Greetings, Pirjo.  It's nice to have you here sharing your experiences.

I'm an American I've only been to Europe once and that was in 1977 for the Rome Hans Jayanti.

I had no money and what money I had had been lent to me.  That was the horrid year with a program every 20 days or so in the U.S.

But, there was a whole sense of guilt if one did not spend the entire day at the hall listening to satsang by all the mahatmas and instructors.  And, God forbid if you missed Maharaji speaking!

So, I ventured out and did see Pantheon and had lunch in the plaza with a very nice woman from Arkansas.  And I managed to get in and see the Basilica.  And to this day one of my top 10 regrets is not making it to the Cistine Chapel.  And of course there's so much more I didn't see.

But it was easy to blow off 'life' because:

1. We should spend all of our time doing only Satsang, Service, and Meditation.  All else, including chit-chat, is maya.

2. We should be in the satsang hall in case Maharaji shows up. It's not like there was a very definitive schedule like there is today.  That was just crazy making.

One wonders whether Maharaji ever toured these places.  One would think that he might, but on the other hand with his limited education and stunted worldview maybe not.