More Beach Pics

Beach Vacation 2012

This year we received a special gift from our son-in-law. He blessed the entire family with a week long vacation in Destin, Florida. He chose a home which would allow us all to spread out, which is not easy with a family as large as ours...and still growing. There were 21 of us total. All six of the children, their four spouses, and seven and 7/9 grandchildren. We were even joined by Earl and Lora for a couple of days, along with my niece, Jaime. The days were spent visiting on the beach or at the pool, taking walks in the evenings, discussions out on the balconies, shopping at the outlet mall, and several "date night" getaways while there were family members to keep an eye on sleeping children. Katie baked all the breakfasts, snacks and too many pies to count. We all shared a meal together at the Mellow Mushroom and Pompano Joe's. Each of five nights was assigned to a different family, so that no one family was overburdened. I am grateful for a family of good cooks. Babies were passed around, read to, sang to, and cuddled by one and all. And being reminded of our newest soon-to-be grandson's arrival, only weeks away, by some seriously cute maternity clothes:) Great memories were made, and a lot of laughter shared. One night we gathered in the living room and sang together, and Terry spoke to us all, reminding us of what makes us a family. The Lord knit together these 21 individuals, with their unique quirks and differences, and brought us together into one body. We are the body of Christ, and all we do we do for His glory. When we fail, and we fail often, He forgives us and renews us and strengthens us,and we continue on. I can not imagine going through life without the family He has blessed me with. I love each and every one of them, and I pray that whenever we are able to be together again that we will  continue to be an encouragement to one another, and that we all will leave spiritually uplifted and renewed. We have experienced enough of life to know that we can only be grateful for today, because we do not know what the future holds. But regardless of what difficulties may come, we know who is in control, and that He blesses those who diligently seek Him. Blessed Assurance, Jesus is mine, o what a foretaste of glory divine, heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of His Spirit, washed in His blood. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long.

Maria's Dance Recital

When I was a little girl my sisters and I took ballet lessons from Sulik School of Ballet in Jacksonville, Florida. In exchange for free lessons, my mother sewed the costumes for the recitals each year. I loved ballet. I loved the black leotard and pink tights, and the smell of new pink ballet slippers. I loved watching my mother sew on the pink satin ribbons for the recital, and how we wet the knots to keep the knots tied during the dance. I loved wearing my hair up in a bun for the big night. I remember our costumes- Karen's blue gingham picnic dress, my can-can, the scottish tartan, the Chinese girl, the beautiful blue tulle skirt. So this is why, when my daughters were little, they also took ballet. Katie and I caught two busses in Florence, Italy in order for her to dance at Accademia dei Piccoli. They have been around for over a hundred years, and I loved walking up the winding staircase and looking at the pictures of recitals in the early 1900's. I loved the piano and the little girls all lined up to enter the room with their little pink leotards with pale pink silk skirts, woolen leg warmers, pink slippers, and little pink wool wrap sweaters to keep them warm in this old, drafty building. I bought Katie a little bag with "danza" embroidered on it for her to keep her slippers in. away from little brothers and sisters. It was a special time for just the two of us- unusual when you are the oldest of four. Sweet memories. And now, the years have flown, and Maria now carries this same little dance bag of her mama's. Terry and I made a special trip two weeks ago to our granddaughter's first recital. She was a lovely butterfly in Noah's ark. She was beautiful and beamed throughout her performance. I am grateful for a studio that emphasizes the innocence and purity of childhood. It was a precious performance. Afterwards we all went to Aunt Kathi's house for a special ballerina tea. Kathi, having shared my ballet memories, made new ones for my Maria. Special iced cakes, ballerina napkins, and pink punch. Perfection! We bought her a music box and necklace to mark the special occasion. You see, Maria is also one of four little ones. And it is so easy to get lost in the crowd of a big family, no matter how wonderful and special they are. So for this one day, it was all about Maria and her ballet slippers. Ballerina Girl, you are so lovely...

Bourton-on-the Water

Since I was a very young girl I have loved to read of life in other lands. It all started with Mrs. Timmerman, my fourth grade teacher. On Friday afternoons, after lunch, she would enter the room with a new book, dressed as a character from a different country.Sometimes she even baked a treat which was common in that country. I was hooked. My favorite book became "If I Was Going", which followed the adventures of Mr. and Mrs. Sanders as they travelled the world together. God has allowed me to live in three different countries, and during my years abroad I learned to love England. The only books or magazines I could read for a long time were from England. I learned to prefer the "British Edition" of Country Living and Good Housekeeping. I read "Aga Sagas" (books set in rural English countryside in which the homeowners had Aga stoves to heat their cottages). And for many years, Terry and I would fly to London from Florence, and spend every penny we had saved, for four or five wonderful days together. We would enjoy the theater, shopping, tea at Fortnum and Mason, etc. During those sometimes difficult years, England was where we went to be restored and rejuvenated. Thus, this Spring, when we needed a place to go for two weeks while our students were traveling, we made the decision to rent a cottage in the Cotswalds for a week. Well Cottage is in a delightful little village, just north of Oxford. We took the train from Paddington Station to Moreton-on-Marsh , and then a taxi to Bourton. During our week here we walked the Public Footpaths, enjoyed scones and cream at teatime each afternoon, explored the cemetery, visited Model Village, cooked, celebrated Easter, visited the local Anglican church, and played many games of Nertz with the boys. The boys and Terry had boat races (boats made from stale Ciabatta bread, leaves and sticks) down the River Windrush. We wound our way through an old English maze, where a jewled dragonfly was found in the mouth of a golden frog.We spent rainy afternoons curled up with good books and hot tea. It was a magical week in a sixteenth century cottage. It will be hard to ever top this time away as a family. It felt like such a gift at the end of a busy semester away from friends and family. And I am so grateful.

London 2012

As soon as our students were all safely on their free travels, Terry and I and the boys caught a plane to England for ten days. We flew into Gatwick on EasyJet on Wednesday afternoon and picked up our rental car to drive to our hotel closeby. Driving on the left side of the road about did me in:) Well, actually Terry driving:) We arrived at our hotel and decided to stay there until Saturday. It was a wonderful older hotel which had the feel of an old home in the countryside. We went for walks in the nearby small town to buy some groceries for snacking, and the boys enjoyed the spa pool several times.We caught the train into Paddington station on Friday and spent the day sightseeing and returning to some of our favorite areas. We rode the double decker tour bus, took a lunch cruise down the Thames River, saw the amazing Easter egg display in Covent Garden--and, of course, shopped:) Cath Kidston is one of my favorite shops, and I saved all my shopping for here! I bought a new sewing box, handkerchief, soap dish, bag, etc. It was so much fun. We headed back to our hotel for our last night, knowing that the following morning I would be marking a checkmark next to my longtime dream list...

Visitors- the Hicks, Shumards, and My In-laws

The day we arrived home from Northern Greece we had visitors waiting for us! Ed and Dixie Hicks came for a week from Montgomery. They were with us in Citerna, Italy for the Fall of 2007 semester abroad. They are seasoned travelers and a joy to have with us. They rented their own car and were quite helpful showing others around the area. On Sunday morning Ken Shumards and Gary Chamblee with the Shumards Foundation arrived on their way home from meeting with the President of Rwanda. They are building a school there. We spent Sunday and Monday showing them various buildings and properties to be used in the future for a study abroad center/ church building. They are wise business men, and are wanting to invest in a way which would employ Greeks, and allow our program to pay for itself, and the money then be reinvested in other good works. Confused?:) they explain it better than I can. Lord willing, in the next year, the groundwork will be laid for a facility which will allow us to have a positive impact with our students, and more importantly, have an impact for the Lord's work in Athens. We shared a wonderful meal together, along with Dino, at a local Greek taverna. Monday afternoon, Earl and Lora arrived from Henderson. They were on their way to hold a meeting in Catania, Sicily, and then pay a visit to old friends in Palermo. We had such a nice visit with them. We took driving trips down to the harbor, and along the coastal roads. One evening we visited Cape
Sounion to see the sunset at the Temple of Poseidon. We ALL climbed to the top ( the Hickses
and Halls were also there). We took them to catch their flight on Thursday. After their departure we took two of our students and our boys to the Athens Mall to see the Hunger Games. We really enjoyed it! Afterwards we ate at KFC before heading home to prepare for the next days departure for Turkey. It was my first trip to the Mall. Great stores- Zaragoza Home, Mark and Spencers, Accessorize, to name a few. I definitely want to return some time. It was a wonderful visit, though too short. The morning they were departing we went to Chapel together. It was a song service and we sang some of my favorites. It was such a blessing to sit by the two of them and hear their beautiful voices. They are such an encouragement to me of faithfulness to God throughout all the trials of life. I am so blessed to have them in my life, and in the lives of my children and grandchildren. Friday morning Terry took the Hick's to catch an early morning flight, and then we left for Turkey. An incredibly busy week- but a blessed week with good friends and family.

Greek Island Cruise- Part 2

At 9am we met Barbara, our Aristotle guide, at the port and boarded our cruise ship, the Cristal Louis line. Over the years we have mainly been on the Golden Star line, but this is now the only remaining line in this area because of the economic down turn. There are many workers on the ship from Indonesia, the Ukraine, Russia, etc. All corners of the world. They were all very professional. At noon we sailed for Patmos, where John wrote the Book of Revelation. The group disembarked by tender boats and toured the island where the apostle Paul was exiled to, along with visiting the monastery of St. John the Evangelist and the Grotto of the Revelation. At 9pm we set sale for Rhodes. This ship has two buffets up on the ninth deck, and restaurants on the 3rd and 5th. Christian prefers the formal dining room because he doesn't like the hustle and bustle of the buffets:) Tea time from 4-5pm was wonderful. Scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam, butter shortbreads, muffins, etc. At lunch each day you have a choice of different buffets, and also a gyro bar, taco bar, and a stir fry bar on the last day. The pool is in the middle of the buffet area but it was cool and windy for swimming. We went to the Greek show after dinner to see the folk dancing. The boys stayed up watching a soccer game on TV, and the seas were very calm. The following morning we docked at Rhodes at 7am. The local guides were on strike, so all paid excursions were cancelled. I didn't mind a bit:) we have been there many times in the past, so Terry showed the students around and then we joined him around 10:30. We visited our favorite sword shop and the boys chose a new Swiss army knife(Jordan), and a scary 3 dimensional knife on a mounted stand (Christian). We also picked up some knights for the four grandsons:) we have had no trouble finding little gifts for the girls, but there just isn't as much to buy for the little guys. In ancient times, the Colossus of Rhodes was one of the Seven wonders of the ancient world. This stronghold was built by a Crusading Order, which originated from Palestine. We sailed at 6pm for Heraklion, Crete. The main show tonight was an International show featuring Russian dancers, ballerinas, etc. A large variety that were all good. There was also Karaoke and other entertainment. You could take dance classes, yoga, towel folding, magic shows,Greek cooking classes, etc. I enjoyed spending the time doing some handwork in my cabin looking out over the seas from our cabin window, or reading. I enjoyed visiting with Barbara. She is from Northern Scotland, near Inverness. Her Dad is part of the Royal Force, and when the Queen and her family are staying at Balmoral Castle or the Queen Mother's former estate, he is their driver. The only Rolls-Royce in the area is owned by the local butcher, so whenever anyone important comes to town, he heads to the butcher to borrow his car!
The following morning we arrived at Heraklion, Crete at 7am. Because I have visited several times:) I slept in while Terry took the students to visit the Minoan Palace of Knossos, legendary home of the Minotaur. At 11:30 we sailed for Santorini. Christian had just woken up! We arrived at Santorini at 4pm and disembarked by tender boats. The four of us took the cable cars up. I was not sad to bypass riding the donkeys up the mountain! It is now 4 euros for the cable cars and 5 for the donkeys...each way! We enjoyed the beautiful views from the white-washed town of Thira which is perched high on the rim of the ancient volcano. Tradition has it that this is the town of Atlantis, written of by Plato. We bought ice cream ( and a cute new pink floral scarf:), and ran into our students being interviewed by a Japanese news station on the Greek economy. Around 6:30 we walked down the donkey trail to the town below. It is a loooonnngg walk, with incredible views, we stopped and picked some daisies along the way. We has smooth sailing the entire cruise, and not one student needed any Dramamine. Success!
Friday morning we had to be out of our cabins by 7am so they could prepare for the new passengers. Sakis, our Greek driver friend, was there to meet us and drove us the 45 minutes home from Piraeus to Porto Rafti. It was great to be home. I have now finished the seven loads of laundry, and have packed for our England trip. Our LAST trip for a good while. Our travels with this group of students are now behind us, with the exception of our flight from Athens to Atlanta on the 18th. Saturday night we are taking them to Glyfada to TIFridays for dinner and shopping to celebrate the end of our semester. They will all be leaving on Monday for their free travels in Northern Europe. We will be flying to London on Wednesday, and then heading to Oxford for two days. We want to visit some CSLewis sights and take the boys to see some film locations from the Harry Potter movies. On Saturday we will be settling in for a week at Wells Cottage in Bourton-on-the-Water. A long time dream for me. I'll take lots of pictures!

Seven Churches in Turkey and Cruise to the Greek Islands-Part 1

On Monday, March 23 we left for the airport to fly to Izmir, Turkey. Our flight was at 1:00 so we had to be there by 10:00 because of security. This trip we were joined on our flight by the Harding students, who we are sharing facilities with this semester ( we are staying at Hardings campus in Porto Rafti). Once we landed their group headed to Istanbul, while ours headed to see the sites of Izmir. It was a beautiful day, which is especially appreciated after this long, cold winter. Our guide, Omer, was a riot! He is a smaller replica of the Interior Decorator in the movie, "Father of the Bride". He would talk about himself in the third person, such as " Oh, Omer, you are so, so,so funny!" in this high squeaky voice. He most definitely made our trip memorable:)he is the only boy in thee family, with seven sisters, one of which graduated from Harvard and is a Medical Doctor in North Carolina. It made me wonder about this rural farm family in Turkey and what their story is...We first went to lunch at a restaurant in town serving traditional Turkish food. Our meal was interrupted by the loud call to prayers over the loudspeakers. You hear these calls to prayer five times a day. In the afternoon we visited the ancient Agora and Alexander the Great's "Velvet Castle" overlooking the Bay of Izmir. We then drove on to Manisa for dinner and to spend the night.
The following morning the group left early and drove to Pergamum. They explored the Acropolis (taking the cable cars over the fields of daisies), visited the steepest theatre in the world, the Asklepieion, the Altar of Zeus, and the Temple of Trajan and Library.We also visited the Red Baslica (St. john's Church). We ate lunch at a local restaurant and then drove to Thyatira, a city famous for it's purple dyes. We visited the remains of a basilica and some architectural fragments from the Roman period.before heading back to our hotel we visited a Turkish Rug Co-op and watched the young women tie the thousands of knots per square inch! We had a fascinating demonstration of this young man who raises the silk worms and then spun and unwound the threads, which were then knotted into rugs. Our students were each given silk floss to take with them. Terry bought me a beautiful carpet runner for our hallway, a wool on cotton. We have two silk on silk from previous visits, and this shop owner told us they would most likely be out of production in the next 10-15 years unless the Turkish government continued to subsidize the work. After this visit we returned to our hotel for the evening.
On Sunday we began our day with a visit to Sardis to see the great Temple of Artemis and the Temple of Cybele, which became a Byzantine Church. This is where we shared in a devotional, shared Communion together, sang hymns, and Terry read from the book of Revelation.As I listened to him speak I could see on the hill right behind him a shepherd with his flock of sheep, including a newborn lamb. We sang amidst the sounds of birds singing, lambs bleating, and the tinkling of the bells around their necks. It was a beautiful reminder that He is our Great Shepherd. After our service together the students were able to hold the baby lamb , and then enjoyed watching the shepherd set it down. On the far pasture the mother started calling the sheep and the little lamb prances away.Just adorable. We drove by Philadelphia and Thyatira (there are very few remains to see there). We also saw Colossae, which is just a few remains on the top of a hill. At Laodicea we saw the ancient theatre and the remains of a basilica, and then headed on to Hierapolis after lunch. We visited the Martyrium of the Apostle Phillip where he was martyred during the persecutions ordered by Domitian. We visited the Gate of Domition, the Arcadian Way, the 2nd Century AD Theatre, the Nymphaion, the Temple of Apollo, the Plutonium and the Necropolis. We were exhausted! But then came the wonderful end to a perfect day...Pamukkale! These beautiful limestone cliffs and Turkish baths! After a wonderful buffet everyone headed to the thermal indoor and outdoor baths. Our boys looked lovely in their swim caps:) They loved it. Even our bathtub had two spouts, the one normal one, and then a golden one for the "therapeutic" water! Monday morning we checked out and drove to ancient Ephesus where the Apostle Paul preached to the Ephesians and lived here for three years, we walked through history along the marble streets lined with wonderful public buildings, among them the Baths of Scholastica, the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Hadrian and the Theatre. The Temple of Diana of the Ephesians, another of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was built in this city. Terry read to us from the book of Ephesians and the Book of Acts. I hope I always remember these places as I study God's Word in the future, and am reminded that these were real people, in real towns, who were in need of a Savior, just as I am. Last of all, we visited the Basilica of St. John and the Ephesus Museum. The academic portion was now over, but we still had two stops to make. One was to a pottery shop, where our students got to experience first hand a pottery wheel. They gave me two ceramic ornaments as gifts to take home. Our next visit was to a fashion show at a leather shop. The girls were a bit scantily attired under their coats but our students handled themselves well. They were pretty understanding that our group would not be purchasing any $3200 coats! This shop makes coats for Chanel and Gucci, so it was still fun to see the new Fall line ahead of those in the States. Our hotel for the evening overlooked the Kusadasi harbor. We had a beautiful view of the harbor lights, and when we awoke we saw our cruise ship waiting for us. To be continued...

Northern Greece Tour

We left home at 8am to drive to Delphi, the center of the ancient world- the "omphalus" (navel) of the earth. The weather was very cold, but we were all bundled up well while we toured the ruins and the museum. We ate lunch at a local restaurant which has beautiful views over the mountain ranges, which were topped with snow. Is this really March in Greece? James, our guide, said they had just announced that this was the coldest and longest winter since they began keeping records. After lunch we began our drive to Kalambaka down the mountain and along the rocky, hilly coastline. Did I mention that it was snowing heavily? And that it was foggy? And that our bus driver, Costis, said he'd never seen anything like it? Not exactly reassuring to say the least. There are miles of hairpin curves. Miles and miles...where was Terry during the excitement? Why, sleeping soundly:)That evening we stayed at the Hotel Meteora at the base of Meteora. The views of the monasteries on the mountain tops was perect from our bedroom terrace.
The following morning we drove up the mountain and visited one of the monasteries. The girls enjoyed putting on the skirts provided by the church to wear during their visit:) Jordan and Christian liked the heavy woven net that is used to lift the monks, and supplies us the mountainside by pulley. I bought a small brass candlestick and sone beeswax candles to take home with me. From there we drove North to Vergina, the first capital of Macedonia, where the tomb of Phillip II of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great was found. We have read much about this time in history this year with the boys, about tomb raiders, etc., so that the boys seemed to enjoy this museum more than others. After lunch we drove to Thessaloniki, where we stayed at the Golden Star hotel right on the water.
Wednesday was a wonderful day. Christian and I took the day off from touring (he had been sick on the bus three times the day before:( we hung out in the room, and walked along the boardwalk and had lunch together. He watched a Manchester game in the afternoon and was ready for the group to get back. They returned at 6pm and had had a good day at Phillippi, the site where the apostle Paul came and worked, establishing a strong church. They sang at the church near the river where Lydia is thought to have been baptized.
Thursday morning we started our day with a tour of Thessaloniki, before going to Berea. We walked to the Old Jewish Quarters, where this is an old unused synagogue still remaining. There were 60,000 Jews in Thessaloniki before WWII, and only 2000 came back from the camps. They then immigrated to Israel. There is no longer a Jewish presence there. I am currently finishing the Bodie Thoene series "The Zion Chronicles" which I began reading while in
Jerusalem. It has really effected how I look at this time in our world's history. What a dark time. We then drove on to Dion, on the lower slopes of Mount Olympus, the home of the ancient Greek God's. After lunch we stopped at Thermopylae, to see the statue of Leonidas (Shelley Salza- I thought of your little Leonidas:)it commemorates the historic battle between the 300 Spartans led by Leonidas and the Persian army of Xerxes in 480bC composed of 1000's. We then drove home to Porto Rafti, arriving about 7pm. Ed and Dixie Hicks had arrived from Montgomery, so we all shared a meal together at Dimitri's and headed to bed. It was a wonderful, full, four days.We fly to Izmir, Turkey on Thursday, and then it will be time to start closing up the semester. We are so grateful for this adventure, shared with some wonderful students.

Conclusion to our Israel Trip

On Wednesday morning we left for our long trip to Masada, a trip that my husband has dreamed of since he was 19 years old. Masada is an Herodian palace built as a fortress on the Dead Sea that saw the last stand of approximately 1000 Jewish zealots against the Roman legions in the year AD 73. They held out for a little over two years, until they killed their wives and children, and then themselves, rather than surrender. We took large cable cars up to the top, where the wind was incredible. Not a good day to wear a flowing skirt:) I had to tie it in three knots! It was wonderful to see this place I have read about for many years. We almost had to walk down because they shut down the cable cars when the winds get to 40 mph. After eating lunch, we headed to the Dead Sea. It was overcast, but still ur group enjoyed covering themselves with mud and floating in the water. We collected large rock crystals along the shorelines to take home with us. Right as we were leaving a beautiful rainbow appeared in the sky. Our second this trip. As if we needed any reminders of how God fulfills His promises to us, His children!

2:30am came earlier than we liked. We had to leave to drive from Jerusalem back to Tel Aviv, allowing several hours to get through security. As we entered the airport grounds a man with a machine gun boarded and walked through our bus. He stopped when he got to Jordan and Christian and asked them where their passports were. Jordan, in his sweet Alabama accent replied they were up front with his Mom and Dad:) no more questions, thankfully. We were questioned extensively in the airport, but eventually we all were on board for our short flight to Athens. What a blessing it all was- from being able to share the moments with my friend, Linda, to seeing the Dead Sea Scrolls, to gaining a new sister in Christ at the Sea of Galilee. I know I have mixed up some days with others:) I mostly wanted to have a record I could go back and look at years from now, and say, "Look children, look how good our God is, and how He has blessed us for a lifetime."

Israel Trip-Days 5 and 6

Ou first stop Monday morning was to the Mount of Olives where we had a breathtaking view of the city of Jerusalem. We walked down to the Garden of Gethsemane via the Palm Sunday Route.As we walked down this road we sang , o Lord, Prepare Me to be a Sanctuary...The garden contained many old olive trees, and someone has taken great care in maintaining the grounds and planting flowers. There was a sense of peacefulness. In the Christian Quarters we visited St. ann's Crusader church, the Lithostrotos, Antonia Fortress, the Via Dolorosa and finished at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This church is maintained by five different denominations- Catholics, Orthodox, Armenians,Syrian Orthodox, andCoptic Orthodox. What a mess man makes out of something God makes so simple. In this space, where tradition said Jesus was buried, man has made gaudy, and gold filled, and ornate. On the contrary, our visit to the Garden Tomb, where we were led by an Irish believer,was a beautiful experience. There was a sense of calm and beauty in the gardens, and the tomb was simple. The truth is, WHERE He was buried is really not relevant. The fact that He arose is what gives us the hope that we have. There was a small gift shop there and I bought a watercolor of the open tomb that the shipowners husband had painted. I am going to hang it above my Bible Study chair to remember.

Tuesday morning we visited the Dome of the Rock, on the Temple Mount. Security there was extreme. No Bibles are allowed through security. No symbols of Christianilty. Apparently Muslims do not share our respect for ideas different than their own. It does strike me how foolish we are concerning our contacts with this religion in assuming we have foundational principles in common. We do not. I watched as some young Arab boys washed their hands and feet in the outdoor fountains to purify themselves before entering the Temple. Only Arabs are allowed inside. No Jews are even allowed on the grounds. And yet, not 15 feet away, through a much less thorough security check, we were at the Wailing Wall. My heart hurt for those who seemed burdened, knowing that I have a Father who hears my every prayer, no matter where I am. We visited David's Tomb and the Room of the Last Supper. We visited the tunnels under the Wailing Walls, and then went to the City of David to see the Pool of Siloam and visit Hezekiah's tunnel. We walked on the dry side, as the wet side was mid thigh level! Last of all, we visited the Israel Museum with the Book of the Shrine and saw the miniature model of Jerusalem, Yad Vashem, then continued to Ein Karem, visited the Church of Visitation and St. John the Baptist, and then on to Bethlehem to see the Church of the Nativity. At the end of the day we visited an Arab -Christian Co-op and did some shopping. I purchased a Jerusalem Cross necklace and one for each of my granddaughters. We bought olive wood crosses for each of the grown children, and wooden animals for our grandsons. Then home to our hotel for the evening.

Wednesday morning

Israel Trip- Days 3 and 4

Saturday morning we got an early start to the " Yigal Alon Museum" where we were able to see an ancient boat which was excavated in the '70's. It dates to the time of Jesus. It was fascinating watching the documentary on how they were able to release it from the muddy bottom without destroying it. From there we went on a boat ride from Tiberius to Nof Ginosar. It was such a wonderful experience. The boat was a recreation of the boats from Jesus' time. Wooden floors and seating along the edges. Immediately after pulling away from shore they hosted an American flag and began playing the National Anthem. Very cheesy, but it was still fun to hear the students all singing along with great gusto! While floating on the Sea of Galilee we shared a devotional together and sang hymns together. When we were finished, the captain of the boat turned on a gospel CD. Elvis Presley and Sandi Patti:) I will admit that singing "How Great Thou Art" while on the very Sea where Jesus walked was very moving. After disembarking, we continued on to Capernaum and visited the ruins of an ancient synagogue and the site of Peter's house. From there we proceeded to see fish mosaics from a 5th century Byzantine basilica at Tabgha. This was supposedly the site of the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. After lunch we drove to the Mount of Beatitudes, site of " The Sermon on the Mount". We travelled through the Upper Galilee to visit Tel Hazor, and then returned to our hotel for the evening. About 6pm we had a knock on our door. Our student, Gretchen, had decided to put on our Lord in baptism! We all went down to the Sea, the students climbing a fence to get to the shore, where Luke baptized her. The highlight of our trip! What rejoicing!

The next morning was the Lord's Day. We first visited Cana, the site of Jesus' first miracle. There was a small local wedding in the church that day, which made it so easy to envision the festivities, and the wine running out. And Jesus had changed the water into, not just wine, but the best wine. Amazing! We continued on to visit Nazareth where Jesus spent his early years, and visited Mary's Well and the Church of the Annunciation. We climbed the hillside where Jesus' own people had rejected Him after he read to them the words of Isaiah. They had wanted to throw him off of the hilltop. We shared in the Lords Supper together, using individual olive wood cups that Nasser had brought for us to keep, as a special reminder of our times walking where He walked. We then drove to Mt. tabor, the site of the Transfiguration, and then on to our hotel in Jerusalem where we would spend the next four nights. The Rimonim Jerusalem Hotel was quite a haven for us during our stay there. We were on the 15th floor, with a large living room and bedroom suite. We had a wall of windows overlooking the city of Jerusalem. Breathtaking. Upon entering our room we found a basket of fruit, bottled water, and special chocolates. All very much appreciated. But best of all was the two pairs of house slippers:) It is funny how much delight can come from the little blessings God graces our days with! The boys has a separate room by the students, and enjoyed their freedom:) one night I went down to check on them before bed and could hear singing. Jordan was at the devo the students were having in their room. What a blessing they have been in the lives of our sons. Before going to bed I downloaded a book off of Kindle that I had read many years before, "The Gates of Zion" by Bodie and Brock Thoene. I knew it would be perfect to read during these days in Jerusalem. Tomorrow,Gethsemane.

Our Israel Trip- Days 1 and 2

On Tuesday, February 21' Linda flew in from Montgomery to join us on our upcoming trip to Israel. We left at 7am on Thursday,February 23, for the Athens airport, flying El Al Airlines. Our flight did not depart until 10:30, but El Al security is very tight. They have a separate interrogation area, and talk to each individual sparately to see if their stories line up with each other.It was very nerve wracking. At 11:30 we arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv. Getting through passport control took over an hour. We immediately connected with our guide, Nasser Elias( an Israeli Arab Christian) and our driver for the next week, Moffitt(a Muslim father of five). We went and had lunch in an Arab restaurant in the Old City (biblical city of Joppa where Peter received the vision concerning the eating of unclean animals). The cuisine was typical Lebanese- pita bread, hummus, lamb and chicken on skewers, and about ten different sauces to dip our bread in. The sights and sounds of the marketplace were marked by the Muslim calls to prayer. After a short tour of Joppa and Tel Aviv we drove to our hotel for the night, the Marina Tel Aviv. After dinner, Linda and I took a walk along the boardwalk area, and down along the shore. It was a popular promenade with a lot of families and couples out strolling, and many joggling. There was an outdoor workout station, which upon first sight appeared to be a playground for children. There was even a large digital scale on the sidewalk. Physical fitness was obviously highly valued.

The following morning , after breakfast, we left to drive along the coastline for a visit to Caesarea to see the vast archaeological excavations, including the Roman theatre and aqueduct. Most interesting to the boys was our visit to Megiddo, an ancient city along the Via Maris, there was a large tunnel under the rock with hidden water sources. They were able to go down the steep stairwell, and through the tunnel. We just finished reading, "Beyond the Desert Gate" in our Sonlight curriculum, so they were able to relate better to what had been described in the book concerning the Roman Occupation and the Fall of Jerusalem. That afternoon we continued on to the Sea of Galilee and the Tiberius area, where we would be spending the next two nights. We stayed at the Leonardo Tiberius Hotel, where many of the guests were rushing around to get last minute preparations dome before the sunset and Sabbath began. As we walked along the boardwalk, Orthodox Jews, with their flying black coats, and young men with their long side curls were rushing to get to the synagogue before they closed the doors. One of our four elevators was designated the Sabbath elevator and would go to the first floor only, with no need to push a button. There was also a large basin full of Sabbath candles to light as you entered the restaurant area. One side note. In Israel the McDonald restaurants are kosher, so no dairy is served alongside meat. No cheeseburgers are available. You could leave the store and go the McDonalds on the other side for a milkshake.We enjoyed a lightshow and an ice cream, and then returned to our hotel for the evening. Tomorrow...our boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.

Our Southern Greece Trip

We left Monday morning at 8am to begin our visit to Southern Greece. Our first stop was to Corinth for a stop to see the Canal, and then on to Ancient Corinth. The weather was beautiful. Not a cloud. In Ancient Corinth we saw all the sites associated with Paul 's ministry: the Agora, the Temple of Apollo, the Roman Odeon, the Bema and Gallio's Seat. We also visited the Archaeological Museum. We ate lunch at a restaurant in Corinth with a beautiful view of the countryside below. We next drove up to Agrocorinth. Gretchen took a wonderful picture of Christian standing at the very top. I hope to get some pictures downloaded later. On our way to the hotel in Tolon we stopped and had a short devotional time together at Cenchreae. We sat along the waters edge where the ruins of an early Christian 5th century basilica are. The singing was wonderful. Our rooms in Tolon had balconies overhanging the sea. Breathtakingly beautiful. We shared a meal together and then several of the students decided they wanted to jump into the icy water. That plan was short lived. They didn't last long :)on a sad note, the owner of the hotel, where we have stayed before, told us his 26 year old son had been killed two months ago in a car accident. His grief was still raw. We shared three conversations together, and he cried each time. He said his wife has aged three years. I so wished we could have brought him into our home and encouraged him. He has no hope. Having Christ, and our Christian family, we forget what it is like to have no hope. I did what I could in the short time I had, I only wish I had more time.so many here need to hear God's message.
The following morning we headed to visit the ancient Theater of Epidaurus, the largest, best preserved ancient Theater in Greece, famous for it's amazing acoustics. Our group sang two songs from the center of the stage. Beautiful.we then drove to Mycenae, where we visited the remains f the prehistoric citadel fortified with the Cyclopedan Walls, the Lioness's Gate, and the remains of the Mycanean Palace and the Tomb of Agomemnon. I went ahead of the group to the very top and enjoyed the incredible view with total silence. There were almond trees blossoming all along the hills. We ate lunch in Mycenae and then drove to Olympia for the evening. Earlier , we had some extra time so we visited Nafplion. It is a beautiful town built along the coast. I loved the old architecture. James, our guide, took us to an Italian he Atreus and we treated the students to an ice cream for Valentine's day. That evening Terry surprised me with a bouquet of roses at dinner. ( I strapped them in a seatbelt in a water bottle and brought them home with me the next day :)
Wednesday morning we visited Ancient Olympia which holds the stadium where the first Olympic Games took place in 776B.C. It began raining, and then hailing on us-- but we just kept going! We went into the Archaeological Museum and used the hand dryers to dry off the boys jackets and thaw out a bit. Just two days later this museum was held up by armed robbers and many antiquities were stolen. We lunched at a beautiful restaurant up in the wooded area. There were purple wild irises in patches around many of the trees. There was a warm fireplace we all enjoyed as the sun returned. On our five hour trip home, we saw a rainbow across the valley. A wonderful reminder of God's love. The remainder of the week has been spent with schoolwork. We are all enjoying having the place to ourselves since Harding is in Isreal this week. I am cooking the meals for the 16 of us. It's kind of like Sunday lunch twice a day! We are blessed with a special "family" with these students. We will be leaving on Thursday morning to fly to Tel Aviv, and will be spending eight days in Israel. Prayers will be greatly appreciated!

Rome, the Eternal City

On Monday morning we caught our flight from Athens to Rome. Our calendar this semester had us here for two straight weeks, and with the cold, wintry weather upon us we knew we needed to do something quick before cabin fever set in:) Upon arrival in Rome a van picked us up an drove us to the Hotel Parco dei Massimi. We have used this hotel before with the Patrons group. It is lovely, though not convenient transportation wise. This time, more so than usual. Rome had just had their first snow in 26 years and was unprepared. There were huge pine trees and branches blocking sidewalks, and smashed into parked cars. The shuttle bus from the hotel to the Vatican did not run because the driver was afraid to drive it. For a Roman to say that --we knew the roads had to be horrid! We walked up the hill to the bus stop, and took the bus to get around mostly. We did use taxis to go out to the Catacombs. We covered a lot of ground in only three days. We visited Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, attended a mass in a neighborhood church,the Spanish Steps, the Trevino Fountain, the Colosseum, the Catacombs,Roman Forum, St. Peters, the Vatican, and the Sistene Chapel. Most meals we grabbed on the run, though we all ate lunch in the Vatican cafeteria together one meal. In the evenings our students met together for a devotional together. We have been blessed with a wonderful group from Faulkner. While we were down in the Catacombs we sang a hymn together and Terry led a prayer. His words
reminded me of a hymn I used to listen to by Steve Green. The lyrics were along the lines
of..." may all who come behind us find us faithful." our last evening in Rome we left the boys
reading in the room(Christian has taken over my Kindle reading the Hunger Games Trilogy)and we
went down the hill to a local trattoria. It was so good to eat a real Italian meal again. I
had Bucatini Matriciana, Taglia di filet di manzo, grilled zucchini and eggplant, and Creme
brûlée for dessert. Perfection on a plate. We flew back to Athens Thursday morning and arrived
back in time for lunch.The rest of the week we have been studying and the students have been busy with exams. Friday night we went to Debbie and Dino's for dinner. We had a lovely dinner at their new place in Vari, along with the James, Nellers, Corbins, and Steven. It was good to visit and catch up. The years have flown since we had our teenagers together as the Greek youth group. They shared their concerns with the dismal Grrek economy and the social unrest. Saturday morning there was a parade of cars flying black flags and honking down the streets of Porto Rafti. There were riots in downtown Athens and the Embassy had advised us to stay away from downtown. This evening there are reports of fires being set over a several block area-
theaters, stores, etc. The unemployment rate for young people is now at 48%. These kids feel
there is simply no hope, and they are being asked to cut back even more. We feel safe where we are. I do feel for the Greeks and Italians though. Prices have skyrocketed. For example,
chicken nuggets in Rome at McDonalds were 6.80 euros($9). Pray for these struggling people, so many of which do not know the love of God.

First week in Porto Rafti

This week has flown by. With unusually cold weather, we made the decision to fly our group to Rome on Monday to keep cabin fever from setting in. Our plan is to return on Thursday. So, of course, Rome just had their first heavy snow in 26 years! Even the Colosseum was closed to tourists yesterday because of the dangers from the ice. It looks like a warming trend is on the way, and hopefully temps in the mid-40's. In the mean time, our Greek weather has been getting better and better. Yesterday we spent the afternoon down on the Aegean Sea. It was windy, but the sun was out. We passed several of our students climbing the rocks along the shore line. Terry and I walked the promenade about an hour and then drove along the coast in a more isolated area. We stopped at the Temple ruins of the Artemis. They had some scaffolding up, so there has been some work done in recent years. The museum was closed. There were many people in the fields picking wild herbs, and possibly pistachios. We passed a shepherd out standing by his large flock of sheep. This evening when Terry mentioned in his sermon how Jesus was our Shepherd, I immediately thought of this scene we had just witnessed.
Speaking of church, tonight Terry spoke on "Why I Am a Christian". He had a wonderful message. We met several new members, including Sarah from Iowa, married to a Greek, who has just lost his job. These are difficult times for so many here. Earlier in the week when we had snow, Matt Gulley opened the refugee center and allowed men to sleep there for three nights. Most had blankets, and they laid on tables off of the cold drafts on the floor. How often we forget to be grateful for how blessed we are. The students here have been going on Monday nights to serve food at the shelter. It is right near the Acropolis. At the end of services tonight, Varni, a Greek woman who was married to an American many years ago, gave me her wool coat and shawl, insisting I take it with me to Rome because it would be so cold. She would not leave until I accepted. The hearts of Greek Christians are so generous. Their light shines brightly in this culture.
Several have written to ask how the boys are liking it here. As we witnessed years ago, God always blesses. Jordan and Christian are awake before I am in order to be at Chapel. They enjoy being downstairs playing chess, playing the piano, shooting baskets, or working out
in the weight room. Night before last they stayed down for movie night. And while we were
walking on the promenade, Jordan was with some of the Faulkner guys climbing the rocks out on
the Pointe. Unbelievably, Christian was busy reading the second book in the Hunger Games

Trilogy. I am grateful for my Kindle:) Tonight's post is a hodge-lodge of our experiences this week, but I knew if I didn't write before our trip to Rome I would forget everything! Blessings on all those I love. We appreciate your prayers for us, and also for the Greek people. Kalispera.

Day in Athens

This morning we left the Artemis at 8am to spend the day in Athens. James (Giacomo) was our guide, along with Tasso, our driver. Being a Saturday the traffic was not as bad as normal. We knew James from our previous days here. It was good to see him again. His father is Greek and his mother, Italian. He married recently, an American woman from Indianapolis, that he met on one of his tours. She is currently in language school three hours a day. We enjoyed sharing memories of the horrors of language school:) Our first stop was at the Olympic Stadium, with the Parthenon high on the hill behind it.I remember standing in the freezing rain as our Jon, and now son-in-law, Tim, ran their first marathons. They ran from the village of Marathon into Athens. An incredible achievement at any age. From the stadium we made our way over to the base of the Parthenon.After a steep climb to the top we were met with the magnificent structure surrounded with scaffolding. Even with the poor economy, the work of restoration continues, as it is three fourths funded through the EU (European Union). From the Parthenon we climbed Mars Hill. This is much safer now after the recent Olympic Games. There are now metal steps and a handrail, which is a great improvement over sliding down the steps on your backside. Terry read to the students from Acts 17 and then we prayed together. It is very moving to look down over this city of almost six million people, and to realize how many have still never heard the gospel. We left Mars Hill and stopped off at the Plaka to purchase a few warm clothing items. It was cold and drizzly. Brrr....We went to lunch at a local tavern, and the students were very willing to try new foods. We started with a light spaghetti with tomatoes and garlic, followed by a Greek salad. The next douse was Greek meatballs and fries, and then ice cream for dessert. Everyone was pretty stuffed by that point. One of the highlights of our day was a lovely party of three elderly folks who made their way over to our table.they had been listening to Terry and James speaking Italian and had been guessing where each was from. They guessed that Terry was a Professor from Tuscany. They sure know their dialects! It turns out that the men are here helping on some Naval engineering work, and are originally from La Spezia - the Cinque Terre area. We enjoyed sharing memories of our times there in Vernazza, Monterosso, etc. It was like discovering old friends. We then walked over to visit the new Acropolis Museum. They have done such a wonderful job on this new facility. It houses the original remnants of the Parthenon. Rather than cover over the excavations several floors below ground, they have built a glass floor that you look down through as you walk. Jordan wasn't so sure about that! One of the main purposes of building this museum is to
remove one of the British excuses as to why they haven 't returned the Elgin Marbles. They claim that there is not a safe place for them, where they could be properly protected. This is now no longer true. It will be interesting to see what happens next. We then returned to the
Artemis around 5pm. This evening the boys are downstairs watching "The Lord of the Rings" with the students. They are enjoying themselves, especially always having someone around to shoot a
basket with, play chess with, etc. Tomorrow we have classes until lunch time, and then we will leave for worship at 4pm. Kalinichte!

2012- Our Travels Begin

Where did this month go? I am ready to write about our life in Greece and realized that I had never even downloaded pics from Tim, Jordan, Maria and Julia's birthdays.January was filled with good days. Days with friends and family. Several evenings over at the homes of new friends who share our faith. It was also a month of good-byes. We all found it difficult to leave behind our dear friends at Dalraida. It would seem as if that would become easier as many times as we have done it. At least we have learned from our experiences that being away just helps us be grateful for the days we have shared, and we can anticipate the time when we will all be together again.we arrived yesterday evening after two nice flights. The flight to Frankfurt was only a third full, which made our trip very comfortable. Both flights were early. Unheard of anymore! The James' met us at the airport, along with some Harding students.After finding our rooms, we all walked down the road to Dimitri's, and ate Greek salad and gyros. Sweet fellowship.This morning we were able to visit with Vicki,Mietek,Yianna and Fofi. It was wonderful to catch up on their lives! yianna's husband has now been unemployed for a long time and her son, with a social work degree, is only paid half the time. What a humbling reminder of how the news of a troubled Greek economy is not simply a business fact. There are so many here who are really hurting.Tonight we had a young man visiting who was originally from Emory University in Georgia.He is on a year abroad scholarship with St. Andrews in Scotland. He met some of our students at worship in Glyfada on Sunday, and came to spend the evening with us before heading to London in the morning.He is a good friend of one of our Faulkner girls, Naisa.After dinner, a few began singing hymns. Our guest had a beautiful voice and led us in one song after another. The group gradually grew to about 40. 40 beautiful voices, sharing one hymn after another. All voices raised together in worship to God.Oh, how wonderful to worship the same Savior.What I believe I loved the most was seeing Jordan sitting right in the middle of the group. ten years ago, I sat at these same tables, and watched my two teenagers, Jon and Chelsea, sing many of these same songs. And I know how God blessed them by the time they spent here.We sang until about 9:15 and during tea time I looked over and Christian was playing the theme song to "The Office" on the piano, while Jordan played the guitar. Students had bribed Christian to play by promising him his favorite cookies. Tomorrow starts the boys and I's return to schoolwork. Sigh.Then Saturday we will be heading in to Athens for the day. to my dear children and grandchildren- I love you all.