I've never slept on a boat before. We crossed the Adriatic to Croatia to the Ancient City of Split...pronounced just as you would in gymnastics. Summer home of Diocletian...etc.
We were soon on our way to Medjugorje. The views were spectacular...they're up there with the Amalfi Coast, but in this case it was a bit cloudy...
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| Croatian Coastline |
The Shire
Medjugorje is a special town. First we crossed into Bosnia-Herzegovina (we were in the Herzegovina side of the country) which contrasted so much from the more-or-less wealthy Croatia. With a population of around 4 - 5,000 people the Shire-like town receives 1,000,000 pilgrims yearly. Obviously that means that there are too many hotels for its own good and what may seem like an apartment is most evidently and most frequently a Hotel, Hostel (Pansion), or B&B. To add to that the quantity of street vendors of religious articles is...best left aside...as it is in just about every well visited pilgrimage site I've ever been to (Assisi, Rome, Knock...what I've heard of Fatima and Lourdes).
In the life of a Christian what matters most is not what happens "on the outside" or "what others say" but what "The Other" says, God. There is no way to know for certain if the apparitions in Medjugorje are for certain or true but what matters (and this I did witness) is the right attitude many many pilgrims had on going on this pilgrimage.
The White Cross
Mom and Dad
We began with a fast and while there we decided the first thing we would attend would be Rosary and Eucharistic Adoration. In the days successive we climbed both Hills (Apparition and the Cross). What I felt most in prayer was a desire to give thanks to Our Lord and Our Lady for all they had done in my life...too much. I brought some 5 pages of prayer intentions-causes with me and I left them under a rock on Cross Hill remembering to pray for all those who sent me the intentions.
I don't know if I'll return to Medjugorje but I can say that it left a footprint in my heart.
PS: Finally, I'd like to thank my uncle and aunt for so graciously inviting me along on this pilgrimage.
Me - Split, Croatia
