two week travels

[note: this post is coming in three parts. given how much time has passed since the last update, this three-part post starts with travels that happened when 2nd term came to a close on April 2, 2011]

::PART ONE::

Update: Greece [april 2-9, 2011]

SO. My time at Bodenseehof came to a close after six long yet quick months and it was time for our two-week travel break.

ATHENS:

Seven students and I headed off to Greece where we first explored the city of Athens for a fe

w days. It was wonderful to climb to the top of the acropolis and see the ruins and walk through old gardens and to think on several occasions, “wow… Jesus and his disciples probably stood right at this very place 2,000 years ago. Crazy!” After three days of sight-seeing, sketchy hostel experiences, and a ton of Gyros, we hopped onto a ferry that took us across the water to the island of Santorini.

SANTORINI:

This is where the film The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants was filmed, and we actually took a bus up to the northern corner of Santorini, called Oia, to see the exact hillside on which the film

was set. It was absolutely breathtaking. The island was surrounded by water so deep and rich in blue and green – like nothing I’ve seen before. The history of the island and how it formed from the eruption of an underground volcano was fascinating. We walked through their unique hillside neighborhood full of white houses with blue and white roofs, all overlooking the incredible ocean. Donkeys were everywhere and watching them haul tourists up and down the hillside steps was something to see, indeed. We stayed in a beautiful little hostel villa that had a pool and the sweetest of staff members. After four wonderful days on the island, it was time to say goodbye to two members: Derek and Emily. Their travels would take them up to Paris then Portugal before separating - Emily would go home to Canada and Derek would head to spring school in Austria. The rest of us headed back on the ferry, across the water again to Athens and said bye the next morning to Kendra, who was headed up to Germany to meet her parents for other travels. The remaining five hopped on aplane to Italy.

Update: Italy [april 10-14, 2011]

We landed in Rome and were VERY excited to begin exploring. We made our way by bus to the outskirts of Rome where our cute little apartment was waiting. We checked in, and spent the next four days exploring by foot and by bus all we could se

e in the city. In order of experience, here’s what we saw in those four busy but fun days: the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Coloseum, the Roman Forum, the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel, the town of Trastevere, the Borghese Park, and on many occasions we indulged in the famous Italian pizzas, pastas, and the world’s absolute BEST gelato. The tour of the Vatican and Sistine Chapel was the most educational tour I have ever been on. The Vatican is it’s own country and has it’s own post office (did you know???) So I sent a postcard to my parents in Washington and one to my sister in Colorado. NEAT. As we learned about and explored the history of the city and country, I became so excited about the Bible’s New Testament, and the history of the apostles and disciples like Paul and Simon Peter. We learned about the persecution and death of so many

Christians back in the day of Christ and the days following Christ’s death. It was absolutely fascinating. The history of Rome is one I will forever be interested in, and my dream is go to back to both Greece and Italy for exactly that – to explore more of the Bible’s teaching by walking up and down the streets of h

istory. Eventually our time came to a close, and we said goodbye to Carly and Brandi, who would make their way together back to Canada just a few days later. Krystina, Alyssa and I headed by train up to Germany, picked up the rest of our luggage from Bodenseehof, and made our way up to England.

Heading into the final chapter of my experience abroad, I didn't know what to expect and therefore didn't have a specific Bible verse in mind. But for future journeys and transitions, I'd like to remind myself of this great encouragement: "The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand." -Psalm 37:23