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World Youth Day:  Madrid, Spain  2011

World Youth Day (WYD) is a yearly youth celebration that was started by Pope John Paul II as a way to inspire the youth and encourage them in living the teachings of Christ. In 1984 and 1985 he invited the youth of the world to Rome for a Palm Sunday celebration in St. Peter's Square. Later, the first official WYD was held in 1986. 1987 brought about a historical tradition, when the second event and first international WYD took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Young people from many countries around the world come together showing the universality and diversity of the Catholic Church. It is a time for the youth to share their faith and be rejuvenated to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is also a way to come to understand other cultures and spread peace and understanding throughout the world. As they wave their countries' and region's flags with pride, the youth unite as one in their walk of faith. While the event itself celebrates the Catholic faith, the invitation to attend extends to all youth, regardless of religious convictions.

During the week leading up to the final Mass at World Youth Day, the youth gather in catechesis to learn the teachings of the faith and celebrate in other festivities. The graces flow and the fruits are abundant because it is truly a pilgrimage in which self-sacrifice is an intricate part. Some save and prepare for years to attend. Others sacrifice by traveling a great distance. All are joyful as they move through the crowds of people, by giving up the food, lodging, electronics, etc. they are familiar with, and by thinking of others through it all.

A symbol of World Youth Day is the cross (aka Jubilee Cross, Pilgrim Cross, Youth Cross). It was entrusted to the youth as they were given the commission to "carry it throughout the world as a symbol of Christ's love for humanity, and announce to everyone that only in the death and resurrection of Christ can we find salvation and redemption." The cross set out with the young people from St. Peter's in 1984 and has since been carried around the world, making a pilgrimage from parish to parish and country to country. In association with the World Youth Days, the cross will precede an international World Youth Day in a country. For example, on Palm Sunday 2009, the youth of Australia met the youth of Madrid in Rome to entrust the cross to them. Preceding the WYD in Madrid 2011 it will be carried by the youth of Spain throughout their country renewing hope in salvation and redemption through Christ. The cross does not journey alone, however. It is always accompanied by an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary (as Christ Himself was accompanied by his mother in history). The cross and icon are carried together through the world touching hearts and inspiring holiness.
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Registration for WYD will begin on July 1st 2010 and can be completed online!

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All 206 Tours World Youth Day Packages Include: public transportation for the week of WYD, a pilgrimage backpack (with a handbook for all WYD activities, hat and t-shirt, Madrid guidebook, and other various items), free entrance to all WYD cultural activities (concerts, exhibits, museum visits, etc.), and priority access to all areas reserved for WYD participants and ceremonies, accident insurance.

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Why Travel to World Youth Day with 206 Tours?
...• 206 Tours offers various convenient payment plan options: can divide payments into monthly installments
...• Final payment is not due until 60 days before your departure date
...• Offer the most flexible cancellation schedule of all WYD tour operators
...• No hidden fees or surprise costs
...• Our insurance policy has been improved and updated to include: trip cancellation/delay/interruption, Trip Delay, baggage loss/delay,

......medical coverage & more (www.206tours.com/wyd/insurance)
...• Our goal is to provide you with a smooth, well-planned schedule resulting in memories that will last a lifetime
...• Our custom group pricing will give you as many free trips as needed.
...• Cash benefits are just as easily arranged to accommodate your ministry, fund raising or a group coordinators needs.

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Recipe Suggestion:

Authentic Spanish Gazpacho

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In honor of World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain we suggest you try an authentic Spanish recipe: Gazpacho.  Gazpacho is a Spanish cold, tomato-based raw vegetable soup, originating in the southern region of Andalusia. Gazpacho is widely made throughout Spain, and mostly consumed during the summer months, due to its refreshing qualities.

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For the recipe and cooking instructions

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..Now arranging flights out of international Canadian airports. 

..See all add-on airfares at www.206tours.com/addon.

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• Pay by Check and Receive $100 Discount
..Pay In Full via check or check by phone by March 26, 2010

..and Receive $100 per person discount off your total trip costs!

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• Travel for FREE! Organize Your Own Group
..206 Tours is happy to assist you in developing and promoting

..your own group.  Just choose your departure date and indicate

..the destination. Receive 1 FREE TRIP for every 10 paying

..passengers. Details and incentives at: www.206tours.com/groups
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• Secular Trips to Eastern and Western Europe
..Did you know that 206 Tours also offers a variety of secular tours

..across Europe?  These fascinating all-inclusive tours are fully

..escorted and all accommodations are in First Class hotels. 

..Secular trips do not include a Catholic priest and/or Mass

..daily.  Find out more by visiting www.206tours.com/secular

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Book Recommendation: Seven Summers from the Shore by Fr. Jim Sullivan

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Below is an excerpt from Father Jim Sullivan's book Seven Summers from the Shore:

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Sometimes I think the reason we don't know the future is that, if we did, it wouldn't happen. We would be afraid to go there. We would look at what it was going to require of us and figure, “I haven't got it.” I'm convinced there are times in our lives of deep trial, when the courage we need to face the situation, the strengths we need to deal with it, can only be brought forward in the situation itself. Prior to being forced to summon such strength, we would not believe ourselves to possess it.
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And it is not just ourselves we would sell short, in this respect; it is also God. We get through tough times not just by calling forth strengths we didn't know we had. We get through them as well by the intervention of grace. People and possibilities we had not been looking for come into play. A way through the difficulty develops within the parameters of the situation itself; it is not something we could have charted out in advance. The dynamic seems to me to suggest that, until the problem itself appears, its solution, too, will be invisible. The scary part is the lag time between the appearance of the difficulty and the development of its solution.

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