Mind the Gap

Hello again! You'll have to forgive me if this post doesn't make much sense. It's almost 3am and I'm really tired!


So much has happened since Monday! I've had an absolutely crazy adventure in London as well as moved residence.

The London underground is one of the most fascinating things I've ever done. You can literally cross a massive city in a few minutes quite easily if you can navigate the stops and manage not to fall into the gap between the train and the platform, which a kind recording reminds you about at EVERY stop. "Welcome to such-and-such a station! Mind the gap!" You can even buy t-shirts that have the reminder printed on them. I love it. I'm sure the novelty wears off when you live there, but I get really excited about taking the tubes.

On Friday Emma and I took the overground train to London, which was in itself an adventure, to apply for our student visas, spent the day in London, came home at 1am, then today we moved out of the centre and into the new house we're staying in. An eventful couple of days!

Let me catch you up to speed on the current visa situation. Here's what happened before London:

*We went to India in November with the rest of the Gap Years on tourist visas. When we applied for our visas, the UK people got six month multi-entry, while the Americans got three month singles. This is pretty standard if you apply from the UK as a non-UK passport holder.
*This last year, there is a new rule that says you must be out of India for two months before applying for a new tourist visa.
*We were told to re-apply in the states in order to get a six month visa. But since our old visas were not expired yet, we would have to get an exemption to the two-month rule and the not-expired visas from the consulate. But by the time we got someone to be helpful in doing this, we would not have had our passports back in time to return to Wales.
*Since we had to apply in the UK, we decided to apply for student visas instead of tourist, hoping for six months. We called the office, and they said we could apply from the UK, no problem.
*You are now completely confused.
*That's okay! Keep reading anyway.

So when we arrived at the office in London, we stood in line for ages, then as soon as we got to the front, the man told us that our passport photos were too small. Now, I was lucky and got a semi-decent photo (which is like getting a good drivers license picture: rare and exciting) the first time around. So now I had to spend four pounds on new photos after not going to bed in over 24 hours, not bothering with make-up or a hair brush, attempting sleep on a train for six hours, taking the underground, running across London, and standing in the cold wind for 45 minutes. Was I in any sense of the word attractive? Absolutely not. More like mildly alarming. And they made me pay lots of money for proof of it. Fantastic.

Anyway,
I got to the front of the line with my new scary pictures, and after about ten seconds the man shut my application and said that I wasn't allowed to apply from the UK. He sent me to another man, who said the same thing. Maybe the photos scared them, I don't know.
The girl applying with me, on the other hand, got all the way through the exact same process, no questions asked, until there was a separate problem with her paperwork. So we left, called our team leader in Wales AND in India, and ran across Victoria, London to two different libraries to print corrected paperwork for Emma. We thought that maybe she could at least try again and get in.
So we tried again with new people. They told us no again, but kindly let us at least apply for tourist visas instead of making us leave. So we did, and we should know in 15 working days or so.


So, it was frustrating, but we made it! Halfway through the mess our team leader here texted us and told us that the whole center was praying for us, which was massively encouraging and de-stressing. It's good to know that God in control and that people are praying for you!

The rest of the afternoon was much better than the first! We took the underground across town to meet up with a good friend and spent the afternoon wandering with her around Camden Market, which is one of my most favorite places I've ever been to. Good to spend time with her and good to just wander around a bit of London! It was great! I received these fantastic wool fingerless mittens that keep my hands nice and toasty! I'm seriously considering taking them with me to India, even thought it will be absolutely boiling there... :)
The train ride back was uneventful, and we returned to the centre around 1am. It was most definitely an eventful trip. We even have to go back to collect our visas and/or passports when they're ready.

Today we moved out of the centre and into this new house we're staying in until we make it to India! It's a fantastic place to stay, and the people are wonderful to let us stay for an undetermined amount of time while we wait for visas.

So that's what I've been up to this week... and hopefully I will have more news for you all soon! Here are some updated prayer points for you!!

*That we will be granted visas for a full six months if it is God's will. He does not have to abide by embassy rules, and we need to keep remembering that!
*That we will receive an answer quickly.
*Cheap travel back to London. Our last tickets were quite expensive, and we can't really afford to do that again!
*Financial support! That it keeps a'comin' and we see God's provision through it! He continually meets our needs through these many unexpected expenses, and while it's disconcerting when they happen, God is faithful. We are blessed to be able to stay in the current house rent-free!!! Thank God!


Thanks for reading and for your prayers! God bless you all!!!
Kaitlyn

Quick Update!

Hello everyone!
I thought I would send you a quick visa update!

I'm living at the centre until Thursday, and after that I will head of to live in another part of town with a lovely couple who has offered us a room to stay in until we can make it to India! Thank God for them!

So, at the moment we are traveling to London on the 20th to hand in our applications for visas. We leave at 3am and spend the whole day there, then come back at 4am the next day. It will be an adventure, as neither of us are experienced with trains, but it will be okay!

I will update as soon as we know if we're accepted or not! In the mean time, please pray for safe travel to and from London, and that our visas will be accepted quickly and easily if that is God's will!

Also, I would ask that you pray for a friend of mine. Her name is Kelsey, and she's fighting an extremely rare and dangerous illness at the moment. Please pray for her, even if you don't know her. She's such a beautiful, strong believer, and she needs prayer support right now. You can find her blog at: http://www.kjkdancingthroughtherain.blogspot.com/

God bless you all!
Kaitlyn

A trip to India! ... two months late...

Alright, so I skipped a few (many) weeks in my blog posting, and I'm WAY behind. What have I been up to since DT week? Well, instead of writing a post that's ten miles long, I'll hit the highlights!

The other American and I got our visas, and on November 4th we headed out on a 34 hour journey to Delhi, India. That was the calmest part of the entire trip. From the Delhi airport we took a taxi trip to the next town.
Now, we were tired after our trip, and looking forward to a nice, quiet car ride so we could rest before arriving.
Silly western people. This is India.
India traffic is the farthest thing possible from American traffic. I thought Indy traffic was crazy.
For starters, there isn't really a designated side of the road to drive on. "Generally on the left" is as close as we got. Bikes and pedestrians do not have to wait for a gap in traffic, they just go. It is not unusual to see a couple with their two or three children and all of the day's shopping crammed on one very small motorcycle. I'm nervous riding a bike, let alone in a draping Sari with four kids in my lap...
Turn signals are rarely used. To merge into traffic, you honk your horn and push your way into traffic. If you are really polite, you'll honk before you merge.
The funny thing was, nobody EVER got upset. In the states, if someone cuts someone else off, horns honk, people shout and it ruins the whole day. Not in India. That's just the way people drive.
At one point, there was a massive boulder in the road (who knows why), but instead of slowing down or going around it, our driver went OVER the median and drove on the other side of the highway for a while. No one really got stressed except for all of us tourists in the back.
This town is about a ten hour drive away. Our driver made it in eight. That's including getting lost and changing direction a few times. This is how fast people in India drive.
For my mother's sake I'll stop there. And for my mother's sake I will say that once we got used to it, we felt very safe because our driver seemed to know what he was doing, even if didn't speak enough English to reassure us.

We were definitely a novelty wherever we went. One white person is a rare thing in the areas we visited, let alone a whole crowd of them. People stared at us absolutely everywhere we went. When we were walking in a market, one woman just reached for my hand and held it before giving me this huge smile and a hug, then walking away. Interesting.
It was strange getting used to the staring and being a practice dummy for people wanting to work on their English. People would go out of their way to come up to us, shake our hands and say "Hello, from where you come from?" and then not know enough English to continue the conversation. It was especially cute when it was a whole herd of small children.

While we were in the first city, we were able to visit a church and participate in the service. I absolutely fell in love with it. Never have I felt more welcome and loved while visiting a church. It was really encouraging to see such a strong Christian church in a predominantly Hindu and Muslim city. We got to spend some more time with people from the church when we led a cell group/bible study for some of them. We went to the home of some of the members and got to talk to them for a long time and get to know them. Again, really encouraging to see God moving in India!

After the first city we moved on to the second, (where I'll be doing my placement!). It was an interesting twelve-hour overnight train journey to get there. We were crammed to the car with many, many other people, on bunks stacked three high and listening to the chai seller go by every ten minutes waking you up by yelling "Chai, chai!" I enjoyed it, but I'm not sure it would be a favorite pass time...

We were able to visit the school and spend some time learning Hindi. We were given a crash course on pronunciation and a list of Hindi words, which were things we could buy in the market just outside the school. We didn't know what the words meant, but we were supposed to come back with them and try not to get ripped off. My team got the word "peanuts" right, but ended up buying nearly a kilo of them for fifty rupees. Our teacher laughed at us. By the way, a kilo of peanuts is a LOT of peanuts.

Anyway... the next crash-course was on how to wear a Sari, which is the gorgeous wrap-around dress that women wear. Pictures of that as soon as I get my hands on them!

I loved being in the school. We got to spend some time teaching an English class and build relationships with the students and staff there. We also got to spend quite a bit of time with some of the staff members while cleaning and painting the school top-to-bottom. It was an awesome chance to feel useful and serve the team.

I was hugely blessed to be able to meet the team I'll be working with and spend time with them seeing what I'll be doing. We were able to visit a women's Bible College (Junior and senior aged girls) and pray with them. They were such sweet girls, and I'm very excited to go back and hopefully spend more time with them.


The last few days in India we spent in Agra, visiting the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort. It was fun to spend time as a tourist for a little while, taking cliché pictures and browsing shops. Definitely something to cross off my bucket list!
It was sobering, however, while we were waiting for our train back to Delhi to go home. We had quite a long wait, and while we stood awkwardly piled onto the platform, three little beggar boys came up to us and asked for money, which is not unusual at all. But what was unusual was the fact that they stayed for a long time, just playing around and showing off. The oldest was no more than maybe seven or eight, and the youngest not even walking. We earned some stares from locals and tourists when we began playing games with them. They seemed surprised that we were willing to touch them and interact with them.

It was hard to again be hit by the extreme poverty of India, and to watch these boys that will have to grow up far too fast go from person to person on the platform, asking for money that will probably go to someone else who is sending them out to beg. But it was humbling and a blessing to be able to sit on the floor with them and let them laugh at the silly white people making goofy faces and just be children for a while. When we left, they followed us all the way to the train, pulling our arms and talking to us in Hindi. We pointed at the train, repeating (rather pointlessly) "We have to go on the train." One of the boys kept repeating a phrase over and over, and a man translated for us, saying "He says: 'Don't go.' ".
That hit me really hard, and it was a long train journey to the airport. It was like God was reminding us before we left that His love is so needed in India. He loves these children more than we ever could, even if we could have spent more than an hour with them. At the end of the day, we get to leave the poverty and spiritual warfare of India behind and fly home to our churches and our safe houses. This is every day for them.

Since then, I've had Christmas break and spent time with my family, and now I'm back in  Wales! What's next? Well, while we were in India, God made it very clear to me that He wanted me to go on my placement there, so I and the other American are planning to head back there for six months. I'm very excited to see what God has planned there and to be a part of it!
We are, however, facing some visa difficulties. To make a VERY long story short, we can apply for visas after January 18th. We need to decide what the best kind of visa to apply for is and go for it. We would both REALLY love your prayers on this. I'll send out more detailed info on the lovely e-mail list ASAP! Until visas are sorted out, we're both with the team in Wales seeing what he has in store for us here!

Prayer points!

1) Visas! That God would give us wisdom in deciding what kind of visas to apply for, and that the applications would be accepted quickly and for the full amount of time we would like.

2) That we wouldn't be frustrated or discouraged in waiting, but remember that God has us here in Wales for a reason, and His plan and timing are perfect.

3) For the team in India to be blessed and see God move in their area and the school. That their work would be multiplied and the kingdom of God furthered.

4) For financial needs to be met in ways that bring glory to God's name.

Thanks so much to all of you who are reading this! Sorry for the long wait. From here on, updates will be more frequent! God bless you all!

DT Week: One Awesome Team and a Really Cold Camping Trip

I am back online after a week of no computer! It was an amazing yet completely exhausting week which began on Monday. We received instructions on an exercise that would last the entire week, and every activity during the week would lead to the completion of that exercise.

Without going into too much confusing detail involving a made up money system and complicated rules, I'll say that the exercise was to build our team and make us work together. We all had to pull together to figure out the rules and achieve the goal: which was mainly to build a boat that would carry every member of the team across the dock. The other objectives were to plan and cook a meal for 15 + people on Friday, finish the exercise in profit, and clean and return all the equipment we would be using.

The exercise was broken down into smaller tasks, and when we completed a task we were awarded more materials to build said boat. Some of the more exciting ones were climbing and abseiling (rappelling), caving, and navigating through the hills with a compass and a map. More on these later.

In order to "rent" the equipment for the tasks, we had to earn the made-up money by completing activities; like running around the dock twice in 15 minutes, eating a can of cold beans (Absolutely foul, by the way. I didn't eat them... smelling them was enough. Kudos to my teammates that did eat them; I admire you.), and other various creative and strange things that were all worth different points. In between earning points, we split up to take classes on land rover maintenance, navigation, search and rescue, first aid, and mountain-hiking cooking and nutrition (MORE CALORIES).

After earning some fake money on the first say, we split into two groups for the climbing and caving. I was luckily in the climbing group and didn't have to crawl down any little dark holes, which made me incandescently happy. We took a land rover out to nearby cliffs and began the long process of climbing and abseiling/rappelling one at a time.

The scenery was absolutely stunning! Being from Indiana, where we just don't have scenery like that, I took about 400 pictures before I remembered that I should take some with people in them. (Yes, mom ((who is unhappy with the lack of photos of her lovely daughter)), I took them, but none of them have me in them because I couldn't climb and take pictures at the same time. I'm sure someone else did, and I'll track them down for you!)

Anyway, the first part of the climb was pretty easy, and so was the last. The middle, however, was not. What had looked to be good handholds from the bottom turned out to be too small for my hands and feet. I spent a fair amount of time there (okay, a really LONG time..) getting very frustrated with myself and wondering WHY I had thought this would be a good idea, hanging from the side of a cliff.

Eventually I made my pitiful way to the top, and after admiring the view and catching my breath, switched ropes to go back down. The safety rope anchors at the top and attaches to your harness at the front. The other rope runs from the top to the bottom of the cliff and is twisted through a figure-eight piece of metal on your harness. When you give it slack, you slide down. You lean backward over the cliff so that you are sitting over empty space, give it slack, and walk backward down the cliff. Pretty snazzy once you get the hang of it!

This part I enjoyed much more, once I convinced my body that there was indeed a rope and it WAS okay to lean backward over the side of a cliff. I did it slowly (because I am a coward) and I wish that I had been able to try it again now that I've done it once. We all made it up and down the cliff just fine, and received our materials. Yay! The other group earned the second pack by crawling through a ridiculously small hole in a cave called the letterbox for a very good reason. They claim it was fun. Congrats, team, but I'll take your word for it!

For the next task we were split into three groups for a navigation/backpacking and overnight camping trip. We took a land rover out into the middle of nowhere. (I'm serious. You people at home think where we live in Indiana is rural? Try rolling hills and streams for miles with dirt roads and 50 billion sheep.) There we loaded our packs, took our bearings in the freezing weather, and headed out with the sheep.

There were three separate hikes. Each team starting from a separate point and navigating to base camp from different directions. The one I was on was the shortest; our team carrying the majority of the food and tents, but it was also called "The Wet Wonder" because 99% of the time we were hiking through bog. (Praise God for borrowed water-proof boots!!)

Despite the cold and the ankle deep mud, I really enjoyed the hike. The view was beautiful before the fog settled in, and it was ridiculously quiet except for us. I was especially impressed with our navigators, who did an excellent job of guiding us through the hills and getting us to the checkpoints and base camp half an hour early.

We reached base camp four hours after beginning our trek and set up our tents to wait for the other teams. Both of them came over the top of the mountain on either side at nearly the exact same moment, and it was really encouraging to see them walk down together.

That night we cooked over trangias (basically a metal frame with a pot of oil beneath it to boil water over. It took ages. The other girl I was cooking with and I had a nice long, long, long chat as we waited. We ate our dinner, which was blessedly warm, and after a few hours sleep headed back to the land rovers via yet another path.

When we arrived back at the center, the real craziness began. One of our objectives was to finish the exercise in profit, and we were in debt. So began an absolutely mad scramble to complete as many activities as we could. My personal favorites were jumping into the freezing dock and climbing the caving ladder. The caving ladder is basically heavy-duty wire with metal rungs, which you climb all the way to the ceiling of the gym. From there you grab a ceiling beam, wait until they move the ladder, and let go. (All while wearing a climbing harness, of course.)

While this was going on, there was a team in the kitchen making and serving the meal, a team cleaning the equipment, and a team building the boat. Long story short, we got everything done with 16 seconds on the clock to spare. By that time, the boat was sinking, so most of the team valiantly jumped into the dock (again I say FREEZING) to pull it across in time.

We didn't finish in profit, but we did all the really important parts. I personally feel like we won, if only for succeeding in everything else that was so difficult that week. Planning, organizing, working together, staying positive on about 9 hours sleep in three days, and all the other things we had to do. Finishing in debt just doesn't feel that important to me. :)

The whole week was an experience I'll never forget. The whole team played off of each other's strengths as we learned more about each other and bonded. We've grown close and it's really encouraging to see everyone working together as a team.

This post doesn't do the week and everything that happened justice. I've left out so much for the sake of making this readable. There just isn't room to explain everything and go into detail. (By now I'm wondering if anyone is still reading, or just skimming. :D Don't worry, I'm not offended! I would probably be skimming, were I you!)

Thanks to everyone who is praying! I've learned so much about myself this week and who I am in Christ. God's been showing himself in really amazing ways, and I can't wait to share with you all in person! Please continue to pray as we keep growing as a team, that God would use us to encourage and grow one another.

Also please continue to pray as I decide on a placement location. I'm really torn between two places and two amazing opportunities now. I know God will use me wherever I go! Stay tuned for a decision!

Also, please pray for visas. Emma (the other American) and I are still waiting for our visas to visit India in November with the rest of the team. We've got time, but it would be nice to have them!

That's all for now! I apologize for the long post! I condensed as much as possible! Please bear with me on photos. I've taken hundreds, but it literally takes HOURS to upload only a few, and I don't have enough free time to post them all on facebook like I want to. I plan on sending a CD of them home to my family, so for all of you back home, my mother should have them within the next few weeks!

God bless you all! Thanks again for your prayers!

Kaitlyn

Southall, London

Most of this week was spent in Southall, London doing our cross-cultural training. Southall is made up of so many different cultures, it hardly felt like London at all. It's nicknamed mini-India for a good reason. I've never seen so many Saris and head scarves, or so many different types of restaurants in one place.
We were blessed to be able to stay in a local church for the week. The people running it were so lovely and commited to the Lord. It was such a blessing to be able to stay with them and spend the week there.
We arrived on Wednesday after a five (or so) hour bus ride, and after a lecture we helped prepare and serve a meal to local homeless. Some of our group played music and sang, which went over very, very well. A few of the men got up and danced, and at one point one got up and sang in Hindi, which was amazing!

Thursday we had a lecture about Islam and the differences between the Qur'an and the Bible. We were encouraged to read the Qur'an so that we can better understand what Islam is about and compare it to our Bible to be more effective witnesses to Muslims. I think I will someday, but it definitely makes me want to know my Bible more in-depth. Particularly the old Testament. Afterward we were able to visit a mosque and ask lots of questions about Islam. Although it was very difficult to get a straight answer most of the time, we learned a lot.

Friday was definitely the most eventful day. We spent the morning and a good part of the afternoon touring the British Museum and the British Library, where we got to see tablets and artifacts that predated the earliest copy of the Bible and that had names and history that up until they were discovered, could be found nowhere but the Bible. Proving those things to be accurate outside the Bible.  God works everywhere! On a side note, we also got to see the Rosetta Stone, which was REALLY cool.
After the museum we walked to the British Library to see ancient copies of the Qur'an and the Bible. It was absolutely amazing to see so many things that related to Christianity in such a secular place. To see artifacts that display history you've always known was true, but you still look at it and think "These things really happened. They're not just Bible stories."
We had Friday afternoon off, so we took the opportunity to play tourist. A few of us took the train system through London to see Big Ben, The London Eye, The Tower Bridge, The Tower of London, and Westminster Abbey. On the way there, we were rushing to catch a train and only half of our group made it on the train. For a moment I thought I was the only one who hadn't made it, which was a frightening thought, but it all turned out alright. I took more photos than I know what to do with, so expect those soon!

Saturday we had the morning off, so the group split yet again. I went to Camden Market, a massive outdoor market in central London that stretches on for ages with food and booths from different parts of the world. It was a good time for a few of us to shop for people back home and bond over Asian Food before taking the train back to Southall, where we deep cleaned and primer-painted the main hall of the church as a thank-you for letting us stay. It was great to be able to bless the church in return for all they did for us.

Sunday the group split yet again. Half of us went to Hillsong London and then on to Speaker's Corner in Hyde Park. The other half (including myself) stayed at the church for a morning and evening service. The morning service was in english, and the evening service was translated into Punjabi. Worship at both services was definitely my favorite part. Trying to sing in Punjabi was interesting, but fun. We ended the evening with some amazing Indian food.

Monday we were able to visit a Hindu Temple. Again the girls had to cover our heads. We went in and looked around a little before our lecture began. Idols were lined up all along the walls (some the women were asked not to get too close to), all of them dressed up in very expensive clothes. People wandered in and out and gave offerering to various gods and goddesses.
When the priest arrived to talk to us, we sat on the floor (with our feet pointed AWAY from the idols) and listened. Or tried to, at least. His english was not very good, and he muttered something awful. At one point he asked us to join him in meditating, but we convinced him we would rather not. By the end, all of us were just as confused as when we began, but it was a good experience.
Later in the afternoon, we had a quetionaire to fill out comparing Hinduism, Sikhism, and Islam. The idea of the game was to go around Southall in pairs and ask different people about different aspects of the religions. My partner in the game and I went to a local sweets shop we had been to before and ended up talking to three people about Sikhism for nearly an hour. They were so open and willing to explain about everything.
That evening we heard the testimony of a former Sikh man. He told us about Sikhism and how he became a Christian before his entire family became Christians. It was such a powerful testimony that really encouraged everyone. Definitely a highlight.

Monday was sadly the last day with the lovely Southall church people. In the morning we went to visit the Sikh temple. Again with heads covered and no shoes, only this time the guys shared in the head-covering. The temple had heated floors, which was wonderful.
Our guide was a really nice guy who explained Sikhism in depth and then led us around the temple. We got to sit in on their worship and share a meal with them. Everyone there was so sweet. The Sikhs has a humility and kindness in their attitudes that really challenged me. They are all about accepting and loving people from all backgrounds. Just as we should be as Christians. It was sad to see such wonderfully lovely people so misguided.
Someone in the groups said afterward: "Imagine if they were Christians?"

All in all, Southall had more cultural diversity than I've ever experienced in my entire life. It really gave me a heart for people of other religions and made me see them as God sees them. As hearts he desires just as much as he desires mine. God doesn't speak only english. He doesn't love only the western world.

On an entirely different note, I found out this morning that West Africa, which was my second placement option, is not currently taking anyone who does not speak french, which I do not. I'm still praying about where God wants me to go, and I would greatly appreciate continued prayer. Wherever I end up, God will use me! I don't have to know for sure for a little while still, so I have time to think and find out more about my options.

This next week is DT week, which is full of outdoor pursuits and team building. I won't be reachable during this week (they take out phones and computers away, oh no!!), but I will update you all as soon as I can! Thank you so much for your continued prayers and support!!! God bless you all!

The First Week

Another post! Sorry for the ridiculously short update last time. We had very little free time last week, but today I have time to update properly.
I've been here almost two weeks now. I'm completely over the jet lag, thankfully. Waking up at 6:30am is awful when it feels like 1:30 in the morning...
The first week was packed full of classes and activities. It's actually been mostly sunny since we've been here, and we've been able to get outside a bit. It's been beautiful. Except for a treasure hunt that involved walking all over the town, during which it rained. And rained. And rained. And then it rained some more. It made for some very cold, soggy trainees, but it was fun.
We got some time to ourselves yesterday to spend with God. I sat on the beach and watched the tide come in. It's interesting to watch because when the tide goes out here, it goes out so far that you can't see the water anymore. It was so beautiful. And of course, the rare occasion I DON'T have my camera the sun happens to come out and decide to make the beach lovely. So today I took the camera with me while we walked out while the tide was out. (see facebook for pictures!)
This week we're only here for three days before we head off to London for a while for some cross-cultural training. We're all really excited about it. For now we have the weekend off, which is great.
I'm having to rethink my placement for the six-month period. The work I wanted to do in India isn't available anymore, so I will be praying about it, and I will update when I know where I am going!!
Thank you for you prayers!! They are much appreciated and a blessing. I will try to update as much as possible. I won't be around next weekend, but I will keep my parents updated, and they will pass it on to you! God bless!

Hello from Wales

Hello from Wales! I've moved in and settled into dorm life, passed my food hygiene test, and made it through two days of classes. (Didn't I take a year off college...?)
It's absolutely lovely here! We're only a short walk from everything, including the beach and several churches. I've gotten a few pictures of the scenery, some of which was nearly run over by a man on a bike while taking. It's not my fault. He was on the wrong side of the road...
Speaking of which, crossing the street has proven to be a challenge... more on that another time.
God is really moving in the training program. It's been so amazing to see Him move in so many hearts and in so many different ways. To see so many people with a heart for missions is encouraging and exciting!!
We are jam-packed busy every day, but weekends are free, so I will post more then.
God bless!