Vienna

The first day here in Vienna was dominated by the game. We arrived in the morning, moved in to our interesting Bohemian apartment, and headed into the city. We went straightway to the Jesuit Church and cathedral (since it was Sunday) and went to a very high Mass at the cathedral. During Mass you could hear "viva España" being chanted outside and hear people blowing horns. It was funny. We then went down to the Volksparke to watch the game with a few thousand of our closest friends. It was fun to be there, but a score of 1-0 hardly makes for an exciting game. We all had some Wienerschnitzel and other Viennese foods and headed back to our apartment.

Yesterday we got up and our rather eccentric host cooked us breakfast and made commentary on everything she could think of. I think she is great, although odd. Then we headed out to the city for a day of fun. We started in city center with the Hapsburg Palace and got a taste of royal decadence at its best. We stopped by the Hundterwasser Village and got a look at some strange post modern architecture. Then we headed off to the Danube River and rented a little motor boat to explore. We then had dinner at the top of the tower that overlooks all of Vienna from the Danube Park. We finished the day with a cup of Gelato in the square near our house. We will spend some time at our apartment today and then get on a train this afternoon for Krakow. Tomorrow the work begins and I think everyone is ready to be in one place for a while. The cable that I use to transfer pics to the blog is squished, so I will have to buy another one in Krakow. Then I will be able to upload pics. Later on today, once the troops have gotten up, I will see about uploading some of their pics until I can get a new cable.

We have arrived in Wien, safe and sound. It was a good train ride. I will post pictures in the morning. Right now we have to head down to the city center to watch the game!

Dublin and Prague

We have arrived in Europe and hare having a great time. We had a 3 hour delay on our flight from IAH but our long layover covered that nicely (yea planning!) Our flight on Air France was one of the nicest I have had. Good food and personal entertainment devices. They guys liked that. We arrived in Dublin and had a nice day in the city. We flew to Prague yesterday and had a full day of wandering around the oldest part of the city. Then we watched the finals of the Euro Cup in the town square and they had some free time to roam around. The guys are all VERY good at navigation and have passed all of my little tests so they have earned my trust very early. They always know which way home is! Today I drug them to the Jewish Quarter and we went (beyarmulkad) into the synagogues and houses of the Jewish families who were killed in WWII. Tonight we will be staying out a little later to get a taste of the Prague night life (all under the watchful eye of Mr. Reedy, SJ). Tomorrow we will do the royal part of the city and finish with a Mozart, Bach, Schubert, Dvorak, Tchaikovsky symphonic concert in St. George's Basilica in the Royal Castle of Prague. It has been an amazing trip so far. We will have free internet access when we get to Vienna so I will post pictures then. Right now I am paying to be at a little internet cafe, so I have to be quick. They guys are having a great time and are all safe and sound. Na shledanou! (Bye!)

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Trip Preview

We are in our final days of preparation for our adventure. All of the travel plans are in place and we are just waiting for the day we get on a plane and fly to Europe!

Our major travel destinations are:

Dublin, 24-25 June (where I have never been before)
Prague, 26-29 June (breathtakingly beautiful)
Vienna, 29 June - 1 July (European Cup in an amiable town)
Krakow, 1 July - 1 August (where we shall teach)
Auschwitz, 12 July (where we shall cry)
Zacopane, 26-28 July (where we shall climb)
Dublin, 1-4 August (where we shall have been once before)

I have posted, for your viewing pleasure, a few pictures from my last time in Poland. I taught in the Nowy Sacz program in 2005 and it was a really fantastic adventure. The pictures include me teaching at the high school in my cassock, cantoring at Mass, and on break in Zacopane (one of the places we will be visiting this time as well).

Poland 2005