9-8-19 - English Mass and Lots of Rain

Day 84.

We let the kids (at least partially) sleep in to 9:30am.  It has been somewhat of a challenge being able to find a Sunday mass to attend on the trip.  Many parts of the world we’ve so far do not have much of a Roman Catholic presence.  I am up early on Sunday morning and after a bit of Google searching, manage to identify a Catholic Mass in English at a church a 10 minute taxi away.  Perfectum est! 

It turns out the mass is not held in an actual church but in a somewhat small size room within a building marked by a religious plaque outside.  There were about 50-60 people in attendance at Mass.  It created a totally different environment / dynamic than we are used in a large church setting. I would estimate that our Masses back home at American Martyrs have ~800 people when they are mostly full so a stark contrast to this one.   The Mass follows the traditional Catholic format with a couple minor variations. The priest gives a really good homily explaining the differences in the more literal English translated Gospel vs what the language context of Jesus’ time would have been the more appropriate contextual translation.  It was a beautiful service in an intimate setting that we really appreciated, especially after our Hill of Crosses experience.

We are invited for coffee after mass.  Back home, we have coffee and donuts after mass so the kids are a little dismayed to find out that coffee after mass means coffee and well, more coffee.  It seems like everyone from the mass is at coffee which makes sense for a small, intimate parish.  There is only one mass on Sunday so everyone in parish is at the one mass.  We talk to various parishioners.  One was born in California but has lived in Munich the past 20+ years.  One was raised going to this parish and has moved away and was back visiting his dad.  One was from Nigeria studying Cyber Security in Berlin and doing an internship in Munich.  Leanne has thrilled to meet him as she has several very close friends from Nigeria.  All-in-all, it was a wonderful way spend a Sunday afternoon and keep us connected with our faith.

The Mass was located in an area that was having a major festival.  Perfect except is was pouring rain.  When we left for church, it wasn’t raining so we are not only without our rain jackets but also woefully under dressed for the cold, miserable rain weather.

Leanne here. I’ll finish the rest of the day.

After mass, we take the suggestion of one of the church leaders and head over to The StreetLife Festival. The festival is extremely well organized with over 100 tents on a major thoroughfare here in Munich with so many streets blocked off for it. The only problem is it is now pouring down rain, so the attendance is dismal. However, inclement weather doesn't stop our clan, even without our rain gear with us.

However, the crew moves slowing through the street despite the rain. I notice we are definitely lacking our normal group energy and excitement today - perhaps it was the late night at our friends house or some travel fatigue. Yet perhaps today’s rain is God's message to us to just slow down a bit here in Munich as we have booked four full days for the capital of Bavaria.

After Kyle springs for four huge umbrellas for the crew and a green rain poncho that only Corey will dare wear, we head over to Munich Residenz, where Bavarian monarchy lived and ruled for centuries up until the end of the 19th century. John leads us to more than two dozen large open air murals depicting scenes from various significant religious and royal moments of history. Crownings. Battles. Ceremonies. Representing the days before the darkness of the World Wars.

Unfortunately, despite walking the perimeter of this block-long building, we can't seem to find the entrance into the Residenz which is supposed to be open today. We take this situation as yet just another sign that we should really just take a much-needed break today. Since most businesses (non-touristy ones that is) seem to be closed today too, it is just the third sign to slow down. Maybe this group needs to adhere "When in Munich on a Sunday" rule.

But then the absolute best thing happens.

We find a Starbucks! And it IS open.

Ah, a huge smile erupts on young faces!

Justin springs for a round of hot chocolates for everyone. We drink in the most delicious free WiFi ever and just chill for an hour, all soaked but now much warmer, sitting at a table that actually fits all seven of us. John suggests we use the rest of the day for our homeschooling back at the flat. Kyle and I can't seem to find better accommodations for the week so we resign outselves to our current unlucky pick. If we could only keep the unbalanced neighbor from breaking in again, we could probably enjoy the “cozy” airbnb we have booked. We have given pet names like Curly and Misty to each spider already too.

After the kids finish their self-paced online lessons, we head over to Hofbrauhaus in order to witness a little German beer hall culture and grab our local dinner. This hall is the most touristy and famous of the beer halls -- its family friendly -- and we read our best chance at a large table is tonight. There, we find a band playing live German music, huge steins of the best beer ever, and even folks dining in lederhosen. Even scored a table. After we meet some Brazilians, (go figure we meet Brazilians in Munich?), we decide to call it an early night.

Tomorrow, we have a heavy day planned so we do need to sleep well.

So NOW we really WILL rest!