UNIV, for me, was one of the greatest experiences I have ever gone through, and I count myself as very blessed to have been able to go. UNIV was great primarily because of the exposure it gives. For a person who has not yet been able to go to Europe, the moment you see the buildings and monuments in Rome and in the rest of the places you would go to, you will feel dumbfounded . It is like being in the presence of greatness. At the sight of the old-fashioned buildings of Rome and Spain, plus the awesome figure of St. Peter’s Basilica, you will feel very honoured because of the amount of culture contained in those structures. It is something very different from the shopping centers of Hong Kong or the skyscrapers of New York; once you are in Europe, you will feel the aura of a continent which has a very rich cultural heritage.

Our first days in Rome were very exciting. We attended the Palm Sunday Mass with the Holy Father in St. Peter’s, along with thousands of other Christians; we participated in the Univ. Congress itself with the delegates from other universities around the world; we had a get-together with the Prelate of Opus Dei in the posh estate in the outskirts of Rome called Cava Bianca; plus we made a visita iglesia in the many magnificent churches and basilicas, the smallest of which could have rivalled or even surpassed the Manila Cathedral in grandeur. Those churches, a lot of which were built during the medieval times, show the amount of faith which the Christians had back then. The best that they had was reserved for Our Lord. One of the highlights of the Univ. trip was the get-together with the Holy Father, John Paul II, in a huge auditorium in the Vatican. Even before the Holy Father came out, the crowd already cheered, "Viva il Papa!" and chanted, " Juan Pablo Segundo, tegiero todo el mundo!" such that the whole place was almost shaking. There were representatives from different countries which were able to perform for the Pope and were fortunate enough to be hugged by him.

The Univ. trip also took us to Fatima, Portugal, where the Blessed Virgin appeared to the three children early in the century. The significant event here was the candle procession which happened in the evening of our stay there. It took place in the colonnade of the Basilica there, and was also participated in by many of the pilgrims from different nationalities. Afterwards, we visited many other important places, like the shrine of Our Lady in Torreciudad, the Prado Museum in Madrid, the University of Navarre in Pamplona, and we even had football and basketball games with some schools similar to Southridge.

Probably the most important part of the trip was our journey to the Holy Land. Here, we were able to get a first hand glimpse of the life of Jesus Christ. We visited His birthplace in Bethlehem, which is now a big basilica; what’s more, we were even able to kiss the spot where he was born. We made the Via Dolorosa, or Way of the Cross, passing through the exact spots where our Lord walked through on the way to His crucifixion. Most important of all, we attended mass in these important sites.

All in all, the Univ. seminar was very formative and very educational. It taught us how to deal with other people, like the college students of UA&P and some professionals who came along. These dealings with them helped us to become more mature individuals. The trip also exposed us to the elements of the great cultures of the world and the factors which moulded these cultures into what they are now. Finally, it brought us to the root and center of our Christian religion, making us realize that in our struggle to be good individuals faithful to the Church, we are not alone.