My roommate got second place in the talent show on Friday! We had a little roommate party afterwards to celebrate. On Saturday, we helped rake leaves at the orphanage because it was ‘Darom’, or Lithuanian environment and cleaning day. All over Lithuania, people were cleaning the streets and picking up trash.
Plans changed on Sunday though. My roommate and I were planning to go to Nida, a nearby port city, to see the famous sand dunes. We would be back in time for the evening church service at Salvation Army. Early in the morning, as we were getting ready to leave, she decided that she was really too tired to go. I was very disappointed, and with all of my roommates sleeping, decided to go for an early morning walk. I strolled a little ways downtown and to the ferry dock, where all the ships were. It was beautiful there, with the sparkling water and the sea gulls flying in circles above. I read my Bible and prayed for a while there. Then, I walked back to go to church but met a friend who invited me to go to his church in the afternoon. So, I ended up going to both church services. I think God was trying to teach me something; to make Him more of a priority. I had selfishly wanted to spend the day at the beach, but my plans weren’t God’s plans. After the church services, I felt spiritually refreshed and encouraged in the Word. My favorite verse this semester has been Psalms 86:11 which says, “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name”.
On a different note, I’ve also understood a little more about European history and events. It’s interesting how some news events have impacted me while in Europe. With the volcano in Iceland, thousands of flights have been cancelled. A friend of mine couldn’t leave to go to Switzerland and right now, it would be very hard to leave Europe. All of a sudden, it has gotten pretty chilly and we have had to wear our coats again. They said that this was because of the ashes in the air that caused the chilling. Also, with the tragedy that happened in Poland a while ago, there were flags everywhere in Lithuania. We had a school assembly where we raised the Polish flag at half-mast and prayed for the Polish people. And a week after we left Moscow, the bombings in the Metro occurred. It is a very big place with millions of people, but still, being so near the incident personalized the matter. I’ve also learned from my Ukrainian friends’ opinions during the Ukrainian elections a few months ago.
Tonight we had our last dinner together as a study abroad group, with good Lithuanian food. It was fun, yet sad at the same time because we'll all be going our separate ways in 2 short weeks.
martes, 20 de abril de 2010
jueves, 15 de abril de 2010
More travels and goodbye to practicum classes
Last weekend, the study abroad program took us to Tallinn, Estonia and Riga, Latvia. We took an LCC bus all night towards Estonia and spent the day in Tallinn, the capital. We spent the majority of our time exploring the old town, with its castles and medieval style tourist attractions. We rode bikes on the beach, went to a history museum, and saw the city from a hill.
On Saturday morning, I convinced some friends to wake up early in the morning and go to the 8:00 Catholic mass at St Peter's cathedral. I was reallly excited about this because it is a traditional service in Latin! When I woke up in the morning, I think I was a little too excited because I thought my watch said 7:50 and hurriedly woke up my friend. We ran the whole way because we thought we were late, but then looked at our watches and noticed that it was only 7:15. I had woken up at 6:50! We had a good laugh at that and went back to the hostel to wait until the service actually started. The service was an interesting experience.
We only had half of the day in Riga before we drove back to Klaipeda. Sometimes I wonder what the point of tourism is and I don't like the idea of consumerism, but going to these places is helping me understand the culture and history better. It's also opening my eyes to so many different things. After 2 weekends in a row of traveling, it will be nice to spend the weekend here and go to the usual Sunday services and my Friday night Bible study.
I feel like I'm constantly reminded that I only have 2 weeks left here and want to make the most of my time here, spending it by doing things with my friends. This Friday, my roommate has a solo in the Talent show and another friend is presenting her thesis on Saturday.
The weather has been sooo wonderful here! I stopped wearing my coat for the first time and have been going for walks with friends.
Sadly, this is my last week of teaching! Yesterday, for the last class we presented the adult class with certificates and personalized notes. We cut a cake and had juice. The class surprised us by giving us chocolate and bouquets of roses and bringing out the wine! They even made a toast and a speech to thank us for teaching the class. This experience amused me because it was a cultural difference in wanting to drink wine instead of the juice we brought! We also presented the kids' classes with certificates and treats. It was rewarding to see how much they learned throughout the whole course.
On Saturday morning, I convinced some friends to wake up early in the morning and go to the 8:00 Catholic mass at St Peter's cathedral. I was reallly excited about this because it is a traditional service in Latin! When I woke up in the morning, I think I was a little too excited because I thought my watch said 7:50 and hurriedly woke up my friend. We ran the whole way because we thought we were late, but then looked at our watches and noticed that it was only 7:15. I had woken up at 6:50! We had a good laugh at that and went back to the hostel to wait until the service actually started. The service was an interesting experience.
We only had half of the day in Riga before we drove back to Klaipeda. Sometimes I wonder what the point of tourism is and I don't like the idea of consumerism, but going to these places is helping me understand the culture and history better. It's also opening my eyes to so many different things. After 2 weekends in a row of traveling, it will be nice to spend the weekend here and go to the usual Sunday services and my Friday night Bible study.
I feel like I'm constantly reminded that I only have 2 weeks left here and want to make the most of my time here, spending it by doing things with my friends. This Friday, my roommate has a solo in the Talent show and another friend is presenting her thesis on Saturday.
The weather has been sooo wonderful here! I stopped wearing my coat for the first time and have been going for walks with friends.
Sadly, this is my last week of teaching! Yesterday, for the last class we presented the adult class with certificates and personalized notes. We cut a cake and had juice. The class surprised us by giving us chocolate and bouquets of roses and bringing out the wine! They even made a toast and a speech to thank us for teaching the class. This experience amused me because it was a cultural difference in wanting to drink wine instead of the juice we brought! We also presented the kids' classes with certificates and treats. It was rewarding to see how much they learned throughout the whole course.
lunes, 5 de abril de 2010
Easter weekend
This weekend I went to Poland to visit the Snyders, a missionary family there- I think I forgot to mention this. Traveling by myself was an interesting and challenging experience, but God took care of me! The Snyders- Steve, Bernatka, Veronika, and Daniel- live in a smaller city near Warsaw. I got to stay in their house and see their church and ministry. There were lots of people at their house because of the Easter holiday. I decorated Easter eggs with the family and then looked for the hidden Easter eggs the next day. It was really nice to be with a family in a home for the holiday!
On Saturday, I went with them to their English club ministry. It is a fun way to learn conversational English and the Bible at the same. We read and discussed the miracle at Cana in separate groups. We talked about believing and what that means as a follower of Christ. The rest of the time was spent playing group games and singing English worship songs.
On Easter Sunday, there was a special service at their small church. I really like this church because it is small and everybody knows everybody else. After the service, people typically stay after and talk to each other for a long time. Everybody was very friendly and after the service they had a potluck for all to join. Polish food is really good! The Snyders are a really great family and were very hospitable. I had fun while I was there.
On my way back to Lithuania, I stopped at a smaller town to meet up with an LCC group that took a bus to a museum festival. It is an open air museum in a national park with lakes and forests. So, we did a lot of walking! Since it was Easter Monday, everybody had baskets of eggs and played traditional games with the eggs. There was traditional music and dancing. The dances are fun group dances where everybody is hopping in circles or swinging their partners. I rode back with the LCC gang and didn't get back until late last night.
This Thursday, the study abroad group is traveling to Latvia and Estonia for the weekend. Pray for safe travels for this trip as well!
On Saturday, I went with them to their English club ministry. It is a fun way to learn conversational English and the Bible at the same. We read and discussed the miracle at Cana in separate groups. We talked about believing and what that means as a follower of Christ. The rest of the time was spent playing group games and singing English worship songs.
On Easter Sunday, there was a special service at their small church. I really like this church because it is small and everybody knows everybody else. After the service, people typically stay after and talk to each other for a long time. Everybody was very friendly and after the service they had a potluck for all to join. Polish food is really good! The Snyders are a really great family and were very hospitable. I had fun while I was there.
On my way back to Lithuania, I stopped at a smaller town to meet up with an LCC group that took a bus to a museum festival. It is an open air museum in a national park with lakes and forests. So, we did a lot of walking! Since it was Easter Monday, everybody had baskets of eggs and played traditional games with the eggs. There was traditional music and dancing. The dances are fun group dances where everybody is hopping in circles or swinging their partners. I rode back with the LCC gang and didn't get back until late last night.
This Thursday, the study abroad group is traveling to Latvia and Estonia for the weekend. Pray for safe travels for this trip as well!
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