Here are just a few of the many pictures that were taken from our Group’s photos of WYD. I hope that they can give a good sampling of our experiences.
Here is the Sanctuary of our host parish in Sopot, Poland. This is where we met for Adoration and Mass during our “days in the diocese.”
A shot of the Old Town of Gdansk, a very old and historic city. Much of it was destroyed in World War II, but has since been rebuilt in the same style.
Another shot of Gdansk’s main square. There were also bubble bins spread throughout many of the Polish cities we visited. It was a cool place where families would stop for a bit and play.
Here is a picture of Solidarity Square and a view of the Shipyards. The Solidarity Workers’ Union movement started in Gdansk and was a pivotal cause of Communism’s downfall. We visited the museum there and learn a lot about the difficulties the movement went through, the sacrifices the members made, and the help and inspiration which Pope St. John Paul II was to them. the square has three pillars with a crucified anchor, a symbol of hope, on each. The monument commemorates the Solidarity Movement’s efforts for freedom by the cross, a symbol of both defeat and victory, or rather of victory through great loss and suffering.
Here is a shot of a cool pirate ship that we road on a short voyage to Westerplatte, the site of one of the first battles of the WWII. The battle waged for a week as 180 Polish troops held off 3,500 Germans.
A quick view of our living conditions in Krakow. The first picture is our sleeping area in the gym with sleeping bags and luggage from many groups spread all around. The second is of some very happy pilgrimes enjoying a warm meal after a long and rainy day. After a midnight train, we had arrived in Krakow around 7am, managed to travel across the city to our gym and then to the Divine Mercy Shrine. The Shrine was packed and we were able to split up and see a few things before the rain started and we hiked to a mall to get out of the rain and grab some food. The third is a picture of us eating our breakfast in our daily spot near by our gyms.
During the trip we experience many different Mass. Some in small town Churches, others in soaring Basilicas, one with 2 million people and the Pope and some others with just ourselves in a classroom as a make-shift chapel.
A picture of the crowd in the divine Mercy Shrine grounds.
St. Mary’s basilica on the main square in Krakow, an ancient and very beautiful Church with one of the largest altar pieces. Though it wasn’t the best spot to pray during WYD, as the surrounding square was filled with young people, night and day, chanting and such.
Enan and I managed to find two popes at the Mercy Centre Catechesis!
The packed streets on our way to Campus Misericordiae, Field of Mercy, the site of the Vigil and Mass with the Pope. About 2 million pilgrims packed themselves onto a few roads that led out to the field. Most of the time there wasn’t too much room and we needed to make backpack chains to stay together.
Our camp site in Sector A10 of the Campus Misericordiae. We weren’t too far away from the stage where the Pope would be, at least compared to many many others, but we still needed a large screen to see what was going on.
A pile of some random foods which people donated to us since we didn’t get our food bags until much later in the night.
Two shots of the the Prayer Vigil with the Pope as Night was falling. We were entrusted with candles to foster our participation. Plus it looked awesome to see 2 million floating lights in the giant field.
Lastly, here is a picture of Our Lady of Czestochowa. On our way to Warsaw we stopped by the little town where this miraculous image of the Queen of Poland, Mary the Mother of God, is enshrined. And so our pilgrimage was bookend with Mary, as we would leave Poland a day or so later.
-Michael Wanta