Pfingstmontag in Salzburg
The day was full of the most extreme of emotions. From intense melancholy and doubt - to the most unexplainably heart shattering joy, one that physically brought multiple smiles to my face. That rarely happens.
God knows what He’s doing. I’m sure of it. And here seems to be the theme:
God’ll feed your soul, but He’ll also keep you hungry in earthly matters.
Why? You could have everything the world has to offer, but it will never fill you.
—
The melancholy? Traveling alone has its perks, but I think I’ve had enough of it. And visiting a city that already holds memories makes that a million times more difficult.
Doubt? Why am I doing this again? The thoughts of returning home prematurely come at least a few times a day. Doubt.
—
But! The joy!
This weekend in Salzburg was a “Fest der Jugend” for Pentecost. Sort of like a mini World Youth Day, for Germans, ages ranging from 15-ish to mid twenty.
I decided to go for one day, just to get out of Munich for a little while.
As today is a holy day of obligation in Germany (and Austria, I assume too), I had planned to go to a little franciscan chapel that supposedly had a Mass in Italian at 11:15.
I stepped into the back of the church a few minuted before 11 and was surprised to find a priest giving a homily. In German. Not Italian.
That tends to happen a lot. Maybe I’m just a pro at misreading things. Reading’s not really my thing anyway.
My only other option, as I had to get to Mass, was the huge confirmation mass for Pentecost Monday in the Salzburg Dom - where the thousands of youth would be.
I found a place in the very back, with my camera bag tight to the back door of the church and myself nearly shoulder to shoulder with others - others more or less there for the same reason as I. Not the quiet and peaceful Italian Mass I had envisioned.
(If we can envision or expect something, we better bet it won’t happen that way, am I right or am I right?!)
From the moment I stepped into the packed Dom to the moment the opening him began to the moment the church walls echoed with the triumphant and absolutely authentic clapping and singing of my fellow youth - I couldn’t help but smile. And my heart has not been so full for quite some time.
It also happened to be a confirmation Mass, wherein the dozens of confirmands dressed in their dirndl and lederhosen. So while the whole thing lasted about three hours, it was the most joyous and beautiful thing that will surely give me the perseverance to return to work tomorrow and face the world again.
I did quite a bit of walking. But Salzburg is the most charming and easily accessible city. I revisited old memories and saw a few new sights too.
—
While walking a path along the “top” of the city, I heard someone speaking english, describing how she hated the church bells that ring every hour.
No way someone would be on the phone right now, with a view like this, complaining about the bells?!
After turning around, I spotted this (clearly out of her mind) person.
And, as I should have expected, she was video recording herself listing off facts about the city, holding the camera so as to get the mountains in the backdrop, and simultaneously get her best angle for the camera too.
In a world of vloggers (video blogging), sometimes I just wish we could all return to a simpler time.
I won’t say anymore, though. Some could argue that photographing and story-telling aren't really that much different.
—
Overheard on the train ride home: an elderly lady tells of a story involving her grandson. The dialogue between grandson and grandmother went something like this..
grandson: “An immigrant from Syria came to our class today, grandma! He told us all about how bad the war is in his country! But now he’ll be a student with us!”
grandmother: “Honey, when I was little, the war (WWII) in my country (Germany) was bad, terrible actually, but we couldn’t move anywhere. The whole world was at war. We didn’t have the luxury of being refugees.”
Whoah.
—
And P.S.
Re: travelling alone.
It's not easy to find friends who also prefer exploring cities or hiking mountains or anything other than getting drunk. And I'm absolutely not exaggerating.
Nearly every evening after work, the other interns go out for drinks until the early hours of the morning. My roommates spend their freetime also out at the club, at their boyfriends' apartments, or in their rooms all day watching netflix. And I won't judge, I promise. But these things simply make me sick. I've tried the going out for drinks. It just seems like such a waste of time to me. That's all.
So, I've concluded, for now, that although travelling alone does weigh me down much more than one would think, and bring tears to both my eyes and soul, it's better than spending my time wasted doing something I genuinely hate.
Confidence, right? It'll get me through. (A confidence which, by the way, is not my own.)