A Series of Fortunate Events, Part Due (Getting Lost in Adventure)

Pax Christi vobiscum!


Okay, so I've got a lot to catch you all up on. What is it, Tuesday already? I tell you, the days have just flown by after the first week. I've got to stop and continue to thank God for this opportunity, and not just let it disappear.

I'm going to be very methodical about this one, and I'll try to hit the highlights of the first part of the last week and a half. The next section will have the recent activity. So, here goes nothing.

Last Sunday, the 29th of July, Ray, James, Bill, Corey, and I went to Svizzera through Domodossola. It was a wonderful trip through the mountains and woods in a little train. When we arrived in Svizzera (Switzerland), we walked around a bit, and I saw a McDonalds (they are everywhere...do they use Swiss Cheese with their cheeseburgers?). We ended up taking a funicolare up the mountain to La Chiesa della Madonna del Sasso. Che bellisima! See the pics below:



Above and Below: Madonna del Sasso, and the view from Madonna del Sasso (they also have Stations of the Cross on the road up to the Chiesa. You can walk it if you don't take the funicolare.)Me and James, my DB (Diocesan Brother)...oh, and I promise we were happy to be there; I think we were caught off guard.

Monday, the 30th of July, I went on two trips: one up the mountain, and another to Malpensa Airport (Mal, Italian for "bad" and Pensa Italian for "thought"...it's not a popular airport). The first adventure was a journey up the mountain with Jimmy and Nick--to get to the top, one must jump into a the equivalent of a moving garbage can, seen below.


After getting to know Oscar the Grouch quite well, I got out of the funivia and beheld the majestic view at the top. It was quite amazing, for it was a windy day, which kept the air clean of smog, improving visibility. We climbed the rest of the way up the mountain to see the entire view of Lombardia and beyond. It was a spectacular view and an amazing place to do Daytime Prayer (from the Liturgy of the Hours, or, La Preghiera delle Ore). In all seriousness, I can see why Christ went up the mountain to pray--you get a God's-eye-view of the world: everything that seems big down below becomes miniscule from above, and it is easier to focus on God. If you ever get the chance to hike in the mountains, I highly encourage it. And pray while you're up there--no better way to hike.

Oh, and there was a ramp that launched off the side of the mountain...no rail guard, nothing. Just an all-access platform for hang-gliders...or 3 year-olds with no adult supervision; this kind of thing would never fly in the States (pardon the pun).

Later that evening, I went for a ride with Don Mariusz and Jimmy to the Malpensa Airport to pick up a friend of Don Mariusz', another Priest from Pologna (Italian for Poland). It was quite an adventure (meaning we got lost on the way back). But it was at that moment that the sense of adventure really hit me: 3 weeks ago, I would have never imagined that I would be in a car with a seminarian from Alabama, and two Priests from Poland, all of us speaking Italian about how we were lost. When does that ever happen??? I could never have expected it, and yet there it was. What a gift from God to be here right now!

Tuesday, the 31st of July, the big event was an evening out at the Costello Ristorante with our teachers. We ate well, spoke in Italian, and had a good time all around. I even joked around in Italian. Quite a good time.


And the post from Wednesday, August 1st, starts where this one ends. This catches us up to my last post. Check the next post for the major happenings of the last half-a-week or so. Thank you again for stopping in. I really appreciate all of the support, and I pray for all of you who read the blog. Dio ti benedica! Ciao!

P.S. - Here is a picture of my neighbor across from the hotel. Apparently "The Thing" of Marvel Comics fame lives in Verbania.