Uhh... Snow? Not at our debrief!

We left for the airport in Thailand at 3:30 in the morning and were amazed at the large number of students who arrived at the airport at such an hour to see us off!  It has been such a blessing spending so much time in one place, being able to make friends, and it was a joy (and a bit sad) to see them see us off.  Who knows, perhaps some of us will be back in the near future? We were kinda hoping a couple of them would fit in our suitcases, but they were all over 23 kilos. 

We were a bit surprised to land in Honolulu to find weather typical for England (60s, rainy, gray), yet we had a sneaking suspicion that Hawaii was going to be more enjoyable than Minnesota despite our not having slept in more than 48 hours. Okay, yeah, we know about the collapsed Metrodome and 45 cm of snow. Wait, we're in America, we can do inches again!  Nahh, too depressing.  We know how much snow that would really be.

Phil Bjorklund has joined us for this last leg of our journey.  He's had many years of experience leading ICS groups through debrief and we appreciate his experience, knowledge, and, of course, stories.  Each evening we've gathered together to go over our trip, starting from day one.  It's been interesting reliving the past two months, one day at a time.  So many experiences!  What does it all mean? 

There's the expectation that going on a short term mission trip "will change your life!"  We know that only Jesus Christ can truly change our lives; a trip like this simply helps us to change our perspective.  The most obvious changes that our friends and families at home will notice when we get off the plane are the new hair styles.  (Professional cuts for $4, well, how can you not?)  What will you notice different in us over Christmas break, back in Naz in January, or bumping in to us at Caribou?  We're not sure we can tell you that at this point, and more than likely, most of us may not even know or understand what sorts of transformations have taken place in our minds and hearts for years to come.  We know that God had a purpose for bringing us all together for these two months, bringing us to the places he's brought us, for his purposes and for his glory. 

This may be the last update before we land in Minnesota.  We leave tomorrow at 4:00 and most of us will arrive in Minneapolis at 4:09 on Wednesday afternoon (some have different final destinations).  A quick note: if you are picking up your student at the airport, PLEASE BRING A COAT!  I guarantee that our wardrobes are not sufficient.  :)

Leaving, already?

Can it be that a whole month has passed already?? 

Today's our last day of classes at Santisuk and we're flying out at 7 am tomorrow.  Classes will get out 1/2 hour early today so we can spend those last precious moments with our precious students, getting in some final conversations and of course making sure we can find each other on Facebook.  Our classes all ended 1/2 hour early on Tuesday and Wednesday as well so the students could hear about "the real meaning of Christmas."  We sang some songs and Pastor Steve explained what Christmas really is all about.  Hopefully the Thai students learned that Santa has little to do with it! 

I'd love to say all of us are packed and ready to go.  Hopefully by the time the vans pull out at 3:=yawn=30 tomorrow morning, we will be packed.  Doesn't mean we're ready to leave Thailand, though I guess we can't complain about our next stop, Hawaii.  Just wish we could bring some of our students, Santisuk staff, and some Thai food with us! 

Umm...Milk!

Liz and Ana with their students

Santisuk arranged an outing on Friday for teachers and students to Farm Chok Chai - a dairy farm two hours outside of Bangkok.  Both Thai and American alike enjoyed the fresh air of the countryside - not to mention the elevation that brought cooler temps! 

Farm Chok Chai was started in the 1950s by a Thai man who'd dreamed all his life of becoming a farmer.  He started this farm, and in the process introduced the very first pickup truck to Thailand.  The farm started as a beef farm and eventually changed into a dairy farm, importing Holsteins and crossing them with local breeds to create a cow that can do well in the tropics.  The Thai king worked with the farm to start programs which introduced milk into schools to promote good health. Some of our group - both Thai and American - got a chance to milk a cow by hand! 

We watched a Thai rodeo presentation, reminiscent of the Wild West (complete with "Texas - Don't Mess with It" t-shirts in the gift shop), followed by an opportunity to ride horses.  There was also a show featuring monkeys, various dogs, sheep, a 3-week old calf, a parrot, a pelican, and others.  On the way out we enjoyed FRESH milk and extremely creamy ice cream.  Umm...milk!

All it all it was a fun, relaxing day to hang out with our new friends!

O Little Town of ... Bangkok?

December 5 is the King of Thailand's birthday.  Preparations for celebrating the king's birthday started weeks ago as parks and other establishments started decorating by putting up lights and flowers and planning special ceremonies. King Bhumibol (also known as Rama IX) is the longest reigning monarch in modern history, having taken the throne over 60 years ago, and is beloved by the Thai people.  Most people in this country have never known another king!

Our service at Santisuk on Friday night opened with a tribute to the Thai king, showing slides and a movie clip which showed him walking among the people and serving the country, followed by a patriotic song.  There were celebrations around the city (and, no doubt, the country) yesterday as people gathered to honor their king. One of our dear friends, Rung, took a group of Northwestern students and Santisuk youth to the local mall for an orchestral tribute to the king.

I pondered last night while standing on my balcony looking at the silent streets below (while hearing the booms of fireworks in the distance).  Seeing the strings of "Christmas" lights around town is very reminiscent of the ways we celebrate our King's birthday at home.  It causes one to reflect on the wonderful ways we celebrate Christmas - family gatherings, putting up lights, singing songs, having parties, eating those special foods that only come once a year to celebrate the birthday of a king.  Those of us from a democratic nation don't know what it means to live in a kingdom.  We love preparing for Christmas because of all the wonderful traditions our families or churches have year after year, and we always look forward to this special time of year.

The Thai people do it simply because they love their king.

Ahan Thai Aroi Mak! (Food Thai Delicious Very!)

I've heard it said that the number one reason people leave "the field" is because they can't handle the local cuisine.  I'm not sure if that statistic is true, though I do know some who've made desperate attempts in the kitchen if familiar ingredients were available.  Safe to say, that is NOT the case here!  I challenged the students to try something new for every single meal during our stay in Thailand (aside from breakfasts, which we usually eat in our rooms), allowing for the national dish of Thailand, pawd thai, up to three times (pictured left).  Pictured below is papaya salad, stir-fried morning glory in oyster sauce, red curry with chicken, and stir-fried pork and chard. I've been very proud of their experiments with the amazing variety of food available here!

Many of our Thai students don't have kitchens in their apartments.  Why bother, when you can get a complete, hot meal on the street for $1?  Especially when eating is a social event.  In fact, the Santisuk teaching schedule allows for time before and/or after class to eat out with students.  We've also had many opportunities to eat out on our weekend excursions and shopping trips.  The traditional Thai style is to order a variety of dishes and to share everything, family style.  Our students are able to share much more than just food during these times - some of the lessons in the English books lead to conversations that continue once classtime is over.

Karen and Krista eating at a milk stand with Krista's business correspondence students. This is one of their favorite places to take their favorite teachers!

Happy Thanksgiving - and Beyond!

Our weekend was a full one, going in many different directions as students and their cell groups went on various outreach events.  We kicked things off with a Thanksgiving party in the parking lot on Friday night during Santisuk's normal service time.  Over 50 people ate chicken, duck, mashed potatoes, stuffing, stir-fried vegetables, mangos, and quite a variety of other foods together after hearing Pastor Steve share the history of Thanksgiving.  After dinner, we sang songs, played games, and listened as Amy N shared what it means to give thanks.  Mo, from my cell group, stated on Sunday morning that she had been really excited to celebrate Thanksgiving with us as this was her first Thanksgiving ever - and wished that the party could have gone on longer! 

Weekend events included visits to the Grand Palace, the weekend market, the floating market, two different beaches, and an amusement park.  Cassidy, who went to Pattaya, said she enjoyed the weekend though was saddened to see the business in the red light district there.  At another beach called Rayong, Krista enjoyed riding a "banana boat" with three of her Business Correspondence students while Reilly's six students made him try new foods - coconut juice out of the coconut, durian chips, and a Thai jellied dessert.  Amy R and Ashley said the amusement park trip with the Santisuk youth group was exciting (or perhaps more exciting for the kids than for them, yet they enjoyed the day).  The Northwestern students who went to the Grand Palace were glad to have been warned ahead of time to wear appropriate clothes (which, ironically, the Thai students hadn't prepared for) - knees covered, shoulders covered, no ripped jeans, etc.  Never fear, one could rent the proper clothes outside the gate for a small fee before going in to see one of Thailand's most historical sites.

We're enjoying the time with our Thai students - and are excited when they join our cell groups!

Teaching at Santisuk

I'm spending the day observing our students in their new roles as teachers.  They're enjoying their task!  And probably learning more about English grammar than they ever dreamed they might.  As the saying goes, the best way to learn something is to teach it.  And teaching is anything but boring.  Just ask Anastasia and Kristen, pictured here.  Kristen (left) is watching a short skit about a prince in a dream, performed by her students; Ana (right) is listening to sentences her students make up using new vocabulary on the board. I'm sure the rest of the team all have stories to tell you when we get back home!

Seeing Pattaya with Eyes Wide Open

Each weekend the Northwestern students and their respective cell groups go on different outings with their Thai students.  Most of them are in and around Bangkok, while some go out a bit further and even include overnight stays at popular destinations which Thai students (and American ones, too!) would love to go to.  One popular destination which three of our students and a Thai youth group went to this past weekend is Pattaya, a popular beach destination about 100 miles from Bangkok.  Pattaya is well-known to Thai and "falang" (foreigners) alike.  There is a sizable foreign population living in Pattaya, especially retirees from Western nations who find the prices in Thailand more agreeable to their pension budgets.  And naturally there is a good-sized group of Thai living in Pattaya working in the tourism industry.

In preparation for this trip, our students read a book by David Livermore called Serving With Eyes Wide Open.  The gist of the book is to be aware of cultural differences and basically to expect the unexpected.  Three of our students felt that their eyes were opened when they came face to face with one of Pattaya's darker industries, catering to both foreign and local clientele, blatantly and unashamedly advertising along the streets as the sun began to set.  The Thai students were also shocked - one of them commented that he was glad he'd never been exposed to this sort of nightlife in the past. The youth group and the American students returned to Bangkok with a bit of heaviness on their hearts as they considered all of the people involved in this aspect of the "tourism" industry.

Please pray for the Thai people involved in this dark industry.  Although there are many Christians in Thailand working to serve at-risk girls and boys by helping them develop cleaner marketable life skills, there is still a very long way to go.

Loy Khrathong

Loy Khrathong is an annual festival in Thailand, a day for the Thai people to put small boats made of banana leaves on the river to ask the river goddess forgiveness for making the river dirty throughout the year.  Historically it was a day for people to ask forgiveness in general, though today it's more of a day full of fun activities - from beauty contests to carnivals to fireworks, accompanied, of course, by "loy"-ing a "khrathong" on the water. 

Pastor Steve gave a sermon on Friday evening about the "khrathong" of God and how we have forgiveness available to us every day of the year.  We understood the parable and hoped that our Thai friends were given something to think about.  Most of the Northwestern students were able to see the khrathongs on the rivers for themselves and also had some good discussions about what it means to put the little banana boat on the river. 

First Week Done

Our first week of teaching is now over and we've survived just fine.  Most of the team discovered they actually like teaching in spite of any misconceptions they had about it ahead of time.  The curriculum here at Santisuk has been tried and tested over the years, so it's quite easy to walk into the classroom and follow the instructions.  Ana and Koob have had few problems communicating with their Level 1 students; Amy N loves the depth she can find in conversation with her Level 4 students.  Krista's been doing a bang-up job of presenting the business correspondence material which I put together while here last year; we just hope the students in our class are learning something useful amidst the fun bantering! 

Tonight is our first worship service here (worship services are Friday nights; cell groups meet on Sunday mornings).  This weekend promises some exciting outings as some cell groups take both Northwestern and Thai students on adventures in and around Bangkok, and other Northwestern students will get to experience the weekend market.  Sunday is the annual Loy Khrathong Festival which I know the Thai students will want to take us to.  More updates to come!

Sawatdee from Thailand!

We are finally settling into a routine here at Santisuk English School in Bangkok, Thailand. The group spent the weekend in orientation and training at the school. Today, Monday, we are starting to teach a variety of levels of English. Classes here range in size from 8-12, giving our students (who are generally paired up in each classroom) a great opportunity to get to know the Thai students. After only one class, Karen was already getting involved in her students' lives over lunch. There will be plenty more opportunities to eat and hang out with students in the coming weeks!

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Immediately after arriving in Thailand from our 10-hour flight from Tel Aviv last Tuesday, the group took an overnight train 12 hours out of Bangkok.  In and around that area we had many opportunities to experience culture in new ways.  Our song-taew* driver took us many places: an introductory language lesson, a monk chat at a local Buddhist temple (which that day happened to include a funeral complete with rockets to set off the funeral pyre),  prayer walking around an ancient stupa (which purportedly houses a piece of the Buddha, although no one can exactly say which part it is), prayer walking around a statue recently built for the upcoming 450th anniversary of the city, lunch and a party one evening with some local university students, and dinner in a traditional home another evening. 

Note to parents: this next sentence may be difficult for you to read, so please keep in mind that this is what your child is studying at Northwestern.  After our whirlwind travel the past few days, Ashley said she never wants to leave!  I assured her that she was more than welcome to stay for as many years as she wanted.  :)

*a song-taew  is a large covered pickup-like truck with two long benches down the sides.  The one we were in was the perfect size to haul 18 people around town.

Last Day in Bethlehem

The group is heading out in a few hours for the airport in Tel Aviv and our flight to SE Asia.  We will have a busy travel schedule for the next few days, so there may not be a blog update until Sunday, at the earliest. 

Today we visited Shepherds' Field in Beit Sahour (suburb of Bethlehem) and sang some carols after reading Luke 2.  Perhaps not quite the same atmosphere in broad daylight, yet we enjoyed the time together before exploring some caves.  It was easier to "imagine" what it would have been like 2000 years ago when we saw a Bedouin shepherd leading a small flock of sheep through the valley.  The sheep must have recognized their shepherd's voice because he was in front and they followed.

Some of the group have been able to make friends during our short stay here and are finding it difficult to say good-bye.  Jewel, Amy N, and others discovered the local Stars & Bucks coffee shop (seriously) and visit once or twice a day.  Our new friend, Basaam, gives us the Palestinian prices on coffee drinks and hopes we'll all add him as friends on Facebook.  He's invited us to his apartment for Arabic coffee, and we invited him to church to translate for us (not realizing that the church would provide wireless headphones for the guests who don't understand Arabic).  If you're ever in the Bethlehem area, please be sure to stop by - it's near Manger Square, and Basaam would love to welcome you with a tasty white mocha or an icy frappo Chino!

Another Prodigal return, of sorts?

I've written a bit about the problems of living in the West Bank.  Bethlehem, in the West Bank, considers Israel a different country.  Indeed, you have to have legal papers to cross the checkpoint.  We went last Sunday to Jerusalem, taking taxis to the checkpoint, crossing on foot, and then getting a public bus on the other side to get to Christ Church.  It wasn't so difficult until Reilly realized he'd left his Bible on the bus.  He was bummed about that, though convinced himself he'd just "given" it to the bus driver - and also convinced himself that the bus driver could read English.  I'd say that's the appropriate attitude!  (He was able to find an Arabic/English New Testament at BBC the next day, so now has learned how to read Matthew "backwards"). 

Yesterday morning we again tried to get in to Jerusalem.  We'd been hearing a lot from the Palestinian view of biblical things, so it was time to balance with a more Jewish view via a Messianic shabbat service.  We hailed taxis to take us to the wall, intending to go through on foot and find a public bus on the Israeli side again.  We all arrived to the checkpoint to find a complete standstill leaving a growing line of people anxious to get to their jobs and business on the other side.  It wasn't particularly tense, just annoying, though perhaps not totally unexpected.  In fact, it was quiet until one man standing near Koob nonchalantly took his cigarette out of his mouth and suddenly exclaimed "Boo!" to the man next to him.  I guess that's one way to deal with frustration! 

We stood in place for probably 30 minutes, wondering if we'd make the shabbat service, waiting until the line finally started to move.  Some anxious Palestinians did worm their way into the middle of our group. We didn't mind - until the rotating gate locked, leaving about 10 of our group through with 8 still on this side waiting for the green light.  I wondered if I would be taking half of the group back to Bethlehem for the day because the Israelis decided to close the checkpoint right then?  Never fear, the light turned green, and one by one we stragglers made our way through the maze of passport checks and security x-rays.

Those of us who almost got stuck in Bethlehem for the day finally emerged on the Israeli side to find the rest of our group on the bus heading to Jaffa Gate and waving for us to jump on.  Reilly, Jewel, and I literally jumped on as the bus was taking off.  As we fumbled for our 4 1/2 shekel fare while balancing in the aisle, Reilly happened to look up - and lo, there was his bible on the shelf above the seats!!  He grinned widely as he clutched the soft blue leather cover once again.  I marveled at the blessing.  The temporary closing of the checkpoint, annoying as it was, was the sole reason we ended up on the particular bus we were on.  Had things gone as smoothly as they had last week, Reilly would still be reading Matthew from right to left.

Read My Lips: Olive Juice!

A bit early for Valentine's Day, but the team did seem to be telling each other of their love for one another all morning as we picked olives at East Jerusalem Baptist Church.  Olive juice was definitely one of the common topics of discussion! We were joined by a Muslim woman, perhaps from the community, who labored alongside us.  She didn't speak a lick of English and kept telling us important things in Arabic.  Perhaps she was collecting some of the gleanings from the church's trees for her family, a la Deuteronomy 24:20?


Olives were a bit of a theme during the rest of the day as well as we walked to the Garden Tomb and the Garden of Gethsemane.  Gethsemane is a real garden at the base of the Mount of Olives and contains some olive trees which are 2000 years old.  You can see the new shoots which come up outside the older trunks. The garden is well maintained and fenced off with a sidewalk around the perimeter.  From Gethsemane, we walked back to old Jerusalem and walked the first part of the way along the Via Dolorosa, the Way of the Cross (more famously known for containing the 14 Stations of the Cross). We walked as far as the bus station, NOT to be confused with the 14.  The bus station IS, however, in front of a site which our students found to be quite interesting - Golgotha.  It was "discovered" just over 100 years ago when a Brit was in Israel trying to figure out exactly where certain biblical activities would have taken place.  He looked up from his reading one day to see the outline of a skull in the rock face across from his accommodations.  The skull-shaped cliff happened to be next to what once was a garden containing a tomb cut out of rock. "At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid" (Jn 19:41). This particular tomb has been used once... though as we saw today, it was empty. And that's the whole reason we are on this internship!!

A Home Visit

Daniel in the Bethlehem Bible College gift shop invited the group over to his home last night.  At least, that's where we thought we were going.  He and his brother Paul and a couple others collected us at the hotel and walked us to a restaurant for a middle eastern dessert that Kristen, Karen, Liz and Jewel compared to "mozzarella sticks dipped in syrup."  It had a goat cheese base with a topping of a consistency similar to cornbread with honey on it.  Not sure exactly what it was, but everyone seemed to enjoy it.

Daniel's "home" was actually a room in a youth hostel where we found some instruments and space to spread out and sing and worship before the Lord.  We spent some time in rocking worship before Paul decided to teach us an Arabic dance.  I can't say that we look any more Arabic when dancing like he did, especially when the music sounded like, umm, techno Arabian 80s bull-fighting polka music?  Definitely an international flare to the music, whatever it was! We ended the time with some heartfelt prayer for the ministries they're involved in, the pilgrims who come to Bethlehem, and the town in general. 

A highlight of the evening was climbing to the roof of the building, which was on a hill, to overlook Bethlehem at night.  We could see a wedding dance going on in a courtyard at the bottom of the hill and learned that women and men dance separately at middle eastern weddings. After getting our fill of the Egyptian music wafting up the hill toward us, we headed back to the hotel. Bethlehem IS a rather quiet town at night.

The neon Internet sign (top left) didn't seem to attract a whole lot of people.

Something to Drink?

Aaron and I finished our indoor painting projects yesterday so Jihad moved us out to repaint the front gate of BBC this morning.  We'd been washing dirt from the grille work for about 30 minutes when a man ambled over from the direction of the refugee camp across the street.  He held something in plastic and started talking to Aaron about "drink" and "college in America."  Aaron interpreted that the man was inviting him to go out for a drink, which he wasn't about to do, but the man kept persisting, motioning for him to imbibe something.  Aaron kept smiling but refusing, not sure what this "drink" would contain, exactly.  The man left after a few minutes, and Aaron and I just shrugged our shoulders and got back to scrubbing our canvas, wondering how the man could have studied in the States when he could hardly piece together a complete sentence in English.  About 5 minutes later, the man returned, carrying three 330 ml plastic bottles of strawberry juice.  The first had already been partially consumed.  He unscrewed the cap off of the second one and set it on the ledge in front of me, then handed the third bottle to Aaron.  We still couldn't understand his words and Aaron was wondering if we should be concerned about the contents of the bottles, but the man kept smiling and motioning for Aaron to drink.  We thanked him, "Shukran, shukran," and he walked away, apparently satisfied.  I sampled my strawberry juice while Aaron twisted the seal off of his. 

I can't say for sure what just happened, but here's a possibility: Bethlehem is a small town; it wouldn't take long for word to get out that there's a group from a college in America doing some work at BBC.  The man lives in Bethlehem, probably across the street.  I think this was simply his way of saying thank you for helping in his village, and we at the front gate were the most convenient to approach.  Painting a gate doesn't seem a very noble task, but for a community living under occupation, a fresh coat of paint - and a raked garden, some new rose bushes, and freshly poured concrete - can serve to raise a person's spirits.  I'll never look at a bottle of strawberry juice the same way again. 

Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work we go!

Jihad gives the crew some tips

Seeing Isaac and Garrett with pick-axes slung over their shoulders this morning made me start singing; the boys started whistling as they set off to dig a trench behind BBC. 
In between informative lectures on differing viewpoints on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from some of the staff at the college here (which many in our group have found to be extremely thought-provoking!), we have been getting some work done!

JT, Jewel, and Amy N practice their English with Palestinian students at coffee break

Aaron adds his artistic touch

Jewel and Amy R clean up the garden

Amy N and Krista get ready to paint

Ashley enters books into the library computer system (BBC has the only public library in Bethlehem)

A Birthday in the Old City

This morning started with a birthday cake for Dr E, with candles labeled "6" and "0" on it.  (I won't tell you his exact age!)  After a rousing rendition of the happy birthday song, Dr E successfully blew out both candles.

We then left to take the bus from here into the old city of Jerusalem.  We got to the bus station to find there is no bus directly from here to there like there was two years ago.  A cab driver was more than happy to arrange cabs for us to get to the checkpoint, which we'd have to go through on foot before finding the bus on the Israeli side that could take us to Old Jerusalem and our intended destination, Christ Church.  We arrived just minutes before the service started.

Old Jerusalem is divided into four quarters - Armenian, Christian, Muslim, and Jewish (divisions which don't necessarily reflect the present).  Christ Church, in the Armenian quarter, is passionate about outreach to her Jewish neighbors.  Today's service was in English, with some liturgy and songs in Hebrew.  The sermon on Zacchaeus was meaningful for our group because we just saw his tree yesterday!  I appreciated the pastor's emphasis on Jewish mindset which created the framework in which Jesus interacted with Zacchaeus. 

After meeting up with Chris E (from last year's ICS trip; he's studying in Jerusalem this semester), we visited some "holy" sites, including the traditional site of Jesus' crucifixion and burial - the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Christian quarter.  Many in our group were saddened to see so many pilgrims desiring to touch "the very" spots where Jesus was nailed, hung, laid, etc, when we knew the Bible said he was crucified outside the city gates, so this couldn't be the location at all.  JT had us pray for those who were here seeking a religious experience and missing the relationship with Jesus.  Then Chris E graciously took our group photo.

The evening ended back in Bethlehem, hearing Joseph the innkeeper's testimony of how God has worked in his life and how He's working even now in Bethlehem.  He was born 130 meters from the place where Jesus was born, but his spiritual journey took him to the States for many years before coming back and opening a hotel in Bethlehem.  Joseph is passionate about sharing the love of Jesus with his neighbors, a task which has unique challenges, considering the surroundings.  Pray for Joseph - and many others like him - for encouragement and perseverance!

Masada, Mud, and Mount of Temptation

We took a swing into southern areas of Israel/West Bank today, with our first stop being Masada.  Masada had been rebuilt by King Herod just before Christ's birth for use as his summer cabin, so to speak.  It sat empty until the Jewish revolt under the Romans, serving as a last holdout against Roman occupation.  The Romans surrounded Masada for 3 years, and when they were finally able to reach the top, they found an eerie silence. The Jews had died by their own hands that morning, believing that death as a free man was more victorious than life as a Roman slave.  This gave our students a glimpse into the Jewish mindset.  Masada itself gave us a glimpse into the genius of King Herod.  The mountaintop was fortified with cisterns holding 3 years' worth of water and storage areas to hold 3 years' worth of supplies for his armies, plus the extravagant living rooms and bath houses.  It would have been a wonderful place to spend a hot desert summer!

Our next stop was the Dead Sea, where we wore our bobbing suits and tested the water.  (It's not possible to swim in the Dead Sea, so we had to rename our swimsuits).  It was definitely a different experience for a bunch of Minnesotans used to the lakes up north!  One group of us tried some of the mud which the Dead Sea is known for.  It's like that which you use for a facial mask, but black and smeared all over the body.  Stay tuned, and I'll try to upload a shot from Amy N's camera.

From there we drove to Qumran to see the caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were found.  However, due to a couple students feeling kind of nauseous from the bus ride (or swallowing salty water?), combined with arriving after about 49 other tour busses, we decided to skip the tour.  Our tour guide, Suki, picked up a postcard of the caves and gave a brief explanation.  We took off from there for a quick run through Jericho to see "the" sycamore tree which Zacchaeus climbed (it was an old one, anyway!) and the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus was tempted by the devil to bow and worship him. 

En route to all of these sites, Suki filled us in with other biblical tidbits about the area. He showed us the mountains of Moab, which are currently known as Jordan.  He pointed out where King David did this, King Saul did that, John the Baptist did this, etc.  Ashley's comment at the end of the day gives pause for reflection.  She said that even though Suki knew more about the Bible than most people on the bus (which says a lot, considering the courses they take at Northwestern!), he didn't know the Author of the book. He claimed to not be religious, finding all religions to be the same kind of thing. She found that sad, and wondered how someone who had studied scriptures so much in order to be a tour guide, indeed, who in other areas of life was so intelligent - BA from Arizona, MA from Germany, fluent in 7 languages - could miss the point of the Book.  She realized that reading the Bible without the Holy Spirit won't change a person much.  A good reminder to ask for the Spirit's guidance every time you read his word!

A Day at BBC

After reading Light Force and "meeting" people in the pages like Bishara Awad, it seems almost surreal to meet him in person, not to mention realizing that much of the book took place on the street directly outside of the front door of Bethlehem Bible College.  In a similar sense, it was humbling to have him walking past as we were working on various projects and thanking us for our work.  HE was thanking us?  But he's the famous one! I'm guessing he doesn't see himself that way.

Our taskmaster for the day was a charming man named Jihaad.  He had some of us cleaning up the flower gardens, others putting up a fence, some cleaning windows on the roof, and most of the rest of us on painting projects - a large outdoor gate, a classroom door, railings up to the admin building, and the walls in the main entry way.  A couple of us also worked in the library.  I was impressed with how he could oversee so many projects in so many different areas of the school grounds - and still get off work at 3:00 leaving us with a feeling of accomplishment.

We've had some opportunities to mingle with the staff and students over lunch together. Cassidy and Amy have been learning some Arabic words from the BBC students. Isaac learned about the difficulties another student has trying to get home - how her 30 minute commute now takes 3-4 hours.  Koob talked to a student who wants to be a missionary but is frustrated because he can't leave Bethlehem.  Please pray for us, that we will be led to speak just the right words of encouragement to our brothers and sisters here!

O "Little" Town of Bethlehem...

I'm going to have to double check my hymnal when getting home. Do the lyrics that follow "...how still we see thee lie" mention roosters at 3 am? dogs barking? horns honking? imams calling for prayer? So much for a Silent Night...

Welcome to Bethlehem, home to thousands of Palestinian Muslims and Christians housed in apartments precariously perched on steep hillsides linked by labrynths of winding lanes.  We're staying in a building owned by Joseph the innkeeper (and yes, we did find room at the inn upon arriving. Quite spacious rooms, in fact).  As we marveled at the cars and tour busses jostling for space on the road in front of the hotel, Joseph commented, "They say they will build bridges and tunnels for traffic. Where?  This town was built for donkeys!"  After finding our way to the Church of the Nativity this afternoon, we agreed with him.

Life in the Palestinian areas of Israel is not easy.  We saw an example of that on our way here from Tel Aviv last night.  The bus driver said normally the drive is 40 minutes, but because the checkpoint into Bethlehem (which is in the West Bank) "was closed since 3 days," we had to drive a good 20-30 minutes out of our way to enter Bethlehem via one of its suburbs, Beit Jala. Very frustrating for the driver, who couldn't explain any logic to closing a checkpoint if one can get into the city by another route anyway.

The bulk of our time here will be spent helping with various chores at Bethlehem Bible College. BBC brings a beacon of hope to this community. Directly across the street from the college is a refugee camp, crammed with Palestinians who've lost their homes, some having lived there since Israelis took their land in 1948.  A book that the team read this fall is Light Force by Brother Andrew.  I highly, highly recommend it to give an understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a viewpoint that CNN will never give you - that of the Palestinian Christian.  Today we met Bishara Awad, a Palestinian Christian and founder of the college, and tomorrow we will start painting gates and classrooms, cleaning windows, helping in the library, and working in the garden.

Leaving London already?

"It was so rainy!" says Cassidy about our day out in east London.  Aside from her comment on typical London weather (and nearly taking out a few people with her umbrella), the general consensus of our day spent in east London was of an amazement over the assortment of people found here.  We met with Ben, who has been working with Pakistani immigrants for years.  We spent the morning in the flat that his organization owns (to house visitors and longer-term workers), drinking tea and learning about Ben's background with Pakistan, some notes on Islam, and a brief history of east London.  A few hundred years ago, Protestants from France flocked to this area of London and called it home.  Once they prospered and moved out, Jews from other parts of Europe settled on this section of the Thames.  After they moved on, Muslims and Hindus from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and other areas of Asia moved in - to the point that there's currently a neighborhood here called "Bangla-town." 

After a spicy lunch of chicken curry, our group split into 3 teams and walked through east London, soaking up more than mizzle (British for mist/drizzle).  The teams experienced an open air market featuring anything from produce to head-wraps, walked past the oldest mosque in England, smelled some interesting smells, and saw the site where the Salvation Army was formed.

Tomorrow we leave for a much warmer climate - somewhere in the vicinity of the Dead Sea.  I, for one, am looking forward to being able to walk outside without 4 layers on to ward against the chill!  We hope for an uneventful transition from England to Israel.  I'm not sure what we'll have for Internet access once there; I'll give updates as often as possible.

A Picture is Worth... almost as much as the person taking it?

Making a Phone Call?

We've been just over two days now in London, which we're finding is not quite as relaxed as Portugal.  There is a lot to see here!  Thankfully the London Underground is quite easy to navigate. It really is amazing, the labrynth of "tubes" criss-crossing below street level!

We've tried to experience Evensong at both Westminster and St Paul's, arriving to find out that the start time listed on the Internet was not as accurate as the information on the signboard posted out front of each.  The outsides of the buildings are impressive!  Since we couldn't go in, we opted to at least take pictures.  It's not every day you run across Big Ben!  Although some of the picture-takers were almost as entertaining...


Today our group had a "free day," so we split up to explore.  My group tried to tour Westminster in the morning but didn't want to pay the 15 pounds entrance fee.  The sign out front stated that the fees were used for upkeep of the building; those who go to worship [Evensong services] are never charged an entrance fee.  In other words, people pay to see the building, but there is no charge to worship the King of the Universe.  And shouldn't it be that way? 

After last night's service at our host church, some of the students asked the pastor some questions about his sermon on adoption, based on Romans 8:1-17.  He shared the difficulties that Christian families in England have when trying to adopt, as all adoptions have to go through the state.  Because such a small percentage of the English are actually practicing Christians, the social worker tried to tell them that putting a child into such an "odd" situation might actually cause her harm.  A Christian home?  In England?  We're beginning to understand the idea of a post-Christian society in Europe.  There is a great void here!

Bika!

That seems to be the phrase most commonly heard around the seminary here.  Bika is the shot of espresso so integral to Portuguese daily life. The coffee shop up the hill has become a morning favorite for our quiet time or group studies; likewise, we see many Portuguese gathering to meet friends and carry on business there.  In fact, some church plants here have started as coffee houses.  People aren't comfortable entering church buildings, but everyone finds a coffee house safe! 

Today we sampled another item Portugal is world famous for: pastel de Belem (or pastel de nata if you get it anywhere else in the country).  We drove to Belem to sample this tasty pastry, and all agreed: Dr Phillips was right to tell us we couldn't get the full Portuguese experience without it. Another discovery we made was grilled sardines for lunch.  Those who were brave enough to order it found it delicious.

Yesterday we visited the other two seminaries in the country. One is run by the Assemblies of God, which is one of the largest evangelical denominations in the country.  The other is PBI, Portuguese Bible Institute, which is where Dr Phillips and his wife served for many years.  We led their evening chapel service with songs led by Aaron, JT, and Amy N (and a Portuguese student on percussion), Garret giving a message, and a drama of the prodigal son by Aaron, Koob, Cassidy, Ashley, Krista, and Amy R.  In between our visits of the seminaries, we also visited the European Teen Challenge headquarters, toured their facilities here, and learned about the incredible impact Teen Challenge can have in different countries around Europe.  We were saddened to learn that some government policies in different European Union states are making it nearly impossible for Teen Challenge to work effectively.  It's the "Jesus factor" which differentiates this sober program from other programs. Please pray that more lives will be changed by the "Jesus factor!"  Portugal is less than 1% evangelical Christian, so organizations like Teen Challenge are vital to show the amazing change Jesus can have in someone's life.

We leave very early tomorrow morning for England, where we may not have much Internet access and so we may not update the blog as often.  We'll update as often as we can!

Getting to Know Portugal

The best way to get to know a country is, naturally, to get to know the people.  We've had a couple of Americans giving their perspectives on Portugal, Christianity in Portugal, general daily life in Portugal, etc, but I have to say we enjoyed interviewing a panel of "real" experts.  These are students at the seminary here who were more than willing to answer all of our questions!  We've enjoyed worship and fellowship together in the evenings.These young men are passionate to see change in Portugal, a country where only 1% of the population really know Christ.

These young seminary students are also very passionate about something else - futebol.  The Northwestern students challenged the Portuguese students to a game of soccer this morning.  I wish them luck; two of these "Portuguese" students are actually Brazilians.  Hello, Pele?

Lest you didn't believe in miracles...

Just in case you didn't believe in miracles and God's provision, let me share one with you.  When we arrived at immigration at the airport in Portugal, one of our team discovered that her passport was missing.  She emptied both her carry-on and purse, checked her empty pockets, to no avail - her passport was simply missing.  As the saying goes, "A man without a passport is a man without a country" - a saying which doesn't mean much until you're trying to enter another country, stuck in that no-man's land between the gate and the immigration checkpoint.  The last point she remembered having it was at the gate at Heathrow, where we'd shown our passports with our boarding passes.  Whether it fell out of her bag at Heathrow or whether it was stolen, we'll possibly never know.  We used the courtesy phone to call British Airways and the airport ground crew; they didn't find anything on the plane.  THANKFULLY, Portuguese hospitality extended to immigration officers - who let us through with a photocopy of the missing passport.  (Note to travelers: ALWAYS carry a photocopy of your passport on you!)

Monday brought multiple calls to Heathrow's lost and found office - most of which were disconnected before anyone actually answered. When someone finally did answer, the response was that nothing had been turned in to them.   A trip to the American Embassy here in Lisbon ensued, with a promise on the embassy's website that new passports take a minimum of 2 weeks to process.  The result?  A brand new passport was produced - and ready to pick up in just 3 hours. We are praising God for amazing provision and that we will all be able to travel together at the end of the week when it's time to leave Portugal!

A visit to ABLA (or Getting Acquainted With the Metro)

On Monday we visited a social work ministry run by a German organization.  Karla showed us a creative way to help the people of Portugal through a mix of ministry and social work - a good testament to holistic ministry.  ABLA was originally started to meet a need in the African community, reaching out to immigrants from former Portuguese colonies in Africa.  It has turned into a wide mixture of outreach opportunities - into the African communities, Portuguese schools, elder care, and others.  Karla said their heart is to show the love of Christ in practical ways, with the blessing and support of the government.

 We also had the opportunity to spend a portion of the day learning about - and trying to understand - the Portuguese metro system.  Purchasing tickets proved to be a bit more challenging than expected.  Despite the lack of toilets at the train stations, we survived just fine, and made it to our destination - on Portuguese time.  We're adjusting well.  :)

A Good Start

The team split up Sunday morning to go to two different church services.  The group I was with went to a Portuguese service.  The Portuguese language isn't nearly as similar to Spanish as some of us had been hoping, although words like "Hallelujah" are always understood.  Our hostess, Vicky, said that the piano player at this church is a professional, so it was no surprise that the choral ensemble he led sounded so magnificent!

The other group went to an African service, which was in English.  There are a lot of African immigrants here.  That group really enjoyed the service, and one of them got a crash course in proper greetings.  Reportedly, the proper way to give a greeting is to kiss each other on the cheek.  However, this student (I won't give a name) discovered that you don't really kiss ON the cheek, but the air OVER the cheek.  Well, now we know!  :)  

Ola!

We've arrived safely in Portugal! After lots of time in various airports and restful sleep on the ever-so-comfortable plane seats (...or not...), we're glad to have arrived at our first destination. One of the nice perks thus far was a 2-hour late flight in Chicago - the airline gave us all vouchers to eat in the food court to tide us over. We certainly didn't complain about that, especially as the one flight being late didn't cause us to miss our connecting flight.

We're ready for a good night's sleep, then off to visit two different churches in the morning. We're looking forward to what God has in store for us here!

And They're Off!

We feel like we're ready to circumnavigate the world.  Quad 1 is now over, prep courses are done, suitcases are packed (the heaviest topped out at only 38 pounds!), and we're boarding the vans to the airport today, thanking God for providing amazingly for this trip!  Thank you to all who have supported financially and prayerfully!

Our first stop will be Portugal, and at least one of us in the group has promised Dr Ken Phillips to eat some pastel de nata for him once we get there.  I'm sure it's 100% fat free.  Hopefully we can post some pics of us eating those pasteis with our new Portuguese friends.

Please pray for safe travels, that all 18 of us - and our bags - arrive safely in Lisbon!

Around the World in 62 Days!

Welcome to the 2010 ICS Fall Internship!

Let me introduce myself, as I’m the Primary Blog Updater. My name is Melea (rhymes with “Maria”), I taught English in SE Asia for four years before joining the Northwestern family as a co-leader of last year’s ICS internship trip, and I’m excited to see this fall’s group of students getting excited about going overseas themselves.


Many things go into preparing for a trip that will take us around the world in 62 days. In class we discussed how we interact with others based on our own presumptions of them. The students considered how other cultures view time, for example, and even considered how other cultures may view us as Americans and what impact that has on how we carry ourselves. Outside of classes, we’re gearing up for some final fundraisers and hopefully some social interactions so we can get to know each other better.

We’re praising God for the abundance of what has come in so far. Thank you for all of your support, both prayerful and financial! We look forward to giving regular updates of His power and providence on this trip!

The Final Countdown

We're leaving a week from Friday, and we're almost ready! We think?

We've had a few fun fundraisers lately - a swing dance gala in the Blue Room a week ago, which drew a nice crowd for some swing dance lessons, some time to practice, and then an informational bit to let people what we're hoping to do, featuring an ICS alumna who traveled 2 years ago to a couple of the same places we're going to this year giving a testimony of what she learned on her trip. Saturday was Northwestern's homecoming (Go Eagles!) and we sold concessions next to the stands. The chilly weather made perfect weather for selling hot donuts, hot apple cider, and some SE Asian coffee - a nice complement to an Eagles' win.

Sunday we worshiped together in Reilly's church. Kristin, Koob, Ana, Reilly, JT, and Isaac provided worship music, Jewel and Reilly shared testimonies, and Dr Easterling briefed the congregation on what our trip is about. Afterwards, Reilly's mom treated us to a full Thanksgiving dinner. THANK YOU!!

Please keep us in your prayers as we finish up Quad 1 finals and try to pack everything but the kitchen sink into our suitcases.