Thursday, July 07, 2016

Malmo, Sweden

Glumslov and Lund

Glumslov was our home for the week in Sweden. The very first town center we visited was Lund. We walked the cobbled streets towards the cathedral. This is the town where Ate Rose goes to mass on Sundays but in a small chapel somewhere in one of the side streets. We attended the mass there when it was holy trinity Sunday. It was coincidence that the parish was having a special celebration. I remember the homily was about the "The Lover, the Beloved and Love". This is the first time that I heard how the holy trinity was described. God have always been our Lover, He loved us first. He is our Father. He gave His Beloved Son to us so that we can be saved and the Holy Spirit as Love. His presence every where. Thankful that I still remember these memories and moments during our trip. It was the Sunday we have with Ate Rose. That was a beautiful sunny Sunday morning. After mass, we grilled some chicken in garden and spent that Sunday just at home in Glumslov remembering stories from childhood and just spending time with each other.

Tuesday, July 05, 2016

An Angel in Paris

Whenever we travel, there will always be times that we had to figure out how to get from point A to point B, there were memorable moments, when we experienced the goodness of strangers helping us along the way. This post is dedicated in particular to the "angel" we met in Paris who helped us find our way to the airport. This is how it happened... we were rushing to go to the airport from Anvers to La Gare Du Nord going to Orly airport. We asked a guard in uniform where is the platform he said its below maybe 44 or 43. Upon arrival at the platform, we realized it is not the platform we were supposed to be. Then Amats asked a short haired lady with a pixie hair wearing cream soft feather down trench. It was raining a bit the sky was overcast still. We were afraid the trains might get stuck. It was raining like Ondoy in Paris during the days we were there. So going back...we were figuring out what train to take... being travelers we thought it would be easy just follow the TV screen monitors of arriving and departing trains... but the train system is as complicated as NYC and Tokyo! So there we were...Amats got some instructions from the lady. She said our train will be in another platform. But I guess we were a bit confused, we jumped into an arriving train together with our bags to the other platform opposite of where we are. The good thing is that the lady followed us and talked to us mentioning that if we want this to take this train, we have to change somewhere then take another. So we jumped out again because the train we need to get into was the other side meaning we have to go up the stairs and transfer to another platform all together. We were pressed for time and with the bags we had to take the lift. As we were running, Amats told me the lady took the stairs and followed us...as if making sure we had the correct train. It was in the nick of time and we got into the right train and in the other entrance I saw the lady also get on the train as if making sure still we wont get lost. At that moment I saw her. Our eyes met and I waved her a "Thank you" wave saying in silence that we were alright. Then she took her seat on the same train. I think she was not supposed to take that train...but I guess she will change trains somewhere. I thought omg she is our Angel. (napaiyak ako nang ma realize ko ito.) That particular incident small as it may seem restored my faith in humanity. *****
In another how-do-I-get-there story: a good friend of ours from the Philippines also helped us arrive and take the right train in Paris. Thank you to facebook messenger, I was able to message and ask for information on what train to take because when we asked google-- nothing came up on our question of "How to get from CDG airport to Paris city center?". As a way of paying it forward to fellow travelers from someone on the receiving end, here are some information on how to get there.
From Paris CDG airport train to Paris City Center. From CDG Terminal 2, Take Line => RER B (Blue) RER B Train, Direction => Paris (Robinson, Antony, St-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse) Arrival Stations => Gare du Nord, Châtelet les Halles, St Michel/Nôtre Dame, Luxembourg, Port Royal, Denfert-Rochereau, Cité Universitaire Ticket => “Billet Ile-de-France” Aéroport CDG – Paris (Zone 5 -> Zone 1) Cost => 10€ (adult fare) / 7€ (children 4 – 9) / free (children under 4)
And yes, please don't forget: if you are taking the subway right after taking the airport train, (as in our case we need to go to Anvers station after arriving at La Gare Du Nord, you do not need to buy another ticket at the machines, you can just go through directly to the subway i.e. Line 2 if going to Anvers etc.) This will save you and your family the trouble of buying another ticket you will not need and save on time and money upon arrival. Safe travels. God bless. This post is a big "thank you" to all the travelers who helped us along the way. Little information goes a long way indeed! Keep on traveling! :)