Here are the links to each of the days, if you are just starting to read.
Nicholas Scalfano
Wednesday, September 7, 2016
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Day 14: The 32-Hour Tuesday
We got on the bus to go back to Berlin, and somehow Lucas (our tour guide from the Shrine of Divine Mercy) showed up. To be honest, everyone's first reaction was "They couldn't send Conrad?"
Everyone except for a select few slept. If you know me at all by know, you know that I was one of the select few that stayed up, along with Emily and Hope. In our delirious states, we took selfies with all of those around us who were sleeping.
Around 1 AM, our bus came to a halting stop. We were stopped in the middle of traffic at 1 AM on a Polish Highway. People slowly woke up, because the constant motor of the bus running did not make a noise, and I started to low-key worry that we would miss our flight, but after about an hour of waiting, we started moving, and ended up passing a wreck that occurred.
Everyone went back to sleep, and I started to slowly drift asleep as we crossed the border into Germany. When I awoke, we were not there yet, but we were close. And another few people were awake, so we cut up, and woke everyone else up.
When we arrived at the Berlin airport, we had 3 hours before our flight. We got off the bus, and it was extremely cold, still with 0% humidity. and we were hungry.
I ate a bagel for breakfast, and spent my Euros on a toothbrush and toothpaste, because I was too lazy to dig it out of the bottom of my big backpack, stained with the love of the Lord, the stains of the Field of Mercy, and the rains of Krakow.
After my mediocrely pleasing bagel, and an unending desire for some Tony Chachere's and Louisiana Hot Sauce, I made my way to the bag check-in.
The German security, again, was much more entertaining and speedy than America's. The guy at Security Protocol had very large glasses, and reminded me of Conrad (I am sure also had a gay card stored somewhere in his wallet). HE made fun of the many shampoos and toiletries I had with me (because I stole everything that was provided to us at the hotels in the beginning of the trip. He laughed his way through my Security check and made sure that all of the workers saw my large bag of liquids.
Alas, I made it through security without any problems, and without having to exercise any demons of security officers (see Day 1 if you've forgotten). We boarded the plane, and began our journey back to the USA. On the plane, we traveled against the wind, making our trip longer than the first. I watched many movies, since our flight took place with the Earth's movement of the sun, our 7 hour time change elongated our day to travel with the sun. The first movie I watched was Captain America: Civil War, and upon viewing that dark movie, I decided to go with something lighter, next: none other than Barbershop 2, which was a nice comedy to get me through the flight, and through Emily's constant stirring and awkward sleeping positions on the airplane seat next to mine.
We landed in Newark, New Jersey, and saw the familiar skyline of New York City. Of course I started singing "What'd I Miss?" from Hamilton the moment we exited the plane and worked our way through customs.
We had another 7-hour layover in Newark, fun. But first, we had to change terminals, and re check in our luggage, and go through another Security Check. One of the nuns (I won't disclaim which one) bought a sausage from Poland to bring back to her order, and she didn't tell customs about it, so that we would not be delayed. ("Bless me, Father..") So I helped her by telling her when the sniffing dog was roaming around looking for foreign meats and such, so that we could turn around and walk the other way.
Once arriving in our terminal. We ate, and ate, had mass in the airport, and ate some more. (Because airport food is SO cheap, right? No.)
Our last flight was delayed by an hour, and so was my happiness. When we finally boarded, it was 8 PMish, and I sat down in a window seat, and before the plane took off, or even moved, heck, before the safety, I was out. I slept so hard, and awoke to the shaking of the plane hitting ground in New Orleans around 12 AM. I made it! I was home. We exited into the airport, and I soon realized that one should never fall asleep before a plane takes off. Wait until you are in the air, and then let your ears get use to pressure, then sleep. I learned the hard way. May my ears have mercy on me.
We exited the airport after getting our baggage, and we immediately felt the Louisiana humidity. We boarded the UL bus that originally brought us to NOLA, and after saying that we would all stay up and bond for One Last Time (another Hamilton reference), I fell asleep again, and awoke to the sound of the cheering as helicopter parents (and Sarah EC and Victoria) finally got to see their kids (and friends) again. Praise. The. Lamb.
Jesus, I Trust In You.
Nicholas Scalfano
Day 13: Free Day in Krakow
After getting a wonderful night's sleep, we woke up and began our last day, Day 13, in Poland. We were free to roam about the city and do what we wanted. I decided to go to the Shrine of John Paul II with a few others.
We woke up early to get on the tram. Since WYD was officially over, the city was no longer shut down; all the shops were opened, and the streets were filled with regular Krakowians instead of pilgrim after pilgrim. Many of the pilgrims left the previous night, since WYD ended. So we got on the tram, and it was weird, because it was full of people going to work, and actually using it as a form of regular transportation.
We arrived at the end of the tram line, and walked to the Shrine. From the outside, one could see multiple buildings, none bigger than the huge shrine itself, with a tower to go right alongside it. (At this point, it has been over a month since I was there, so I cannot really recall everything) When you first walked into the Shrine, you are immediately reminded of Divine Mercy Shrine (which was less than a kilometer away) because of the modern architecture, instead of the Gothic forms of many churches in Poland. This Shrine was recently completed just a few years ago.
With tall walls in a round shape, the inside of the building was very moving. Huge murals covered every inch of the walls, with scenes of the early Church and epic Biblical Stories depicted through colored shards of glass. They were intricately, vivid, yet still had a simple eloquence about them.
On the side, as in many other churches, there were smaller altars, to the Black Madonna, John Paul II himself, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Our Lady of Fatima, and so on. At the altar of Our Lady of Fatima, the cassock that JPII was wearing when he got shot was on display. This was a very moving display, and was heartbreaking on a certain level. Blood stained the pure white cassock. Some parts just had drops of blood, but the bottom of the right side, a huge bloodstain covered the majority of the side. Just two days before, we saw a reenactment of JPII forgiving the man who shot him, and it was not until viewing the actual cassock that everything suddenly became real. A man attempted to murder the Holy Father, there are bloodstains to prove it, yet he lived, and forgave the man, and JPII is now a Saint to prove that the merciful love of the Father overcomes all.
After viewing this, I looked to the right, and noticed a staircase going down below the Shrine, but no one was going down. But I am me, and I went down them. This was a true hidden gem. Sr. Nina and I walked down a hallway, to a smaller circular room with an altar that contained a relic of JPII, with paintings that depicted JPII in different religious aspects of his life. Around that, in a hallway that went in a circle around the altar, were many more smaller altars that were tributed to different Saints and Holy Figures. In one room, the original tomb stone of John Paul II laid on the ground, with a relic of JPII engraved in it. (He had to change tomb stones when they renamed him a Saint).
After this, Sr. Nina, and Allie, Rainey, and me went to what used to be the Jewish ghetto. We saw the original factory that Oskar Schindler (Schindler's List) opened, where he saved many Jews from suffering in the Holocaust. After that, we ate at one of the oldest restaurants in the area; it survived the raids of the Germans. The food was fantastic, and served as our last authentic Polish meal.
After this, we explored the area, and came across a memorial for the Jews killed in their own ghetto during the Holocaust, where the Germans would line them up and kill them. It was heartbreaking to stand on the street where this happened. We explored some more, and found some remaining excerpts of the Ghetto Wall. One remaining piece was actually the wall to a Pre-School.
We met back at the hostel for 4, and walked to a church that was hidden in the middle of an alleyway, and we had our last mass in Krakow. Afterwards, we had another hour or so to do our final shopping and Lody stops. Then we went back to the hostel, and got our stuff. The bus was supposed to arrive at 10 PM to bring us back to Berlin, but the bus didn't arrive until 11, which means we were stuck on the streets of Krakow with all of our baggage for an hour.
We got on the bus, and that ended our last day in Poland, Day 13.
Nicholas Scalfano
We woke up early to get on the tram. Since WYD was officially over, the city was no longer shut down; all the shops were opened, and the streets were filled with regular Krakowians instead of pilgrim after pilgrim. Many of the pilgrims left the previous night, since WYD ended. So we got on the tram, and it was weird, because it was full of people going to work, and actually using it as a form of regular transportation.
We arrived at the end of the tram line, and walked to the Shrine. From the outside, one could see multiple buildings, none bigger than the huge shrine itself, with a tower to go right alongside it. (At this point, it has been over a month since I was there, so I cannot really recall everything) When you first walked into the Shrine, you are immediately reminded of Divine Mercy Shrine (which was less than a kilometer away) because of the modern architecture, instead of the Gothic forms of many churches in Poland. This Shrine was recently completed just a few years ago.
With tall walls in a round shape, the inside of the building was very moving. Huge murals covered every inch of the walls, with scenes of the early Church and epic Biblical Stories depicted through colored shards of glass. They were intricately, vivid, yet still had a simple eloquence about them.
On the side, as in many other churches, there were smaller altars, to the Black Madonna, John Paul II himself, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Our Lady of Fatima, and so on. At the altar of Our Lady of Fatima, the cassock that JPII was wearing when he got shot was on display. This was a very moving display, and was heartbreaking on a certain level. Blood stained the pure white cassock. Some parts just had drops of blood, but the bottom of the right side, a huge bloodstain covered the majority of the side. Just two days before, we saw a reenactment of JPII forgiving the man who shot him, and it was not until viewing the actual cassock that everything suddenly became real. A man attempted to murder the Holy Father, there are bloodstains to prove it, yet he lived, and forgave the man, and JPII is now a Saint to prove that the merciful love of the Father overcomes all.
After viewing this, I looked to the right, and noticed a staircase going down below the Shrine, but no one was going down. But I am me, and I went down them. This was a true hidden gem. Sr. Nina and I walked down a hallway, to a smaller circular room with an altar that contained a relic of JPII, with paintings that depicted JPII in different religious aspects of his life. Around that, in a hallway that went in a circle around the altar, were many more smaller altars that were tributed to different Saints and Holy Figures. In one room, the original tomb stone of John Paul II laid on the ground, with a relic of JPII engraved in it. (He had to change tomb stones when they renamed him a Saint).
After this, Sr. Nina, and Allie, Rainey, and me went to what used to be the Jewish ghetto. We saw the original factory that Oskar Schindler (Schindler's List) opened, where he saved many Jews from suffering in the Holocaust. After that, we ate at one of the oldest restaurants in the area; it survived the raids of the Germans. The food was fantastic, and served as our last authentic Polish meal.
After this, we explored the area, and came across a memorial for the Jews killed in their own ghetto during the Holocaust, where the Germans would line them up and kill them. It was heartbreaking to stand on the street where this happened. We explored some more, and found some remaining excerpts of the Ghetto Wall. One remaining piece was actually the wall to a Pre-School.
We met back at the hostel for 4, and walked to a church that was hidden in the middle of an alleyway, and we had our last mass in Krakow. Afterwards, we had another hour or so to do our final shopping and Lody stops. Then we went back to the hostel, and got our stuff. The bus was supposed to arrive at 10 PM to bring us back to Berlin, but the bus didn't arrive until 11, which means we were stuck on the streets of Krakow with all of our baggage for an hour.
We got on the bus, and that ended our last day in Poland, Day 13.
Nicholas Scalfano
Monday, September 5, 2016
Day 12: Closing Mass/ Rain, Walk, Repeat
We woke up on Day 12, still outside, to some man onstage doing what I believe was a mic check. IT sounded like, "Ya ven de vock, (pause for .5 sec) shuh." It actually sounded like the hottest beat of 2016 was about to drop. After denying to myself that I slept outside and that my face was wet from dew, it became reality and I got up. My back was not happy. But I was. :)
We ate our mediocrely pleasing pre-packaged meals, and took down our refugee tents, which were stellar, then we began the morning.
The only thing on our agenda today was the Holy Mass with Pope Francis, the conclusion of World Youth Day, which you may watch here.
Fun fact: A Spanish group translated "papa" to "potato," calling Pope Francis "Potato Francis" on a huge 20 foot banner.
Potato Francis rode through the millions of people in the Field of Mercy, and got to the stage. Mass began with the Year of Mercy Theme Song. Mass went as usual, and the readings had themes of mercy and forgiveness, and the Gospel was the story of Zacchaeus and the tree.
Pope Francis gave his homily, which you can read here. (Please read)
In the first obstacle Potato talks about, I can relate. A lot of times I do feel too small for God; I am just one person among billions. Although I may have my prideful moments, I do feel very awkward and small sometimes. But that is wrong! God is not too big for me. He is there for me, and He dwells inside of me! And there is a difference between humility and pity. Humility is not thinking bad of yourself, it is just not always thinking about yourself. Pity is saying "I'm so small! I'm so weak! I am nothing!" I know sometimes I use pity to build up my pride, which is a dangerous habit, especially if you try to get your friends to help you "feel better."
The second obstacle was of shame, which I do struggle with, but not as much as the others.
The third is of others:
I will be completely honest here. I have been extremely blessed with some amazing friends, and often times I take advantage of that. And we have grown up in the faith, and we have kind of distinguished ourselves from those who do not outwardly practice or talk about faith. So, honestly, we, especially me, will find ourselves on both sides of this spectrum. Sometimes people will mock us for being faithful to the Lord, and for the most part, we have each other for support. But on the other hand, we will find ourselves judging those who are not of the faith. Who are not outwardly practicing, and we will purposely avoid them at all costs. By doing so, we remain still, doing our own thing and going our own way. Our way is not the Lord's way, though.
If there is one thing I have learned at a public college (after 3 weeks), it is that college is not a Catholic School. The majority of people here are not practicing believers. A good amount are, Praise The Lamb! But if we keep the faith among our own selves and don't spread it, what is the point of calling ourselves Christians? We are not living out the call to make disciples. I can sing "Here I Am, Lord" all I want, but if I don't live up to line "I will go, Lord, if you lead me," I am not following the Lord's will, and I am not going anywhere with my life. And neither is the person I am being called to go to. If that is not selfishness, I do not know what is.
And I know this is going to be different. "Love your enemies." Jeez, that is hard. Imagine someone that you really just dislike. Imagine that one person in high school, or in that group message, or that person who argues the faith with you. Now picture them running to Christ and embracing Him, asking for mercy, and then POOF, God forgives him. For me, that is a hard image to imagine. It is a difficult way to think about your enemies. But it is how we should think of them. Instead of looking at and pointing out their flaws, we should find their strengths and love them for the good they do and the love they are. Is that not what Jesus does with you and me? He looks past our faults, so we also should look past our enemies' faults.
Jesus tells Zacchaeus that He must stay at his house, just as Jesus wants to stay in our hearts, and in our homes, too.
After the homily, Potato Francis continued the mass, and the sun got even hotter. Nick's scalp was burning. But it was okay, because Christ in the Eucharist was about to enter Nick's body. After the mad rush to communion was over, the closing rights were given, and Pope Francis then announced the location for the next World Youth Day: Panama 2019. First thought in my head: heat. Fire of the Lord. I am not so sure if I will be attending this one, but if the Lord wants me to, I shall go. The mass ended, Potato left in peace, and we were stuck with 3 million people wanting to leave the same place at the same time. World Youth Day was officially over.
Then, the first aid people came around and forced us to drink bottles upon bottles of gas water. It was dreadful. But we eventually walked out of Campus Misericordiae and unto the rod, where we were immediately halted by about 500,000 people who were not moving in front of us. We waited in the hot sun for about 45 minutes, asking God to cool us off with some wind or something. Let's just say God answered our prayer with the "or something" part. A large, dark cloud loomed over us, and the floodgates of Heaven were opened as God showered the water part of mercy upon us. It was chilling rain, and I, being the stubborn person I am, waited until I was soaking wet to take out my poncho. We were freezing. But we started moving again!
So our journey began. Our 12 kilometer journey back to the hostel in the pouring down rain. We split up into different groups, unintentionally, because everyone traveled at different speeds. There was no use waiting for a tram, because everyone else in Poland wanted to get on. So we walked the whole way back. We actually came across a point where all the trams were stopped and they were forcing people off. Glad we weren't on there! Anyway, we made our way back, and I am proud to say that my group was the first to arrive back at the hostel, meaning we got to take the first showers. Now I know that this journey cannot be described, because it took 4 1/2 hours to get back. All you need to know is that we had ponchos on, it was raining, and we were walking. That is all there is too it. PTL we had energetic people in our group of 7 to keep us wanting to move forward and not stop. My thighs have been recovering since,
We got back, and waited for the others, who slowly arrived groups at a time. A few of us decided to go out to dinner at a fancy restaurant to spend our remaining Zlotys, since we were going to journey back to America soon, so we put on the fanciest clothes we had, dragged our poor feet to the Krakow Square, and found an Italian Restaurant named "The Spaghetti." So we got to eat our "local spaghetti" (sounds funnier in my head, WYD theme song). Then I did some shopping for souvenirs for my siblings, and made my way back to the hostel to sleep after a long and wet day.
Thus ended day 12.
Nicholas Scalfano
We ate our mediocrely pleasing pre-packaged meals, and took down our refugee tents, which were stellar, then we began the morning.
The only thing on our agenda today was the Holy Mass with Pope Francis, the conclusion of World Youth Day, which you may watch here.
Fun fact: A Spanish group translated "papa" to "potato," calling Pope Francis "Potato Francis" on a huge 20 foot banner.
Potato Francis rode through the millions of people in the Field of Mercy, and got to the stage. Mass began with the Year of Mercy Theme Song. Mass went as usual, and the readings had themes of mercy and forgiveness, and the Gospel was the story of Zacchaeus and the tree.
Pope Francis gave his homily, which you can read here. (Please read)
In the first obstacle Potato talks about, I can relate. A lot of times I do feel too small for God; I am just one person among billions. Although I may have my prideful moments, I do feel very awkward and small sometimes. But that is wrong! God is not too big for me. He is there for me, and He dwells inside of me! And there is a difference between humility and pity. Humility is not thinking bad of yourself, it is just not always thinking about yourself. Pity is saying "I'm so small! I'm so weak! I am nothing!" I know sometimes I use pity to build up my pride, which is a dangerous habit, especially if you try to get your friends to help you "feel better."
The second obstacle was of shame, which I do struggle with, but not as much as the others.
The third is of others:
"It was no longer an interior one, but was all around him. It was the grumbling of the crowd, who first blocked him and then criticized him: How could Jesus have entered his house, the house of a sinner! How truly hard it is to welcome Jesus, how hard it is to accept a “God who is rich in mercy” (Eph 2:4)! People will try to block you, to make you think that God is distant, rigid and insensitive, good to the good and bad to the bad. Instead, our heavenly Father “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good” (Mt 5:45). He demands of us real courage: the courage to be more powerful than evil by loving everyone, even our enemies."
I will be completely honest here. I have been extremely blessed with some amazing friends, and often times I take advantage of that. And we have grown up in the faith, and we have kind of distinguished ourselves from those who do not outwardly practice or talk about faith. So, honestly, we, especially me, will find ourselves on both sides of this spectrum. Sometimes people will mock us for being faithful to the Lord, and for the most part, we have each other for support. But on the other hand, we will find ourselves judging those who are not of the faith. Who are not outwardly practicing, and we will purposely avoid them at all costs. By doing so, we remain still, doing our own thing and going our own way. Our way is not the Lord's way, though.
If there is one thing I have learned at a public college (after 3 weeks), it is that college is not a Catholic School. The majority of people here are not practicing believers. A good amount are, Praise The Lamb! But if we keep the faith among our own selves and don't spread it, what is the point of calling ourselves Christians? We are not living out the call to make disciples. I can sing "Here I Am, Lord" all I want, but if I don't live up to line "I will go, Lord, if you lead me," I am not following the Lord's will, and I am not going anywhere with my life. And neither is the person I am being called to go to. If that is not selfishness, I do not know what is.
And I know this is going to be different. "Love your enemies." Jeez, that is hard. Imagine someone that you really just dislike. Imagine that one person in high school, or in that group message, or that person who argues the faith with you. Now picture them running to Christ and embracing Him, asking for mercy, and then POOF, God forgives him. For me, that is a hard image to imagine. It is a difficult way to think about your enemies. But it is how we should think of them. Instead of looking at and pointing out their flaws, we should find their strengths and love them for the good they do and the love they are. Is that not what Jesus does with you and me? He looks past our faults, so we also should look past our enemies' faults.
Jesus tells Zacchaeus that He must stay at his house, just as Jesus wants to stay in our hearts, and in our homes, too.
After the homily, Potato Francis continued the mass, and the sun got even hotter. Nick's scalp was burning. But it was okay, because Christ in the Eucharist was about to enter Nick's body. After the mad rush to communion was over, the closing rights were given, and Pope Francis then announced the location for the next World Youth Day: Panama 2019. First thought in my head: heat. Fire of the Lord. I am not so sure if I will be attending this one, but if the Lord wants me to, I shall go. The mass ended, Potato left in peace, and we were stuck with 3 million people wanting to leave the same place at the same time. World Youth Day was officially over.
Then, the first aid people came around and forced us to drink bottles upon bottles of gas water. It was dreadful. But we eventually walked out of Campus Misericordiae and unto the rod, where we were immediately halted by about 500,000 people who were not moving in front of us. We waited in the hot sun for about 45 minutes, asking God to cool us off with some wind or something. Let's just say God answered our prayer with the "or something" part. A large, dark cloud loomed over us, and the floodgates of Heaven were opened as God showered the water part of mercy upon us. It was chilling rain, and I, being the stubborn person I am, waited until I was soaking wet to take out my poncho. We were freezing. But we started moving again!
So our journey began. Our 12 kilometer journey back to the hostel in the pouring down rain. We split up into different groups, unintentionally, because everyone traveled at different speeds. There was no use waiting for a tram, because everyone else in Poland wanted to get on. So we walked the whole way back. We actually came across a point where all the trams were stopped and they were forcing people off. Glad we weren't on there! Anyway, we made our way back, and I am proud to say that my group was the first to arrive back at the hostel, meaning we got to take the first showers. Now I know that this journey cannot be described, because it took 4 1/2 hours to get back. All you need to know is that we had ponchos on, it was raining, and we were walking. That is all there is too it. PTL we had energetic people in our group of 7 to keep us wanting to move forward and not stop. My thighs have been recovering since,
We got back, and waited for the others, who slowly arrived groups at a time. A few of us decided to go out to dinner at a fancy restaurant to spend our remaining Zlotys, since we were going to journey back to America soon, so we put on the fanciest clothes we had, dragged our poor feet to the Krakow Square, and found an Italian Restaurant named "The Spaghetti." So we got to eat our "local spaghetti" (sounds funnier in my head, WYD theme song). Then I did some shopping for souvenirs for my siblings, and made my way back to the hostel to sleep after a long and wet day.
Thus ended day 12.
Nicholas Scalfano
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