"Adios" Ha Venido Tan Pronto

Bueno.  Mi rato en Santander se ha acabado.  Ya esta.  Ayer, di un paseo una ultima vez por las calles de mi lugar de residencia.  No sera mas galletas con chocolate en las mananas, no mas paseando a lado de la bahia.  No mas viendo Matrimonio con hijos.  He despedido a mis amigos, mis senores.  

Well.  My short little time in Santander has ended.  It's over.  Yesterday, I walked around for the last time in my home city month.  There won't be any more crackers with hot chocolate in the mornings, no more walking alongside the bay enjoying the ocean breeze.  No more watching Married with Children with my Senor.  I've said goodbye to my friends, my host parents.

Likewise, my time in Spain is coming to a close.  I'm in the capital, Madrid, which is a beautiful city, but my mind is not here.  It's back home.  This is not to say that I am not really having a godo time in Spain, it's just that I can't wait to start life again in my home country, and most of all I can't wait to see all my friends.  One thing I have learned from being abroad is to appreciate what I have at home more.  I am grateful for a church that preaches the Gospel.  I am grateful for a nation, though it has it's problems, that still fundamentally accepts the principles of Christianity.   I am grateful for friends and family that share my values.  

What else has changed?  I am so much more aware of other perspectives now.  I had no idea how many assumptions I make every day about life, whether about the kind of service I will receive, what is acceptable to talk about, or how to study for a test.  A lot of those assumptions where thrown out shortly after my arrival in Spain.  

Also, I am more confident and independent.  I can live 3 months without my family, or anything with which I am familiar.  My faith has had to be my own, the Word of God my guide.  I thank the Lord for what he has done in my life during these three months.

See all of you soon!

Winding down

Well guys, I can't believe I am coming up on my last full week here in Europe.  This week has been one of readjusting to life in Santander.  The weather has been very nice, and I spent some time on the beach Wednesday and yesterday.    

On Monday, we reunited from our various trips for Semana Santa at Pizza Hut, a nice symbol of the America that we are soon going to rejoin.  

On Wednesday, I got interviewed by a television station here in Santander!  I have never been on TV in America, and 

I am here 3 months and get interviewed!  I was about to get on the bikes provided by the city as public transportation when a reporter and a camera man ran up to me, asking to interview me.  The questions were sencillos (simple)- Where are you going with the bike? (The beach- la playa)  If there weren't bikes, how would you get there?  Why am I riding the bike? (Because it's fast and cheap).  Do we have bikes in America? (Um, yes).  If I can find the video, I will post it, of course.  

But I will post, right now, some pictures of my recent Spring Break trip.

High Tea in London

Big Ben                                               

Bath

Sevilla

Semana Santa Processions in Sevilla

Semana Santa Summary

Hello friends!  It has been a week since I last posted, so I'll check you all up on what I've been up to.  On Sunday, after celebrating Easter at Christchurch, I went to the home of Pete Greasley to enjoy a traditional British Easter supper cooked by Jenn Greasley.  It was brill(ant), as they say.  I would love to go back to Christchurch some day- the people there are so lovely.  

On Monday, I headed off to Bath, which is a city that was really only built up in the 1800s in the Victorian era of England.  At that time, it was a place for the rich and fashionable to live.  There is one type of stone, Bath stone, that all the buildings are made out of.  This gives the city a very charming feel, not to mention the slow-running brook that runs through the middle of the city and the hills surrounding it. I was visiting there some friends I met on my Poland tour who have 3 college-aged children.  They gave me personalized tours, which of course included the Roman baths the city is named and famous for.  After one night's stay in Bath, I was off to London.

And what a city London is!  It is quite frankly enormous.  And the thing about London is that you can hop on the Metro in one place, travel for a bit, and hop off in an area of town that looks completely different, but it is the same city.  And there is so much semi-modern history here (and medieval also).  I saw Westiminster Abbey, that Edward I built, and Buckingham Palace, where the current Queen Elizabeth II lives.  I saw the original Rosetta Stone (!) and London Bridge (from the song).  I sat by the Thames and stood at attention with the Royal Marines.  It was good fun, despite the fact that I was there with no access to money thanks to my wallet-losing, card-cancelling situation.  But I made it- creatively.  

On Tuesday night and Wednesday day, I met Jenn and her friend Janelle in London.  I'm sure she has already told you all about it, but really did have a great time touring the town together, though we missed the Changing of the Guard ceremony.  Sadly, they had to go, but some other friends of mine from the Wales church came into town for the day Thursday.  In the morning, I went by myself to the Houses of Parliment and Big Ben and Westiminster Abbey, and then 10 Downing Street where the Prime Minister lives.  I then walked around Buckingham Palace (on the outside) and met my friends at the Borough Market, a large outdoor food market with food from all over the world. London is a very cosmopolitan city, where British natives are minority- I heard some many different languages, it made my head spin.  But all the cultures come together fairly well in the one city.  We ate lunch at the market and then went to the National Gallery, which is a huge art musuem.  One of my friends is a former high school art teacher, so we benefited from his knowledge of art.  Afterwards we went back to Westminster Abbey to attend a service in there.  Although I got yelled at by the priests for wearing a hat inside, it was still an enjoyable service.  After dinner, they had to go, so I was on my own again on Friday.

I decided I would act like a Londoner on Friday.  I got up relatively early and jumped on the Tube to take it into The City, which is the financial center of London as if I was a power broker.  Then I went to the British Musuem, equally as big as the National Gallery, but with historical artifacts instead of art.  This is where the Rosetta Stone is.  After that, I joined some other friends from my Poland trip for a tour of the shopping district- like Northlake mall stretching for 15 city blocks and 3 stories.  Finally, it was time to pack up and head to the southern shores of Britian, where I am was able to relax a little and walk on the beach.

It was good.  I had some moments when things were tough, thanks to not having any way to take out money, but God got me through, just as I was talking about in my last post.  And now I only have little more than 2 weeks left here in Europe.  It is bittersweet, because I do enjoy life over here and I have gotten quite used to it.  But at the same time, I miss where God has put me back home.  I am looking forward to getting back, seeing my new house, serving in my old church, and hanging with old friends.

So I am counting down the days.  15 remaining!