It took us a few hours to reach the final desrination, but when you are surrounded by thousands of other pilgrims walking to a special and awesome event, the time seems to just go by. We were all ready for an overnight vigil, laden with backpacks filled with sleeping bags, warm clothes, snacks and water. The walk was about 4 miles. But we walked at a leisurely pace. When we arrived, we set up camp and headed to the closest position available to the altar/stage. We waited for a band to play. The band never realized and we were starting to get cold, very cold. After hours of waiting and saving space for a primo spot, the police pushed us out.
We moved to another spot, waiting to see the Pope who would be arriving for a vigil prayer service. Included in the prayer service was Eucharistic adoration! We had a perfect view of the monstrance and all my good friends were present to share the most beautiful adoration together. That is the largest group of people I've ever been with in prayer before the Eucharist (at least 20,000.). What an experience!
After prayer, we bundled up to keep warm and the band we were waiting for came on stage and we danced until we were steaming hot! Off came the layers.
I had planned on an early night, but I was having too much fun playing cards that time slipped by and suddenly it was 1 am. We slept under the stars.
The final Papal Mass was almost upon us.
Thank you for your prayers. God Bless.
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