Check out all the highlights of our 10th Anniversary Road Trip!
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Travelogue
October 23, 2016 Day 9
9:00 am: The A Nun's Life team takes the morning to reflect and give thanks for this week we've had on the road. It has been a true gift of the spirit to journey together from Ohio to Indiana, to Illinois, New Mexico, and California. Our hearts are full of gratitude for you and for this ministry. Here's to the next 10 years!
October 22, 2016 Day 8
1:27 pm: The NL teams heads to Muir Woods to spend the afternoon among the Redwoods.
1:00 pm: After a wonderful Puerto Rican lunch, the sisters offer us a traditional Dominican blessing as we say our goodbyes.
9:13 am: Quick selfie with Mary Soher, OP before we start interviewing the sisters about their vocation stories and their ministries!
8:22 am: Sister Maxine captures the Golden Gate Bridge via the GoPro!
7:22 am: We're on our way to visit our friends, the Dominican Sisters of San Rafael, when they tweet us a photo of the donuts and bagels they have waiting for us. This is nun hospitality.
7:02 am: Our last morning with our film crew, Timber and Frame! We're going to miss them!
October 21, 2016 Day 7
6:02 pm: Dinner, prayer, and an early night! Tomorrow is our last day in California.
4:17 pm: The SKB cases are packed with the equipment and cars are loaded. Sister Julie, OSF, remarks how quickly nuns can flip a room.
3:06 pm: Iconic group wave at the end of a Motherhouse Road Trip podcast happens. We had so much fun with the nuns and online community!
2:32 pm: The chat room is buzzing, the nuns are laughing, telling stories, and sharing their journeys on the podcast. You can feel the energy in the room and in the chat room!
2:00 pm: Ask Sister podcast episdoe 190 goes live!
1:34 pm: Sister Martha arrives for her chat room training! Sister Martha, however, doesn't need much training. Why you ask? Oh because she works for Apple, INC. Yes, THE APPLE. Jane can barely contain her excitement.
1:30 pm: Sister Cynthia and Sister Sally arrive for their soundchecks with Sister Julie and Sister Maxine.
12:24 pm: The NL staff takes a lunch break to fuel up for the podcast.
11:07 am: Sister Maxine rolls in to the convent with Julie Brown. Jane heads out and about to take pics for social; both Sister Julies work on setting up the mobile studio! Cables, wires, and cameras are flying around, and sound tests commence!
8:32 am: Sister Julie, OSF, Sister Julie, IHM, and Jane head over to the motherhouse of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary to get ready for the podcast! Of course a coffee stop happens on the way.
October 20, 2016 Day 6
6:17 pm: After a full day of work we head out for dinner at a local restaurant for some great food and team building! The Timber and Frame crew also join in the nun fun!
5:33 pm: Sister Maxine and Sister Julie prepare the script for tomorrow's Motherhouse Road Trip podcast! Nothing beats working outside in this beautiful California weather. Tune in tomorrow at 5 pm ET for the podcast with the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary.
4:23 pm: Sister Julie, OSF, Julie Brown and Jane head to the train station in San Jose to pick-up our dear friend of A Nun's Life, Marsha West! Car karaoke may or may not ensue.
2:02 pm: Before we know it it's 2 pm! We say "see you later" to the nuns and head back to the hotel where we obtain and consume chips, salsa, hummus and veggies. Work resumes with our film crew, Timber and Frame, and all is well!
10:23 am: Jane puts up an Instagram post asking for any tips on finding an icon of Joseph of Cupertino that we totally fell in love with. One of our awesome Instagram followers came through and hooked us up with the artist and her website! This is the amazing power of social media!
7:54 am: With the Motherhouse Road Trip podcast just 24 hours away, we head the motherhouse of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary to meet the nuns and scope out the podcast site!
6:19 am: But first, coffee.
October 19, 2016 Day 5
7:23 pm: After dinner at the hotel restaurant and making friends with our waiter and the other patrons, we gather for prayer and reflection. It is great to be on the journey together and to be sharing it with all of you!
4:16 pm: The team decides to make a pilgrimage to One Infinite Loop aka Apple Headquarters. Geeking out commences and basically doesn't end ... until we take a texting break!
2:00 pm: We land safely in San Jose, California and say goodbye to our awesome flight attendants. They took great care of us and even gave Sister Julie a paper airplane coloring sheet! LOL. We grab the rental cars and head to an amazing vegetarian restaurant for lunch.
11:12 am: Celebrating a 50th anniversary on board the plane. Kudos to Southwest Airlines for providing the couple with a bottle of champagne (not the little travel-sized ones either)! The team is still at work on the plane but catching glimpses of the beautiful earth below! So cool to see the landscape!
8:14 am: As we drive into ABQ Sunport airport, we see balloons!!
6:54 am: After a great night's sleep, the team springs into action! Jane's nunning out social, Sister Maxine is prepping the staff for the coming Motherhouse Road Trip podcast, Julie is getting flight logistics together, Sister Julie OSF is getting the car ready, and Sister Julie is foraging for coffee and breakfast for the team!
October 18, 2016 Day 4
3:49 pm: The A Nun's Life team hits the trails at Rinconada Canyon of Petroglyph National Monument. Sister Maxine GoPro'ed it out like a real pro! We are seeing lots of wildlife tracks including snakes and lizards. A very sacred place.
12:51 pm: We enjoy a great New Mexican lunch at Church Street Cafe followed by a visit to the old convent and school of soon-to-be saint Sister Blandina Segale, SC, in Old Town.
12:15 pm Sister Julianna takes us to Saint Felix Pantry, a ministry sponsored by the Felician Franciscan Sisters.
10:22 am: Sister Julianna and Sister Julie, OSF, sing in chapel at the encouragement of some nuns and the camera crew. We're pretty sure Saint Francis shed a tear at the beauty and sincerity of their duet. Franciscans for the win!
9:17 am: Jane, Sister Julie, OSF, and Julie Brown make the first coffee run of the day. Because, well, a caffeinated crew is a happy crew!
7:57 am: We arrive at the Felician Sisters Convent! Sister Julianna greets us at the door with open arms and a smile that makes your heart sing!
7:16 am: Four nuns produce five different sets of directions to Julianna's convent. Discernment happens. This is nun life, people.
7:11 am: There is excitement in the air as we head out to Rio Rancho, New Mexico, to hang out with our dear friend Sister Julianna Vagnozzi, a Sister of the Congregation of Saint Felix of Cantalice (CSSF)! Sister Julianna has been a longtime friend of A Nun's Life.
October 17, 2016 Day 3
8:26 pm: We gather for prayer, reflection, and some R & R before tomorrow's big day!
5:00 pm: The Timber and Frame crew suggest ice cream. No nun objects.
4:10 pm: We go on a post-podcast hike around the Petroglyphs! Sister Julie, OSF, is holding down the fort in the parking lot, so we FaceTime her from the summit. Sister Maxine provides the a Facebook Live history session replete with interesting facts about the Petroglyphs (indeed she is the history nun!).
3:00 pm: Praying with Sisters podcast goes live -- surrounded by wind, wires, and webcams!
2:03 pm: With the bags in the cars and coffee in hand, we head over to Petroglyphs National Park to scout the perfect spot for the Praying with the Sisters podcast! We've been known to podcast from random locations on the road, and we couldn't think of a more beautiful place to spend time with God and the online community.
1:00 pm: We land in Albuquerque! The Julies head over to pick up the rental cars while Sister Maxine and Jane pick-up the bags! Of course, coffee was aquired.
11:14 am: The nuns take advantage of wifi on the plane, and Sister Julie IHM barters with the flight attendent -- an awesome aNunsLife.org retro pen for American Airlines wings!
7:47 am: We arrive at Chicago O'Hare airport. With all the equipment we have, the only thing we got pulled over for at TSA was Jane's can of almonds. Nuts!
5:45 am: The smell of coffee and bacon awaken the A Nun's Life team and film crew. The monastery sure knows how to get us out of bed so early!
October 16, 2016 Day 2
9:15 pm: Sister Belinda of the Chicago Benedictines joins A Nun's Life crew and film crew for deep thoughts about creation, Netflix, the existence of Big Foot, equality, exegis of the Our Father, and the Cubs.
4:30 pm: It's been quite a day! It's been fabulous talking with so many sisters and friends of A Nun's Life Ministry. We're headed to a great local fusion restaurant for some good food and good conversation. Thanks for all the love and prayers! You are in our hearts!
3:00 pm: Coffee break. Need we say more?
12:00 pm: We gathered for lunch with Sister Debbie Borneman, SS.C.M., who provided the most excellent hospitality throughout the day. We are so grateful for all her love and support -- not to mention all the work she does on behalf of religious life!
10:00 am: Angela Szczawinska, CSFN, good friend of A Nun's Life and totally awesome #technun, came by CTU to chat with the film crew about how she uses tecnhology in her ministry. Random fact: Sister Angela is a big Green Bay Packers fan (shhh ... don't tell the Chicagoans!).
8:03 am: The Timber and Frame team (our video crew for the week) filmed the ride to CTU. It was quite an experience being followed by a photographer who was hanging out the car window ... on the highway ... in the rain.
7:21 am: After a peaceful night's sleep at the Benedictine monastery in Chicago, the A Nun's Life team was rested and ready to go for a full day of interviewing nuns at Catholic Theological Union (CTU). Despite the pouring rain we were in good spirits and well caffeininated ... except for Jane who needed an emergency coffee stop!
October 15, 2016 Day 1
6:00 pm: The team met up again at the Benedicitine monastery to enjoy prayer, dinner, and sisterhood ... and to get ready for tomorrow's adventures!
1:35 pm: Julie Brown and Sister Julie, OSF, headed for the Chicago Benedictines in Chicago, while Jane, Sister Julie, IHM, and Sister Maxine visited the old neighborhood where A Nun's Life first began.
1:25 pm: We may or may not have stopped for coffee ... again.
12:10 pm: We continued on to Chicago, narrowly avoiding the Notre Dame game traffic. Truth be told, we almost lost team member Julie Brown to the tailgaters preparing for the big game. We stopped for lunch at a local hangout and scored some free cookies--thanks, Jim!
10:47 am: We entered the peaceful grounds of the Sisters of Saint Francis of Perpetual Adoration in Mishawaka, Indiana. We met with Sister Lois and Sister Madonna and enjoyed the midday hospitality. Sister Mary Jane, CSFN, stopped by so that we could catch all her #nunwisdom on film.
8:03 am: Energized by the power of nuns' prayers, the team complimented the work of the Spirit with coffee for the road. Five fully-leaded coffees, please.
7:45 am: The convent caravan goes to chicago! We started off from Toledo, Ohio, with an awesome Sylvania Franciscan-style send-off! We gotta tell ya, there's nothing like being a part of a prayer circle of sisters to pray with us and bless on our way!
