The hotel we stayed at in Jerusalem also housed a group of students from Calvary Chapel Bible College and we decided to join them for our weekly worship service. The location was an unusual one: the middle of an outdoor mall.
This entire trip, I have been playing my clarinet during our worship services. Usually I hold back and barely play since I am so insecure about playing without written music in front of me. So on this particular night, I was dreading the worship service. Especially since it was going to be in front of many strangers. On the walk over to the mall I was in constant prayer with God asking Him to give me peace and to just allow Him to play through me. Thankfully, He answered my prayers and people told me they got chills and teared up.
It was an amazing night of worship and definitely a highlight of the trip for many of the people involved. Many times we had an audience of 50-100 people watching or joining us in worship. During the first song, a woman (Eleanor) took off her shoes and joined us in worship. Everybody that was there agrees that she was either an angel or an amazing lady sent by God. After a while she left, but that would not be the last time we would see her that night.
About fifteen mintutes later a man came over and started yelling and screaming and claiming that we were worshipping an idol since we were playing right next to a statue. Suddenly, Eleanor popped up and gave us encouragement to continue playing and to stand our ground. She said, "this is what happens when you start praising Jesus, opposition arises" and that is completely true. My professor's wife went over to thank her for being such an encouragement to our group and Eleanor held her face in her hands and started asking her questions about how she was doing. That turned into another testimony for my professor's wife that only she can tell accurately. But while Eleanor was praying for her, the man kept screaming and Eleanor's friend rebuked him in Jesus' name and said that God would silence him. All of a sudden, these men came and moved him out of our way and he never bothered us again. It was an intense moment for all of us.
Next, a Jewish man stood in the middle of all of us and said, "There's only one God, folks. I'm sorry to disappoint you." But we continued to play and he listened. He borrowed one of our guitars and started playing a song for us. We respectfully listened and thanked him for sharing that, but then we continued with our worship afterwards. Once he heard the word "Jesus" he yelled "Jesus? No!" but he didn't bother us.
There were some points where I felt that extreme opposition was going to arise. For instance, when a guard with a rifle came and was creepily watching us and started talking to some of our members. Or when a well-built Christian man from the crowd started staring down a Jewish man that was opposing us. Or when a Jewish man was looking over my shoulder to read the lyrics of our songs. But through it all, God provided and we are definitely learning to trust Him more.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Good Times in Israel
After our day exploring Jerusalem, I was left sadly disappointed. Having only seen places the Catholic Church had turned into public memorials, I was skeptical as to whether or not we were going to see something authentic. The Mount of Beatitudes was its saving grace.
Overlooking the Sea of Galilee (and a banana farm?), atop the Mount of Beatitudes is a small nunnery, hotel, and coffee stand. However, each of these structures is spaced far enough apart from each other to not be that distracting. Lush flowers and shrubbery spills over the mount and tiny stone plaques each with their own beatitude accompany the pathway to the nunnery.
After walking the stone pathway to a spot overlooking the seascape, we listened to Professor Lee's devotion. He read from Matthew 5:3-12, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Our group sang 2 praise songs acapella and some people even joined in by the end of it.
Some of us decided to walk down the hill to the Sea of Galilee. The biggest problem with this was a rather spirited nun who insisted it was not possible to walk down unless we were hotel guests. She was wrong.
I decided to walk down by myself. If there is only one thing you get to do in Israel, meandering down the Mount of the Beatitudes path is unquestionably what it should be. I took the time to reflect, pray, and meditate upon.
It was at Galilee Jesus fed the 5,000 and walked on water, the very same water I swam in later that day. Perhaps we don't know the exact spot these things happen, but we were at least in the vicinity where they occurred. Even some of the landscape we see now was some of the landscape He saw then, and there is an odd reassuring beauty in that. Shalom.
Overlooking the Sea of Galilee (and a banana farm?), atop the Mount of Beatitudes is a small nunnery, hotel, and coffee stand. However, each of these structures is spaced far enough apart from each other to not be that distracting. Lush flowers and shrubbery spills over the mount and tiny stone plaques each with their own beatitude accompany the pathway to the nunnery.
After walking the stone pathway to a spot overlooking the seascape, we listened to Professor Lee's devotion. He read from Matthew 5:3-12, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Our group sang 2 praise songs acapella and some people even joined in by the end of it.
Some of us decided to walk down the hill to the Sea of Galilee. The biggest problem with this was a rather spirited nun who insisted it was not possible to walk down unless we were hotel guests. She was wrong.
I decided to walk down by myself. If there is only one thing you get to do in Israel, meandering down the Mount of the Beatitudes path is unquestionably what it should be. I took the time to reflect, pray, and meditate upon.
It was at Galilee Jesus fed the 5,000 and walked on water, the very same water I swam in later that day. Perhaps we don't know the exact spot these things happen, but we were at least in the vicinity where they occurred. Even some of the landscape we see now was some of the landscape He saw then, and there is an odd reassuring beauty in that. Shalom.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Jerusalem, Israel
We are now staying in Jerusalem, Israel and the first day that we got here we roamed the city with a tour guide and just got a "smell" for the city as he put it. Our group is staying within the Christian Quarters and the maze of markets makes it difficult to see any of the surroundings. I almost felt claustrophobic due to the amount of people trying to sell me souvenirs. This completely went against what I had imagined of Jerusalem: dirt roads and hillsides on a wide open landscape. In reality, behind the westernized, crowded society, Israel is a green and lush land.
With our 70 year-old Armenian tour guide, we went through the Four Quarters of Jerusalem. We began in the Christian Quarters and went to King Herod's palace where he decreed to have the children of Bethlehem killed because he was threatened by Jesus' coming.
Next, we were in the Armenian Quarters where we weren't allowed to see much because only Armenians are allowed in the church, but we learned about the history and how they commemorate the Armenian Genocide annually. We also went outside the gate in order to "climb" Mt. Zion which was only up 5 stairs until we got to the top. Then we were able to see the Room of the Last Supper which was turned into a Muslim mosque as well as a synagogoue at a different time. It was definitely weird to walk into the replication of that room and see the Qur'an written in Arabic and the niche that points to Mecca. A few feet away was the Tomb of David and he was buried there 3,000 years ago. We walked into the tomb and the men had to wear yamakas and be separated from the women. After following a hallway, David's giant casket was about 6 feet high and 15 feet long.
After this, we made our way over to the Jewish Quarter and saw the tourist-filled Wailing Wall. The bottom portion of this wall are the remains of King Herod's temple and it was filled with little notes written with people's prayers. Then we followed Jesus' trek to Mt. Calvary by way of Via Dolorosa. There were checkpoints along the way that marked all the events and times Jesus stopped. At the top of the hill is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and this is where they claim Jesus was crucified and buried. It was disturbing to see people weep and bow down on slabs of rock that they believed Jesus touched. It was as if they were worshiping the items and rubbing them to gain something superstitiously. This church disturbed everyone in my group and a lot of us were not sure how to feel being there. One thing was for sure, Jerusalem was not what any of us were expecting.
With our 70 year-old Armenian tour guide, we went through the Four Quarters of Jerusalem. We began in the Christian Quarters and went to King Herod's palace where he decreed to have the children of Bethlehem killed because he was threatened by Jesus' coming.
Next, we were in the Armenian Quarters where we weren't allowed to see much because only Armenians are allowed in the church, but we learned about the history and how they commemorate the Armenian Genocide annually. We also went outside the gate in order to "climb" Mt. Zion which was only up 5 stairs until we got to the top. Then we were able to see the Room of the Last Supper which was turned into a Muslim mosque as well as a synagogoue at a different time. It was definitely weird to walk into the replication of that room and see the Qur'an written in Arabic and the niche that points to Mecca. A few feet away was the Tomb of David and he was buried there 3,000 years ago. We walked into the tomb and the men had to wear yamakas and be separated from the women. After following a hallway, David's giant casket was about 6 feet high and 15 feet long.
After this, we made our way over to the Jewish Quarter and saw the tourist-filled Wailing Wall. The bottom portion of this wall are the remains of King Herod's temple and it was filled with little notes written with people's prayers. Then we followed Jesus' trek to Mt. Calvary by way of Via Dolorosa. There were checkpoints along the way that marked all the events and times Jesus stopped. At the top of the hill is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and this is where they claim Jesus was crucified and buried. It was disturbing to see people weep and bow down on slabs of rock that they believed Jesus touched. It was as if they were worshiping the items and rubbing them to gain something superstitiously. This church disturbed everyone in my group and a lot of us were not sure how to feel being there. One thing was for sure, Jerusalem was not what any of us were expecting.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Petra: One of the New Seven Wonders of the World
Today we were able to visit the ancient city of Petra where parts of Indiana Jones and the Holy Grail was filmed. It is so beautiful and the intricate designs carved into the rocks are astounding. Before this trip, I have ridden an elephant and a camel, but I have never been able to ride a horse. Well, this life-long goal was finally fulfilled as I rode an Appaloosa into Petra.
Eighty percent of the city of Petra is still underground, but what has been discovered is amazing. There is a water trench carved into the rock that spans the entire city. Water and earthquakes have allowed the mountains to separate and create a pathway. The main sights throughout all of Petra include carvings, tombs, and theatres. The Treasury is the most famous building in Petra and it is a grand structure that was either a house of worship or a tomb. It is made out of stone that is pinkish in color and also has tall columns and elaborate designs. I felt so small looking up at this structure that was built thousands of years ago.
After exploring this magnificent city I stopped in a small theatre to read and spend some time in solitude. It was so relaxing and just what I needed since we are not able to have very much alone time in a group of 30 people living in such small quarters. We had class and this exact location where we studied Arabic and a novel that we have been reading. What a blessing it has been to have class in such epic places and know that the world is our classroom.
Eighty percent of the city of Petra is still underground, but what has been discovered is amazing. There is a water trench carved into the rock that spans the entire city. Water and earthquakes have allowed the mountains to separate and create a pathway. The main sights throughout all of Petra include carvings, tombs, and theatres. The Treasury is the most famous building in Petra and it is a grand structure that was either a house of worship or a tomb. It is made out of stone that is pinkish in color and also has tall columns and elaborate designs. I felt so small looking up at this structure that was built thousands of years ago.
After exploring this magnificent city I stopped in a small theatre to read and spend some time in solitude. It was so relaxing and just what I needed since we are not able to have very much alone time in a group of 30 people living in such small quarters. We had class and this exact location where we studied Arabic and a novel that we have been reading. What a blessing it has been to have class in such epic places and know that the world is our classroom.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Jordanian Desert
Hello Everybody,
I know I have not posted in a long time, but this website has been blocked and we have not had internet. I am just going to start from a few days ago and update you all from there.
We entered Jordan late into the night on a ferry and had to wait for our passports to be redistributed to us from the ferry. Travel days usually involve waiting around for long periods of time. We finally got on our bus and were headed for our next location...we had no idea what we were in for. After driving for an hour we stopped at what we thought was our final destination and unloaded all of our backpacks. "Load 'em up!" was the next thing we heard. There were three vehicles waiting for us to take us to a Bedouin camp. There were about 20 seats for all 30 of us and oh what an interesting ride it was. The five person car that I chose to go in seated seven of us and the back door was being held in place by a paper clip and the side door did not close all the way and the front windshield was so dirty that the driver had to look out his window in order to see where we were going. All of our backpacks were on the roof with no straps holding them down and we were off-roading in the desert in the pitch black with no traces of civilization around. I can't even describe to you our sentiments especially since we were not sure where the men were taking us and if we were safe with them. After 20 mins of driving (this seemed much longer than just 20 mins) we arrived safely to a Bedouin camp. They were all so nice and they fed us and showed us great hospitality. Most of us slept outside since we found a huge spider in the tent and it was so beautiful. Most of us were settled in and we see what looks like a person in the distance coming from the middle of nowhere. Our hearts begin to race as we question the intentions of this figure. As it comes closer, we see that it is a camel hopping on three legs! One of the legs has been tied up to prevent it from running away too quickly. A man begins to chase his pet as we sit there in disbelief. Did we really just see that?
I know I have not posted in a long time, but this website has been blocked and we have not had internet. I am just going to start from a few days ago and update you all from there.
We entered Jordan late into the night on a ferry and had to wait for our passports to be redistributed to us from the ferry. Travel days usually involve waiting around for long periods of time. We finally got on our bus and were headed for our next location...we had no idea what we were in for. After driving for an hour we stopped at what we thought was our final destination and unloaded all of our backpacks. "Load 'em up!" was the next thing we heard. There were three vehicles waiting for us to take us to a Bedouin camp. There were about 20 seats for all 30 of us and oh what an interesting ride it was. The five person car that I chose to go in seated seven of us and the back door was being held in place by a paper clip and the side door did not close all the way and the front windshield was so dirty that the driver had to look out his window in order to see where we were going. All of our backpacks were on the roof with no straps holding them down and we were off-roading in the desert in the pitch black with no traces of civilization around. I can't even describe to you our sentiments especially since we were not sure where the men were taking us and if we were safe with them. After 20 mins of driving (this seemed much longer than just 20 mins) we arrived safely to a Bedouin camp. They were all so nice and they fed us and showed us great hospitality. Most of us slept outside since we found a huge spider in the tent and it was so beautiful. Most of us were settled in and we see what looks like a person in the distance coming from the middle of nowhere. Our hearts begin to race as we question the intentions of this figure. As it comes closer, we see that it is a camel hopping on three legs! One of the legs has been tied up to prevent it from running away too quickly. A man begins to chase his pet as we sit there in disbelief. Did we really just see that?
 |
| Our Bedouin camp :) |
The next morning different Bedouin tribes from all around Jordan helped bring 29 camels for all of us to ride into the desert. It was supposed to be 30, but they forgot one and Brock was left without a camel for the first quarter of the trip. We traveled on the camels for about three hours and most everyone was strapped to someone else’s camel and there was a driver pulling them along, but my driver let me take the reins all by myself and it was extremely fun. We got to our camping spot in the middle of the desert and slept under the stars on a sand dune watching the many shooting stars. It was definitely amazing!
 |
| Camping in the desert |
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Potatoes, Praises and Playtime
We are in Russia! Yesterday, after class, our team drove to a boarding school/orphanage and started our service projects in this country. Throughout the drive, we were able to witness the colorful houses with their decorative trim. The boarding house had an extremely colorful playground and a gorgeous view of hills and trees with a bright blue lake snaking through. Everything was so peaceful and I can’t believe how blessed I am to be able to see the world!
The particular project that I worked on was harvesting potatoes. Isn’t that awesome?! Jessica and I worked together on our rows and traded off shoveling and searching for the potatoes in the soil. It would sometimes get discouraging going for a couple feet without discovering potatoes, but we were always excited and cried out “kartushka!” or “potatoes!” when we finally saw the yellowish, small, circular vegetables. Digging all day reminded me of a certain movie and we started singing “Dig it” (from Holes) with some other members of the team closest to our rows. Those members, Joanna and Ellie, had a crazy experience harvesting potatoes. After shoveling for a while, they struck something hard and pulled out a bone! This wasn’t just a chicken bone; it was pretty big. We were debating whether it was an animal or human bone and after they dug a little deeper, they found a sock! Umm…a little creepy. Then somebody else found a shirt! Ellie and Joanna then found the bottom of a shoe and we found a piece of glass and a broken ceramic saucer. After playing a game of Clue, we concluded that the victim was murdered with a saucer, in the potato field, at night.
Every Thursday night, our team has a worship service called SHOUT and it is so awesome! Before I went on this trip I thought we would not feel God’s presence until Kenya, but He has been so obviously present from the beginning and I am excited to see what else will happen! Towards the end of the service, our Russian friends joined us in our praises. It was incredible being able to worship in two different languages at the same time to the same God. The words were all different and then at the end of “How Great is Our God,” we sang the word ‘Alleluya’ over and over again and in both languages it means praise be to God!!
The next day, we went to the home of one of the members of the church and they have six children (most of who are adopted). We cooked dinner for them and just had a good time of fellowship with the family. It was awkward at first not being able to connect with the kids, but within half an hour I was not able to catch a break. When we first got there only two children were at the house. Vova is a ten year old boy with a bit of an attitude, but once you get to know him he is such a sweet kid. Anton is the cutest four year old boy you could ever see and he was the most open with us. We were still waiting for our translator, so in order to connect with the kids; I rode in on a broomstick like a horse and was able to crack a smile from the boys. We played with trains and farm animals until two of their sisters came home. I don’t remember how old they were, but Dasha looked around 12 years old and she was really shy. Sabina was around 8 and she was a spunky little chatterbox. It took some time to get to know them, but they found it hilarious when they were spraying liquid from a bug spray container at our faces and we would playfully scream. We later found out that this liquid was only water so that was a relief. Then Dasha started teaching me Russian words and the only word I remember is ‘Baug’…spider. We moved onto a new book; Snow White, where I learned Doc’s name is still Doc and a dwarf is a ‘gnomic.’ Then somebody pulled out the UNO cards. It was so cute how Anton laid out all of his cards in front of him for everyone to see Finally, our translator came with her daughter Sasha; a blonde five year old little girl, who would run away playfully whenever I looked in her direction. I pretended to fall asleep so that she would have to come up to me, and then I would suddenly wake from my slumber and from that moment on, she wouldn’t leave my side. We then played hide-and-go-seek and it was hilarious how I would hide in plain sight and they were not able to find me! But once they did find me, they would scream at the top of their lungs in excitement. What a wonderful week in Vladimir, Russia!
 |
| Beautiful Russian houses |
The particular project that I worked on was harvesting potatoes. Isn’t that awesome?! Jessica and I worked together on our rows and traded off shoveling and searching for the potatoes in the soil. It would sometimes get discouraging going for a couple feet without discovering potatoes, but we were always excited and cried out “kartushka!” or “potatoes!” when we finally saw the yellowish, small, circular vegetables. Digging all day reminded me of a certain movie and we started singing “Dig it” (from Holes) with some other members of the team closest to our rows. Those members, Joanna and Ellie, had a crazy experience harvesting potatoes. After shoveling for a while, they struck something hard and pulled out a bone! This wasn’t just a chicken bone; it was pretty big. We were debating whether it was an animal or human bone and after they dug a little deeper, they found a sock! Umm…a little creepy. Then somebody else found a shirt! Ellie and Joanna then found the bottom of a shoe and we found a piece of glass and a broken ceramic saucer. After playing a game of Clue, we concluded that the victim was murdered with a saucer, in the potato field, at night.
 |
| Harvesting potatoes! |
Every Thursday night, our team has a worship service called SHOUT and it is so awesome! Before I went on this trip I thought we would not feel God’s presence until Kenya, but He has been so obviously present from the beginning and I am excited to see what else will happen! Towards the end of the service, our Russian friends joined us in our praises. It was incredible being able to worship in two different languages at the same time to the same God. The words were all different and then at the end of “How Great is Our God,” we sang the word ‘Alleluya’ over and over again and in both languages it means praise be to God!!
The next day, we went to the home of one of the members of the church and they have six children (most of who are adopted). We cooked dinner for them and just had a good time of fellowship with the family. It was awkward at first not being able to connect with the kids, but within half an hour I was not able to catch a break. When we first got there only two children were at the house. Vova is a ten year old boy with a bit of an attitude, but once you get to know him he is such a sweet kid. Anton is the cutest four year old boy you could ever see and he was the most open with us. We were still waiting for our translator, so in order to connect with the kids; I rode in on a broomstick like a horse and was able to crack a smile from the boys. We played with trains and farm animals until two of their sisters came home. I don’t remember how old they were, but Dasha looked around 12 years old and she was really shy. Sabina was around 8 and she was a spunky little chatterbox. It took some time to get to know them, but they found it hilarious when they were spraying liquid from a bug spray container at our faces and we would playfully scream. We later found out that this liquid was only water so that was a relief. Then Dasha started teaching me Russian words and the only word I remember is ‘Baug’…spider. We moved onto a new book; Snow White, where I learned Doc’s name is still Doc and a dwarf is a ‘gnomic.’ Then somebody pulled out the UNO cards. It was so cute how Anton laid out all of his cards in front of him for everyone to see Finally, our translator came with her daughter Sasha; a blonde five year old little girl, who would run away playfully whenever I looked in her direction. I pretended to fall asleep so that she would have to come up to me, and then I would suddenly wake from my slumber and from that moment on, she wouldn’t leave my side. We then played hide-and-go-seek and it was hilarious how I would hide in plain sight and they were not able to find me! But once they did find me, they would scream at the top of their lungs in excitement. What a wonderful week in Vladimir, Russia!
 |
| Dasha and I reading Snow White |
 |
| Sabina! |
 |
| Vavu giving me an evil eye and sitting next to Anton with all his cards laid out haha |
 |
| Anton! |
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Leaving Argentina
This past week seems like a blur and I cannot believe I am leaving tomorrow! My feelings are conflicted because I feel like a) time went by too fast and there is still so much I want to see in Buenos Aires and b) we have been here a long time because we have crammed so much in such a short amount of time and I am already comfortable here and have a daily routine. It is definitely a weird feeling and I am probably going to be feeling like this for the next four months.
I am going to try and recall the events of the last week: (I'm sorry I don't have any pictures on this blog. The internet connection is not stable enough, but I have uploaded more pictures onto my Facebook page)
Last Saturday, August 21, we took the kids we are working with to the zoo! Some of them were there for a photography class so we had groups and helped them with their assignments of taking pictures. The two kids I was taking care of, Lucia and Zacarias, are two of the most independent individuals I have ever seen in my life. Neither of them would listen to me and they both wanted to go off in seperate direction. I only lost them once haha. It was frustrating, but overall it was fun. One thing I noticed was that the animals looked sad and they looked dirty.
Then on Sunday, August 22, we went to an interesting church with a woman pastor...that's all I have to say about that. After that, we went to El Tigre and had an interesting boat ride with brown/black water, countless amounts of dead fish floating around, and a lot of shipwrecks. I felt like I was in Georgia or some southern state because the river seemed like roads and there were houses right along the river. It was interesting because there were really nice houses right next to abandoned run down houses. I've never seen anything like that, usually nice houses are together and they are separate from the abandoned houses.
That same night, we also had tango lessons in our hostel and it was extremely fun! We learned a lot and got to know each other better.
Thursday, August 26, was the best day ever!! I played hide-and-go-seek with Jack and Naomi (Dr. Norton's children) in the morning. In the afternoon, all the girls went to the park and had a girl's day out where we had an affirmation circle and told one person what we loved about them. When we got to the hostel, all of the guys had a surprise waiting for us. They had a home-cooked meal made for us on a candle lit table with romantic music playing. It was soo sweet! They had salad, rolls, spaghetti, wine, ice cream and hot chocolate. Then Aaron played us a song that he wrote and Sam did the same. We are so blessed to have these guys on this trip with us. That night, we met with the son of Tomas Eloy Martinez (the author of one of the books we are reading). First off, we walked in totally the wrong direction and we had to jump in cabs to meet him on the total opposite side of town and when we got there we tried to talk about his father's book and he had not even read it! Haha. He was also a little tipsy so that was very interesting! Hands down, it was the best day I can ever remember!
On Friday, August 27, we had class inside of the Water Palace!! What an amazing experience! I cannot believe that I get to do this! I am blown away...
And volunteering that day proved to be the last time I would see those kids on this trip :( At first the kids were mean to us, but now we have personal relationships with this children and it was hard to say goodbye. One of the little girls wouldn't leave my side until we got to the bus. I hope they have wonderful lives.
We also had SHOUT that night which is a worship service and it was amazing! I am utterly astounded at how obviously present God is making himself on this trip (as I am going to talk about later) and it was great to just all come together and give him the praise and glory He deserves.
Today, August 28, was a relaxed day off and some friends and I decided to go to San Telmo where we bought souveneirs from vendors, ate a nice lunch, and took pictures by La Casa Rosada (Evita's palace where she gave one of her speeches).
As I stated previously, God is working in our lives and it is so amazing! After we left our meeting with the author's son, a few people were walking back to the hostel and they met these three girls who were a little drunk. They got to talking to them and learned their life stories and one of the girls, Natalia, was saying that she never opens up to people but that she felt comfortable opening up to them because she felt something emanating from them-a good presence. She was saying how because of the trials she has been through it is hard for her to believe in God. Then some of our team gave their testimonies and it broke down her walls. I don't really know all that happened there because I left earlier, but I just know it was awesome. There were so many times that our team could have gone a different way or taken the subway or stayed on the other side of the street, but God obviously directed them to that spot and I think that is just astounding. He put them there for a reason and I believe that He definitely planted a seed in her through us. She also came to SHOUT on Friday night and I know the Holy Spirit was there that night as well. Also, from hearing stories from other team members about the miraculous wonders God has done in their life in order for them to go in this trip is just comforting and it gives us assurance that this is clearly God's will. This past week I have been overwhelmed with God's presence and it makes me want to glorify and worship Him.
I am going to try and recall the events of the last week: (I'm sorry I don't have any pictures on this blog. The internet connection is not stable enough, but I have uploaded more pictures onto my Facebook page)
Last Saturday, August 21, we took the kids we are working with to the zoo! Some of them were there for a photography class so we had groups and helped them with their assignments of taking pictures. The two kids I was taking care of, Lucia and Zacarias, are two of the most independent individuals I have ever seen in my life. Neither of them would listen to me and they both wanted to go off in seperate direction. I only lost them once haha. It was frustrating, but overall it was fun. One thing I noticed was that the animals looked sad and they looked dirty.
Then on Sunday, August 22, we went to an interesting church with a woman pastor...that's all I have to say about that. After that, we went to El Tigre and had an interesting boat ride with brown/black water, countless amounts of dead fish floating around, and a lot of shipwrecks. I felt like I was in Georgia or some southern state because the river seemed like roads and there were houses right along the river. It was interesting because there were really nice houses right next to abandoned run down houses. I've never seen anything like that, usually nice houses are together and they are separate from the abandoned houses.
That same night, we also had tango lessons in our hostel and it was extremely fun! We learned a lot and got to know each other better.
Thursday, August 26, was the best day ever!! I played hide-and-go-seek with Jack and Naomi (Dr. Norton's children) in the morning. In the afternoon, all the girls went to the park and had a girl's day out where we had an affirmation circle and told one person what we loved about them. When we got to the hostel, all of the guys had a surprise waiting for us. They had a home-cooked meal made for us on a candle lit table with romantic music playing. It was soo sweet! They had salad, rolls, spaghetti, wine, ice cream and hot chocolate. Then Aaron played us a song that he wrote and Sam did the same. We are so blessed to have these guys on this trip with us. That night, we met with the son of Tomas Eloy Martinez (the author of one of the books we are reading). First off, we walked in totally the wrong direction and we had to jump in cabs to meet him on the total opposite side of town and when we got there we tried to talk about his father's book and he had not even read it! Haha. He was also a little tipsy so that was very interesting! Hands down, it was the best day I can ever remember!
On Friday, August 27, we had class inside of the Water Palace!! What an amazing experience! I cannot believe that I get to do this! I am blown away...
And volunteering that day proved to be the last time I would see those kids on this trip :( At first the kids were mean to us, but now we have personal relationships with this children and it was hard to say goodbye. One of the little girls wouldn't leave my side until we got to the bus. I hope they have wonderful lives.
We also had SHOUT that night which is a worship service and it was amazing! I am utterly astounded at how obviously present God is making himself on this trip (as I am going to talk about later) and it was great to just all come together and give him the praise and glory He deserves.
Today, August 28, was a relaxed day off and some friends and I decided to go to San Telmo where we bought souveneirs from vendors, ate a nice lunch, and took pictures by La Casa Rosada (Evita's palace where she gave one of her speeches).
As I stated previously, God is working in our lives and it is so amazing! After we left our meeting with the author's son, a few people were walking back to the hostel and they met these three girls who were a little drunk. They got to talking to them and learned their life stories and one of the girls, Natalia, was saying that she never opens up to people but that she felt comfortable opening up to them because she felt something emanating from them-a good presence. She was saying how because of the trials she has been through it is hard for her to believe in God. Then some of our team gave their testimonies and it broke down her walls. I don't really know all that happened there because I left earlier, but I just know it was awesome. There were so many times that our team could have gone a different way or taken the subway or stayed on the other side of the street, but God obviously directed them to that spot and I think that is just astounding. He put them there for a reason and I believe that He definitely planted a seed in her through us. She also came to SHOUT on Friday night and I know the Holy Spirit was there that night as well. Also, from hearing stories from other team members about the miraculous wonders God has done in their life in order for them to go in this trip is just comforting and it gives us assurance that this is clearly God's will. This past week I have been overwhelmed with God's presence and it makes me want to glorify and worship Him.
Friday, August 20, 2010
La Recoleta Cemetario
This past summer I wandered the streets of Buenos Aires from Google Earth so that I could get more acquainted with the city. One of the places that I stumbled upon was the cemetery in Recoleta where the rows of tombs are beautifully carved and above ground for all to see. Today we had the privilege of having class in the cemetery! It was breathtakingly beautiful! After class, our assignment was to go off on our own in the cemetery and find something (anything) to write a story about. At first I was unsure of what I was going to write about, but then something caught my attention. There was one tomb where the glass was broken so I took a closer look inside and saw a disheartening display of vandalism such as broken glass, empty containers, ratted newspaper and just complete filth. It looked like a storage closet with a coffin inside. I was not phased by being in a cemetery all day, but this view suddenly made me feel a sort of pain in my heart. Who would do such a thing in what is considered, to some, a sacred place?
 |
| Only a small portion of the beautiful Recoleta cemetery |
 |
| Inside the tomb I chose to write my story on. (The screen is leaning against the coffin) |
As I stated in a previous blog, we are volunteering with the L.I.F.E. Argentina organization and helping kids get off the streets. I also vented in the past about how hectic it was to work with these children. Today; however, we went to a new location and things seemed to run more smoothly this time. It seemed that the event was more organized which allowed for less amounts of snapping at each other. I fell in love with this location and I just wanted to stop and take it all in. The area was a maze of dirt-paved alleys consisting of colorful clotheslines and unfinished brick houses. It is a perfect place to have this kind of an organization where they can help the children get an education and make something better of their lives. I am just filled with awe as I am thinking back on this opportunity. Especially thinking about how little they have and how content they are with their lives as well as how much can be done to help them. These children are precious and they deserve much more.
You can kind of get an idea of what this area looked like from behind a fellow peer.
 |
| Coloring with the kids | <><>
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Beautiful Buenos Aires
One thing I have noticed here is that the beauty of Buenos Aires can be seen from the second story up. All of the buildings have such beautiful architecture because it has that European influence mixed in. It is another story on the street level, though, because it is here that the poverty of Buenos Aires is shown. The graffiti is everywhere and it is interesting that most of it has to do with the government. There is also trash on the sidewalks. It just boggles my mind how contradicting the two parts of the city are.
The people here are also very different from home. I find that they are either excited to hear about where we are from or they are annoyed (either because we don't know how to speak their language or because they just don't like Americans). An interesting difference that we have also noticed is that people don't usually talk to each other when they are walking down the street or riding in a bus. I could tell you all the stories just from the past two days about the experiences that I have had with the people living here but that would take too long so I will save that for another time :)
During our stay here, we are working with a group called L.I.F.E. Argentina and yesterday was our first experience with them. This is a service that works with kids to help educate them and get them off the streets. Yesterday we celebrated all of the kids' birthdays in the month of August and let me just tell you--it was hectic! The kids have grown up in a home where there is no discipline and we were the ones that were paying for it. I had to continuously argue with the kids over the same thing...in Spanish. It was pretty difficult to try to get my point across and once I did, they wouldn't listen. But this wasn't true with all of them. I felt really special when these little girls made nine birthday cards for me! I told them my birthday wasn't until October, but they didn't care. They were so cute :)
 |
| Beautiful architecture in the Water Palace |
 |
| I'm sorry. I can't always get what I want! |
During our stay here, we are working with a group called L.I.F.E. Argentina and yesterday was our first experience with them. This is a service that works with kids to help educate them and get them off the streets. Yesterday we celebrated all of the kids' birthdays in the month of August and let me just tell you--it was hectic! The kids have grown up in a home where there is no discipline and we were the ones that were paying for it. I had to continuously argue with the kids over the same thing...in Spanish. It was pretty difficult to try to get my point across and once I did, they wouldn't listen. But this wasn't true with all of them. I felt really special when these little girls made nine birthday cards for me! I told them my birthday wasn't until October, but they didn't care. They were so cute :)
 |
| So precious! |
 |
| One of the birthday cards the girls made me. I think that is supposed to be a picture of me lol |
Today we went to La Boca which is an area known for its celebration of the Tango. The handmade artwork in the forms of jewelery, paintings, pottery, and clothing were sold up and down the street in little "farmer's market" stands. The restaurant we ate at for lunch/dinner had a tango show and they called a few of us up there to dance and take pictures with them. We all had so much fun! I also loved how every part of the city was covered in color! One building was painted multiple colors such as red, yellow, blue and green. It was truly an amazing sight to see and I cannot believe I am lucky enough to experience the world in this way!
 |
| La Boca :) |
 |
| I know this picture is a little crazy, but this is how the tango dancers made me pose |
 |
My camera does not do this picture justice |
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
The Adventure Begins!
Initial thoughts when I wake up: "It can't be August 16th already!" "I still have another month of summer left!" "I'm not ready" "I still don't know what to expect from this trip."
So after some sad goodbyes, we are off! I am feeling much better now that the goodbyes are behind me and I only have the trip to look forward to. At the airport we are given some time to go off and eat by ourselves but we are not told where and when to meet up. After eating for a while, three of my friends and I notice that we don't see anyone from our group around. We have to stand in a long line to go through security and we still don't see anybody. This is a great way to start off the trip! We were late to our first test! But we were able to take it without a problem and it was easier than I expected. The 12 hour plane ride to Peru was long but there were no problems. I got to know a fellow traveler, Jessica, better so that was good :) Then after our hour long layover in Lima, Peru we began to experience our first setbacks as a group. We were just miles away from Buenos Aires when we were informed by our captain (who was an inexperienced english speaker) that the weather conditions in Buenos Aires were not adecquate for landing. And so the adventure begins! We circled around Buenos Aires five times before he decided to fly the plane to Uruguay. That is three countries in one day! So we sat in the airplane in Uruguay for two hours before we were allowed to enter Argentina. It seemed like forever, but we were finally getting off an airplane for at least 2 weeks!!
After this, we discovered another little damper on our plans. Apparentally, the American government charges citizens of Argentina $140 to enter America so the Argentinian government charged the same reciprocal fee. This was unexpected but at least this fee is good for 10 years in case I want to come back! Once we got all of our luggage out and figured out the ride situation we were feeling a little bit better. I still didn't feel like I was in Buenos Aires; though, because it didn't look any different from Los Angeles. My viewpoint changed; however, after we got closer to the heart of Buenos Aires. We could see slums on the left side of the freeway and beautiful architecture on the right. We also saw the Water Palace and the Congress building.
Congress building
It was finally time for us to check into Hostel Milonga...and it was even cuter than the pictures online! We roamed around looking at each others' rooms and going on the roof looking at the view. After that excitement was over, our hunger kicked in so we ventured down the street in search of some food. We found this little restaurant right next to our hostel that served the best empanadas!! It was interesting because, at first, I was the most fluent in Spanish amongst the people in our small group. It was an adventure and an experience and I could tell the bored guys working there got a kick out of my attempt at their language. We were glad we got our point across; however, because the food was muy delicioso!!
So after some sad goodbyes, we are off! I am feeling much better now that the goodbyes are behind me and I only have the trip to look forward to. At the airport we are given some time to go off and eat by ourselves but we are not told where and when to meet up. After eating for a while, three of my friends and I notice that we don't see anyone from our group around. We have to stand in a long line to go through security and we still don't see anybody. This is a great way to start off the trip! We were late to our first test! But we were able to take it without a problem and it was easier than I expected. The 12 hour plane ride to Peru was long but there were no problems. I got to know a fellow traveler, Jessica, better so that was good :) Then after our hour long layover in Lima, Peru we began to experience our first setbacks as a group. We were just miles away from Buenos Aires when we were informed by our captain (who was an inexperienced english speaker) that the weather conditions in Buenos Aires were not adecquate for landing. And so the adventure begins! We circled around Buenos Aires five times before he decided to fly the plane to Uruguay. That is three countries in one day! So we sat in the airplane in Uruguay for two hours before we were allowed to enter Argentina. It seemed like forever, but we were finally getting off an airplane for at least 2 weeks!!
After this, we discovered another little damper on our plans. Apparentally, the American government charges citizens of Argentina $140 to enter America so the Argentinian government charged the same reciprocal fee. This was unexpected but at least this fee is good for 10 years in case I want to come back! Once we got all of our luggage out and figured out the ride situation we were feeling a little bit better. I still didn't feel like I was in Buenos Aires; though, because it didn't look any different from Los Angeles. My viewpoint changed; however, after we got closer to the heart of Buenos Aires. We could see slums on the left side of the freeway and beautiful architecture on the right. We also saw the Water Palace and the Congress building.
 |
| Slums in Buenos Aires |
 |
| Water Palace |
Congress building
It was finally time for us to check into Hostel Milonga...and it was even cuter than the pictures online! We roamed around looking at each others' rooms and going on the roof looking at the view. After that excitement was over, our hunger kicked in so we ventured down the street in search of some food. We found this little restaurant right next to our hostel that served the best empanadas!! It was interesting because, at first, I was the most fluent in Spanish amongst the people in our small group. It was an adventure and an experience and I could tell the bored guys working there got a kick out of my attempt at their language. We were glad we got our point across; however, because the food was muy delicioso!!
 |
| Hostel Milonga |
 |
| Delicious empanadas |
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
The Opportunity of a Lifetime
Last semester I was one of about 30 students to get chosen for an amazing experience. It truly is an opportunity of a lifetime. This is a study abroad program where we will study in ten different countries over a period of four months and stay in each country for about two weeks! We will travel to Argentina, Russia, Turkey, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, India, Indonesia and China. I can't wait! We are going to experience so much and learn things that we don't even know we need to learn yet. I have to give all the glory and credit to God. In the beginning I have to admit that I had the mindset that I was going to make this trip happen for me no matter what God had planned for me...I know I'm a horrible sinner. But He made it happen for me even though I was so selfish. I still can't believe how much He has shown Himself during the preparation of this trip! There was the $4,400 payment that was due in a short amount of time and He miraculously provided for us, the shots were going to be around $800 but they only cost about $200, and the list goes on and on. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that He wants me to go on this trip. I am normally a worry wart, but through this experience He has shown me that everything is in His hands. Whatever He wants to happen will happen. He has definitely proven that to me. And I don't think this trip is only for my enjoyment. I have a feeling it is going to be something bigger than that. But we shall see...
I am almost completely ready to go. Only eleven more days until I leave. I only need a few more things to buy and I will be on my way! I will miss everybody but I can't back down on this opportunity of a lifetime.
Catherine
I am almost completely ready to go. Only eleven more days until I leave. I only need a few more things to buy and I will be on my way! I will miss everybody but I can't back down on this opportunity of a lifetime.
Catherine
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)