Pilgrims return to Indian shrine, ready to move on after tsunami

Published: 2005-06-29

VAILANKANNI, India (CNS) -- The thousands of pilgrims who come to the Basilica of Our Lady Good Health at Vailankanni are a sign that Indians are trying to move on with their lives some six months after tsunamis killed more than 1,000 people near the shrine. Many pilgrims who looked for accommodation in the scores of hotels around the basilica were disappointed in May -- when the shrine draws its largest number of pilgrims -- to find that rooms were unavailable. On a Thursday in May, which is typically a lean day at the shrine, the basilica was packed to capacity for one of four daily Masses. "All our halls (dormitories) are full. Everything is almost back to normal," said Father P. Xavier, rector of the shrine staffed by a dozen priests under the auspices of the Diocese of Thanjavur. The sprawling shrine complex has the capacity to accommodate more than 6,000 pilgrims; hotels in the area have accommodations for about 1,000 more.

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