Barcelona is great. So far the highlights have been consistently pleasant weather, warm and suny but not too hot, always a nice sea breeze. Relaxing on the beach yesterday afternoon. On my walk back to town, coming across a rad local band playing in front of the harbor for free. Starting up a conversation with some guys from the US and Austria and hanging out at a park with them and some folks from France, Spain, Austria and slack lining. Super laid back, super fun. Going to the fresh market for breakfast, oogling all the beautiful new produce I've never seen before, sipping a coconut-banana-chocolate fresh fruit smoothy shake thing. Yum.
As I embark on two months of travel I would very much appreciate prayer. Some ideas for you:
Pray that whatever I do, whether in word or deed, that I do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to the Father through him (Colossians 3:17)
Pray that I am purposeful and prayerful throughout my days beyond just looking at old buildings and taking pictures: Devote yourself to prayer, being watchful and thankful...be wise in the way you cat toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation always be full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. -Colossians 4:2, 5-6
Pray that I wouldn´t feel too alone or isolated as I travel alone and that I would get the chance to meet and be a friend to other travelers.
Pray that I would learn more about God, about this world, about humanity, about justice, about loving...the things that will help me live fuller, and love God and others better.
Thank you friends! Know also that you are also in my prayers. Let me know if there are specific ways I can pray for you.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
¡Soy en Barcelona, Spain! ¡Soy Feliz!
I made it safely to Spain yesterday. Woohoo. I haven`t done much yet because I got here in the evening but I walked down to the harbor in the dark. Beautiful. I`ve got a few days here and then on Sunday I`ll be heading a bit west to where I will be WWOOFing.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Do Cows Attack? and other Tirolean Tales
This week we had another 4 day weekend, sad (and yet not). On Thursday I decided to explore more on my beautiful borrowed bike. So I headed towards Italy. Unfortunately the trail ends up joining the twisty mountain highway with a super narrow shoulder so it was at that point that my helmet-less brain decided it was time to turn around. Sad. But on the way back I encountered a small heard of cows on the trail. I didn't think cows were violent but I haven't actually ever been near cows not behind a fence. My first inclination was fear since in Alaska, anything as big as a cow is usually something you don't want to get near, but as I thought about it, I decided that cows were not dangerous after all. I survived.
It had been overcast but pleasantly warm the whole day and then I felt a raindrop, then 4, then within a few minutes it was absolutely pouring. So I had a half an hour of rain riding. Luckily it wasn't cold but after my rainy bike accident a few weeks go, I was super careful when making turns or going over bumps and lumps.
On Friday I got tons of stuff done planning my trip to Spain, and then I rode my bike to Imst (1 hr one way) to hang out with my friend Raphi. The weather was nice so we sat outside at a cafe and had ice cream and "Suesser Weiss" a "sweet white", which is white wine with some sort of sweet soda or something, super good, you can get it with red wine too. She gave me a beautiful book of the 40 coolest mountains in Tirol and a CD. So cool, she wasn't sure if I'd like the book, but she couldn't have found something more perfect. It is big an had great photos. We've actually got plans to head to one of them on Monday. The Zugspitze is the tallest mountain in Germany but it is right on the boarder of Austria so the summit ridge is the line between the two countries. It's only a 30 minute drive from Imst. I guess you can take a cable car to the top (wow! That is weird) and then hike around from the top. I told her that in the US we usually have to start our mountain hikes at the bottom. But it is pretty common here to have something like a lift or cable car at least part way up. Oh, yeah, and after the hike we are going to go to the best ice cream shop in Tirol.
How could it get any better? A day in the mountains with friend and ice cream afterwards!
I also got to go climbing with Johanna on Saturday. We met halfway between Innsbruck and Landeck. We led some fun routes and then got to share a few ropes with another group and so we got to try some hard stuff on top rope. What a good challenge.
I can't believe I won't be here in a week. I am just starting to realize it. When I went on my run today and looked around at the mountians and my regular trails and the river, I realized, I will only run by this river on this trail a couple more times (assuming I am not too lazy this week). And I'll only go to the bank where they actually remember my name one more time, and I won't get to stick around till mid June when they finally open the mountain huts behind my town. And I have to start saying good bye. Hmmm.
It had been overcast but pleasantly warm the whole day and then I felt a raindrop, then 4, then within a few minutes it was absolutely pouring. So I had a half an hour of rain riding. Luckily it wasn't cold but after my rainy bike accident a few weeks go, I was super careful when making turns or going over bumps and lumps.
On Friday I got tons of stuff done planning my trip to Spain, and then I rode my bike to Imst (1 hr one way) to hang out with my friend Raphi. The weather was nice so we sat outside at a cafe and had ice cream and "Suesser Weiss" a "sweet white", which is white wine with some sort of sweet soda or something, super good, you can get it with red wine too. She gave me a beautiful book of the 40 coolest mountains in Tirol and a CD. So cool, she wasn't sure if I'd like the book, but she couldn't have found something more perfect. It is big an had great photos. We've actually got plans to head to one of them on Monday. The Zugspitze is the tallest mountain in Germany but it is right on the boarder of Austria so the summit ridge is the line between the two countries. It's only a 30 minute drive from Imst. I guess you can take a cable car to the top (wow! That is weird) and then hike around from the top. I told her that in the US we usually have to start our mountain hikes at the bottom. But it is pretty common here to have something like a lift or cable car at least part way up. Oh, yeah, and after the hike we are going to go to the best ice cream shop in Tirol.
How could it get any better? A day in the mountains with friend and ice cream afterwards!
I also got to go climbing with Johanna on Saturday. We met halfway between Innsbruck and Landeck. We led some fun routes and then got to share a few ropes with another group and so we got to try some hard stuff on top rope. What a good challenge.
I can't believe I won't be here in a week. I am just starting to realize it. When I went on my run today and looked around at the mountians and my regular trails and the river, I realized, I will only run by this river on this trail a couple more times (assuming I am not too lazy this week). And I'll only go to the bank where they actually remember my name one more time, and I won't get to stick around till mid June when they finally open the mountain huts behind my town. And I have to start saying good bye. Hmmm.
Monday, May 19, 2008
My Plans...to infinity and beyond
In exactly 11 days (5 days of actual class) my mission as an English TA in Austria will be complete. Wow, that's crazy. I actually started saying goodbye to people at church since I will probably be out of town the next two weekends and have started gathering my possessions to see if they will all fit back into two suitcases. Oh yeah, at this point, if you were thinking of mailing something, you should maybe not send it after all.
My plans for the next couple months just so ya'll know:
May 29 Last day of work
29-June 2 ? Play, pack, hang out, climb ?
June 3 Fly to Barcelona, Spain
June 9-20ish Work on an organic farm near Barcelona, get dirty, learn cool stuff
June 20-July 7 Climb, travel, eat Tapas, drink sangria, learn Spanish, ....
July 8 Fly from Barcelona back to Innsbruck
July 10 Allie arrives from the land of fast food and apple pie.
Go climbing and travel with Johanna
July29 Allie flies out of Innsbruck at 6am, me at 1pm.
She goes to Portland, I got to Boston, spend a few days with the Getbeheads.
Not entirely sure yet, but I will probably be in WA between the 2 and 5th of August. I might be attending a training for my YDA internship on the 2-3 of Aug in Florida but I don't know yet. Especially while I'm in Spain, I will probably not have much access to Internet or other forms of communication. I will have my Austrian cell phone with me if there is an emergency.
That's all for now. I will probably write some more in the near future but I've got a cold and need to get into bed.
My plans for the next couple months just so ya'll know:
May 29 Last day of work
29-June 2 ? Play, pack, hang out, climb ?
June 3 Fly to Barcelona, Spain
June 9-20ish Work on an organic farm near Barcelona, get dirty, learn cool stuff
June 20-July 7 Climb, travel, eat Tapas, drink sangria, learn Spanish, ....
July 8 Fly from Barcelona back to Innsbruck
July 10 Allie arrives from the land of fast food and apple pie.
Go climbing and travel with Johanna
July29 Allie flies out of Innsbruck at 6am, me at 1pm.
She goes to Portland, I got to Boston, spend a few days with the Getbeheads.
Not entirely sure yet, but I will probably be in WA between the 2 and 5th of August. I might be attending a training for my YDA internship on the 2-3 of Aug in Florida but I don't know yet. Especially while I'm in Spain, I will probably not have much access to Internet or other forms of communication. I will have my Austrian cell phone with me if there is an emergency.
That's all for now. I will probably write some more in the near future but I've got a cold and need to get into bed.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Spring and Lederhosen are in the air
Sorry it's been so long. I've been keeping busy but I guess I also felt like the "Adventure" post was so well thought out, that I wanted to follow up with something decent. But alas, I don't think I have any huge thoughts this time, just some updating.
First of all, I hope this works again, I've posted photos from the last month of so on Facebook, including a traditional Austrian dance with Lederhosen and me in dirndl, as well as beautiful mountains. Check it out:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2113644&id=25913493&ref=share
And now a different format; a list of things I'm currently stoked about:
Today I saw my least favorite class for the last time! There are some great and nice kids in this first period class but some of them just have nasty attitudes, don't listen, throw paper and other stupid things. But now it's done!
One more period of class today and I only have three weeks of school left. The funny thing is though, we have several 4 day weekends and since the graduating classes are writing exams, have fewer classes per week.
After very volatile but warming weather, it has started to stabilize more. It's been 70+ degrees the last week or so and sunny almost the whole day. I'm losing my winter translucence and discovering new freckles every day.
My landlady let me borrow an extra bike the family has, so I've been scooting around Landeck and riding to Church in Imst (about an hour one way) for the last couple weeks.
The outdoor swimming pool, that's only a 5 min walk from my house, opened so yesterday I went and froze my buns off in the still cold water, but was able to jump out and lay in the warm sun afterwards. I would have swam longer but I kept getting leg cramps. I'm not sure why, maybe cuz it was so cold?
I bought a plane ticket to Barcelona, Spain! Woohoo! I will be in Spain from June 3 to July 8. i am in the process of trying to plan a two week stay at an organic farm with the organization World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF). You can find out more about them at http://www.wwoof.org/. I will spend most of the other two weeks rock climbing and am trying to figure out if I can meet up with some of my German relatives who will also be in Spain around that time.
I have a four day weekend this weekend so I am leaving this afternoon and hiking up into the mountains behind my house for a four day four night backpacking trip. Alone. This is the first overnight trip I've ever done in the back country. Another TA was considering coming but got a cold and backed out. So I'm armed with all my gear, my Bible, Spanish phrase book so I ca practice, and a climbing book in German by Reinhold Messner-good inspiration while in the mountains.
I've got to run in a minute, but for the praying types out there here are a few prayer requests:
Thanks and praise for my fading homesickness and down-ness has given way to enjoyment of spring and excitement for my coming adventures. Also for the cool stuff I've been learning in the word.
Purposefulness this weekend hiking alone, in my final weeks in Landeck and with the relationships I've built here.
For the coming transitions from work to play and culture shock from Austria to Spain, new language, etc., then Allie's visit in July (yes, that's right, she's coming again) and then again when I return home at the end of July.
OK gotta run to class. Don't forget to check out the funny pictures!
First of all, I hope this works again, I've posted photos from the last month of so on Facebook, including a traditional Austrian dance with Lederhosen and me in dirndl, as well as beautiful mountains. Check it out:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2113644&id=25913493&ref=share
And now a different format; a list of things I'm currently stoked about:
Today I saw my least favorite class for the last time! There are some great and nice kids in this first period class but some of them just have nasty attitudes, don't listen, throw paper and other stupid things. But now it's done!
One more period of class today and I only have three weeks of school left. The funny thing is though, we have several 4 day weekends and since the graduating classes are writing exams, have fewer classes per week.
After very volatile but warming weather, it has started to stabilize more. It's been 70+ degrees the last week or so and sunny almost the whole day. I'm losing my winter translucence and discovering new freckles every day.
My landlady let me borrow an extra bike the family has, so I've been scooting around Landeck and riding to Church in Imst (about an hour one way) for the last couple weeks.
The outdoor swimming pool, that's only a 5 min walk from my house, opened so yesterday I went and froze my buns off in the still cold water, but was able to jump out and lay in the warm sun afterwards. I would have swam longer but I kept getting leg cramps. I'm not sure why, maybe cuz it was so cold?
I bought a plane ticket to Barcelona, Spain! Woohoo! I will be in Spain from June 3 to July 8. i am in the process of trying to plan a two week stay at an organic farm with the organization World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF). You can find out more about them at http://www.wwoof.org/. I will spend most of the other two weeks rock climbing and am trying to figure out if I can meet up with some of my German relatives who will also be in Spain around that time.
I have a four day weekend this weekend so I am leaving this afternoon and hiking up into the mountains behind my house for a four day four night backpacking trip. Alone. This is the first overnight trip I've ever done in the back country. Another TA was considering coming but got a cold and backed out. So I'm armed with all my gear, my Bible, Spanish phrase book so I ca practice, and a climbing book in German by Reinhold Messner-good inspiration while in the mountains.
I've got to run in a minute, but for the praying types out there here are a few prayer requests:
Thanks and praise for my fading homesickness and down-ness has given way to enjoyment of spring and excitement for my coming adventures. Also for the cool stuff I've been learning in the word.
Purposefulness this weekend hiking alone, in my final weeks in Landeck and with the relationships I've built here.
For the coming transitions from work to play and culture shock from Austria to Spain, new language, etc., then Allie's visit in July (yes, that's right, she's coming again) and then again when I return home at the end of July.
OK gotta run to class. Don't forget to check out the funny pictures!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Or on Wednesdays
Saturdays, a song by Late Tuesday-who are from the NW somewhere
Bake another cake please
I really need a party
to pull everyone together.
I'm shaking off this bad dream
I know, I'll make it through till morning
And then I'll pull it all together.
There are ways, on these days
there are ways to celebrate
what is great on Saturdays
though I'm still learning.
So pull out your umbrella
we're pushing through the downpour
you know, you make up for the weather
and we'll pop in a movie
and then we'll talk for hours
about the things
that make up for the heartache.
I'm letting the sun appear brighter
You're making the dark appear lighter
And this is exactly what is good for me
On these days, on these days
I'm still learning
what is great on Saturdays.
So that subsiding feeling of homesickness I mentioned in the last post? Not so subsided now. I still know it won't kill me but I'm at the point where I'm wondering why I didn't buy my plane ticket for the beginning of July instead of the end. And this may seem silly but I seriously feel like my mood and energy has been affected by the weather. Today? Pouring rain and cold again. Considering how much sleep I've gotten lately, I'm pretty puzzled by how little energy I have. I've been taking a daily vitamin so I shouldn't be low on iron, I've been trying to eat salty stuff, so it shouldn't be my low blood pressure. Just the blahs?
I read this though, "I love the Lord, for he heard my voice..." Psalm 116:1
What is the adventure in this? How can I appreciate it? How can I pull out of my half-heartedness right now? Lord, give me the strength, cuz this isn't something I'm going to do on my own.
Bake another cake please
I really need a party
to pull everyone together.
I'm shaking off this bad dream
I know, I'll make it through till morning
And then I'll pull it all together.
There are ways, on these days
there are ways to celebrate
what is great on Saturdays
though I'm still learning.
So pull out your umbrella
we're pushing through the downpour
you know, you make up for the weather
and we'll pop in a movie
and then we'll talk for hours
about the things
that make up for the heartache.
I'm letting the sun appear brighter
You're making the dark appear lighter
And this is exactly what is good for me
On these days, on these days
I'm still learning
what is great on Saturdays.
So that subsiding feeling of homesickness I mentioned in the last post? Not so subsided now. I still know it won't kill me but I'm at the point where I'm wondering why I didn't buy my plane ticket for the beginning of July instead of the end. And this may seem silly but I seriously feel like my mood and energy has been affected by the weather. Today? Pouring rain and cold again. Considering how much sleep I've gotten lately, I'm pretty puzzled by how little energy I have. I've been taking a daily vitamin so I shouldn't be low on iron, I've been trying to eat salty stuff, so it shouldn't be my low blood pressure. Just the blahs?
I read this though, "I love the Lord, for he heard my voice..." Psalm 116:1
What is the adventure in this? How can I appreciate it? How can I pull out of my half-heartedness right now? Lord, give me the strength, cuz this isn't something I'm going to do on my own.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Plan C: Uploading Pictures
Like I've mentioned before, it takes forever to upload picutures onto Blogger because it has to be done one picture at a time. I already put pictures on Facebook and finally (I think) figured out how to get a link for those of you who do not have Facebook accounts. So click on these links and let me know if they work.
This is the beginning of Mom and Dad's visit including Landeck, Innsbruck, and some of Venice:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=25913493&k=Z6C43XR54XVM5CCBYE45PR
This is the rest of Venice and then Vienna, Austria:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=25913493&k=Z2FU5YQ4P4VM5CCBYE45PR
This is Bratislava, Slovakia and Mannheim, Germany with our family:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=25913493&k=YXAX3XQ5V64M5CCBYE45PR
So, hopefully this finally works so the rest of you can see photos but I don't spend my whole life uploding them!
My slight but growing feelings of homesickness have subsided somewhat after a rousing weekend with friends. On Friday I invited Johanna to go to see the Banff Mountain Film Festival in Innsbruck, a festival that shows all sorts of outdoor adventure films. When I was at Western, I went and saw it with friends every year. One film shown this year, The Endless Knot, with Conrad Anker, showed the Khumbu Climbing School that trains Sherpas to be more skilled for porting and guiding in the Himalayas. The Sherpas sang the song 'Ice, Ice, Baby' by Vanilla Ice but changed the lyrics to talk about the school and training. This immediatly reminded me of the ice climbing trips with the Outdoor Center that I went on. Deborah and I thought of the same song and then I ended up making up some new words for it (before The Endless Knot was filmed I might add). It went like this:
"Ice ice baby..dun dun dun dundalunda..."Yo Debo let's kick it/Ice ice baby (x2)/All right stop collaborate and climb it/OC is back with a brand new excursion/This fat ice grabs a hold of me tightly /Flow with my ice tools daily and nightly /Will it ever stop yo I don't know/Put me on belay and I'll go /To the extreme I rock these crampons like a vandal..."
Afterward we went to the birthday party of a friend of hers and danced the night away. The next moring I helped her correct some of her students' essays for English and then headed home. In the afternoon I had another friend over, Raphi. We went for a walk in the beautiful warm weather ( got to wear my Chacos, but still a long sleeve shirt) then I cooked dinner, we made chocolate chip cookies, and watched The 6th Sense in German.
After about a week of crazy winter weather and lots of snow again, it has finally started to feel like spring. Yesterday I went on one of my beloved run-hikes where I run as much as I can to a trail and then slow to a hike once it gets steep. (Allie, this is the trail you and I hiked on and turned around at the frozen waterfall crossing the trail. I was able to go further this time.) It was so warm, I laid down in the one grassy outcropping for a half an hour, just in my shorts and tank top and just enjoyed the sun. I was so exhausted afterwards, but it was beautiful and refreshing. In the evening I got to talk to a couple friends on Skype who I haven't gotten to talk to in a long time, so that was great. Then I managed to get into bed in time to get 8 hours of sleep. Unfortunately, I don't have any proof, so I'm sure none of you will believe me.
This is the beginning of Mom and Dad's visit including Landeck, Innsbruck, and some of Venice:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=25913493&k=Z6C43XR54XVM5CCBYE45PR
This is the rest of Venice and then Vienna, Austria:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=25913493&k=Z2FU5YQ4P4VM5CCBYE45PR
This is Bratislava, Slovakia and Mannheim, Germany with our family:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=25913493&k=YXAX3XQ5V64M5CCBYE45PR
So, hopefully this finally works so the rest of you can see photos but I don't spend my whole life uploding them!
My slight but growing feelings of homesickness have subsided somewhat after a rousing weekend with friends. On Friday I invited Johanna to go to see the Banff Mountain Film Festival in Innsbruck, a festival that shows all sorts of outdoor adventure films. When I was at Western, I went and saw it with friends every year. One film shown this year, The Endless Knot, with Conrad Anker, showed the Khumbu Climbing School that trains Sherpas to be more skilled for porting and guiding in the Himalayas. The Sherpas sang the song 'Ice, Ice, Baby' by Vanilla Ice but changed the lyrics to talk about the school and training. This immediatly reminded me of the ice climbing trips with the Outdoor Center that I went on. Deborah and I thought of the same song and then I ended up making up some new words for it (before The Endless Knot was filmed I might add). It went like this:
"Ice ice baby..dun dun dun dundalunda..."Yo Debo let's kick it/Ice ice baby (x2)/All right stop collaborate and climb it/OC is back with a brand new excursion/This fat ice grabs a hold of me tightly /Flow with my ice tools daily and nightly /Will it ever stop yo I don't know/Put me on belay and I'll go /To the extreme I rock these crampons like a vandal..."
Afterward we went to the birthday party of a friend of hers and danced the night away. The next moring I helped her correct some of her students' essays for English and then headed home. In the afternoon I had another friend over, Raphi. We went for a walk in the beautiful warm weather ( got to wear my Chacos, but still a long sleeve shirt) then I cooked dinner, we made chocolate chip cookies, and watched The 6th Sense in German.
After about a week of crazy winter weather and lots of snow again, it has finally started to feel like spring. Yesterday I went on one of my beloved run-hikes where I run as much as I can to a trail and then slow to a hike once it gets steep. (Allie, this is the trail you and I hiked on and turned around at the frozen waterfall crossing the trail. I was able to go further this time.) It was so warm, I laid down in the one grassy outcropping for a half an hour, just in my shorts and tank top and just enjoyed the sun. I was so exhausted afterwards, but it was beautiful and refreshing. In the evening I got to talk to a couple friends on Skype who I haven't gotten to talk to in a long time, so that was great. Then I managed to get into bed in time to get 8 hours of sleep. Unfortunately, I don't have any proof, so I'm sure none of you will believe me.
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