Mark, which if you can believe it was even more awe inspiring than the first!! They gave us ten minutes and we wandered through the stalls again, overwhelmed by the Christmas Spirit. When we met back under the big tree, they gave us star stickers for being prompt and on time.. I didn't receive one.... I got a little lost in the Christmas wonderland...

   We made our way to the suburbs of Budapest where the Sisters lived. There house was so sweet! Upon entering they gave us each a pair of 'house slippers' and gave us a quick tour of their house.

    The little chapel (YES A CHAPEL in their house! they live with Jesus, makes sense cause he is their husband), the classrooms these use to teach the kids in town, their kitchen, living room, and great book shelves! They prepared dinner for us, and we met the third Sister who lives there in Hungary, Sister Shannon. There are only around 45 sisters in total, so a very small order. They made us a traditional Hungarian meal of eggs and potatoes and sausage and delisiousness, we couldn't eat enough!! We laughed and shared stories of our travels in Europe. We talked and talked and talked for what seemed like hours. Then it was time for evening prayer, in their chapel of course. Afterwards, Sister Shannon asked Sister Michelle if she had told us about Morzsa, their pet HEDGEHOG! So with that exciting news, they woke up 'The Little Crumb' (in English) and we got to hold her and watch her run around and feed her live worms. It was quite entertaining.

  Then the Sisters decided to go to bed, but they left us their guitar and told us we could use it and the chapel as late as we liked. So I played a bunch of praise and worship songs and the 4 of us girls just prayed for a while. Falling asleep content and full of yummy food, we awoke when the Church bells (located 10 feet from the house) went off at 7am. They didn't just chime though, they went off for 3 minutes straight! We rolled out bed and got ready for Mass. Mass was in Hungarian and it was FULL OF CHILDREN. There were at least 50 kids their and they sat on cushions all in the main aisle. During the consecrations they were each given a bell which the obediently would ring when the Priest raised up the body and blood. It was so sweet!
     After Mass Sister Audrey took us down the street to a beautiful Pastry shop and told us to pick out any dessert we wanted for after lunch. After asking many 'what is in this one' he headed back to the house for yet another Hungarian home cooked meal and good conversation.

    Unfortunately after lunch it was time for us to head home (unwillingly for sure). We told the Sisters good bye and a 'köszönöm' (the one Hungarian word we learned while there, Thank you) which is pronounced coosh-ah-numb.

  Budapest was a great city, and although we didn't stay for long it was a great experience and I loved every minute of it. I wish we could have stayed another week!

Operation: See the Pope

    Today was Operation: See the Pope. It was a pretty hilarious endeavor . So normally the Pope will have an audience outside, and our teachers gave us directions (pretty much military plans) to stake our a place in line early, and get to the very front so we could have a chance to shake his hand or be kissed! Unfortunately, the night before we found out that it had been moved inside. Which meant he wouldn't drive his Pope mobile through the aisles. That aside, we were still pretty pumped for the Audience  We lined up early in the front of the line, and then the gates opened/ And we might have stampeded toward security with a force so strong it knocked one girl over and we might have just left her on the ground and continued our quest to be the first ones there. Once through security, the Swiss gourds were telling us not to run, so we ran. Giggling the entire way we tried to make our crazed running look like walking and we got to the first section and took up as many seats as we could get.

    As the people filled in, you could see all sorts of different groups and countries holding flags and banners. And we started having a  cheer off. It was such a heart warming thing. Tons of different cultures and languages and groups cheering and singing and chanting. We yelled U S A as loud as we could, people from Africa were doing some dance, these polish people were singing loud and proud in polish. We were all so different, yet we were all there because we were members of the Catholic Church. And it was grand.
    Papa Bene came out and the readings were read and reflections were given in several different languages. It was a long morning and we finally left around 1 and made our way to a great cheap pizza place.  We hit up a couple super cheap and beautiful Catholic trinket stores and stocked up on gifts. Then spent the rest of the day roaming Rome.
  My favorite part of the trip started at 3:30pm. Right at the hour of Divine Mercy, I was blessed to be able to climb the Holy Stairs which Jesus himself climbed the day he died to be sentenced to death in front of Pilate. Each step has it's own prayer and you climb it on your knees. It was a beautiful meditation and I absolutely loved it.
     Afterwards we had Mass at St. John Lateran. After Mass we headed to Santa Croce, which contains a Relic Room with actual parts of the thorns from the crown, a nail from the crucifixion  splinters from the true cross and a replica of the Shroud of Turin.

It was a beautiful, well spent day last in Rome. Off to Assisi in the morning!

Franciscans in Rome

  Today we started our day at THE mother house for the Franciscan Third Order Regular friars. For those of you who don't know, they are the wonderful men who run my university. The Church is located basically in the Roman Forum and it is OLD. They just celebrated their 500 year anniversary, but the church has been there way before that! It is called Cosmas and Damien (and of course, the bones of both saints are buried beneath the main altar).

  We then broke out into groups on another tour around Rome. We saw the Pantheon, a couple piazzas (not pizzas) and a few more churches. I can't explain everything on this blog because it's hard to remember everythign we learn on these tours. But the Pantheon was really cool. It's the largest free standing dome. It's HUGE. And it has a hole at the top, so it rains and snows inside!

  After seeing the Pantheon we went to get gelato at a place called Gelateria Della Palma.... It. is. AMAZING. SO MANY FLAVORS! Like a million. Okay maybe 100. But still. So many different unique flavors. I got cinnamon and chocolate and grapefruit. It was delicious.

       We then got a quick lunch at some little Italian cafe. I ordered on whim 'crispy potatoes'. It came to my table and I was like, what in the world did I just order.  It was potatoes, gorgonzola cheese, walnuts, and butter covered with a kind of lettuce. It was so delicious! After lunch we asked for the check and instead they brought us out shots of limoncello. We told the waitress we didn't order them, but she said 'For free!!'. Only in Italy would they bring out free alcohol after a meal. Then it was off to the Scavii tour of the grotto and underground ancient burial grounds of Rome which are under St. Peters. Though muggy and hot and led by a tour guide who's enlish was not adequate enough to explain what was down there, the tour was so cool. We actually were walking underground on roads that ancient Romans walked on. Oh, and St. Peter's bones are down there too!

    That night, instead of going to the adoration back at our hotel, a group of us were picked up by seminarians and brought to the PNAC (Pontifical North American College) for adoration and praise and worship. It was beautiful. Not only was singing among such holy men in front of Christ an absolute honor, but to see this huge college with 250 seminarians dedicated their lives to Christ was truly inspiring and full of hope. The Catholic Church is so alive!!

Walk walk walk walk

   Today was a day of touring. As much of a pilgram as I am, I at heart am still a tourist. First us was Mass at St. Paul outside the Walls. What a GIGANTIC church. We had Mass in English and then it was off on a 3 hour walking tour! Really what this means is Franciscan takes us to about a gazillion churches. I will give some brief details of each, but I seriously cannot cover all the interesting and beautiful attributes of everything I saw.

 First up second major basilica of the day, Mary Majors. It is an impressive baroque church, but what is more impressive is what it contains. Along with a few Holy saints buried there, the Church highlights under the main alter actual pieces from Jesus Christ's manger.

   Next was the Basilica of St. Prassede. Prassede was a roman Senator's daughter. In this church was the pillar at which Christ was scourged. It was pretty intense to pray in front of that.
   Walking more.. (oh joy) we headed to Our Lady of Perpetual Help. This church has the Icon of our lady holding Baby Jesus who is completely dependent on her, and scared for his impending passion. But she looks at us confidently urging us to be brave.

   We took a quick peek into St. John Lateran (but we are going to have Mass there later this week so not much detail here) Then it was off to get Gelato at Old Bridge (the best biggest serving cheapest price Gelato in Rome). Otherwise none as the PERFECT excuse to buy more gelato.

  After the quick gelato break, and a nice rest for our feet, I was again off on another three hour tour. This time of the Vatican Museum. At first I was not too thrilled for this because I figured it would be a boring tour of art and I don't have too big of an appreciation for art. However, as soon as the tour begin i was immediately fascinated  I had many 'jaw dropping' moments, and little gasps i couldn't help but let out! It was just so beautiful. I learned that Italy, the country, is only 81 years old! The Vatican museum, however is the 2nd oldest in the whole world!

  Our tour guide explained the Sistine Chapel before we went in, and without even seeing it I was amazed. Michelangelo was incredible. He painted the Sistine Chapel pretty much as a penance. I can't even begin to explain all of the work and effort and beauty and intricacy went into that chapel. A couple cool things, you know the famous painting of God and man touching fingers? Their fingers are actually over a foot apart!! They seriously look like they are an inch from touching, but because the ceiling is curved, it plays a trick on your mind!

  After three hours of mind blowing information like that, a few of decided to trust Rick and get back into St. Peter's without having to go back through security. Rick told me that there is door in the back of the Sistine Chapel that leads straight to the Vatican. Well, there was a guard there and the door said 'authorized tours only' but Rick said to power on through them. So we did. After a few narrow hallways, walking past a few more guards we came out RIGHT in the foyer of St. Peters. Perfect end to the night. Thanks, Rick.

St. Peters has my heart

       Day 2 and Rome and we were off to a running start. This trip we had breakfast and dinner provided for us by the hotel... this means very happy travelers :) :) So after a quick breakfast (bacon included) we were off to a different nation entirely, The Vatican. We got off the bus stop and walked through the underground tunnel and through the columns and wow... it is so regal and grand looking. I immediately loved it. We walked across St. Peter's Square, the large dome calling our names and went through security. We didn't even go into the Basilica first. We started by climbing about 500 stairs to the top of the dome. My first view of the inside of the Basilica was from the inside of the dome looking down. The people looked like ants!! And from the top we saw all of Rome, and all of the Vatican. For a city that contains SO MUCH, it's actually pretty small.

       Coming back down we got ready for Mass, thinking it would be in English celebrated by our priest. However, what we didn't know was that they had scrapped our Mass because they had 5,000 people from all over Italy joining together to sing in a choir which only performs once every three years for Mass at St. Peters. Let me tell you, it was PHENOMENAL. It sounded like heaven. So we had a very very long Mass in Italian, and then we scurried out in the square to say the angelus with.... THE POPE! He poked his his head out of his apartment window and prayed very quickly in Italian. We cheered, and prayed, it was great.
After the Angelus we went to grab lunch, which for me consisted of a protein bar and a gluten free pastry filled with nutella i found in a store!
    Then we met up with a bunch of seminarians from the Pontifical North American College who gave us a tour of the Basilica. It BLEW MY MIND. I love St. Peters. A lot. It is HUGE and there are so many hidden treasures. Too many to include in the blog, just go visit.

   Then we had free time, and we were going to meet up with a Deacon who was going to bring us to see an exhibition on the Shroud of Turin... unfortunately he never showed.. So sad and wet from the rain we went back to the hotel and enjoyed another amazing three course meal.
GLUTEN FREE EVERYTHING. I was a happy camper.
   Since this is a pilgrimage trip, every night we have adoration. And the chapel in Rome was RIGHT next to our hotel. So after scoffing down our desserts we made our way to sit with Jesus. It was a perfect way to decompress from busy Rome and reflect on everything you saw.

When in Rome, use Rick

        I will praise and exalt Rick Steve at any chance I get, and today was one of them. Last night we took the bus with the school to Rome. After a seemingly short 12 hour ride we arrived to our beautiful 4 star hotel, dropped our stuff, grabbed Rick and headed out the door. Rick set out a perfect day for us, a guided walking tour of the Roman Forum ending with the Colosseum.
   We wandered through the 2,000 year old ruins that were once underground and stood in amazement. We walked upon stones that Cesar and Augustus themselves walked on. We tried to imagine the square as it was in B.C., the center of all civilization. As we took many pictures of many columns, i picked up a 'roman forum rock' and stuck it in my purse... a nice free souvenir :) Anyways, Rick gave us detailed stories of all the history that stood around us. I loved being there, knowing that some of these ruins existed even before Christ.

   Next up, was the Colosseum. When we came out of the metro the first thing you saw, practically the only thing you could see, was the HUGE Colosseum. It is massive. Really really big. Like they used to fill up the stage with water and have NAVAL BATTLES in it!!!! It was hard to picture the seats full of Romans cheering over the death of so many people, yet it was so fascinating to know that this huge amphitheatre (built by enslaved Israelites) has been around for 2,000 years.

   Next on our list of things we wanted to see was the Trevi Fountain. First we come out of the metro (perhaps spoiled by our first sight of the Colosseum) and we see this fountain... we were like, "that can't be it" so we followed a crowd of tourists and could hear the rushing of water from a few blocks down. We turned the corner and there is was! It, also, is HUGE! We threw our coins in like the tourists we are and we were off.

  We had hopes of finding the Spanish Steps, but with Mass quickly approaching we decided to grab some gelato and make our way back to the Hotel. The hotel for Mass, you ask? Oh yes, there is a chapel practically attached to our hotel. It's Franciscan too!
  After a beautiful opening Mass for our pilgrimage  in Rome, we had a three course meal and now it's time to crash. Sleeping on a bus does very little, an tonight my bed will be a welcome relief and good preparation for out 6:30am morning!

Land of the Happy Dancing Goat

          Just got back from Switzerland. What a beautiful country. It is probably my favorite country (besides Ireland) by far. Two of my girl friends and I decided to take our 4 days break to Interlaken. We took an overnight train to Zurich on Wednesday night. I love over night trains, and hate them. I always think it's fun to get on a train and sleep and wake up in a different country. However, it's not very comfortable and if you have to sleep with strangers... you don't. We were lucky because our friends had 3 extra reservation for a compartment so the 6 of us women got one to ourselves. Which is good and bad. Good because we wouldn't be kicked out in the middle of the night and would not have a creepy man come into our compartment, bad because 6 women means a lot of hips. We slid down all the seats and attempted to fit all six of us across. One of the girls ended up sleeping in the luggage rack (she is small so she fit perfectly) and the rest of us spooned like it was our job. We woke up and took a few more trains till we ended up in the gorgeous mountains of Interlaken.

    It is just so breathtakingly beautiful there. I loved it the second i got off the train. The sky was blue, the mountain tops covered in snow, and the trees in full Fall. We explored the city and window shopped until 1pm when we were being picked up by our first and biggest excursion of the day. A big ole van came rumbling to our hotel and this crazy long haired man named Ziggy ushered us on with a friendly "You ready to jump off a cliff???"  He drove us up into Grimewald and we were getting closer and closer to the mountains, and closer and closer to the most terrifying thing i'd ever done.
  At the top Mary Clare and I got harnessed up and were read our last rites.  Haha just kidding. But we did sign our lives away. Then it was time to jump. Basically we were jumping off a cliff and then accelerating in freefall for 250 feet before the rope smoothly swings us at high speed through the narrow glacial canyon.... :) :)

    Let me just tell you, skydiving was unbelievable. But this... this was TERRIFYING. It was so scary took my breath away made me scream like a little girl and it was amazing. The video is priceless. I got onto the platform ran and jumped, and immediately my body panicked and i started kicking my feet and flailing my arms.  My face probably looked hilarious. And then you got to the bottom and swung through the canyon. It was exhilarating. Then watching the next person in line go after me, i was like HOLY CRAP i just did that!!!

   After starting our Switzerland trip off perfectly we went back to our hotel for a good 3 hour nap. We then hit the streets for a night on the town. And ended up listening to some live music with friends of ours at their hotel. It was a nice quiet night and we were tired from training the night before so we crashed early and set our alarms for an early 'lofty' goal.
   Finally making it out of our comfy bed and onto the train at 11am we set off to hike what looked good on the map. Pretty much we just looked at the mountains and said 'that one' and started off. The area is clearly marked with trail guides and signs. It's definitely geared for a lot of usage. We made it up pretty far and relaxed at the 'top' with a great view of the alps.

By the time we made it up and down it was already 5pm so we spent another quiet night in relaxing and enjoying some actual lazy time.
    Saturday (our last day) was amazing. We decided to hike from Lauterbrunnen to Murren and then onto Gimmewald. It was an INTENSE hike straight up the mountain for 2 and half hours. We made great time and encouraged eachother to keep pushing. The scenery was gorgeous, tons of water falls and a great view of the mountains and valley below. Up at the top we wandered through the small mountain towns of Murren and Gimmewald. I only had one question. How the HECK do Swiss people get to their houses??? They literally have a house on a mountain with no road or path leading to it.... it's insane. I have concluded they must never leave their houses, or they ride cows.
   Anyways, coming back down the mountain was easier, we took a cable car and a bus! We ended our day at Lake Thun and sat with our feet in the freezing glacier water welcoming the cool relief.

Switzerland was fantastic. I bought some chocolate and some cheese (both of which i enjoyed more than i can express) and I had a great time hiking. I would love to go back sometime, but it is so expensive there! Ah well.. maybe someday!

Oh i almost forgot! The post is titled land of the happy dancing goat because Interlaken's flag is just that... a happy dancing goat

Failure as a Blogger

I have tried to keep up with my never ending experiences, but it is difficult to provide a good blog with the amount of time i have in between trips. Set in my resolve to update my blog after my ten day break, I journaled EVERY DAY on my iTouch. I included funny stories, interesting tid bits, and all my feelings from every day. I even finished my Poland blog and wrote my Prague post. I was going to update it the day i got back so i would be all caught up.

However, I was robbed in Barcelona so my iTouch and all of my meories so carefully recorded are lost. Now this is no 'my dog ate my homework' excuse. I really was robbed. My passport is gone, and a lot of other material things i will get over quickly. All my work on my blog posts is lost now, and I am very sad. I tbrings me to a poem i once wrote about losing all my old journals of poetry:

Lost

Words and thoughts, all inspirations 

lost; ensuing frustrations 

cathartic hours, time well spent 

now in vain, for away they went 

words slipped away like drops of rain 

they left behind thin streaks of pain 

feelings that were in stone eternal 

etched into a worn out journal 

now scraped away by a mistake 

sanded down without a trace.

Poland Pilgramage Part 1

           Poland was indescribable. We saw so much, experienced so many different emotions, and had very long bus rides. It was a school trip so it was all planned out for us (yay! stress free!). We left on the buses at around 7pm on Thursday night. To start our trip off right we watched the movie 'Karol' which is about 4 hours long (the first part that is!). The movie was about Karol Wojtyla, or as many of us know him as John Paul II. It was a fantastic movie, for the first hour or so. Interesting  fascinating and truly surprised me with how wonderful a person and how beautiful a life Karol Wojtyla was. However, I fell asleep.
          We arrived in Częstochowa (pronounced Chest-a-hoe-vah) at 6am, and it was dark and cold and I was disoriented but we quickly ran (led by Sister Monica who really was running) to the Our Lady of . We smushed into the chapel area, pushed and shoved our way to the front and knelt down with hundreds of polish people to await the unveiling of the Black Madona. Each year millions of people travel to visit the painting of the Black Madonna, which is a shrine to Mary, Our Lady of Częstochowa   The icon of Our Lady of Częstochowa has been intimately associated with Poland for the past six hundred years. Poland looks to her with great devotion because in their history her painting saved them from many near disasters  Every morning at 6am they play trumpet and timpani and 'unveil' the icon. We got to witness it front row, and it was absolutely a beautiful experience. To see all the crutches on the walls, and the rosaries people had left behind to thank her for their healings was beautiful.

After the unvieling we got a great Polish breakfast! Real polish kabassa!!! I was happy. It was delicious. We then headed back to the shrine to explore and pray. We had mass in English and got to have it right in front of the Icon!

After Mass, I prayed the stations of the cross with my household sisters and many other students who wanted to join us, The stations that were located upstairs were some of the most interesting and meditative stations i have ever seen.  I am tempted to say they are my favorite  In the stations, while Jesus is still depicted, scenes from Poland's history are intertwined. It was a beautiful way to pray in Poland.

After the stations we 'walked' on our knees around the whole sanctuary and offered our petitions. Then it was time to switch gears and start shopping. Now one of my favorite things in Poland was Zloty. Zloty is the Polish currency..... and it is so wonderful. 1 US Dollar is close to 4 Zloty. So we had a blast spending money there! Everything is super cheap so it was souvenir and Christmas gift time! Before shopping though, we climbed the tower which is the tallest building there to get a great view of the city.

After a short time in Częstochowa it was time to make our way to Auschwitz concentration camp. I have studied the Holocaust for so long and have read so many books, seen so many movies, and now I finally had the opportunity to be there. Where it all happened. It was heart breaking, surreal, scary, and all sorts of other emotions. We had a somber tour throughout the entire camp, we saw the barracks  the wall of death where prisoners of war were shot, the 'hospital' where countless experiments were made on prisoners. Innocent lives. It was hard to take it all in, but through the midst of great horror we saw St. Maximilliam Kolbe's cell and the spot where he gave his life for another prisoner. The most eerie thing about the whole visit was how beautiful the camp was. Green grass, trees with leaves changing into fall, sun shining, cool breeze.. Yet this was hell for millions of people. This picture I took is the chimney from the crematorium.

Journey to the unknown Cross

"Why, then, do you fear to take up the Cross, which is the road to the Kingdom?

 In the Cross is salvation; 

in the Cross is life;

 in the Cross is protection against our enemies; 

in the Cross is infusion of heavenly sweetness; 

in the Cross is the strength of mind;

in the Cross is joy of spirit;

in the Cross is excellence of virtue; 

in the Cross is perfection of holiness. 

There is no salvation of soul, nor hope of eternal life, save in the Cross. 

Take up the Cross, therefore, and follow Jesus, and go forward into eternal life"

 (The Imitation of Christ by Thomas A Kempis).

This is an excerpt from my favorite chapter of my favorite book. It's called "On the Royal Road of the Holy Cross" and it truly inspires me. My household on campus is full of women who eagerly strive to carry our crosses in life, and who along with their own struggles help their sisters to carry the crosses they deal with as well. It's a beautiful testament to the suffering of Christ. 

So this weekend, I stayed back in Gaming to save a little money and to do something I have been dying to do since I got to the Kartause. Climb one of the bigger mountains and camp on it... by myself. Now I can already hear my mom hyperventilating and her scolding 'Taylor! That is dangerous' and although many thought I was crazy, I was determined. Plus I knew I'd be absolutely safe. I wasn't hiking when it got dark, I wasn't going too far, I brought plenty of food and water, and there is no way to get lost here (you just keep walking down hill till you get in the valley where the Kartause is)

So with my bag all packed, I started my journey by praying The Way of the Cross according to the method of St. Francis. It's my favorite meditation on the stations, and It was the perfect beginning to my day.

I began hiking the mountain directly behind the Kartause. It's one most people don't hike, as many students choose to climb the mountain with the water fall, or Book Mountain (where you get to sign your name in a book at the top). As I began the ascent, I tried to find an easy route that wouldn't lead my directly up a steep incline. 

Let me tell you, after about a half hour of trying to find an easy way up, I realized that this wasn't going to be easy. I turned and headed straight up the mountain. Now those of you who do not know the Yosemite Decimal System, let me explain. There are 5 classes of climbing.

Class 1: trail walking uphill. 

Class 2: still a bit of a trail, but there might thick brush or climbing over and around fallen trees, occasinal hand usage for balance.

Class 3: considered 'scrambling' basically, you look like a small and very drunk squirrel moving from tree to tree practically crawling up the side of a mountain.

Class 4: needs rope, but no need for extreme protection

Class 4: rope, and protection needed.

So guess what I was? That's right a mix between a drunken squirrel and debating whether or not I should be using rope. Okay, it wasn't that steep but it was quite the hike and I quickly adopted a large branch to be my walking stick. I always made fun of people you used walking sticks... I never will again. That little guy saved me from a nasty slip many times.

So I was enjoying the peace and quiet of nature, and also some Mumford and Sons. The walk was pretty tiring, since I was walking up hill the whole time and even when I stopped for water I had to hold myself in place in front of a tree. I walked for about 3 hours, hoping with every look back that I would have a great view. Finally the trees cleared and I could tell I was at the top. The Alps were HUGE and went on forever,  I tried to take pictures but they don't capture the feeling I had seeing them sprawled out.

I found a nice grassy place and set up my tent, although it wasn't very flat, it was the best I could do. I took out my dinner (Spar meat sticks and an orange) and St. Teresa of Avila's book The Interior Castle. I couldn't help but smile to myself about how awesome my tent looked out on the mountain!

I sat and read and stared out at the mountains. It was serene, and absolutely quiet. For a while I did this until I got chilly and I put on my sweat shirt and sweat pants and crawled into my sleeping bag. I couldn't wait for the sun to set so I could see the stars. However, one more adventure was needed. Just as it was getting dark, I decided to go explore. Since I hadn't yet peered over the other side of the mountain I had climbed, I figured I should, just to make sure I really was at the top. So after about 20 feet i could see more mountains. I was surrounded by mountains!! Just as I was about to turn back, I saw the Cross. My heart skipped a beat. All the way up here! A cross! I couldn't help but think of the line from my favorite chapter in The Imitation of Christ 

"The Cross always stands ready, and everywhere awaits you. You cannot escape it, wherever you flee; for wherever you go, you bear yourself, and always find yourself.

I immediately said the consecration prayer my household always says, ending my day at the foot of His Cross. The sun set and the sky was a light pink and I sat under the cross enjoying this last little surprise.

Camera's can never capture a starry night sky quite the way you would want. Believe me, though, the view from the top of a mountain of the stars is unbelievable. I've never seen that many. After gazing out for what seemed like forever, I attempted to fall asleep. My sleeping bag kept me very warm so I did not suffer from the cold (it was only 45) at all. I did not, however, get a good night sleep. Between slipping down hill, finding large lumps under the tent, and having my arm fall asleep, I was up most of the night. When I was asleep, I was having strange dreams of hunters shooting at me. Anyways, before I knew it it was 7am, and I packed up and prepared for my descent. 

Now one may think, "Oh, going down! Finally a break." However, it is not a break. It is worse than going up. I would choose scrambling up a mountain than scrambling down a mountain any day of my life. I have callouses from gripping my hiking stick, and I have many scratches from slipping down. I walked through a very dense area, only to discover I felt like Snow White being attacked by the forest. I desperately wanted to  see any sign that I was getting close. Finally, I could see through the trees a sign of the bottom!

The only upsetting thing was I didn't see the Kartause, and didn't recognize the town. I knew it had to be Gaming, but I was just longing to see the Church steeple rise above the trees. I caused a couple minor land slides, some with rocks, and some with me included in the rocks. After only 2 hours i finally hit a trail I recognized! As I walked down it, I could barely see through the trees the unmistakable orange and white of the Kartause. I have never been so happy to see that place!!

So with my hike complete, I took a much needed shower, and now I think I will take a much deserved nap.
It was a beautiful hike and I loved having some time to myself. It was a reminder to push myself daily and to carry my crosses no matter how steep they might seem.

" If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For who ever will save his life shall lose it: and who ever will lose his life for my sake shall find it."

 (Matthew 16:24-25)

Fun Facts in Europe

Europe is so different than America. There are little subtle differences, and then there are huge ones that make you think "Toto, I've a feeling we're not in America any more." I've decided, since I don't update this blog quite as often as you all would like. I'll post some interesting tid-bits here and there

First of all, windows here are ingenious!!! If you put the handle facing up, the window leans open so it is cracked on top. Allowing air flow, but no rain or wind to come in if it's chilly.

However, if you turn the handle sideways, it swings open completely! And in the downward position it is locked. I love these windows... a lot. 

Another interesting tid bit is of course the plugs. They look funny, and are quite inconvenient

 The light switched are also different. Nothing much to say here...

The weirdest things are the toilets. Or as they call bathrooms in Europe, the Wash Closet (WC). The hole is on the opposite end and there is a button you press to flush. It's a little strange using it.

 More fun facts will be added as I come across them! Enjoy these!

Venice has my heart!

On Friday it was the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. What a beautiful feast to do a pilgrimage on. We hiked 18 miles through the Austrian alps on a trail that ran alongside the river. Words and pictures cannot quite express the beauty of that hike. 

However, it was not just the external beauty that made the 18 miles worth it, but the internal prayer for all people carrying difficult crosses in life. We actually carried a cross with us as we hiked and took turns holding it up. I loved walking for the intentions of all my family and friends, and I carried in my heart special intentions for all those I love.

So after the hike, exhausted as we were, a small group of us decided to go to Venice for the remainder of the weekend. After a couple bus rides we picked up our tiny little European rental car and drove the 4 hours to Venice. Roads are CRAZY here. No one follows the speed limit. The signs are just suggestions. However, with my rosary hanging over our rear view mirror we made it safely to our hostel. Now, our hostel is another story.

We pulled off the high way and followed Miss Tomtom's voice to a dark alley… There, we could hear pounding loud music. We got out walked through a large gate, and there it was… Camp Jolly. Yes, that's the name of the hostel. There were cabins you could rent, but we went cheap and got tents instead! Don't worry, they locked! So the place had a nice bar, a pool and was a close bus ride to Venice. We crashed from exhaustion and woke up early to go to the island.

Venice was gorgeous. I am in love with that place! Perhaps it's because my Italian blood ran fast through my veins while there, or maybe I just really liked the gelato.  In any case, the winding streets, streets of water, smell of pizza and the music of accordions made my heart happy.

We wandered. A lot. We just walked in and out of shops, down random alleys, over a thousand bridges and stumbled upon some beautiful churches. We found one with the uncorrupted body of St. Lucy. We went into St. Mark's Basilica. It is stunning! I of course forgot to bring a scarf with me to wrap around my waist and because I was wearing shorts I had to pay a euro to buy a cover up. But it was worth it!

We then climbed Campanile.. or rather took the elevator up! The view was unbelievable. My mouth dropped open when I stepped off the elevator. Venice is so cramped, but it's surrounded by beautiful water and I loved seeing the city sprawled out.

After that we grabbed a water taxi, because everything in Venice is a water version (even the garbage trucks *boats*), to the island of Lido for some beach action. We hung out for a bit in the water, which is TEN TIMES more salty that in the states. And we built sandcastles and found some great sea shells.

Back on Venice we went to Mass at St. Mark's in Italian. It was great because I could almost follow along, thanks to my Spanish! Many times during the day I could kind of understand the Italian people!

We then what we had all been thinking about all day, a gondola ride!! We floated through the quiet canal and saw the peacefulness of Venice at night. For as crowded and busy it is during the day, it goes almost dead at night. It was such a peaceful ride and our Gondolier pointed out a few cool things like the Bridge of Sighs (connecting the Palace to the prison) and Vivaldi's house.

After our classic Italian experience, we headed to a restaurant that fit our budget (unfortunately the ones on St. Mark's were a liiiitle pricey). We grabbed some more gelato and made our way back to the bus.

It was a day well spent, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I can't wait to spend more time in Italy!