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Arlington has just spent the last two and a half days in Cairns, Australia! What an amazing place! God's beauty is really shown here, even though it's quite a secular town.

The Great Barrier Reef yesterday (July 24) was absolutely epic! Admittedly, I only snorkeled in the direct area surrounding MarineWorld (search Magic Reef Cruises), but what I saw there in terms of coral and fish was stunning. My friend Erin said that the immediate area to MarineWorld was lame compared to what she saw diving, but I still loved it. It is absolutely incredible that God took the time to lovingly make each one of those fish and add such awesome colors to them, yet still loves us infinitely more- He did not come to Earth to die on the cross in order to save fishes.

Today (July 25) we saw so many sights around the Cairns area. We started off with the Kuranda Scenic Railway. It took an hour and forty five minutes to go from Cairns to Kuranda, but the views were awesome. We passed through 15 tunnels, over tons of bridges, and through rainforests. It took a lot of toil and human work in order to make the railway, as we learned during a pretty interesting history commentary. The waterfalls that we got to view were spectacular. I took over 100 pictures on the train ride alone and have now taken about 1,060 pictures during the whole trip.

After we disembarked from the train we got to explore the village of Kuranda. There was a koala park with kangaroos, wallabies, and koalas. There was also a $15 dollar opportunity (on top of the $15 entry fee) to hold a koala and have your picture taken with it. My Dad held a koala when he came to Australia on a Navy deployment back in 1987 (well before I was born) and he said that they were surprisingly heavy and had sharp claws. That statement turned out to be true, but Chibby (the koala- a girl) was so cute and so worth it. Koalas are absolutely adorable- an information sign said that most people react to seeing koalas like they do to seeing a human baby, which is so true, especially for girls. We then got to pet kangaroos and wallabies. Unfortunately lunch was next and I had pre-ordered a kangaroo pie. It was not pleasant to have the adult next to me saying over and over "Oh, I could never eat the cute kangaroos," especially as I was eating one and I had just petted several.

We then got to ride the SkyRail over the Daintree Rainforest. I could finally see that my teachers weren't talking bogus- there are really several layers to a rainforest. They are easy to see from several hundred feet (maybe 300 or so) in the air. It turns out that the Daintree Rainforest is over 135 million years old and is the oldest in the world. What an incredible example yet again of God's beauty in His awesome creation!

The Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park was next. The center had a museum with some shields and whatnot and an opportunity to get your face painted, so I did. We saw presentations on history, food, medicine, and I don't know the other one because I fell asleep. We also got to throw spears and boomerangs. It turns out that I am not good at throwing either.

Arlington flies back to Sydney tomorrow afternoon and then back to Virignia on Sunday afternoon. I can't believe that the trip that I have looked forward to for over a year is almost over! How sad- especially since I don't want to go back to Virginia's heat and humidity. Cairns has got the absolute perfect weather at the moment.

Hey! Sorry that it's been so long since I posted, I just didn't have access to the internet. Now that we are in Cairns (and going to the Great Barrier Reef tomorrow-sweet!!!!), the hotel that the Arlington group is staying in has internet in its lobby. Hopefully, I'll be able to post something more frequently for the next few days, although I don't know about the videos- they might have to wait until I return to Virginia.

Well, World Youth Day 2008 is technically officially over. The Evening Vigil and Final Mass were celebrated last weekend. Seeing hundreds of thousands of Catholic teens from all over the world was the most amazing experience of my life. The Arlington journal posed a question that asked whether we thought of the church in terms of our home parish, Rome, the world, or people. I used to think mainly in terms of the home parishes and dioceses that I have lived in. After the Vigil, I now think about the Catholic people all over the world.

It was a lot of fun trading t-shirts and pins with kids from all over the world. I received t-shirts from Paraguay and Germany and am looking forward to the doctoring necessary to ensure that the shirts fit. Trading my little dollar store America keychains with Australians was a ton of fun. My group leader's daughter Erin is a trading machine- she is practically going back to Virginia with a new wardrobe.

The Vigil was freezing! Once the sun sets in Sydney, the temperature in the winter drops incredibly. We were in six or seven layers to try to stay warm. There were approximately 225,000 people out at the Southern Cross Precinct that night. It was space blanket city as we all desperately tried not to freeze. I know now to always pack winter hats and gloves if I intend to visit Sydney in July again. The candles that we received at the Vigil helped a little bit with the warmth, but the symbolism in the candles was incredible. We are all lights for Jesus out in this dark world and when we stand together, the world is full of light, on fire. I gave my candle to Clarissa after a few minutes because I couldn't handle the hot wax, but I enjoyed taking pictures of other people and their candles.

As the Qantas magazine said, there were crowds of young people singing through the streets and cheering up the city. At the Vigil, people kept singing into the night- mainly chants of Ben-e-dict-o! Ben-e-dict-o! It was annoying when we were trying to sleep, but cheering that everyone was so excited to see Pope Benedict the 16th. He was incredible to see (only via the jumbotrons [large video screens] unfortunately- I am too short and I was too far back to actually see him, although apparently Erin actually saw him) and listen to, since he is the successor of St. Peter. Unfortunately, his voice was kind of monotone, so I will have to print out his speeches to truly understand what he was saying. I caught during his homily at the Final Mass that he called for unity within the church. That is so true- pay attention St. Leo's and St. Mary of Sorrows in Fairfax!

The Final Mass was amazing. It lasted for two and a half hours (after we had morning prayer with half a million other people). The music was really powerful and nearly everyone was really into the Mass, except for one guy near me who appeared to sleep through most of the Mass. The Mass helped remind me that Mass truly is a celebration each time we attend.

Arlington got to see the sights of Sydney on Monday and Tuesday. Sydney is such a beautiful city- I have already taken 720 pictures. Taronga Zoo and Manly Beach are the main attractions I went to. They were so cool!

That chant was ringing through Sydney streets last night after the Pope arrived. It is so true because each Mass is the ultimate celebration- the Eucharist!  There is also a happy, jopyous atmosphere here in Sydney for World Youth Day 2008.

I had so much fun on Monday. In the evening we walked along the cliff at Bondi Beach doing a rosary walk. It was such a powerful experience to be praying the rosary walking among Sydneysiders along such a picturesque beach. God's creation certainly shined on Monday night, despite the walk down to Bondi that was only supposed to take 15 minutes that ended up taking 45-60 minutes (and we were keeping a decent walking pace, we weren't crawling).

Tuesday was the Youth Reporters Luncheon day. The lunch was kind of awkward, but the cruise and the tour of the Opera House were spectacular. We were able to go inside three of the theaters in the Opera House. It was so unreal that we were inside one of the most famous buildings in the world. The luncheon, cruise, and tour caused us to miss most of the Opening Mass, which was unfortunate but we did get there for Communion onwards. The three youth reporters and two sponsors from Arlington Diocese walked into the Mass area as the crowd was singing "We are one body, one body in Christ, and we do not stand alone." Hearing an international family of young Catholics sing that none of us stand alone was exactly what I needed to hear at that moment. It was awesome!

Wednesday was the first Catechesis Day. A group from Montreal, Canada that has named themselves H.I.G.H. (Happy In God's Hands) led the catechesis. It involved a cool Prodigal Son meditation that also involved us imagining that we were walking along a beach as Jesus told us the story. I felt God's presence moving in me and throughout the whole State Sports Arena. I was also able to go to Confession- yay! I went to the vocations expo later on that day. It was eye-opening to see how many different types of international religious life organizations that exist.

Thursday involved the Papal Arrival. We were supposed to be able to see him on a screen, but country flags prevented that. It was still amazing to hear his voice. The successor of St. Peter is among us here in Sydney, Australia!

The Diocese of Arlington is now in a slightly-heated building for sleeping (in OlympicPark- how cool is that?) which feels wonderful. St. Leo's Team parents- we're doing great! Also, search for Farinholt and Savoie. Those are the other two girls from Arlington Diocese doing these blogs.

I did write a blog on Sunday, but I was racing to finish it due to computer malfunctions and did not tag it properly, so I can't find it. I honestly tried (and used 5 AUS dollars for a computer that didn't even work for the first twenty of the thirty minutes that I paid for), but it didn't work. Now that I've gotten that out of my system, I feel better.

Hi - this is Ken, the Stakeholder.  Lauren let me get in a few words, and I want them to be these:  this group of pilgrims is fantastic!  They are an example to other groups, and pilgrims from other groups are asking to spend the days with us because of our vitality and spirituality.  The witnessing and testifying I have heard from these "kids" is incredible and mature.  I am very grateful you have entrusted their supervision to me.  Thanks for all of your prayers.

Just to let everyone know who I am...

My name is Lauren McCook. I am 18 years old. I have been born and raised in the Navy, living in San Diego, California, Middletown, Rhode Island, Chilcompton, England, and Fairfax, Virginia. I live with my Mom, Dad, 14 year old brother Paul, and our cat, Slingshot.

My favorite colors are pink and purple. One of my favorite activities is brightening everyone's day by laughing. I also love to knit, embroider (I haven't so far made anything successful, but I love practicing), read, write, and take pictures.

My absolute favorite thing to do is hang out at my church, St. Mary of Sorrows in Fairfax, Virginia. I love everyone there, especially my Catholic Life Community sisters (I sadly lack real sisters). I also like all the trips we take. We just finished up Diocesean WorkCamp 2008- I was a member of the awesome Crew 91!

I am a cradle Catholic! I received the Sacrament of Baptism in September 1990, at just 3 months old! I received the Sacrament of Confirmation in April 2006, when I was 15 years old.

I felt a tugging on my heart last summer to attend World Youth Day and persuaded my parents to let me go. I gave up a job as a summer camp counselor to go to Australia. Since last summer, I have babysat more times than I care to count (but I love little kids, so it doesn't matter) and hosted a spaghetti dinner in order to come to World Youth Day! It's been a blast preparing for the trip and I know that I will have an absolutely amazing, faith-filled time in Sydney, Australia!

I cannot wait for Australia! I write this on June 30, 2008 and I leave July 10, 2008. Eleven days to go!

I will post a bio video as soon as I receive my Flip Camera from the coordinators.