WYD Timetable 2011 file:///C:/Users/cfm/Documents/ctk-cov ...ctk-cov.org.uk/html/WYD Timetable 2011.pdf · Sunday 21 August 9:00 am The Pope arrives in Cuatro Vientos 9:30 am MID

Blogg Large Photos Coventry Evening Telegraph 11 August 2011 http://www.madrid11.com/enPdf version to print pdf

Tuesday 23 AugustFree morning. Depart Madrid. Home!

The end!! A manic morning was had by all as we tried to pack and work out why cases wouldn't close despite their not beinganymore in them (or so people said!). Once we had accomplished this people were able to go for lunch and get some last minutebits and bobs before heading to the airport! Nobody can quite believe that two weeks have come and gone!

A very tired coach load of people were greeted by family at Christ The King at 10pm!

On a personal note I cannot tell you all just how amazing this experience has been for all those involved. To all those reading thisthat helped us to fundraise in anyway, a million thanks. You have helped to provide the young people of your parish and school witha life changing experience. To our priests, Fr. Tom and Fr. Des, and the leaders, Geraldine, Laura, Naomi, Amy, Liam and Kate, theword thanks does not do justice to the hard work, dedication and care you have given to our pilgrims over the last two weeks. Finallyto the Pilgrims, what can I say? You gave yourselves fully to the pilgrimage, your enthusiasm and excitement was a joy to see. Youhave made new friendships and deepened those friendships that already existed, but most of all, you did what the Pope asked of youand that was to stay firm in faith that is rooted in Christ. Take time to reflect on the message given to us on the night of the vigildespite the wind, rain, thunder and lightening and don't keep Christ to yourself, share your journey with others and invite them too, tobe rooted in faith!Carmel Keane

Monday 22 AugustFree Day in Madrid. Celebration evening meal Hard Rock Cafe

The group enjoyed a free day today. Everyone had a good lie in after such a long and busy weekend and then we could found doingshopping, going to the water park, visiting the football stadium generally relaxing. At 7.10pm we met in the lounge of the Hostal sothat we could get the coach to the Hard Rock Cafe together. The meal was fantastic and very welcome to some hungry pilgrims whodevoured ribs, burgers and chicken! Most poeple couldn't finish the desert (no problem for Owain though who managed to eat his andthree others!) After we had finished dinner, the young people made some lovely speeches and thanked the leaders for all they haddone and James, Daniel and Kevin performed a song that they had written about our experience in Madrid. Once back in the centreeveryone enjoyed going out for an hour and a lovely evening was had by all.

WYD Timetable 2011 file:///C:/Users/cfm/Documents/ctk-cov/html/WYD Timetable 2011.html

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Sunday 21 August9:00 am The Pope arrives in Cuatro Vientos 9:30 am MID Final Mass. The Pope will concelebrate Mass with thousands of bishops andpriests, and he Will address young people and those who are not so young, to send them out to the world to witness to their faith, asthe Lord did with his Apostles. At the end of the conclusive Mass, the Holy Father will announce the place where the next edition ofWorld Youth Day will be held.5:30 pm Encounter with Volunteers. Pope Benedict XV1 will have a brief meeting with the World Youth Day volunteers at the IFEMAFairgrounds.6:30 pm Papal Farewell. There will be a brief Farewell Ceremony at the Barajas Airport

The pilgrims were in good spirits this morning as people awoke to laughter and singing. The Holy Father arrived back on site at 9.30this morning in preparation of mass. Mass was lovely although the language barrier made it difficult for some to follow! Fr Tom andFr. Des managed to get down to the front to concelebrate mass which made us all very proud! Sadly Andrew wasn't feeling any betterthis morning and had to make his way back to the hostel early with Geraldine. The Crowd were excited and cheered when the HolyFather announced the next WYD in Rio in 2013!! We then had a difficult walk and train or bus journey back to the hostel in 42 degreeheat, although it has to be said we made it back in record time! We all headed straight for showers and sleep and met again at 8 inthe lounge of the hostel where we ordered pizza and shared our memories of WYD! God is certainly good! Our last day tomorrowand we intend to really make the most of it!

Saturday 20 August10:00 am Mass for seminarians in the Cathedral of "La Almudena"4:00 pm Preparatory ceremony in Cuatro Vientos. Young people will arrive little by little at the aerodrorne and take their places.Meanwhile, different activities Young people will arrive little by little different will take place on the stage (testimonies of young people,musical interpretations, prayers to the Virgin, etc.) to prepare for the Vigil.7:40 pm Pope visits the "Fundaci6n Institute San Jose". A center for the sick run by the Hospitaller Order of St John of God8:30 pm Vigil with the Pope. The Pope will arrive at the Cuatro Vientos aerodrorne, and Eucharistic adoration will begin An address isplanned by the Holy Father.11:00 pm Night in Cuatro Vientos. WYD participants will spend the night in the Cuatro Vientos aerodrome. For those who so wish, therewill be several tents where they will be able to adore the Most Blessed Sacrament.

The big one, the day we have all been waiting for! The all night vigil with over a million young people all waiting in anticipation for thewords of Pope Benedict XVI. and we were not disappointed. Even the thunder storm couldn't put the pilgrims off despite Carmel andFr Tom wondering whether we should lead the group back to the hostel! We took cover under plastic sheets and sang our songs tokeep everyone going. When the rain eased a few of the group showed they could be resourceful and managed to find things we coulduse as shelter. We were so proud of the young people and their determination to not give up despite the pilgrimage becoming verydifficult! His Holiness didn't't disappoint with his words if encouragement of faith to young people: 'How can a young person be true tothe faith and yet continue to aspire to high ideals in today’s society? In the Gospel we have just heard, Jesus gives us an answer tothis urgent question: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love” (Jn 15:9). ' 'If you abide in the love ofChrist, rooted in the faith, you will encounter, even amid setbacks and suffering, the source of true happiness and joy. Faith does notrun counter to your highest ideals; on the contrary, it elevates and perfects those ideals. Dear young people, do not be satisfied withanything less than Truth and Love, do not be content with anything less than Christ.' 'Dear friends, may no adversity paralyze you. Beafraid neither of the world, nor of the future, nor of your weakness. The Lord has allowed you to live in this moment of history so that,by your faith, his name will continue to resound throughout the world. During this prayer vigil, I urge you to ask God to help you findyour vocation in society and in the Church, and to persevere in that vocation with joy and fidelity. It is a good thing to open our heartsto Christ’s call and to follow with courage and generosity the path he maps out for us. ' After his talk we tried to get some sleepalthough some were more successful than others in this feat! We were glad that Geraldine and Andrew and Amy managed to get inafter a difficult late start!

On the Way to the Vigil:


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At the Vigil:


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Friday 19 August10.00 am Catechesis sessions.11:30 am Papal Meeting at the Monastery of El Escorial. Meeting with young religious sisters in "Patio de los Reyes12:00 am Papal Meeting at the Monastery of EI Escorial. Meeting with 1,000 young college professors in the Basilica. 7:30 pm Via crucis. Statues from traditional Spanish Holy Week celebrations will be used to illustrate each station of the cross. Thestatues come from all over Spain.

This morning was our last catechesis session and we went to the same venue as we did before. The band that was on this morningWas the best so far and most of our young people could be seen dancing away at the front of the auditorium and Alice managed tolead a couple of hundred pilgrims round in the conga! catechesis was led By Archbishop Kevin Dolan from New York and he gave aninspiring talk about being rooted in faith with Christ Jesus despite the pressures of the modern world. Mass followed with all thePriests and Bishops present and the group were delighted when Archbishop Bernard spotted us and gave us a wave! AfterCatechesis the group had some free time before meeting to go and witness the stations of the cross. Some of the group went to themain square where the Pope was to watch the stations and some of the group took shelter from the heat and went to the conventioncentre where they were shown on the big screen with an English translation. Both groups had a prayerful experience and enjoyedseeing the stations of cross that had come from all over Spain and the different groups of young people that were asked to carry theWYD cross from station to station showing the diverse cross section that are gathered here in Madrid to celebrate their faith with theHoly Father.


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Stations of the Cross:

Thursday 18 August12:00 pm The Pope arrives at the Barajas Airport. Welcome Ceremony at the State Hall12:40 pm The Pope enters the city of Madrid. Drive through the streets of the city in Popemobile to reach the Nunciature.7:30 pm Papal Welcome Ceremony with youth at Cibeles. In Plaza de la Independencia, Benedict XVI will pass through the Puerta deAlcala with youth from all the continents. After this event, he will ride in Popemobile to Plaza de Cibeles.

Peace was resumed this morning thankfully as most of the group made an early start to the Cathechesis session. 8 of the grouphowever had to stay behind as they had an anxious wait for their A Level results with Carmel. BIG HUGE congratulations to Daniel,Kevin, James, Robyn, Helen and Rosie who all got fab results and places where they wanted for next year. Congratulations also toRoisin, Matthew, Richard and Libby who got their AS Results. Phew an anxious morning! The rest of the group had a great morningand we all met back up this afternoon to go to the welcome ceremony for the Pope. It was exciting seeing so many people waiting towelcome the Holy Father and he didn't disappoint as he spoke to pilgrims in many languages telling us to 'stay rooted in our faith fornow and for always, may God bless you all'. Sadly the protesters are back but our location is fantastic and they are down in the mainsquare so we are all safe and well and some of the leaders have taken the A Levelers for a celebratory drink!


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Getting Ready


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Wednesday 17 August10:00 am Catechesis sessions. WYD participants, organized by language groups, will have catechesis session with bishops from allover the world. The sessions will take place in churches, schools, auditoriums and sports centers of Madrid.

This morning we made our way to our first catechesis session, it was with the Arch Bishop of Sydney which was lovely for those thatattended the last WYD. A Christian band of monks entertained us as well as the Sisters of Life who shared their stories and missionwith us. Arch Bishop Bernard Longley sat with us after he was spotted in the crowd of ten thousand and Thomas and Owain ran afterhim. We celebrated mass at the end and everyone made their way for lunch before having a few hours in the afternoon to ourselves.In the evening we joined the Arch Bishop and the rest of the Birmingham group in O'Niels Irish Bar for a catch up. It was good tomingle and share stories and the Arch was more than happy to pose for some snaps. Sadly some protesters have arrived in Madridand there were some unpleasant scenes to be watched in the main square which was eventually blocked off to the Pilgrims as thepolice swiftly moved in to sort the rioters out. This however didn't deter Fr. Tom from getting food as he proceeded to lead Carmel,Geraldine and Thomas to the square where the police happily let us through to the deserted square to get some KFC! Fr Tom clearlythought he was invincible!


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Tuesday 16th August8:00 am Arrival at Madrid. From the early morning, the pilgrims and groups registered in WYD will be able to collect their accreditationand backpacks in the piaces indicated by the organization.8:00 pm WYD Opening Mass. World Youth Day begins at 8 pm (provisional time) with a Mass in Madrid's Cibeles Square, presidedover by the archbishop of Madrid and concelebrated by the bishops and priests participating in WYD.

so far .......... WOW what a day! the atmosphere in Madrid is out of this world as the streets are filled with people from all nations!People are singing in all of the different languages and chanting their mantras for the Pope! Some of the group have gone swimmingand others have been swept up in the vibe of the WYD and have bought flags and face paint to sing our songs and chant our mantraswith the best of them!! We are really excited now and so happy to be here! We are all meeting at six to walk to the opening masswhich is this evening and will be celebrated by the Arch Bishop of Madrid. Fr. Tom and Fr. Des will con celebrate so we are lookingforward to seeing them on the big screen! In other news... Carmel injuries have began. Carmel fell down a hole, but don't worry wegot her out! We will keep you updated on Carmel Accident Watch, currently we have sent the young people out with concrete to fillany holes! Carmel is refusing medical attention however Geraldine is now qualified in amputation so no fear! Whilst she is refusingmedical attention of any kind she is still insisting that her twisted ankle is a major injury... lets pray it is not! We will keep you all (andCarmel's ankle and knee) in our prayers at the opening mass.

The opening mass cont........So I (Carmel) came downstairs to see the group had been 'creative' with their T-Shirts, their faces, legs and anything else they coulddecorate in order to show the youth of the world and the Pope that we are in town! Fr. Tom and Fr. Des had already gone as they hadpriority seating if you don't mind (I did!) so the rest of the group together with Laura's guitar we made our way through the busy streetsof Madrid to the Opening Mass. The Mass was a good experience although we were a little disappointed that they had underestimated the number of people here and thousands were unable to go to Communion but never the less it was fantastic to properlybe able to see the thousands of young people that are here united by one thing!

Photos from O'Neils:


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Monday 15th AugustThis morning everyone was treated to a lie in as we met at 10am to go down to the local church where Fr. Tom had managed tocobble together enough Spanish to arrange for us to have mass in English. It was a lovely church where we were able to use the sidechapel to celebrate the Assumption of Our Lady. After mass, we had a free day to relax before the chaos of World Youth Day eventskick in tomorrow! Some went off to the park while others pursued the local shops! We have had our packs delivered for WYD and areexcited with all the goodies inside! Some of the events look really good fun and really exciting! This evening some of us went off toexperience some real Spanish culture by going to a bull fight! 20 of the group bought tickets for this and whilst they enjoyed theexperience, some left after the first fight and I don't think any of them will be rushing back to see it again! The rest of us enjoyed ourlast meal in the restaurant that has been looking after us although Carmel was not too pleased at sitting between Fr. Tom and Fr. Deswho both had trout that came still with eyes and teeth! Kevin must be running out of money as we keep finding him busking in thestreet with his tin whistle and WYD hat, he managed to make 20cents courtesy of James and Daniel! The other Birmingham grouphave arrived and excitement is really mounting for the arrival of the Pope. Madrid is getting busier by the hour and we are lookingforward to the Opening Mass tomorrow! We will keep you all in our prayers!

Sunday 14th August. Waterpark.

This morning we were treated to a lie in (well some of us did while others were found leaving the hostel at 8 am for the local fleamarket!)as the coach didn't leave for the water park until 11.30! This came as a blessing in disguise for those that had enjoyed thedelights of Madrid nightlife! The water park was amazing fun for all as we were able to do some sunbathing, swimming andexperience the thrills of some of the water slides like the black hole, the kamikaze the zip wire and splash which daniel was tooscared to go on but it proved no problem for Fr. Tom!!!! We managed to get some great underwater shots as we posed for the


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camera!Laura also gave us a special treat when she dressed up as Father Des, however mitchell has managed to give himself a black eyewhilst trying to be an acrobat! Excitement is mounting for the Holy Father's arrival as we can see lots of stages and big screens goingup all over the place! We can't wait!!!!!!!!!!

Saturday 13th August. Morning Trip to Valley of the Fallen Picnic lunch in Park.

Fr Des made his entrance this morning, wearing a t-shirt with the words 'somedays it's hard to be a hero'!! Today is our last day withour tour guide Louis :( we made our 55 mile journey to Escarial, to an Augustinian monastary which was built by King Phillip II of Spain.We were joined by a second tour guide Karry who showed us around the beautiful palace and took us to what turned out to be the mostinteresting room, the crypt, where Kings and Queens had been laid to rest. Catherine and Grace had to leave the room because they were so freaked out and Owen described it as the best part of the trip so far!After looking at a further 300 tombstones. We had a lovely lunch together which we were treated to by Tony Gray (THANK YOU!) And then made our way to the 'Valley of the fallen, home to the world's biggest cross- built by Franco just after the civil war. (check outthe pictures!!) The cross is a war memorial built with granite removed from under the mountain to allow a burial place for the fallen.Around 1 million people died on the land, and the two sides were buried together. Louis found us a very peaceful spot for Mass in theforrest and Fr Tom preached about how we are all children of God and how we chould always strive to remember that.On return to Madrid, a trip to the park and siesta time was enjoyed by all. We have just had a fantastic dinner and are ready for somefree time.Madris is become more and more busy each day- some of the girls just joined a group from the Ivory coast for a sing song and Anna


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and Thomas were just asked to bea part of a Spanish music video by an MTV film crew for a song called 'steal a kiss' by a band named John ideas.We are all looking forward very much to a day at the water park tomorrow, before another busy week! Carmel still has no voice andeveryone is happy!We love and miss you all!!

Saturday 13th august cont........We had a lovely evening last night as we all gathered together in an outside bar near the hostel and laura and Alice entertained not justus but the locals who were left shouting for more as they heard the girls sing! Kate and liam managed to entertain everyone again withtheir dancing to the local Spanish musicians and some of the leaders partied late into the night!


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Friday 12th August. Day trip to Toledo Lunch

It seemed like a very early start this morning for some of the group who enjoyed the night life of Madrid a bit too much last night. Today we went to Toledo, where we visited a synagogue- the Santa Maria and a stunning Cathedral. When we got off the coach, wespent about 10 minutes climbing escaltors- which we were vwery grateful for when we seen just how high the city was!! Toledo was the capital of Spain in medivaltimes and holds a lot of history.The Cathedral is home to El Greco's most famous painting- the image of Christ just before He is striped of His garments. The cathedral is an absolute splendour, it took over 200 years to build and is full of many treasures- thousands of different sculpturesand fine pieces of art.We went to a famous synagogue, built in muslim style but used by Queen Isabella- who spent years making people convert toCatholicism.We were very privilaged today to celebrate Mass together with Fr. Tom and Fr. Des in a side chapel in the cathedral- surronded bysome of the amazing paintings of well known saints.After a beuatiful lunch in a local hotel, we had some time to look around the shops before making our way back to the coach (againvery grateful for the escalators!!)

When dinner was over, we enjoyed some free time in the cooling rain in Madrid- an early night for everyone!!

Carmel has now lost her voice!!

Thursday 11th August. Tour of Madrid.

Again, an early start but today we went for a tour of Madrid- what a beautiful city! We visited one of the world's most famous artgalleries, the Prado museum, home to paintings by famous artist's such as Goyas, Rembrant and El Grecos. There was a mixedreception from the group, but mostly positive! With great excitement afterwards when we visited the second largest bull fighting arenain the world, and the very famous Real Madrid football stadium.

After an expensive trip to McDonalds for lunch, some of the group took a trip to the beun de retiro, a huge park in the centre ofMadrid. It was about 40 degrees and some of the group went boating on the lake, before jumping in to cool off. Kate has beenembracing the Spanish wildlife so much that a pigeon used her as a toliet lol! Fr Tom and Fr Des took their priestly duties seriouslythis afternoon with a visit to the cathedral. And some of us went for a look around the shops!

Dinner tonight was interesting-we thought it was strange to be given fruity milk for a starter but we went along with it anyway!! The ribswere lovely though followed by fresh fruit!

Laura made a new friend tonight, a little boy named Alfredo who insisted she opened the guitar case so he could play!! he was threeyears old and could speak Spanish and English!

10.15pm

This evening we made our way to the cathedral for night prayer, Carmel was shocked as we were evicted half way through, but wedid find somewhere else to sit and it was lovely, we sang a couple of hymns, and made some new friends who kind of joined in! Weheard the story of the road to Emmaus, and Carmel encouraged us to pray for each other throughout our pilgrimage journey. It was alovely setting as we sat watching the sun set and Fr Tom blessed us all at the end of an amazing day.

We have been very blessed with a fantastic group, and we feel very privileged to be together in this beautiful city!

We wondering what time the boys will get in tonight and hoping they'll be up in time for our trip to Toledo tomorrow!

Carmel has banged her knee but no visits to the Doctors yet!!

Wednesday 10th August. Day trip to Avila and Segovia Dinner.

Early start today for a trip to Avila and Segovia, Louis our tour guide greeted us outside out hostel at 8.45am. After a sing along onthe coach, we arrived in the stunning setting of the basilica of St Theresa and the home where she grew up. We visited the cathedral


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which was full of beautiful sculptures and paintings and found out about the story of St Theresa.

Back on the coach for an afternoon in Segovia- a gorgeous place which is home to a very old Roman aquaduct, after a few pictureswe went off to have some lunch (not being able to speak Spanish is starting to make life difficult!!) we then took a stroll to Alcazar-the castle which Walt Disney based his theme park Disney palaces on!! The weather was beautiful- infact very hot and we did wonderhow many more times Laura was going to ask if we had suncream on!

After another journey on the coach, we arrived back at the hostel in time to get ready for dinner (pork and potatoes with a strangeminty sorbet for dessert!)

Believe it or not, the over 18's were tucked up in bed an hour before their curfew.

Carmel still has no injuries!

Tuesday 9th August. Depart Christ The King at 10.15 am. Flight to Madrid from Heathrow 2.10pm Arrive in Madrid 5.30pm

On the coach!!! after a lovely Mass at Christ the King, we all said our 'see you soon's (only a few parents cried!!) Alice is studying herSpanish dictionary, James is crying already- don't worry Mrs Reidy we'll look after him!! And Fr Tom is busy stealing iPods so he canlisten to his favourite Jessie J song 'Ching Ching ching'.We're on a really posh coach, like the one on coach trip and some of the youth are busy playing cards across the table!!!Everyone is very excited, we'll keep you updated- let's hope that we all make it through airport security!!! Thank you for your love andprayers!!

6.30pmWe have arrived safely at our hostel, and after climbing a lot of stairs, we made it to our rooms which are small but very clean with acomplementary chocolate! We made it to dinner but were quite late- we have been very lucky to be greeted by Olga Cordero (aSpanish teacher from Cardinal Newman!) who has been amazing! After dinner we just had enough time to explore a little bit beforebed.

Coventry Evening 11/8/2011


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