There and Back Again; a Pilgrims Tale By Laura Uschold

Ok, not a whole tale... but we did a lot of traveling today.
This morning was a the first day of catechesis at St Ambrose church in West Concord, NSW. From there we had lunch at a nearby school and then hopped the train to go downtown and explore the expo center near Darling Harbor.

Andrea and I were able to swipe a Pilgrims pocket guide which was missing from all our packs. The guide lists the workshops, forums, concerts, theatrical events and other such goings ons. We took in a workshop on 'Historical Apologetics and Catholic Urban Legends: History and Humour from the Crusades to the Da Vinci Code' presented by Dean Mischewski. He was a knowledgeable bloke from New Zealand who had some fun humor and straight forward explanation of myths about the Crusades and inquisitions. We had to leave prior to the portion on the Da Vinci Code, but it looks like his website, www.kiwicatholic.com, has more info on apologetics.

So we walked through the beautiful Darling Harbor Area where outdoor concerts were being held and people generally just converging in the park like setting and playing in the various fountains. We met the group and returned the St ambrose for 5:30 pm mass gathering for the archdiocese of Detroit. It was cool to see and hear from two of our bishops, Quinn and Flores, a first for me on all accounts.

Here is where the "back again" park come into the tail:
After mass we decided to go back downtown because so much was still happening. So we power walked back to the train station and headed for the CBD (Central Business District, I think). With high hopes of cashing in our meal tickets, by the time Andrea and I arrived at the Opera House they were out of food. So, we wandered around the Opera House in slight frustration trying to at least find the location of Adoration and Reconciliation, if we can't have food for our bodies, we could at least adore the one who nourishes and truly sustains our lives. We then came across some volunteers who had bags of extra food, they gave us some bread, fruit, dessert, and drink and then took us straight away to Adoration and Reconciliation site.

We adored, confessed, adored some more and topped it off with the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.

Then it was all trains, buses and walking. (We never did find the ring, however. But, I guess that saves the trouble of having our grandchildren cast it into the fires of Mordor three books from now.)

Pax,
Laura