The early morning train from Munich to Cologne Aug. 16 was crowded with World Youth Day pilgrims, including groups from Canada and California.

The young people, headed to the World Youth Day celebrations that began that evening in Cologne, had visited Bavaria, the German state where Pope Benedict XVI was raised.

"We didn't get a chance to go on the Bavarian pope tour," said Joseph Cyr, 21, a carpenter from St. Stephen Parish in Olds, Alberta. "We will in the future. But staying in a Bavarian family at least gave us an idea of the cultural background of how our pope grew up. His family would probably have been similar."

U.S. pilgrims, too, were curious to find out more about their new pope.

"I like what I have seen of Bavaria so far," said Steven Lewis, 17, of St. Clare Church in Santa Clarita. Pope Benedict "comes from a culture that has a good sense of humor. And they are nice. They even allowed our group in the conductor's car to see how the train is driven."

The Santa Clarita group was hosted by St. Joseph Parish in Kirchseeon.

"One parish member is the local fire chief, so they picked us up from the airport with firetrucks, which was really special," Lewis said.

Several of the Canadians said they appreciated learning about church life in another country.

"There were three kids, 12 and under, in my host family, and they all assisted at Mass," noted Jared Fehr, 21, also from St. Stephen's.

Fellow parishioner Donna Reid, 21, said it was difficult to judge what a typical Mass was like.

"A lot of young people here complain that there is not enough youth outreach," said Reid. "So we didn't see their traditional Mass. Our Masses were very upbeat, with a lot of music, singing and dancing."

---CNS