Scroll down to find out about all our lovely adventures
on pilgrimage-holiday in Lourdes with HCPT
on pilgrimage-holiday in Lourdes with HCPT
SUNDAY
Everyone had to get up very very early this morning to get to our meeting point. It was so early that it was still dark when we got on the coach and only just getting light when we arrived at Stanstead airport. It took a long time to check in all of our assorted luggage but we eventually got to security where our bags were x-rayed and our bodies scanned, some of us had an extra scan with a special wand and some of us had our shoes checked with a special machine. Everything was fine though and we gradually made our way through the airport and found our gate. We didn’t have to wait long before being called forward for boarding and soon found our seats and settled in. Then we had to wait for quite a long time while the other groups boarded and the crew and ground staff carried out their checks. At long last, we taxied down the runway (we went very fast!) and took off... Hurrah!
During the flight we chatted and played games, enjoyed the views from the windows, and tucked into a magnificent packed lunch! Before we knew it, we were landing in France where the sun was shining. We had our passports checked, collected our luggage, and got onto another coach for the short journey to Lourdes. The weather was fabulous, with brilliant sunshine making the river sparkle and the new leaves on the trees shine, but we could see the mountains in the distance were covered in snow!
We arrived at our hotel and went straight to a late lunch, before having some time in our rooms to unpack, change into shorts, and find our sunglasses! We then went for a walk through the Domain to the Grotto where we had our first chance to touch the special rocks and take some time to pray.
After we got back to the hotel the big stars helped the little stars to bath and shower, and get ready for bed before going down to dinner. Everyone was very tired but found the energy to eat chips followed by chocolate mousse! The little stars went to bed straight after dinner and the big stars planned tomorrow’s adventures.
Today wasn’t the most exciting day of our lives but experience tells us that the next few days will be full of fun and new experiences. We hope you will come back to read all about what we get up to!
Today we are thankful for new friends, safe arrivals, and lovely weather.
MONDAY
Today was our first full day and we spent our morning walking around the old town. This was so we could understand why we choose to travel here each year. So we could do this, we heard the story of St Bernadette from Canon PJ while walking through the important places of her life. Lourdes is incredibly beautiful, as it is surrounded by huge mountains and there is a lovely river going through the middle. The streets are very typical of an old French town so there were lots of bumpy wheelchair rides from the cobblestone streets! We ended up back in the famous grotto of Lourdes but now our little stars could understand why we visit a spring in France. It was very sunny today so we were hot and sweaty by the time we got back.
We then came back and had a full English breakfast and a brownie for lunch. We were soon headed out for the next part of our day but now we had a lot of sun cream applied! We played, snoozed, and ate snacks on the meadow in the afternoon and got to know our Group 770 helpers. These are youth helpers from Farnborough Hill College who are helping our “family group”.
We then came back and had a full English breakfast and a brownie for lunch. We were soon headed out for the next part of our day but now we had a lot of sun cream applied! We played, snoozed, and ate snacks on the meadow in the afternoon and got to know our Group 770 helpers. These are youth helpers from Farnborough Hill College who are helping our “family group”.
We then had our Welcome Liturgy with all the other HCPT groups. The Salesian College boys (another support group) performed a play for us all and the Liturgy. We sung and prayed together to kick off our week together with a bang!
Then we had story time and we heard “Mavis the Bravest”. Our little stars loved the story and were then ready for dinner and bed. For dinner, we had a charcuterie board, fish and chips, and panna cotta.
Then it was time for bed for our little stars, who went quickly after a busy day.
Today we are grateful for new places, different experiences, and good food.
TUESDAY
After a good night’s sleep we took a short coach ride to Hosanna House, a property outside of the main town of Lourdes which is owned by HCPT and used as an activity centre for the Easter Pilgrimage week. We had Mass in the beautiful chapel, with wonderful musical accompaniment and one of our little stars helped as an altar server.
After the Mass we were served freshly cooked chips and squash and then had some free time. Some of us met the animals at the mobile farm, some of us joined in with games and activities, and some of us just chilled out in the beautiful weather.
We got back to our hotel in time for lunch, after which we headed out again for the afternoon. We visited the HCPT shop to buy souvenirs for ourselves and gifts for our families. We then walked to the Fun Base, pausing on the way to refill our drinks bottle with Lourdes water from the special taps in the Domain. At the Fun Base there were lots of different activities to choose from, including face painting, bracelet making, colouring crafts, and wooden puzzles and building blocks. After having lots of fun there we made our way back to our hotel via a cafe where we enjoyed a variety of enormous ice cream!
This evening some of us had a special treat and stayed up for the Torchlight Procession. It was almost dark when we took up our position over looking the Procession. We had glow sticks and battery operated candles to hold up while we watched hundreds and hundreds of people carrying torches as they processed to the Rosary Basilica with the big statue of Our Lady of Lourdes.
At the end of the evening there was a spectacular fire work display in celebration of HCPT’s 70th anniversary. We went to bed even later than usual – it’s a good thing we can have a bit of a lie in tomorrow before our cafe breakfast!
Today we are grateful for beautiful Masses, air conditioning being switched on, and 70 years of HCPT.
WEDNESDAY
This morning we started our day off with a bit of chaos as the fire alarm went off while we were getting ready! Fortunately, our fire plans were well prepared, and we were out in three minutes. Turns out it was just a croissant stuck in a toaster…
We then took our group 170 and 770 (the Farnborough Hill girls) photo. Watch out for it on our social media.
We went out today for a special breakfast at a café where we could have anything for breakfast. Some of us had an omelette, some of us had lasagne, and some of us had ice cream! We loved sitting by all the people and being so near the centre of Lourdes. After this we had some down time where we could play together or write our diaries. Sometimes both our little stars and helpers need some quiet time in such a busy week!
After this, we went on the train on a tour around Lourdes. This took us up the hill and around all the important sites such as the castle. We really enjoyed blowing bubbles and waving at the passersby. There are so many other HCPT groups here and you can see them all walking in their different uniforms around the town.
In the afternoon, we had a talent show where all our little stars showed off their skills. We saw some wheelchair dancing, an art show, a DJ set and loads more. At the end, in a never-before-seen twist, our stars all tied exactly, so prizes were awarded all-round.
After the talent show, we all went to our regional mass. We met with groups from all over the “Met Deep South” area, plus a group all the way from the West Indies! We sung along with music from a great band of musicians from all the different groups. In his Homily, Cannon PJ had us all give each other stickers saying “Smile! Jesus loves you!” We finished the mass by taking our regional photo, before we headed back to the hotel for some chill time in our teams.
Then it was story time and bed. Today we are thankful for fun activities and our regional community.
THURSDAY
We needed to get up a bit earlier today so we could have our breakfast in time to get out and arrive at church to secure some of the best seats for the HCPT Trust Mass. We sat right at the front, with some of the Little Stars on starry blankets on the floor with some of the Big Stars. With the help of a Big Star, one of our Little Stars was an Altar server for the Mass and our family and friends at home were able to watch online.
We had to wait a while for Mass to start and spent the time badge swapping with other groups, having our faces painted, making new friends, and enjoying the atmosphere. When Mass started, we joined in with the singing and praying and listened to the readings. We also looked out for our Big and Little Stars, and our group’s Priest chaplain. At the end of Mass, we all sang HCPT’s favourite song – Rise and Shine, and looked out for our group banner as some of our Stars processed it out of the church. We all had a brilliant time and left the church in high spirits ready for our lunch.
Our afternoon began with a walk to the coach which took us to the Animal Park, which we were very excited about! We saw flamingos and pelicans, turtles, red pandas, monkeys, and meerkats. Our favourites were the otters, which had an underwater viewing window, and the three brown bears, who were enjoying cooling off in the water feature in their enclosure. We cooled down with delicious ice cream before spending our pocket money in the enormous shop and heading back to our Hotel.
One of our Little Stars read us all a bedtime story, and we had our bedtime prayer before our Mexican themed dinner. Soon after we had eaten, the Little Stars went to bed while the Big Stars planned tomorrow’s adventures.
Today we are grateful for Rising and Shining, umbrellas which double as sunshades, and the three bears.
FRIDAY
Friday's blog coming soon...
SATURDAY
Saturday's blog coming soon...
