August 1, 2019 – Thursday
Woke up early saying thank you Lord. Drank my cup of water and exercised with Gilad on JVTV. After the half hour, went downstairs to have coffee with Jesus in the form of simple prayers for me, the family, the people I was going to encounter and all the ones I know. Then I went to the basement on the elliptical machine for 20 minutes doing the Word Among Us meditation and reading the Magnificat morning prayers and bible selections for the mass. Then I went to shower and get dressed to go to church for the 8:30 mass. That is my daily routine. This mass was special, the intention was for Clelia Fouche, my deceased mother-in-law’s on her birthday. It is also my son’s Patrick and wife Lori’s wedding anniversary. I brought the gifts up to the altar with Jerry, an usher and daily mass attendant who usually sits in the back of the church as I do. When the deacon read the intention, he said Cecilia instead of Clelia because there must have been a typing error. I have to make sure when I give my annual masses they are spelled correctly. I know Mankeke, as we used to affectionately called her, knows my prayers and would laugh it off. I immediately went back home to complete some bank transactions and read my emails. I made sure all repeated daily programming like the news and the View were cancelled from DVR recording. I watched one of my last taped shows and prayed my Divine Mercy chaplet before getting dress for the airport. I started to feel slightly anxious. There was a Nassau bus parked in front of our driveway before noon time and was still there at 3:30 pm. The driver had to move it to the next block so that we could leave. I got to the airport at 4:10 pm. I had great difficulty finding where to put the passport and/or the boarding pass in the machine. I have used similar devices at the airport before but these had no clear sign or instructions on how to use them. Finally, I saw a light on the right hand below, I placed the boarding pass, and then on the screen it prompted me to enter my document number and expiration date although on the printed copy. After printing a new boarding pass and the suitcase tag, I looked for check bag section. It was roped off. I asked an agent and he let me enter an area with about four people waiting already. There was only one person at that counter that said “Checked Bags”. He had a family of about 5 people in front of him. He took more than 15 minutes processing the group. On the other line for check-in there was no one at the counter and the line was getting longer by the minute. I figured these agents were probably on a coffee break. I noticed a family who had just gone through the same ordeal of trying to print the boarding pass and tags. They were on their way to the long unattended line, I move my head to indicate to come to the short line. The man understood and raise the rope and came to the section where I was. By 4:30 pm, I saw two ladies strolling towards the counter and the computers to handle the people on this very long packed labyrinthian line. It took about 10 minutes to check my bag which was 22 kilo exactly. It was 4:50 pm when I reached the security line. I showed my pre-check pass so that I could move a little faster. I did not bring a carry on, so the large bag with the computer felt heavy on my shoulder. By 5:15 I was able to get to my gate. I stopped to get a bottle of water; the least expensive one was the Spring water for $3.15. The meals where about $15. The cheapest thing on the menu was a slice of pizza for $6.45. Thank God I had brought a container of fresh fruits. I read while I waited for boarding time at 6:30 pm. Take off took a bit of time. Because I had shut off the phone, I had no idea what time it was. After a short prayer of thanksgiving after the plane was in the air, I started watching movies: 1) Les Bonnes intentions; 2) Le mystère Henry Pick; 3) Crazy rich Asians; (Natalie) Life is Good. Night blended into day we were offered something to drink then a meal later on. I felt at ease and praised God for this new venture to learn, experience new places, and meet likeminded individuals.

August 2, 2019 – Friday
We got to Paris on the anticipated time. The security line was very quick. Then we went to the carousel to get the luggage. We waited for a few minutes before the bags got to us. When I got my suitcase, I walked to exit 32 A as advised by the service announcement videos which also stated the taxi fees to be paid. It was 30 euros from Orly to Paris. Traffic was not heavy. When we got to 95 Rue de Sèvres, I asked the driver to make a U-turn to park in front of the house itself. There was a man standing in front of the building. He said welcome and asked if I was part of CIF, he would give me my key after attempting to call an answered number. I got the elevator as he had indicated. I ended on the other side of the building of where I was supposed to be in St. Mark area. I found it after Fr. Motto introduced himself and Fr. Emmanuel who apologized for not picking me up. I told him I did not expect that. As I was trying to find my number (114) a CIF participant assisted me. Ping Lan (Emily) is from Thailand and speaks English. She is working for CM Chinese on vocation. She helped me opened my door and showed me where I could find some coffee. After fixing my bed and hanging some clothes in the closet, I got to the chapel at 11:45 for mass. I came upon the main chapel where I saw the reconstructed body of St. Vincent in a glass viewing display.
Later on, I met another participant, Sr. Josie of Philippine-speaking English ministering in Canada, and I went to the supermarket with her. I bought a slice of pizza and returned to the leisure room, Salle Pouget, on the second floor. There I met Linda who had arrived the day before. We sat together and we talked about different subjects. The pizza had a taste of fish. I ate it but did not enjoy it. Afterwards, I went to my room to take a siesta. I felt very sleepy. I could hear the bell ring the quarter hours, the half hours, and the hours. At 4:15 pm, I got out of bed, showered got dressed to attend the 5 pm opening meeting in Salle Pouget.
Fr. Motto, the director of CIF, had everyone introduced themselves: names, age and group they represented. Then we divided into small language groups. There we were to discuss our expectations for this training session. We returned to the assembly where each group gave a summary of their deliberations. Fr. Motto summarized these into three major categories: 1) Learn more about Vincentian spirituality; 2) visit the sites and understanding of historical concepts of who Vincent and collaborators were; 3) learn from each other.
At the end of the evening, we had a Marial prayer to entrust this 4^th training CIF session to Mother Mary. Afterward, we went downstairs to the refectory for our dinner where we conversed with the individuals at our table (8). After the meal, I went for a walk to identify the street and to buy internet services. My phone could not turn on, apparently locked by the vendor. I returned to my room. The internet was not working. I went to Salle Pouget where Jorge was able to enter the code for me. After 15 minutes, I was able to communicate with Pierre to reassure him that everything was okay. Feeling tired, I went to sleep. The bells stopped ringing after 9 pm.

August 3, 2019 – Saturday
Woke up at 7 am when the bells resumed ringing. At 7:15 am I exercised for about 10 minutes. I got dressed and went to the chapel gazing at St. Vincent’s reconstructed remains in wax dressed in his clothes of the time displayed in a glass reliquary above the altar of the St. Vincent Church at Rue de Sèvres. After prayer time, I went for breakfast. Bread, butter, jams, and bowls for coffee, tea or chocolate, hot and cold milk, cereal, and juices were available. I chose the café au lait and bread with butter. A priest from Latin America said, ”it was a poor man’s breakfast”. I told him my husband says the same thing when I choose to eat that. I realized it was probably a way of eating left by the French during colonization in Haiti.
We met at 9 am in Ozanam room. It is set up like UN round table with speakers and head phones with a booth in the back for translators. There was a table in front with the flags representing the countries where the participants came from. The director went over the agenda for the month as well as selecting volunteers for chores and assignments: secretarial, clean-up for Salle Pouget, dorms hallways, Salle Ozanam refreshments during the breaks, laundry coordinator, special meals, liturgical committee, technology, and photography. I chose to be part of the liturgical committee with Asuzena and Fr. Jentil. We are to ensure that lectors and cantors are assigned to the special masses depending on which language the mass is being celebrated. We have to use at least three languages. One member of this team speaks Portuguese, the other Spanish. I had to try to communicate in Spanish and translate for the French and English speakers. After lunch, I walked around the garden with Sr. Michaela of Austria-Germany, speaking English.
For the first mass, things did not go as expected. We had mass in the church (called big chapel) celebrated in Spanish by Fr. Roberto, in charge of the house, instead of French as planned. Fr. Jentil of Brazil was to preach in Portuguese instead Fr. Roberto welcomed us. The reading and the psalm were in Spanish and we sang in English (no French). I asked Asuzena of Argentina to make sure we get the list of the celebrants and homilists for each mass then we could find out in which language to assign the readings and the singing. I was willing to type the schedule but the request did not seem to register. A member came to me, Pillar of Peru, said in Spanish she would like to be listed as a Spanish lector. Finally, a simple task I could manage.
After mass we had a walk-through of the house. It is an old and huge residence for the priests and guests. I never used the elevator, I preferred to go up and down the three flight wooden grand staircases. On the walls there are paintings of St. Vincent, Louise, other Vincentian saints as well as important Superior Generals. On the second floor, one side is the section for the Lazarists, the CIF office, the small chapel and the door leading to the upper section of the big Chapel from which we could see at eye level the vestige of St. Vincent display, as well as the old choir loft with the organ.
Some area really need maintenance but it does not take away from its overall beauty of this building. Hope they get the financing to complete this tremendous work for such prime real estate. After supper, I walked around the neighborhood with Sr. Min of South Korea, speaking Spanish and ministering in Ecuador – Rue de Sèvres, Monparnasse, Raspail, back to Sèvres. We had to use the night door to reenter the house. Came back to my room, prepared for bed and did some rearranging and got in bed by 10 pm. Grateful for making some new acquaintances with people of different culture and gentle spirits.

August 4, 2019 – Sunday
Woke up and got out of bed at 7 am. Then got dressed to go pray in the upper level of the St. Vincent chapel in front of the reliquary. After my prayers, I went for breakfast. At 10:15 am went downstairs to the big chapel for the mass celebrated by Fr. Roberto. After mass, Sr. Michaela, Sr. Augustine of Benin-speaking French, Sr. Anita of Uganda-speaking English and I went to the Daughters of Charity’s house in Rue du Bac to buy the medals. After lunch, we returned to place the pickup items and the medals on the chair where the apparition sat. We saw up close the uncorrupted body of Catherine Laboure, the remains of Louise de Marillac, and St. Vincent’s heart. While kneeling in the sanctuary an uncontrollable burst of tears came upon me. I could not explain this overwhelming emotion. However, there was no sadness. Besides the daughters in silent prayers in presence of the Monstrance, we were the only visitors. It was a private moment for us. A Holy instant. What a blessed time in the presence of our Lord and the Vincentian Saints.
When we returned to the mother house, I typed a schedule for the upcoming mass to assign who would be reading in what language and who would be singing in another language. I was unable to print the form. I read a little in my room while waiting for supper. However, at 6:30 pm I was in the chapel for vespers in French with the priests of the house which ended with the 7 pm bells. I will always recall the unique white rose in a golden colored vase in front of the statue of Mary for the way the CMs all turned toward her for the final prayer. This moment was sublime. I will never look the same way at the roses peeking through my kitchen window while I pray in the morning. I will remember the men’s devotion to Mary.
After supper, Sr. Michaela, Sr. Augustine, Sr. Min, and I walked to Montparnasse cemetery. It was closed but now we knew the way. We had walked for about an hour. When I got to my room, I got ready for bed. I read for a few minutes then tried to sleep. I felt that my legs were really heavy and hurting. I tried to read some more then turned off the light. There was no noise from above the room like last night. I guess talking to Fr. Motto made a difference.

August 5, 2019 – Monday
Today I woke up with the alarm. Had breakfast and wanted to be at Ozanam on time to listen to the Superior General, Tomaz Mavric, who had come to spend the day with us. He had each one of us introduce ourselves: name, branch we minister in, and country. He thanked us for our vocation and ask that we be concerned and work in cooperation within the 150 branches of the family. We should keep St. Vincent as our model who imitated Christ in his love of God and the disadvantaged. He also indicated that St. Vincent had personal conversion to come closer to the Lord and what he felt compelled to do. We should also accept to be transformed. This is a necessary process to do the will of God. Fr. Tomaz presented the FAMVIN initiative about the 13 Houses campaign against homelessness. He encouraged us to be in solidarity with the all those suffering injustice and discrimination wherever we are. He stressed the need for all the groups in the family to collaborate and learn best practices from each other to effect changes for the poor as our founder intended. In the afternoon, Fr. Tomaz concelebrated mass with all the priests in the group and urged us to be inventive in our charity. This is the second time I have met with the Superior General, first in Rome in 2017 as part of the VFHI commission and this CIF session. I like his simplicity and gentleness. He made sure to approach most of the participants and talked with them personally.

August 6, 2019 – Tuesday
Our English schedule is not accurate. We are following the Spanish written one. I had the alarm set up for 6:25 am. Showered and got dressed by 6:45. Read my Word Among us meditation before going to the chapel. The English section did the laud and mass (Transfiguration) together in the chapel. Sr. Noreen allowed me to use her down loaded copy of the breviary on her phone. Gorge is helping with my phone for which I had bought a 32 gb card for 40 euros and still would not have enough storage. After the morning prayer, we had breakfast and at 9 am we started the first lecture. Fr. Motto presented the historical beginnings of the Vincentian spirituality based on the French School of Spirituality. We had lunch and a break for siesta. During that time, I prayed in the big chapel and went from statue to statue and paintings as well as the reliquary of St. Vincent. Went to Rue du Back and spent an hour in the church while there was open adoration. When I went out at 2 pm to return to the house, it was raining. I waited a few minutes. As it was drizzling, I decided to go to the house anyway. I am glad I did because it started raining heavily afterward. I rested for 30 minutes before getting ready for the second session of the day. The second session was to resume at 3:30 pm. Fr. Motto again talked about the biblical inspiration for Vincent’s Christological spirituality. I really enjoyed this presentation about the bible references that motivated and inspired St. Vincent de Paul and his mission. I have quite a few favorite biblical quotes in common with him.
We had the evening vespers then supper. Sr. Min, Fr. Ronald, Sr, Josie, Ping Lan, Gary, Sr. Michaela and I went for a walk. We had to enter the house through the night entrance. I read a little and tried to sleep as we would have to get up early.

August 7, 2019 – Wednesday
I had set the alarm for 6:30 am so that I could get ready for 7 am breakfast. The bus was departing at 7:30 am. The first stop was at the church at Gannes where we heard the history of the presence of Vincent in that area and why it is called the Parish of St. Vincent although we were in the church of St. Denis. The professor Michel Sorrel recounted the history and source of the practice of the church. There are 28 churches in the parish. Mass is said once every two months. It is here that Vincent heard the confession of a farmer who went later to the lord of the estate thanking him for this service provided to him before his death. Vincent then decided to organize the priest to fulfill this function under the instigation of Mrs. De Gondi who wanted a spiritual life for their people. There were 67 people buried in that church. As the customs of the time, the more finances you provided the church the better seats you had during the services. [ I remember as a child my family going to St. Anne in Port-au-Prince and Fr. Kebreau having special seats for them. I guest this practice continued unfortunately in the church to that time.] Important people got to be buried on these church grounds as well.
We continued to Folleville where St. Vincent ministered. We visited the church he preached in, baptized children and celebrated mass for the family who sponsored him and the community. We walked around and saw part of the old castle. After the liturgy celebrated there by Fr. Wellington, we went for lunch in the community center near by catered by the people of the area. For aperitif we had ham haché with tomatoes, melon and onions. Buffer style we had potato salad with puréed slices of gelatin and pork slices of meat. After the main course we had four types of cheese followed of French vanilla ice cream on slice of bread pudding. All this with lots of bread. With such sumptuous lunch I wonder if we could think of those who did not have anything to eat. At my table were Sr. Judith, Sr. Noreen both from the US and Fr. Ronald from Curacao. We shared moments of vocation and some ministerial experiences.
Our next and last stop for this trip was Amiens to see Martin de Tours and where the Lazarists although in small numbers, live now. We visited the cathedral of Amien, John the Baptiste.
We arrived back at the house at 7:40 pm. We had to rush to the dining hall, the personnel had been waiting for us and was impatient to go home.   After eating Sr. Michaela and I walked in the garden. It was really good to share some biblical reflection with her: the life of Joseph in Genesis, the sacrifice of Isaac, and David’s choice as king. In all these stories how the crooked lines of their lives, the waiting seems painful and harsh for the individual but had great results in the design of God. Then Sr. Min joined us.   We shared some of our reflections with her in my broken and limited Spanish. Sr. Michaela had to practice the songs for tomorrow’s mass. I walked around two more time with Sr. Min teaching her the Divine Mercy chaplet in English. Then I went upstairs to ask Jorge for help with my BLU phone to download a Korean chat app “KaKao” in order to communicate with my daughter. So far no luck. No internal space on my phone and I still don’t know how to transfer app or data on the sd card. I practiced the suggested songs with Sr. Michaela, Sr. Noreen and Sr. Judy: Gather Us In, and Gentle Woman. Did research on the computer for the words for Divine Mercy so that I could print it for both Srs. Min and Michaela. I could not do it and decided to postpone it to tomorrow and went to bed as it was late.

August 8, 2019 – Thursday
Woke up around 6 am but tried to sleep waiting for the alarm to ring the scheduled time of 6:30 am. I prayed some of the prayers remembered from my St. Joseph missal given to me by Fr. Flenère when I was leaving St. Gerard, Haiti in 1967. I decided to get out of bed and fix it after drinking a bottle of water. I could not remember if I had taken my blood pressure medication last night. I took an extra one from the bottle and cut it in half. That gave me peace of mind that I would not be feeling sick by midday. Got dressed and went for 7:15 am mass in the small chapel. Sr. Michaela really had practiced those two new song suggested to her. After mass, we went for breakfast. Then I tried to print the Divine Mercy chaplet in the Salle Pouget before our first session at 9 am in Ozanam room. Today our presenter was Andre Marmilicz  who will be speaking for the next three days in Spanish (although he speaks Portuguese) and translated simultaneously by Fr. Tipamm in French and James in English. In the morning he described the groups created by Vincent: AIC then the Confrères then the daughters. He described first the lay groups of the Vincentian Family in details. After the morning session, we had lunch in the refectory. After lunch I read a few pages from the Vincentian Marian Youth (VMY) Solidarity booklet I found here. I felt so tired and sleepy I decided to put the timer on to take a rest for 20 minutes.   I woke up when the bell outside rang the quarter hour. I decided to get ready to meet Sr. Michaela to do the Divine Mercy chaplet at 3 pm. Then I proceeded to the second session. I could hardly keep my eyes open. Thank goodness it ended at 6 pm. I went to wash my face. I ended up timing myself for a 10 minute slumber. I woke up at 6:25 pm in time to get ready for evening prayers. Afterward we went straight for supper. I got some fruits, rice and sloppy joe and my usual water bottle. Right after supper, Sr. Michaela, Sr. Judith, Sr. Noreen, Sr. Josie, Fr. Ronald of Curaçao-speaking English, Mr. Kim of Nigeria-speaking English and myself we went for a half hour walk. We returned to the house around 9 pm. After stopping at the Chapel, I checked my emails using the computer in Salle Pouget where we have internet service. I got ready for bed and read before falling asleep.

August 9, 2019 – Friday
Woke up and out of bed with alarm set up for 6:30. Got ready and read the meditation in the WAU before going to the chapel by 7:05 for prayers and mass. Today I had to proclaim the reading and the psalm on St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross-Edith Stein memorial. We went immediately afterward for breakfast. The first presentation was on Vincent option for the poor. Then we had lunch followed by siesta until 3:30 pm. I took an appointment to do the Divine Mercy chaplet with Sr. Min at 2:55 as she is on duty to prepare the coffee and snacks for the afternoon session. Did not rest during the day. Felt tired in the pm session but made it to vespers then refectory. After supper we went around Rue de Montparnasse, Rue Raspail, and to Rue de Sèvres. Our number of walkers increased. As a group we were back to the house by 9 pm.   Sat with Sergio, a 29 years old mathematics professor and technology at University in Spain to learn how to do document translations. They were then placed in the website and sent via emails to the participants along with the pictures he had taken as our official photographer. I could not sleep. I read the RENESANSAVO chat on WhatsApp talking about flea market money from 2017. This project fell flat. We had sent items for the group to sell and deposit the money to be used for helping complete their proposed projects. Distribution and bad accountability made it a failure. The chat went on, I felt they wasted time to sweat the little stuff and the big issues are not resolved.

August 10, 2019 – Saturday
I could not sleep at first. It seems when I finally did, I had some weird dreams. I got out of bed at 6 am and realized I had left my Magnificat downstairs during supper. I did some housekeeping, got dressed and by 7 pm I was down stairs in the refectory to pick up the book before returning upstairs to the chapel for laud and mass. After our usual breakfast, we went to the Ozanam room for our talk. I was glad for the breaks because I felt very sleepy. Then it was time for lunch. During the siesta, tried to find the AIC office. I did not locate it although I had the address. I used the computer for a while with Sergio for translations then at 3 pm went to the garden with Sr. Michaela to do the Divine Mercy chaplet. Then it was time for the 2^nd half of the conference by Professor Marmilicz.   He finished at 6 pm. After supper the group went for a walk. Sr. Min travelled to Rome for the week-end, I will miss her company.

August 11, 2019 – Sunday
It was a better night. Stayed in bed and slept on and off until the bell rang 7 am. Prayed, got dressed, and had a quick breakfast at 8 am. Returned to the room to do the readings of the mass and reflection for the day’s mass.
Then I reviewed part of my presentation most of the day. I wanted to make sure I explained what motivated me to create the community development program (RENESANSAVO) with the young adults in preparation of the 2021 300^th year anniversary of the town. My community activism since 1975 within my church of founding a grassroots organization and then joining the Vincentian AIC (Ladies of Charity) at St. John’s University in 2012 were my motivation to invest time, experience, and money in this ongoing project. At 3 pm, I stopped to take a rest and do the Divine mercy chaplet and one rosary. Resumed working on the presentation until supper.
Went out for a short walk with Sr. Michaela, Gary, and Ping Lan. Then went to Salle Pouget to print and use the internet on the computer. We did some translation and talked until 11:30 pm when I went back to my room. I felt exhausted.

August 12, 2019 – Monday
Woke up at 6:20 am. Stayed in my room doing my meditation before getting dressed. Attended 7:15 mass with English group before going to breakfast for our usual coffee or tea and bread with butter and jam. I could use some cheese in the am instead of lunch time. However, I am so grateful I have that to eat. Today was participants’ day presentations. I was to make my presentation after the second break of the morning, as the person before the break could not  get his presentation ready I had to switch and present without the benefit of setting up. It frazzled me a little as I had to have my computer hooked up. Thank goodness I had my power point ready and the website pages already opened for easy access. I sang in Kreyol a song to the Holy Spirit to calm me down while Jorge graciously connected my computer. I had given a translated version to Sergio who was replacing our regular translator, James. When the bell rang, I was not completely finished as the set-up had taken from my allotted time. It seems that the translation did not work well as the microphones were giving some problems. It did not matter to me anymore. The morning presentations were short by one. We had lunch and siesta time. I had an appointment with Sr. Michaela to say the chalet at 2:55 pm in the garden. As it was raining, so we met in Salle Pouget and Sr. Min joined us. After the prayer, I went downstairs to the CIF office to be first to make payment for the program so that I could enjoy the rest of the siesta. I wanted to check my email and do some reading. When the session resumed, we had the second series of participants’ presentation that ended at 6:30 pm. During the afternoon break, we celebrated a participant’s birthday with ice cream and cake. We received many little gifts of cookies, sweets, and other items. We then went for supper. A small group of us walked to the Eiffel tower. We stayed until 10 pm but it was not lit. We walked back a little disappointed. I talked to Fr. Jentil and Azucena to complete the schedule for the readings and songs of the masses to be celebrated.

August 13, 2019 – Tuesday
We had to meet at the entrance at 7:30 am for our pilgrimage today. At 6:50 am I was ready and went for breakfast exactly at 7:00 am. The refectory doors were locked. Finally, at 7:10 Thierry, the chef, opened apologizing for the delay because of transportation problems. I ate quickly and went outside through the night entrance/exit for the bus. While in the yard, I noticed French books being thrown away in the clean-up bins. I picked about three titles of interest – Comprendre, célébrer, vivre L’Eucharistie by Mgr Roland Minnerath; Entretiens sur Dieu Le Père; and Entretien Sur Le Saint-Esprit by Charles Journet. We went to Chartres for the day as it was a place that St. Vincent prayed in and St. Louise annually consecrated the daughters to Mary. We walked around the cathedral and in the town. We had lunch at the Tomate and Piment Restaurant. Then we went around the town with Fr. Motto until 4 pm—the old houses, the narrow streets, the canal and water bridge. My feet really hurt, I decided I would not go for a walk after supper. We got to the house at 6 pm and had vespers at 6:30 pm.
After supper went to the Epicerie to get some goodies for Eliza’s baptism. When I returned, I had to go to Salle Pouget to use the internet. The Spanish group was practicing as they would be responsible to sing at mass tomorrow. When Sr. Michaela came in the room, they asked her to sing along and to teach them an English song they liked. It was a positive thing being realized here, different culture getting together in a common purpose to praise God. After finishing to print the material I needed, I said good night and went to my room to sleep. I read for a while my book: “Going to the Chapel” by Rebecca Kelly. I was really enjoying it.

August 14, 2019 – Wednesday
As I woke up, I remembered to send a WhatsApp message to Martial to say Happy Birthday and I would offer the mass intentions for him. He answered. I guess he was not sleeping yet in NY. I took my time to get ready after my prayers. We had to meet at the entrance at 8 am in order to walk to Rue du Bac where the CIF priests would celebrate mass. Today we had planned for the Spanish group to sing and Fr. Emmanuel was the celebrant. I went to the store to get some more medals and souvenirs for my grandchildren and friends hoping that these too could be placed on the chair where the revelation appeared to Catherine Laboure. We walked back to 95 Rue de Sevres where we met with the Archivist of the house to show us Lazarists (CM) documents and objects since Vincent’s time which had survived the French revolution. The Spanish group had first gone to the museum and we switched. In this small memorabilia room, we noticed the articles for both St. Vincent and St. Louise as well as the martyrs. There was only one framed picture of Vincent, Louise and ladies. However, there was no caption to point to the first lay group founded under his care (AIC). Fr. Tipamm wished he could improve the collection and information in this space. We went for lunch. Afterward I went to my room to do some cleaning. I put some things away as the exterminator was to come around to all the rooms at St. Marc side facing the St. John’s University. At 2 pm, we went downstairs to go to St. Lazarre. We visited St. Laurence Church then the mediathèque as the St. Lazarre space because of construction was not available to us. We continued to St. Vincent parish afterward. By 6:15 we entered Gare du Nord in direction of Montrouge to get to the house. We got there 10 minutes before supper time. I did not go upstairs first as my feet were bruised and tired. After dinner, I took a warm shower before praying and reading my book in bed. I did not take long to turn off the light.

August 15, 2019 – Thursday
I woke up twice in the night and finally got out of bed at 6:10 am. Completed my morning routines. Then I did my meditation and prayers for the morning. I feel so much better when I keep my routine to pray alone before being in community. Then I showered got dressed for the mass with the English group at 7:15 am. I was the lector for the mass. After the celebration, we had our usual bread and coffee. Then I tried to go to Salle Pouget to send the Korean video of the Sisters of Charity of Mother Seton whose mother house is in Gwangju to Natalie. I tried to contact some people to find out about my cousin, Evelyne, living here in France. At 9 am we resumed with the instructions until noon on Vincentian Christology. I used the siesta time to use the internet. Then at 2 pm, we met at the entrance of the building to walk to the subway. We went several places: churches, Paris City Hall (Hôtel de Ville); #11 house where French school of Spirituality functioned; the gay neighborhood (Le Marais); Place de la Bastille…
I felt a little uneasy with City Hall where Charles X imposed indemnity on Haiti for 150 million Francs for having won their independence in 1804 from the most repressive slavery conditions and was their riches colony. After such unjust situation, the superpowers suppressed and prevented this country to flourish. The US on December 17, 1914 invaded the country and seize 500,000 gold worth to ensure safekeeping and repayment of the indemnity and loans taken to repay this “debt” completely paid in 1888. Where is the justice?
We took the bus back on the Invalides Boulevard (#87) but we got off the wrong place and we had to walk a lot more than 20 minutes. My feet were hurting from so much use. I had to shower in some hot water. Then I checked my email and WhatsApp for messages. I prayed and did some reading for the night.

August 16, 2019 – Friday
I woke up a little earlier than usual between 4 and 5 am. Finally I got out of bed at 6:15 am. We were told to put our towels, sheets, and pillow cases on a chair by our door early morning and later on we would receive clean ones. After laud and mass, I went to breakfast. I noticed that Edmée and Monique answered my request about Evelyne, but could not thank them because of my limited cell phone, I can read message only when there is internet. The session on morality had started this morning. At lunch time I debated with Kim, the Nigerian representative of SSVP that the AIC was the first group organized by St Vincent. He insisted it was the congregation of the mission which became official in 1625. He asserted that the rich ladies should bring and contribute monies to the SSVP and they would take care of the projects on the ground level as it was intended by St. Vincent. I knew I would not change his views, so I asked him to explain the structure of the organization of which he is the president. I asked him how he got his funding and how he managed the reporting. This was to diffuse any conflict. He is always ready to join us for the walk after supper. After lunch I went to the office to have an open line to call Renan, Poupouy’s brother to present my condolences and to call Evelyne. We had the afternoon session on the same topic of morality followed by supper. Another issue that came up on a personal level was about language. The experience of an African, one of the sisters’ from Canada, mentioning that Haitian sisters had to be provided special tutoring to be up to part to participate in the training they came to partake. I was insistent that Haitian Creole is Haiti’s national and official language. That Sr. said using HC isolates us and does not prepare us for the world. I got offended for two reasons: 1) French is used to keep an unjust situation in Haiti of superiority and contempt for the non-speakers which is 99% of the population; 2) Although official, not used for primary education and in all government facilities. We were debating about just and unjust status (morality. By despising our language, I still feel we were being under the influence of colonization.
After supper, we were about eleven participants who went walking all the way to the Seine and back in about 90 minutes. Some of the participants were watching a soccer game being played in Spain and one of the team’s was from Sergio’s home town. After 35 minutes of watching, I went back to my room to read and rest my feet.

August 17, 2019 – Saturday
I felt tired of staying in bed and sleeping. I got up before the alarm at 6 am. Fixed the bed, showered, got dressed, did my WAU meditation. When the bells rang at 7 am, I put the breviary on the telephone with the appropriate date. Then went to the chapel. Many people were already present. The French speaking group opted to join with us. Fr. Ronald was the celebrant. After communion, he sang in Curacao language (pepimiento) an action de grace.
After breakfast, I tried to answer the emails but the internet was not working. I asked Jorge if he could fix my computer for me. We went for the first session on Vincentian virtues. Then we had lunch, afterward I wanted to relax. As it was raining at first but it was free shopping afternoon, Ping and I decided to go on Rue du Bac to a shoe store to buy a moccasin. We stopped at the chocolate store for sweets. Then we went to H & M and another on Rue Raines to get a warm blouse. We returned to the house at 5:45pm. I did some wash and called Pierre to send me some dancing music. Did my evening prayer in my room before going to supper. Immediately after, I went to Salle Pouget to listen to the music Pierre had emailed to me. Then went to my room to read my book. It rained hard all evening. I did not go walk after supper. While the bells rang last hour for the day, I turned off my light.

August 18, 2018 – Sunday
Woke up and got out of bed at 7 am with the bells. Fixed the bed, did my first meditation showered, got dressed. I went for the usual breakfast of bread, butter and black coffee. I felt I was coming down with a sore throat since yesterday that is why I had taken a 6,000 mg garlic pill. I drank a full bottle of water before going downstairs. After breakfast, I stopped at the chapel to do the readings of the mass for today. Afterwards in my room, I chose another book to read “Walking With Purpose” by Lise Brenninkmeyer. At 10:25 am as the bells were ringing, I went downstairs for the mass at St. Vincent’s chapel. There were 7 Lazarists priests concelebrating among them a priest from Korea and a deacon from the same country. After mass, I just went back to my room. The internet on my computer was on and quickly got disconnected. At 12:30 pm, at the bells, I went down the two flights of stairs to the refectory. Many participants were almost done eating. Immediately after Ping Lan and I walked from Rue de Sèvres to Rue Raspail where there were the stands of the street vendors. We got there about 15 minutes before closing time. They had on display clothing items, scarves, kitchen wares, table clothes and mats, children clothing, fruits and vegetables. Ping brought spinach and mushrooms to prepare her supper tonight. We were going to return through Raspail Street, we decided to go back to Remes to go toward Rue de Sèvres. I was telling Ping that this was my 3^rd time in Paris. My mother wanted to come in 1968 but she died a few months before her scheduled trip. She had wanted to give me my green card before in 1967 that is why she had delayed her trip. The first time in 2005 when I came I lit a candle in her memory in every church I visited. As I finish recounting this to Ping, we had to wait for a car to pass by. I raised my eyes and it fell on the street name it said: “Rue Dupin”. I gasped. I told Ping what coincidence, my mother’s father’s name was “Dupin” as well as my mother’s brother, a lawyer. I made a silent prayer for both their souls. When we turned on St. Placide’s stree, we saw a place for ‘conserves’ selling sardines. I mentioned that my husband loves sardines, I would come back to get an assortment for him. At the corner fruit market, Bon Marche, Ping got eggs and shrimps to complete her meal tonight. I also took a few oranges and cheese to change my breakfast tomorrow morning. I needed some vitamin C as I drink only water and no juice of any kind. At the cashier, I found out that I had to weigh the fruits before. I felt so embarrassed I had to have people wait for me. I went to my room and did the Divine Mercy chaplet then later went to print the vespers in French for tonight. I decided to start typing my blog and realized I had missed one or two days. I put the stop watch on for 20 minutes but without fail the house bells kept the time of day for me. At 6:30 I went to the small chapel for Vespers with the French priests. At 7 pm, had supper then I went to Catherine Laboure’s garden in 31 Rue de Babylone with a small group: Sr. Michaela, Sr. Min, Kim, Gary, and Ping. We returned to the house at 9:30 pm. I resume my typing adding one more day before turning in at 10:15 pm.

August 19, 2019 – Monday
Today I had the usual morning routine. We had our first am session about the Vincentian virtues. We had lunch and our appointment was to meet at 2:45 pm to take the train to go to Rue Lefebre 115 the 41 Rue des Perichaux. There we met with Andrew McNight of Depaul International, a day center which offers health and hygiene services in the 15th arrondissement of Paris. The ‘accueillies’ as they refer to the homeless are provided a breakfast, showers, opportunity for clean clothing, and community relationships in a pristine and relax environment. This space was the house of the daughters who still live upstairs. There are about 42 different nations among the individuals who seek service there from the 5,000 people living in the streets. The organization was created 30 years ago in England with the Daughters of Charity and St. Vincent de Paul Society, England. It took 2 years to open this place. There are three nurses, a doctor, and 42 volunteers operating the facility. Participants are 15% women; of the 40 to 50 people who come to the center ages 22 to 82 years old; they are from 1/3 Africa, 1/3 east Europe, 1/3 France. One goal is to facilitate them to find permanent lodging only about 25% get it. Because of their experience, Depaul has been asked to participate in FAMVIN Alliance of 13 houses. This was an exciting visit for me it confirms my conviction that when we serve the poor, they must be welcomed in a clean environment to demonstrate we value their human dignity in spite of their circumstances.

August 20, 2019 – Tuesday
I woke up at 5 am although I could not sleep last night at 11:30 pm, there was a lot of commotion outside my door. Ping Lan’s shower door exploded and hit part of her foot and leg. Thank goodness she was alright otherwise. I did not go to her as there were so many people around cleaning and talking.
I showered, got dressed, and washed my towels and night gown to dry while away. My bag was ready. I went to help with breakfast in Salle Pouget at 5:45 am. I cut the 10 breads into 30 pieces, one for each one of us. Had breakfast then assisted in the clean-up and packing up the boxes for the picnic. At 6:45 am everyone went to get their bags to be downstairs at the entrance at 7 am. The bus left at 7:45 am. We made a stop at 9:25 am for toilettes and drinks. Ping Lan shared her hot chocolate with me. At 10:45 am we stopped again. The bus was overheating. It took more than 24 bottles of water to fill. Many of us helped open the bottles and pick the empty ones to throw away.   We got back on our way at 11:35 am.
We visited Taize where Brother Roger Louis Schutz-Marsauche had worked for unity in ecumenism. He had founded that community made of different faith participants – Jewish, protestant, and Catholic. He was born on May 12, 1917 and was killed on August 16, 2005. We saw his simple flowery grave right outside the small chapel. Then we had some silent prayer and a song with Sr. Michaela in the Reconciliation room. There were lots of young groups of many ethnicity and language groups. We had our lunch picnic at the Taize facility before continuing our trip. We travelled on some very scenic roads. We saw the windmills and white cows grazing in the fields. We reached Chatillon-sur-Chaleronne where we met with Claudine Versellis, correspondent of Voix de l’Ain. She showed us the house where Vincent lived and that she owns now. It is in the style of the house in the middle ages were the tops floors are wider than the lower one (a way to avoid paying tax we were told). She brought us to Hotel Dieu where Vincent first blessed the Ladies of Charity. The Chapel is called St. Martha because the sisters taking care of the people had her as their patroness. There was a painting in the chapel which Claudine said was done by a contemporary of St. Vincent. There are beautiful iron work in this facility that opens on the men’s side and on another on the women’s side. We went to the chapel at St. Vincent’s house where the December 8 charter is displayed. Fr. Motto celebrated the mass in French and the reading and psalm were done in Spanish, the Gospel in Portuguese, Sr. Judith presented the reflection in English, and the songs were in Spanish. After mass, the daughters and Claudine gave us booklets about St. Vincent and the 400^th year celebration. We arrived at the Centre Jean Bosco House in Lyon at around 7:20 pm. The chef responsible for the cafeteria was waiting at the door for us because we were so late. Fr. Motto asked that we go directly to eat to avoid any more delays, we would come back for the bags afterward. I was able to go to my room right after supper and we decided we would walk around (Kim, Gary, Sr. Min and Sr. Josie and I started across the street at the amphitheater but it was closed, they asked us to leave. We went on the road toward the church steeple. The view was breathtaking, the lit church and in the background the city lights below. After a few minutes, I started to feel really cold. I told the groups I wanted to return and they agreed. When I got to the Centre, I showered put on my nightgown and slipped between the sheets. It felt good. This place is new, clean, and roomy. I felt asleep until 1 am and when I woke up I did not feel 100% alright. I used some Vicks and tried to go back to sleep.

August 21, 2019 – Wednesday
Woke up at 6:00 am stayed in bed until 6:30 am. This place is really immaculate and peaceful. The shower was an amazing experience after so many days of a cramped space shower stall. I still don’t feel too well with an oncoming sore throat and a migraine. I did not bring my garlic pill here. I gargled some Listerine. Got dressed and went downstairs at 7 am to pray in the chapel. There were two priests there. I had asked beforehand to the concierge if I could go, he brought me over and opened the door for me stating the mass had not yet started. I prayed the morning prayers and readings of the mass from the Magnificat. At 7:25 am the Salesian priest who had welcomed us last night, gestured me to come out and he told me that mass for the priests was to begin in 5 minutes. He offered me to go to the garden past the cafeteria. I thanked him. I saw both Sr. Michaela and Sr. Min going to the chapel. I told them not to go in. Sr. Michaela went anyway and they told her not to come in. She said she would return to her room apparently annoyed by this decision. I walked for a minute in the garden but it was wet outside. As it was 7:55 some participants were already arriving for the 8 am breakfast. They offered here quite an array of choice for breakfast: croissant, bread, cheese, eggs, yogurt, orange juice, milk, cereals, and different types of coffee, chocolate or tea through the machines. After breakfast, we left at 9 am. The bus driver had filled a big container of water in case the radiator would overheat again. We arrived at Valfleury by 10:30 am. We were welcomed by the Columbian priest in charge and served coffee, tea, and cookies. The rector of the shrine said a few words to us then we had mass at 11 am. The director celebrated the mass in French, the readings were done in Spanish, the Gospel was proclaimed by Fr. Motto in Spanish, and the songs in French. After a moment of silence after the celebration, we were invited to lunch prepared and served by a Roumanian couple part of the SSVP. I had time to have a conversation with a retired priest born in France and who lived all his life in ministry here except when he travelled to Poland on vacation to know his roots—where his parents were from.   During the meal, I chatted with both the rector and the tech expert spending some time in the area to build the shrine’s website. We felt the generous hospitality of the priests and committee here.   We went back to the shrine after going through the crypt and praying for a few minutes before given the privilege to bless ourselves or take some of the water from the subterranean source (the Little Lourdes). We were narrated the legend of Valfleury where in the year 800 during the snow of Christmas a shepherd saw a small bush of genet flowers (golden rod) next to a statue and a small stream of water. This is where the chapel was built. Valfleury has become a pilgrimage place for the 1,200 under the care of the Lazarists since 1711. The Vincentian returned permanently to Notre Dame de Valfleury on September 8, 2008 after many years away during the revolution and separation of church and state. On our way back, I really did not feel well at all. The participants were worried about me so was I.
I did walk anyway when we came back to Lyon, to visit Vincent seminary, and the cathedral. As time for supper was approaching, we could not locate the bus that was parked in a different area. Then the bus could not find the local road to the Center. The chef was waiting for us outside again because we were late again. After supper, the doctor of the group insisted I took my blood pressure. It was 145/95. I went to my room took a shower and tried to sleep.

August 22, 2019 – Thursday
Slept on and off feeling bad and then better. Woke up finally at 6 am but decided to pray in bed instead of going to the 6:30 am mass. I got dressed and went down at 7:30 am for breakfast. I made change from Sr. Judith in order to thank the people who cleaned the room yesterday, which was not expected. I responded to many people who wanted to know if I were doing better. We left Lyon at 8:30 am on our way to Annecy, the city of St. Francis de Sales, friend of Vincent. We had a 10 minutes rest close to the exit. It took about 1 hour and half to reach our planned destination. We got there at 11:10 am and walked about town visiting different sites — Basilica and Cathedral of the Diocese. Through all the visits in churches, basilicas, and cathedrals, we could admire the arts (painting, sculptures) but most of all the great intricate stained-glass windows which were commonly known as the “Poor Man’s Bible” which narrated the sacred stories in details for the benefit of the poor and illiterate people of the time.
We boarded the bus to go to lunch at Crescendo. We drove for about 2 hours. At 5:30 pm we had a rest stop, I took the sweet and sour as well as the apples inside the bus. We had another stop at 7:45 pm. We arrived in the Vincentian house around 10 pm. We went to Salle Pouget where we ate some pizza. Then I went to my room. Hoped it would be a better night.

August 23, 2019 – Friday
I woke up at the usual time but did not attend mass. I still did not feel perfectly well. My head was still hurting a bit. I took a garlic pill. We had a presentation by Fr. Motto on Vincentian and a life of prayer until lunch time. I tried to type for a while during siesta and decided to rest while I prayed the Divine Mercy. Then we went back for the second session. I walked a little with Ping Lan after supper. When back at the house, I checked my email and WhatsApp before going to bed.

August 24, 2019 – Saturday
Woke up at 6 am and did my meditation and read the readings for the mass. Got ready to go to the chapel at the sound of the 7 o’clock bells. I had to download the morning prayers. I had to proclaim the first reading and psalm today on the feast of St. Bartholomew. Fr. Tipamm celebrated mass by himself as Fr. Ronald was resting. The sentence he shared in his homily today was: “Here is a child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him.” This he said reminded him as Vincentians we should be different in the way we love and serve the poor with integrity and joy. People will know we follow Christ as St. Vincent did. After mass we went to breakfast as usual. Our first session of the morning was with Sr. Ann Prevosts, Daughter of Charity. She talked about Catherine Laboure in the context of the historical time. Her vision and how the medal was revealed to her. At 12:30 pm we went to lunch. After lunch, I walked with Sr. Hortense to buy some glove towel. The store was closed until Tuesday. I stopped at Angelina to get some chocolate powder box. Then we went to the Conserverie for assorted sardines for Pierre. In the afternoon session, we had both Sr. Michelle Marvaud and Magdalene Harbu, Daughters of Charity, present the life of Louise de Marillac in historical context and her work. Then in small group by language group, we answered questions on different letters Louise had written. Then we came back to the larger group to share our responses.   I accompanied the sisters to the night exit. I missed vespers, then I prayed in my room. At 7 pm, went for supper and an interesting conversation with Maria originally from Belgium but living in Newark, NJ. She is an immigration lawyer. After supper, I did not go walk today but went to Salle Pouget to use the internet. I could not find any connection until Alexandra shared her code with me. Went back to my room to pack. The suitcase was getting heavier and I had no way to weigh it.

August 25, 2019 – Sunday
Woke up a little later as mass was going to be celebrated for the group in the evening. Went for breakfast afterward cleaned the room a little. At 9 am, we had a session with Fr. Philippe Lambert on Regis Francois Clet 1748-1820 who was martyred in China. After lunch, I had an appointment at Rue du Bac with Sr. Magdalena who gave me two books: St. Louise writings and documents of the origins of the Daughters of Charity. Sr. talked to me on the need to stay in touch with the members of the family but to also try to begin an AIC or SSVP group in Nippes. I should address both the local and international branches. I should have a plan before getting the diocesan approval. Back in the room, I checked the suitcase and it was heavier than I expected. I decided to buy a bag to put all the books and reading materials. At 2 pm, I helped Sr. Josie clean the tables, the floor, and stair case in Salle Pouget. I went back to the room to get some rest for 20 minutes before taking a shower and getting dress and ready by 4:30 pm when we were ready to set up the room for the dinner. Many members were pitching in and were ready to go down for the evaluation. It took a little time to understand what CIF wanted from us as the questions were not written. We met by language group and answered the non- personal questions 3 to 5. Sr. Noreen was the recording secretary. I did the group monitoring to ensure that everyone had an input. After this we went to the big chapel for mass. Fr. Motto was the celebrant in French, readings in English and songs in English, Spanish, and Latin. After supper, we gathered in Pouget for the catered dinner with the participants as well as some guests from the house. We made sure the French speaking guests had individuals who could converse with them. Following dinner, we had the entertainment by individuals and groups in the Ozanam room. I had prepared “choukoune” dance with Patricia. Some others joined in and completed the dance with Fr. Alain. After the dance, Sr. Min talked to me about an answer she got from a Sr. in Gwanju. I had to go to my room to get my cell phone to give her Natalie’s number. While passing by Pouget I saw the dirty utensils and plates. I took a few minutes to wash them. There were too many glasses and other plates. I returned downstairs. Sr. Michaela was singing with Sisters Noreen and Judith two songs from the sound of music. Sr. Anita surprised us when she joined Sr. Augustine’s liturgical dance of praise. I collected all the name tags for administration while everyone was saying good bye and returned upstairs to dry the silverware I had washed and finish the clean-up with the crew upstairs. It was 11:30 pm by the time everything was cleaned and put away. I was unable to go to sleep rehashing everything that happened during the day. When I finally closed by eyes in the early morning. I had a bad dream about Patrick. I just prayed.

August 26, 2019 – Monday
When the bell rang 7 am. I decided to get out of bed and get ready. I did my meditation before going for breakfast. It was almost eight. The English group had mass at 7:15. I did not know it would be going on. My suitcase was really heavy.   At 9 am, I had a chat with Fr Emmanuel then helped Ping Lan type the evaluation for the English group written by Sr. Noreen. Then she walked with me to another towel store I had noticed during our walks. I got round bath gloves. Then we went to the Bon Marche supermarket to get a cloth bag to carry the books and other paper materials from my suitcase.   At 12:15 I went for lunch. Mr. Thierry had told Mr. Abdel that I would be coming a little earlier as I had to leave by 12:45. I had returned my key since 11:50 as the office closed between 12 and 12:30. When we saw 1:00 pm the cab that Fr. Tipamm had called for us did not show up, Mr. Pierre in the office called us another one that arrived at 1:05. He could not give us the code right away but he said he would get us on time at the airport. As my terminal was 2E he would have to drop me first and then go to terminal 3. The fee was 55 euros for Charles de Gaule airport plus 4 euros because we called the cab. Then he also charged 10 euros for the second stop. I gave him the 70 euros when he dropped me. I asked Sergio if he could give him a tip as he had already given me 10 euros he would have paid for the train. It took about an hour to reach the airport. It took me a little time to check in then find the bag check-in area. The suitcase was 24.7 kilo. The agent asked if I could remove something like a book or something otherwise I would have to pay 85 euros. I removed the bag with the shoes. It came down to 23 kilo. She said it was ok and let it go. I thanked her and looked for the security line. We pass through a custom line and had the passport stamped then I had to take an air train to bring me to the gate.   After walking to the original printed gate on the boarding pass, I saw no one there then asked an employee. She said the gate was changed, I had to go to the other end of the gates from 48 to 26. Thank God I found a small cart on my way because my shoulders were starting to hurt with the two bags. At the appointed time for boarding, I lined up in front of the cordoned off area for my zone. We had to stand for more than an hour as the flight was delayed. When we finally boarded the plane, the passenger in the seat next to me wanted me to switch my aisle seat with him so that his wife could sit next to him. She had an inside seat next to a big man. I asked if he wanted to change with her husband. He answered he was with his family. I asked them if they could wait until the person who was to be in our row by the window if she would be willing to change with his wife. When she arrived, she spoke English I asked for them and she said yes. My prayers were answered, I wanted to help them but I also chose that seat so that I could move out easily to use the bathroom. I did my night prayers then watched movies: Second Act with Jennifer Lopez, Remi, Nobody’s Boy, and Child Tickles. When the plane arrived at the airport it took about half hour before we could taxi in. It took a while before I got my suitcase from the carousel. At 9:15 pm, I was in the taxi. Pierre came to get the bag for me. I was glad to see him and be home. I gave him his gift of sardines and the little towel. Then I showed him the sweets for the baptism. I got all the girls and everyone else miraculous medals and other items from Rue du Bac. I felt exhausted. Before falling asleep, I reflected about this total experience and asked myself: Now how do I LIVE what I have learned?

Pilgrimage in the Footsteps of St. Paul to Greece & Greek Isles.  A group of about 35 individuals travelled with their Spiritual director Fr. John O’Connor.

Sunday, September 9 (Day 1)
The journey began when we departed from New York’s JFK on a transatlantic fight.

Monday, September 10 (Day 2)
We arrived in Vienna, Austria to board a connecting flight to Greece. It was quite an experience navigating through the lines in the airport with bags and official papers in hand.
We met our tour director in Thessaloniki. This is where Paul preached and where he sent his first and second letters to the Thessalonians. We saw the Byzantine Acropolis on our way to visit the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception and the Church of Saint Demetrius. We celebrated our first mass as a group at the Mediterranean Palace Hotel where we were staying.

Tuesday, September 11 (Day 3)
We enjoyed a panoramic drive to the Old City Walls. We saw the White Tower, the Arch of Galerius and the Rotunda standing on the Egnatian Way. We drove to Philippi in the afternoon. This is where Paul established the first church in Europe. We saw the ancient forum and jail where Paul and Silas were imprisoned. We continued on to the river where Lydia was baptized and we celebrated mass near the site where Lydia was baptized. We also drove to the beautiful port city of Kavala, the ancient city of Neapolis where Paul landed with his disciples’ Timothy and Silas. Kavala was later renamed Christoupolis, meaning “City of Christ,” and became the first European city to accept Christianity. Late in the afternoon we returned to the Mediterranean Palace.

Wednesday, September 12 (Day 4)
We drove to Veria (Ancient Berea), on the terraced foot of Mount Vermion to s the Bema of the Apostle Paul, from where he preached. We celebrated mass there. Then we continued on to Meteora with its thousand-year-old Byzantine monasteries precariously on huge finker-like rocks, where we enjoy a wonderful view. We drove on to Hotel Meteora in Kalambaka for dinner and the night.

Thursday, September 13 (Day 5)
We drove to Delphi, which is considered the center of the Ancient world, the “omphalos” (navel) of the earth. On the slopes of Mount Parnassos, in a landscape of unparalleled beauty and majesty, lies the Archaeological site of Delphi. We visited the Temple of Apollo, the Treasury of the Athenians and the Archeological Museum containing such masterpieces of ancient Greek sculpture as the bronze charioteer and the famous athlete Aghias. We celebrated mass before going to Athens Cypria Hotel.

Friday, September 14 (Day 6)
In the morning we boarded the ‘Celestyal Cruises’ for our Aegean Sea cruise. We celebrated Mass on board the ship and had dinner before reaching our first sop, Mykonos, “The Island of the Winds”. We saw a hilly rock-ribbed island of 29 square miles dotted with more than 350 tiny chapels built by 19^th century pirates to invoke the project of their patron saints. We enjoyed a walking tour to the fishing harbor where there shops and boutiques selling handmade sweaters, dresses, fabric, jewelry and many more items at bargain prices. We returned afterward to the ship to watch a show before going to our cabins to sleep.

Saturday, September 15 (Day 7)
We traveled to the port of Kusadasi to enjoy a tour of Ephesus, the best preserved of the original Seven Churches of the Revelation. Ancient tradition holds that Mary, the Mother of Lord, lived here with Saint John the Evangelist. The Apostle Paul spent two years in Ephesus and wrote his First Letter to the Corinthians here. We celebrated Mass at the House of the Virgin Mary, where it is reported she spent the final years of her life. Following Mass we enjoyed a sightseeing tour of Ancient Ephesus where we the Magnesian Gate the Agora, the Odeon, the Library of Celsus, the Thermal Baths of Scholastica, Trajan’s Fountain, the Prytaneum, Hadrian’s Temple and the Great Theatre. We concluded this tour with a visit to the Covered Bazaar of Kusadasi and its environment. Then we sailed to the island of Patmos, where St. John wrote the Book of Revelation. There we walked through St. John’s monastery and the Grotto of the Apocalypse. We returned to the ship for dinner, a show, and sleep.

Sunday, September 16 (Day 8)
We docked in Heraklion, the capital of Crete, where Paul had ended up because of severe winds (Acts 27:7). A short ride took us to the fantastic ruins of the Palace of Knossos, which is believed to be the mythical Labyrinth of King Minos. At the Archaeological Museum we saw displays of treasures found during the excavation of this ancient city. Back on the ship, we celebrated mass en route to Santorini believed by many travelers to be the most breathtaking whitewashed houses, narrow streets and open air cafes that cling to step cliffs that are accessible only by cable car or mule. Some scientists during the Minoan excavations came to believe that Santorini might be the fabled lost continent of Atlantis. When we returned to the ship we had dinner, and overnight the Celestyal took the route back to Athens.

Monday, September 17 (Day 9)
The ship returned to the Port of Piracus in the morning and we disembarked after breakfast. We had a guided tour of classical Athens including a visit Adjacent to legendary Acropolis to see the spectacular Parthenon and the Temple of Athena and its Winged Victory statue. Adjacent to the Acropolis, we enjoyed the classical Greek culture in the Plaka area, with its cobbled stone paths where two thousand year old relics are seen amongst colorful shops and restaurants. We also visited the Areopagus or Mars Hill where Paul was brought before the council and delivered his famous “Men of Athens” sermon on the “Unknown God” (Acts 17:2231).   We celebrated mass at the Bema Seat of Saint Paul then we drove to the Constitution Square, the House of Parliament, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Temple of Zeus, the Old Olympic Stadium and the neoclassical buildings of Athens. We had dinner and slept at the Athens Cypria Hotel.

Tuesday, September 18 (Day 10)
We drove along the picturesque Corinthian Gulf to Corinth, where Apostle Paul lived and from where he sent his first and second letters to the Corinthians. We visited the market place where Paul preached to the Corinthians. To stand in the midst of the ruins of the church of Corinth and see the pillars, steps and place of public worship where Paul preached, will enhance your understanding and love of Corinthians I, II. We also visited century BC Temple of Apollo, the Museum of Corinth and the Bema Seat of Saint Paul. After mass in Corinth, we continued on to Cenchrea, the ancient seaport from where Apostle Paul set sails for Ephesus across the Aegean Sea.

Wednesday, September 19, 2019 (Day 11)
During the day having a free day to explore the on our own, a small group of us took the local buss around town and went to the museum. We celebrated mast at the Cathedral of St Dionysus the Areopagite, the site of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Athens. We enjoyed a special “Farewell Dinner” at Bairaktaris Tavern. We spent another night at the Athens Cypria Hotel.

Thursday, September 20, 2019 (Day 12)
This is the departure day from the New Testament land of Greece on our connecting flight to NYC. Most of us being from the same parish, we have gotten a little closer to one another and enjoyed this spiritual journey in Paul’s footstep having gained better insight on his teaching and love of Christ.

 

Ladies of Charity (AIC-USA) had their national assembly for the 400 years of the anniversary of its founding. We had great speakers, spirituals moments, and time to network. We also attended some special event. I personally enjoyed going to the theater at Kansas University to see a World Premiere Musical of Between The Lines based on the books of Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer. Several times we took the trolley to go around town.
http://www.caulfieldphotos.com/loc_national_2017

 

 

The Vincentian Haiti Initiative Commission (VFHI) met in Tempa in conjunction with the 2017 National Assembly of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Conference (SSVDP) in Tampa, Florida. During these days, the commission members met to discuss the work being done in Haiti. They also gave an overview of the projects being done in Haiti on the San Lazare fish farm in Savanne Perdue, the agricultural development, farmers’ networking, and the education program progress to the SSVDP assembly. It was a great time to share and learn from each other. New trends in the Vincentian family and best practices to address the needs of the most vulnerable were discussed. We still had time to walk around the hotel and on the boardwalk.

 

 

 

 

Wednesday Jan 18 into Thursday Jan 19
Another trip. I try not to have any expectations but live in the present moment. The taxi came to the house a few minutes late. They are usually quite a reliable company. The ride cost $29 with tips. At the airport, the airline agents made me go on a short line anyway, to validate my boarding pass although I had checked-in online and printed a pass. The airline I booked was Delta but I was flying Alitalia. When I reached my gate, I felt a little bit hungry I bought a chicken soup as it was two hours before the flight. Later on I paid $4 for a small bottle of water. I feel overpricing an essential item is not fair. I noticed that most of the passengers on this flight were orthodox Jews. I wondered if this plane was going to Rome as a stop-over or where they attending a special event. To my surprise they served dinner (pasta or chicken) and breakfast. I wondered if all the meals were kosher. I could not really sleep on the plane. I read a little and watch two movies. One of them was ‘Now You See Me’. When morning came, while doing my personal prayers, some of the Jewish men put on their shawls and prayer garb to make their prayers. For about eight hours we were all confined in the same space, sharing same services but we were complete strangers to each other.
When we got to Rome, it was easy to manage through the airport although I did not know I had to take a train to reach the other side of where custom and ground transportation were. I enquired about the SIT bus, they send me first to a long line to buy tickets. When I saw the bus pull in, I rushed to it. There were some people lined around it but I insisted to move forward and I found one of the few sits left. Paid the six euros. Without knowing I was sitting next to a commission member (Andrew) who I recognized later while one of our meals. When I got off the bus at Via Crescenzio, I asked someone where Via Tacito and Via Ezio were. A man standing by told me he was looking for the same streets and asked if I were going to The Daughters of Charity, CASA Maria Immacolata. I said yes and we introduced ourselves and walked together. Jim was really friendly and made me feel at ease.
I rested for a while in the room assigned to me on the second floor. Took a shower and got dressed to go downstairs at 7 pm (Rome time). No one was there, the dining people told me that dinner was scheduled for 7:30 pm not the time indicated time on our agenda.
I went to the terrace on the fourth floor and took some pictures. Next to this house there was a church dome with a monstrance on its top instead of a plain cross. From the top floor, there was such serenity in this twilight to look below at the interior garden. Before going back down to the cafeteria on the first floor at 7:30, I saw a young man sitting and enquired about the place. He answered that he was a guess here on a pilgrimage with a youth group.
At 8:30 pm we went to the conference room for a social gathering. It was suggested that this meeting was a historic moment in the life of the Vincentian family where four commissions where going to know one another and understand each other’s missions. I was so tired I could not wait to go to my room. In the hallway, I met a man, Cornelus, I thought was part of another commission but he was with another group staying in the house. That group was part of an ecumenical exchange. I asked him if he knew Paul Couturier, he said no but was interested to know more about the Vincentian family. I really was tired, I had to insist to stop our conversation.
I love being in this private personal space with no distraction although I could hear the outside traffic through the window. Praise be to God I had made this part of the journey without incident and safely.

Friday, Jan 20
Woke up around 6:30 showered and got dressed and was ready by seven am. But not many people where in the cafeteria for breakfast. I went to the chapel for my prayers but a group came to do their own prayer service. I went outside to continue my prayers and reading of the day not to disrupt their particular worship. At 9 am, we met in the conference room where Fr. Tomaz Mavric, Superior General of the Vincentian gave us an inspirational message.   He gave a short history why our charism of serving the poor as modeled by Vincent is important. He suggested that all the branches of the Vincentia family work together in the proposed initiatives for the 400 year anniversary of the birth of our charism and live out our mission as a movement. (incontro-delle-commissioni-della-famiglia-vincenziana-20-22-gennaio-2017).
While we were downstairs it seems that a clean-up crew came to the room and fix the bed and changed the towels. I did not expect that.
At lunch I sat with Jene and Nina and Fr. Aidan who I met for the first time. Fr. Aiden is a man of faith and conviction. The different meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) and open seating were an important part of the process to meet, share stories, and have conversation with a new person attending this conference. After lunch Gina, Beth and I went for a walk. Beth wanted to buy a few items as her suitcase was not yet delivered. She is from the social media commission.
In the afternoon each commission presented what they do – 1) FAMVIN – website and communication branch; 2) Systemic change – a formation group to get people out of poverty; 3) Haiti Initiative – project oriented in school monitoring and economic development; 4) Collaboration team – a formation group helping the different branch of the family work together.
At the 6:15 mass, Fr. Tomaz was the main celebrant. He reiterated some of the points he had made in the morning to know the Lord and to let his words and personal relationship with Him motivate and inspire us to do what we are called to do.   At 7:30 we had dinner. After eating, a group of us went out for gelato. After that a few of us (Regine, Sr. Denise, Beth, Toma) went on walking until we reached the Vatican. It was already night time. Some police cars were patrolling the area and on the side galleries where many homeless individuals lying all around. Where they here to wait an event or actually people without shelter? Regine had not notice them and she wondered why I was so upset to see them as NY is supposedly one of the place with high number of cases. Maybe they chose this place because they felt safe by the presence of the security needed to keep the space protected. In the empty plaza we talked about the audiences the Pope has and the surrounding buildings. I learned that the Daughters of Charity run one of these houses. We found the sides streets to return to the house at 10:20 pm. Again this walk gave us an opportunity to exchange with individuals we had met for the first time, no longer strangers.

Saturday, Jan 21
Woke up with a headache on the right side of my head. I went downstairs for breakfast. There was no one in the cafeteria. I did not feel comfortable to eat alone. While going back upstairs, I met Sr. Veronica. We went back down together to have breakfast. She shared how she answered the call to become a nun and her current mission. After eating, I went to the chapel to do my prayers and readings. Then I went to the conference room as schedule.
Fr. Joe A. gave us some questions to think about and to answer in our small groups. One of the questions was to discuss how we in our commission would incorporate the major Vincentian mission of homelessness (without shelter, living in sub-standards dwellings, refugees).
After lunch, I went walking with Beth after having gelatos. In the afternoon we had more discussions and decisions about our commission — the Haiti Initiative.
After mass, our commission went to a neighborhood restaurant, San Marco’s for dinner. We all went for gelatos for desert. I really enjoyed that. We strolled back to the House.

Sunday, Jan 22
Woke up after the alarm. Took my time to shower and dress and still got down before 7:30 am. A few people ambled in. I left to go to the chapel for my prayers and readings. I sat with Gene to go over our notes to submit to our individual leaders. Then we had the second part of our Haiti Initiative commission meeting. Sat down with two members of the collaboration meeting to complete our report.
At 2 pm, free time, I met Toma and Beth and we walked around town. We walked over the bridge over the Tiber River to Barcaccia Fountain. Several people sat around the side of the fountain. A family asked me to take their pictures. At a street corner, we saw of group of headless young entertainers, as soon as we took their pictures, they rush to get a tip. We gave two euros but they seemed to want more. Then we walked to the Trevi Fountain. There I threw in two pennies for my daughter as she had requested. It was still early, we decided to go back to the Spanish Steps. We entered several churches on our trek to make ‘3 petitions’ or take pictures of the structures, statue displays, stained glasses and art work. People were walking freely in the middle of the streets with no car traffic. We had walked a lot. When we got back to the house it was 5:40 pm.
I had to check in online and save my boarding pass. I watched some videos on my phone and at 7:30 pm went downstairs for dinner. There were only four of us. Dee, her husband, Sr. Denise and I. In such a small group, we had a chance to know a little more about each other. Dee is another Association International of Charity (AIC) member she asked me to talk about my project in Anse-a-Veau in the South of Haiti. I think they must have been sorry after I began giving them so many details…  I explained how I felt the hospitality and community development project was inspired.  The way the scheduled was built to include workshops and work sessions.  The lunch taken together to develop camaraderie.  The discipline to be on time and to be consistent in our tasks.  The number of participants (30) divided into five focused teams–culture, food, housing, historical sites, and natural sites…  Here I go again!
Afterwards I went back to my room to pack. At 8:30 pm Sr. Denise accepted to take the taxi with me to the airport in the morning with 2 other passengers. I immediately went to the office to confirm there would be four passengers in the taxi and if the price would be the same. At 9:15 Beth came to let me know she would ride with me. I told her I was sorry there were already 3 other passengers.

Monday, Jan 23
I finally got out of bed at 6am although I felt I had never slept. I showered, got dressed, and ensured I had nothing left in the room. I went once and for all with my carry-on to the office to check out. Afterwards went straight for breakfast. Sr. Teresa came, then Beth, Ada, and Sr. Denise. At 7:30 am, we went outside the house to wait for the taxi. Beth left at that time. As the taxi pulled in we noticed there were 6 seats available.
Sr. Denise offered to give me some money, I refused. I asked if anyone had change for me among the three to give a tip to the driver. Sr. Teresa offered to take care of it. Within the hour we were at the airport. I had to check in at the counter for Alitalia to NY and Sr. had to check in Delta for her flight to Texas. The gate number was not posted until 9 am. At 9:15, I realized that Sr. Denise and Beth were at the next gate number. I said goodbye to them and at 9:50 am we were boarding. It took a while and the plane was not full. A whole row was empty. I asked to change my seats because we three people squeezed in the last row next to the bathroom. We were served a snack within an hour into the flight. I watched several movies: Me Before You, Florence Forester, Café Society, Independence Day, Mystic River (not finished).
A meal was served later. One hour and ½ before landing, a spicy burrito like snack was served. I felt sick after having eaten it. Maybe I had eaten too much. Then the plane ride became really bumpy with the winds. With all that sharing and I had to look for the bag. I felt really weak and nauseated. At one time when the plane dropped suddenly I though my stomach was going get empty right then. It took all my strength to disembark then walk the distance to custom putting our passport in the machine getting a receipt before moving on to get our passport stamps. At one point, I felt I was just going to pass out. I called one of the agent and told her that I felt dizzy and she saw the bag in my hand, she moved me to the front of the line. I had rush to the bathroom, my stomach was bubbling, nothing happened. I rushed to the taxi line and I got one right away. I gave the driver the address and explicit way to get there. I don’t know if I dozed off. I saw I was in Brookville exit. Before I opened my mouth, he apologized for missing the exit. I showed him a quick local way to get around and get back on the way to the house. When he reached $25.40. He said he was turning the meter off. I said that it never cost me more than that, usually it is less. He was a young man, a little shy so, I gave him his fee and tip and said thank you. When I got home, I said hello to my husband and my daughter. And gave them both hugs. I asked for some tea. I noted that every time I travel when I come back home I am usually sick either overeating or not at all.
Although in this conference, I learned a lot and met many interesting people but these few hours of illness put a damper on my spirit. After a few hours in the night, I started coughing incessantly and this lasted for days. I had to go to the doctor on Friday and took a chest x-ray as well.
This trip gave me a glimpse of some of the work being done throughout the world by some members of the Vincentian Family. As a Ladies of Charity (Association International de Charity), I understand that whatever I undertake and wherever I do it, I must reflect who we are and set others on fire to do the same.

2016   Feb 19-21 – VFHI meeting in Philadelphia. Again I took the train to get there. I was more familiar with the environment and where to go. We did not sleep at the seminary this time but at the convent of the Daughters of Charity not too far away. As the meeting ended early, I took an earlier train back home as I had to be in the parish for religious education Sunday morning.

2016   July 22-24  My daughter and I travelled to West Palm Beach, Florida to participate in my Nephew’s wedding with an Indian woman. What a blend of cultures, his step-mother from the Philippines, my brother from Haiti, and Rackee from India. What an experience where many of our senses where being addressed. It was a good time for family reunion.

2016    Sept 8-11 This was my third time in San Francisco, California but the first time staying in Palo Alto. The Daughters of Charity’s place is so peaceful and serene. We had very nice accommodation and a great welcome from the community. I liked their chapel which has a view to a lake. This is a lovely property and the deer ran freely on the ground. The commission meeting was conducted effectively. We met a new commission member representing the Trinitarian. I left on Sunday as I had a diocesan meeting on the next day. I did not have a chance to go to Jene’s house for the afternoon get together.

Looking back at this blog, I realized how important it is to record the time travelled, the purpose, the locations to remember the new images created, the new relationships established, and/or challenges lived or acquired through the process of being away from daily life routines. I will summarize other trips taken in 2015. By adding some pictures it will jog some of the feelings and impressions that were made during these events.

2015   May 16-24 Pierre and I went on this trip to Baie Comeau, Canada (Myriam Bethl’em) by bus with the group Relais Huguette Auger of NY under the leadership of Marie Solange St. Urbain. This was my second time to this retreat place with the same group, I had done it then with my teen age son, Philip, in August 1987. There were some new faces among the Myriam sisters and brothers. It was a good way for me to take a step back from my own Vincentian spirituality and hear Sr. Jeanne’s lectures and how others act within their own understanding of this spirituality. They were a welcoming joyous family. They encouraged all in their houses to be holy (personal conversion) and to pray for peace and unity (contemplative). [http://www.famillemyriam.org/eng/index.php]
My husband to my surprise participated in some of the activities planned. Everyone was vying to see who could ‘convert’ him. We had a good time riding back and forth on the bus, taking the ferry to reach our destination, and going through the border. We stopped at St. Anne de Beaupre on our journey.
I was happy to finally do something with my husband but I knew the outcome. Pierre made tons of pictures, he talked to everyone, and nothing else changed. This retreat confirmed my beliefs and strengthen my resolves to do God’s will in serving the people of Haiti.

2015 Sept 11-13 – This was my first meeting of VFHI in Philadelphia. I took the train and then a cab to get to the St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in Germantown. [http://saint-vincent-church.org/]..
I enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere of the house. The hospitality was great. As I usually do, I went to the chapel for prayer and I had one of the greatest Catholic experience. There were about 12 to 15 priests concelebrating mass. There were only two laypeople in attendance. Hearing the priests in unison saying the word of consecration, doing the same gestures, regardless who they were, their accents, united in this event around that one table, that one bread, one cup. I felt connected with the world in a most tangible way. The rituals and all my senses immersed in this public prayer of thanksgiving. I felt closer to Jesus and my brothers in Christ.
Meeting some members of the congregation and going to the shrine was added perks to being part of the decision making process for the commission.

2015   Sept 15-20 – Travelled early on a Delta flight with my daughter for New Orleans to attend the National Convention of the Ladies of Charity to be held at Marriot New Orleans on Canal Street. [http://aic.ladiesofcharity.us/] This was our second time in New Orleans but my daughter was too young to remember. We had driven from NY as a family in July of 1999.
I loved the narrow street and the houses with balcony and intricate ironwork. We had come a day earlier so that we would have time to do some visits together before the conference began. The hotel was right between the French quarter and Central Business District. I was able to take the street car right on Canal Street to do the local tours. We did a few touristic tours. We walked a lot in the French quarter and ate at different restaurants to taste and enjoy the famous New Orleans cuisine.
The vigil mass was celebrated at the Cathedral-Basilica of St. Louis King of France right by the square.

Remarks by Natalie
The food was by far the best highlight of New Orleans! Between Gumbo, oysters, crawfish stew, and tasting fried alligator for the first time (it was good!), the Big Easy made my taste buds really happy!

‘Eccentric’ is the word I’d use to describe New Orleans. You never know what type of quirky character or “moving” statue you’d find.

So much history in New Orleans, and many come to visit the houses and burial sites of many famous, and infamous, people.

Marie Laveau’s tomb
Madame La Laurie’s house, considered one of the most haunted sites in New Orleans with an unfortunate past.

I woke early to get ready for this special trip to Cuba with a group of educators sponsored by El Puente. During the summer I had heard of Cuban doctors and met a few nurses manning the Hospital in the Town of Anse-a-Veau. Some were assigned to the area for about two years. Why would a country under US embargo and blockade be willing to export its medical force to assist another poor country? As I have been reading on social teaching of the Catholic Church in preparation for the upcoming presentations in the summer, I wanted to know and understand Cuba’s motivation and commitment to serve other disadvantage countries.
My husband and I arrived at the JFK airport by the 10:30 meeting time to get on the line with the other members of the group and to be processed. The airline was a chartered plane, Sun Country, leaving for Jose Marti Airport at 2:30 pm. When we landed we had to go to a security check—hand held scanners over our bodies and bags through the machines, I was surprised by this. We walked to the carousel to get our luggage and we were in tropical Cuba.
Our tour guide, Rita Rereira representing ICAP (Cuban Institute of Friendship with the People) and Amistur Tour, welcomed us and at then we were seated on the bus to bring us to the Hotel where we would spend the week, The Melia Cohiba. On our way she gave us some history of the island.
At the impressive hotel lobby, we left our suitcases and went to the pool side where we were welcomed with Mojitos. The hotel staff explained some details about the facility and we were ushered in the buffet dinner. We were offered fresh fruits, many types of meat or poultry, soups, food cooked on the spot, fried foods, and my preferred section a counter with delicious deserts.
After dinner, I felt exhausted I just wanted to go to our room, which had a view of the Malecon. My husband went to exchange some money from dollars to cuc — $100us for 87 cuc. I watched some TV and noticed there were no commercials but some community spots instead even on CNN.
For some reason, I had not expected any type of luxury. Apparently this is not so. However, I am writing from a point of view of current privilege – one of the have.
                          

 

We woke up at 6 am overlooking the ocean. After conferring with the trip organizers, I took a tour around the pool, the gym and some other facilities and the lobby of the hotel. Took some pictures and headed for the breakfast buffet. We had fresh fruits—pineapple guava, papaya, banana and all types of yogurts and fresh squeezed fruit juices. There was a table with all types of fresh breads, oatmeal cauldron, and other station: meats–bacon, sausages, pork, beans, squash, cheeses, salads, eggs–prepared in different style or cooked to your likings, and donuts, pastries… too much to describe all the lavish choices available.  I stuck to eating a piece of baguette with cheese, fresh fruits, and a cup of coffee. I had to limit what I ate because I was not feeling well.  We walked outside the hotel to see the taxis outside, the old cars, and some busses. Our bus passed by the senior center and the old houses of Ciudad Libertad. We stopped at the Museo National de la Campana de Alfabetizacion where Luisa Campo, the director, gave us a history of how the campaign was realized in 1961 in spite of difficulties and the invasion of the Bay of Pigs which killed some of the teachers involved in this revolutionary movement. Subsequently, many countries have welcomed Cuba’s guidance and assistance in eradicating illiteracy.We then visited Fuster Community Project which began in 1993 by artist Jose Rodriguez Fuster in partnership with the people transforming the neighborhood into beautiful murals, sculptures and brightly colored mosaic art work. The entrance, the doorways, the roofs, stairs are impressive meticulous visual arts that surround the entire environment. His work inspired by Picasso however reminded me of Gaudi’s work in Barcelona Spain with a tropical flavor. Around his place there were some small shops selling arts and crafts manufactured by the local people.
We then proceeded to a private restaurant Palador El Cimarron. There we had chicken, rice and bean, white, rice, salads and fried plantain served family style at each of our tables. We had one choice of drinks. I had water and my husband Cristal (Cerveza suave).
At the ICAP office we had a presentation. This institute was created to counter the misinformation the embargo imposed on Cuba by the US. The embargo includes a blockade which prohibits US companies and banks from doing business with Cuba or pay great fines. Even today, on President Obama’s watch, any company is seriously investigated and prosecuted if found selling any goods to Cuba that are made of US parts or materials. For fifty years the US repressed a people, however they tried to survive and do the best they could in these circumstances. We met ICAP Cuban personnel who are Puerto Rican and Haitian Specialists working respectively with Puerto Rico and Canada respectively.
After leaving ICAP, we went to the San Jose craft fair in the warehouses on Port Avenue. In this handicrafts market, there were aisles and aisles of paintings, sculptures, articles in leather, jewelry made of seeds or other local items, and musical instruments. There were also a few food stands, especially some coconut ones. Some half covered nuts were kept in ice cold water.  When you purchase it, they cut the top shell and voila— fresh cold coconut water.  If one so desired, the nut was cut in two for one to enjoy the soft white meat.  All this for just one cuc.  Delicious!  Many of the other members of the group were busy shopping away.  We got our grandchildren two small magic boxes.
Later, we had dinner at the Bodeguita del Medio restaurant. We took pictures of the square and adjoining streets. We were served chicken, sweet fried potatoes, rice and beans. Besides the Mojitos, we were given a choice of another drink. We met and talked to Frances and Luis, the wonderful couple, who head El Puente which sponsored our trip. They are dedicated in providing service of justice and peace to their community.
When we returned to the hotel, we had to go across the street to a small store to get large bottles of water. It is so important to stay hydrated as we walk around so much in the sun and considering the amount of food we have been consuming.