A Marian Pilgrimage with Dr. Edward Sri

ITINERARY

Day 1: Wednesday, November 6 - Depart USA

Depart on international flight to Toulouse, France.

Day 2: Thursday, November 7 - Arrive in Toulouse | Lourdes

Arrival at Toulouse airport, meet Dr. Sri and your local Faithful Catholic Tour Manager and transfer to Lourdes. Introductory teaching from Dr. Sri. Celebrate Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes, followed by a brief orientation tour of the Shrine. Kneel in the chapel built on the very rock of the Grotto, in obedience of the request of the Immaculate Conception. Hotel check-in and Welcome Dinner. Optional participation in the traditional candlelight procession requested by Our Lady. Overnight in Lourdes.

Day 3: Friday, November 8 - Lourdes

Celebrate Mass at the famous Grotto then Dr. Sri prepares us to walk in the footsteps of St. Bernadette, unpacking her spirituality and the message of Our Lady here. See Boly Mill where St. Bernadette was born and the Cachot, an abandoned prison where Bernadette’s impoverished family lived. Join your prayers with those of pilgrims from around the world as you pray for the sick and drink water from the miraculous spring. After lunch on your own, free time in afternoon to experience the Shrine more on your own and to pray. Option to experience the life-sized Stations of the Cross overlooking the holy Grotto. Attend the blessing of the sick and participate in the candlelight procession requested by Our Lady. Dinner on your own and overnight in Lourdes.

Day 4: Saturday, November 9 - Loyola | Segovia | Avila

Depart Lourdes for Spain through the scenic Pyrenees Mountains. Visit the lovely village of Loyola, the birthplace of St. Ignatius of Loyola, patron saint of all retreats! Pray at the sanctuary where a magnificent basilica adjoins a 13th century tower house, where St. Ignatius was born. Celebrate Mass in the Chapel of Conversion in Loyola. After lunch on your own, continue to Segovia to pray at the tomb of St. John of the Cross, the great Carmelite Doctor of the Church, and to see the famous Roman aqueduct there. On this day, Dr. Sri will help us enter the spirituality of the two saints of the day: St. Ignatius and St. John of the Cross. Continue to Avila for hotel check-in. Dinner and overnight in Avila.

Day 5: Sunday, November 10 -  Avila

Avila, a medieval walled city, is one of the best preserved in the world. Known as the “city of stones, city of saints”, Avila is dedicated to St. Teresa, the great mystic and the first woman to be named a Doctor of the Church. Visit the places that speak of her life including her struggles and her calling, including the Convent of St. Teresa (built over her childhood home) and the Convent of the Incarnation, where she became a nun and sense her calling to help bring reform of the Carmelite order. Dr. Sri introduces us to her life and spirituality, including The Interior Castle, which provides a helpful roadmap for our spiritual lives. After lunch on your own, visit and free time to pray, visit other churches in Avila and explore this beautiful medieval city on your own. Dinner on your own and overnight.

Day 6: Monday, November 11 - Alba de Tormes | Salamanca | Fatima

After breakfast and check-out, depart for Abla de Tormes to celebrate Mass at the Carmelite convent, the Monastery of la Encarnación. It is here that St. Teresa died in 1582 and currently her tomb and her reliquary reside above the altar. Travel to the city of Salamanca, the most important University Town in Spain. St. Teresa made confessions in the convent in Salamanca and St. John of the Cross studied Theology at the University. Visit the most beautiful Plaza Mayor in all of Spain. Then, continue into Portugal for our first visit to the Shrine at Fatima. Along the way, Dr. Sri prepares our hearts with Biblical reflections on the mysteries of the Rosary. Dinner, followed by the beautiful evening Candlelight Procession. Overnight in Fatima.

Day 7: Tuesday, November 12 - Fatima

Dr. Sri prepares us to enter into the profound messages of Our Lady given at Fátima, one of the most important Marian Shrines in the world. Celebrate Mass at the Chapel of Apparitions. Next, see the hamlet of Aljustrel, where the children lived and Valinhos, the site of Our Lady’s appearance after the children’s return from prison. Follow the Stations of the Cross along the Via Sacra (The Sacred Way) built by Hungarian refugees that culminates in the Chapel of Calvary, which overlooks all of Fatima. Visit the church where the children were baptized. The rest of day will be free for free time, prayer, and private devotions. Dinner on your own and candlelight procession. Overnight Fatima.

Day 8: Wednesday, November 13 - Fatima | Santarem | Lisbon

Morning Mass in Fatima and free time for prayer and last visits at the shrine. Departure to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. En route, stop by the Church of the Holy Miracle in Santarem where we will venerate the relics of the bleeding host which angels adored in one of the famous Eucharistic Miracles in the Catholic Church. Dr. Sri helps us tie together our own Eucharistic and Marian devotion. After lunch on your own, continue to Lisbon, to visit St. Anthony’s Church, built over the birthplace of the patron saint of Portugal, and pray before his relics. Enjoy a panoramic tour of Lisbon before hotel check-in. Tonight, enjoy a Farewell Dinner at one of the famous Fado restaurants of Lisbon, and enjoy a live music and Portuguese folklore dances. Overnight in Lisbon.

Day 9: Thursday, November 14 - Return to USA

Return flight to the USA.

Itinerary is tentative and subject to change