Thurs June 15
I left Melbourne on May 29, arriving in San Diego the same day. I spent 3 busy days in SD & then caught the train to LA for the weekend. On Mon June 5 I flew to Vienna via Warsaw. I was looking forward to Corpus Christi on the Thursday & was not disappointed. A wonderful Mass with choir & orchestra in St Stephen’s Dom was followed by a 2 hour procession of the sacrament thru the streets, concluding with Benediction at the Dom. The procession featured various societies in their colourful uniforms.
Vienna
On Fri I caught the train to Munich, stayed there 1 night & then on Saty caught the train to Hannover. On previous visits to Germany I have used Hannover as a base for regional travel & I will be here a week for this. Monday I went to Hameln (of pied paper fame) & on Tuesday to Porta Wesfalica. This is the location of something I have noticed on previous train journeys – a huge Kaiser Wilhelm I memorial on a hill. I had decided to visit it one day & was not disappointed. And also pleased that I can still climb a mountain after my falls & accidents over the last 10 years!
Hameln
Porta Westfalica
Yesterday I went to Goslar, a lovely historic town with a Kaiserhof (royal palace) from the 11th cent. It also has Germany’s oldest railway station. Today I relaxed in my room, listening to Port Adelaide’s home game. It was an exciting victory. In fact since I left Australia Port Adel have won 3 very exciting games & are now top of the AFL ladder! Tomorrow will be another relaxing day & on Saty I catch the train to Frankfurt.
Germany’s oldest railway station
Sun July 2
2 weeks ago I was in Frankfurt for a weekend & welcomed my long-time friend, Robert, to Germany. Knowing my love of Germany, Robert said he would like to spend 2 weeks with me here for his 1st visit. I took him to Berlin, Munich, Cologne & back to Frankfurt. A highlight for me was attending 6.30 am Mass for the Feast of SS Peter & Paul in Koln Dom. It was celebrated by a bishop at the high altar, which is only used on special occasions. We have had a fun 2 weeks & today he left for Amsterdam. There is 1 more week of travel for me & tomorrow I go to Strasbourg. After 2 nights there I will have 3 nights in Luxemburg – 2 places I have not visited yet.
Fri July 21
I enjoyed exploring Strassburg & Luxemburg. Strassburg has a wonderful old city which was a pleasant 30 min walk from my hotel. A surprise was to find that just near the hotel was the European Parliament & I enjoyed a free tour of it. My final weekend was in Koblenz & its annual festival was going on. Lots of Germans drinking beer! Saty night I went to Mass in the cathedral & Sunday a/noon I went on the cable car to the fortress across the river.
After a wonderful 6 weeks travelling around Germany I flew to San Diego. A brief stopover reminded me of why I loved living there. I landed back in Melbourne on Sunday – just in time to get home then go to Mass! This week I have been recovering from jet-lag & catching up with friends, as well as the usual practical things. Today I fly to Adelaide for the big footy game against Collingwood tomorrow night. And so my life is quickly back to normal 🙂
Thurs Aug 31
The past 6 weeks have been busy with the usual things: trips to Adelaide for the footy & going to games when in Melbourne, attending Mass in various churches on Sundays & during the week, meals with friends & medical appointments. The latter is a sign I am getting older! This week I have been on a strict fasting diet in preparation for a colonoscopy on Monday. This is a follow up to 2 I had last year. My Dr is very good about my health & looking after it. Tomorrow is the start of September & Spring – tho it was cold & wet today & this has been the pattern in Melbourne since I returned from my trip. September is also Footy Finals time & I am looking forward to Port Adelaide doing well.
Tues Oct 3
The footy finals were a wonderful treat for footy fans, with close finishes, exciting play & 95,000 + crowds at the MCG. Unfortunately Port Adel did not win any of their games & bombed out 🙁 I was fortunate to get a dining package for the Grand Final, which was an amazing game right to the last minute – the best one for 35 years.
Now the footy season is over it is time for my “end-of-season” trip. Today I fly to London. After 2 weeks in UK I fly to Milan. 3 weeks travelling around by train in Northern Italy is a trip planned pre-Covid. Then I have a week in Germany before flying home via the US.
Tues 17
I have had 2 weeks in the UK & fly to Milan tomorrow. The 1st week I was in London, which included meals with various friends & High Mass at St Magnus on the Sunday. Tues-Thurs I was in Canterbury, which is a pretty little city. The cathedral is quite huge & the main attraction. I went to both Mass & Evensong there. I then spent the weekend in Portsmouth. This is the big British Navy headquarters & focussed particularly on Nelson.. On the Saturday I wandered around the Historic Docks, visiting HMS Victory & the Mary Rose. On Sunday I went to Mass at St Agatha’s, Landport. This is a famous anglocatholic church built in 1895 by Fr Dolling. When I was 20 I read his “10 Years in a Portsmouth Slum”, which describes his heroic ministry in that awful slum area, the building of the church & his fights with the Bishop. His story inspired me & I have always wanted to visit the church. Despite being sold by the CofE in 1954 , used as a naval storehouse for 40 years & then restored as a church in 1994, one can still admire its beauty & sense its history.
Wed Nov 1st
I have now had 2 weeks in Italy. Travelling around by train has been enjoyable as I visit cities that I have long wanted to experience. I started off in Milan & then onto Verona for a weekend. So many beautiful churches & impressive city walls. Next stop was Trento. It was here that the Council of Trent met in the 16th cent. Trent was part of South Tyrol in the Hapsburg empire which was given to Italy after. WW1. The 2 Italian provinces that form part of it still have a German flavour & street names. Trento is a lovely town with many beautiful buildings & churches, especially the cathedral. The Castello is impressive & I spent a wet Monday morning exploring it.
After Trento it was back to Verona, then Milan before going to Turin for the weekend. Another beautiful city & my hotel was part of a huge shopping complex built in the former Fiat headquarters. My 1st venture was to the Duomo & the Holy Shroud. Then I explored the city & more beautiful churches. Another wet Monday was spent in the royal palace of the Savoys. This contains the original shrine of the Shroud within an octagonal chapel which adjoins the Duomo. Quite fantastic, with glass windows that enabled the worshippers to see it behind the high Altar.
On Tuesday I caught the train back to Milan. The Hilton upgraded me to a huge suite, which I have been enjoying. Today being All Saints Day I went to the magnificent Duomo for 11 am Solemn Mass. The Mass was the Ambrosian rite unique to Milan & it was a wonderful celebration. Good music, excellent ceremonial & 2 thurifers ensuring lots of incense! Tomorrow I catch the train to Bologna for the weekend, returning to Milan next Tuesday.
Trento
Verona
Turin
Milan Duomo
Wed Nov 8
I had a good 5 days in Bologna. It is perhaps the nicest city I have visited on this trip. Porticos line all the streets & there are marvellous churches everywhere. I was able to attend Mass in the basilica of St Petronio, the patron saint of Bologna, & visited many others, incl the basilica of St Dominic, where his shrine is.
On Monday I went to Ravenna for the day. This is a stunning city with an interesting ecclesiastical & political history. The Arians were dominant here after it became the centre of the Ostrogothic kingdom & the city shows influence of the Arians, Byzantines & Catholics. Two 6th cent churches – St Apollinare Nuovo & St Vitale – are famous for their mosaics. They are well preserved in churches & I was blown away! There is also an old Arian baptistry & a subsequent Catholic baptistry.
After a night in Milan I go back to Verona today. Tomorrow I catch the train from Verona to Munich. It takes 5.5 hours & goes thru the Brenner Pass – another thing I have wanted to see.
Bologna
Ravenna
Pics 1 & 2: Shrine of St Dominic. Pic 3: Rosary Chapel with 15 mysteries around the reredos. Pic 4: Arian baptistry. Pic 5: Catholic baptistry
St Apollonare Nuovo Basilica
Note 3 Magi in trousers & Phrygian caps in 4th pic
St Vitale church in Ravenna
Brenner Pass
Sun Nov 19
I am now in Frankfurt. I have had 10 nice days in Germany. Mostly it has been cold & wet – so was great to relax in familiar Hiltons in Munich, Berlin & Frankfurt. Very nice to be welcomed back by staff who remember me. I did explore 2 new towns: Gottingen & Osnabruck. Both very interesting with nice churches & other buildings. Soon I will be on my way home, after another wonderful trip.
Osnabruck
Fri Dec 15
I have been back 3 weeks now. It was a wonderful trip, but I have returned home with a persistent cough & it has taken longer to get over jetlag. The weather has been like winter since I got back & that hasn’t helped. There have been the usual things to attend to as well as a visit to Adelaide. That was to attend a Port Adelaide FC Christmas dinner I usually attend. I will be returning to Adelaide this time next week to celebrate Christmas with old friends. I haven’t had Christmas in Adelaide since I left there in 1985.
One highlight since I have been back was to meet up last night with 2 wonderful San Diego parishioners visiting Melbourne – Sally Wong-Avery & Grace Fu. Their family were great friends during my 8 years at All Saints & opened up Chinese culture to me.
Dec 31 – NYE
I had a very nice Christmas in Adelaide. Went to wonderful church services & enjoyed meals with old friends each day. Now it is the end of 2023. It has been a good year for me & I look forward to an even better 2024.