Hello, everyone! I just wanted to let you know that me and my fellow Mercer Service Scholars have safely arrived in Vanadzor after stopping at the capital of Armenia, Yerevan, for a a day. It has been quite the experience, thus far! We have toured Etchmiastin, the Armenian Church's equivalent to Vatican City, a museum that houses over 17,000 religious manuscripts, and the genocide museum in rememberence of the Armenian Genocide that happened in the late 19th century. We have setttled into our hotel in Vanadzor, toured the city, shopped at local vendors and corner shops, and we have completed two days of our work with the Fuller Center for Housing, thus far. I have mainly been distributing poured concrete to the people who are finishing the roof. It is hard work, especially in this heat, but it is all worth it. All I have to do is look at the family and their smiles for my motivation. The family we are working with is comprised of two parents and their three children---two girls and one little boy. All of the children are precious, and we have been teaching them English words and numbers in our spare time. We have also been teaching them jump rope, which they seem to be especially fond of doing on a regular basis. :) Tomorrow, we will be sight-seeing in a neighboring town before going back to work on Saturday. Please keep us in all of your prayers, and make sure to check back to this blog and the Mercer On Mission blog, which can be found as links on my Facebook page! Take care, and God's blessings!
Love,
Ashley
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Update: Poland and Armenia
Hello! So much has happened in these past few days. When we arrived in Chicago, we went to visit one of the fathers of the Mercer Service Scholars. We toured downtown Chicago within small groups. We stuck mainly by Navy Pier and went into the stores located as a strip mall near the pier. It was so hot! I believe that the pilot said the weather was 105 degrees; it sure felt like it. We then had lunch at the father's office, and I had my peanut butter sandwich because I did not think that Asian food would agree with me. Then, we flew out of Chicago on time. The flight was not as bad as I had expected it to be. I had to sit by two boys, but that was all right. I was able to talk to some of the surrounding passengers. One of them was on his way to compete in Odessa with Team USA as a weight-lifting champion. Another one was a material scientist from India whose specialty is solar energy. I also met a little girl named Gabriella who was going to visit her extended family in Poland right before school. So, all in all, it was all right. It was strange that there was only about three hours of darkness.
When we arrived in Poland, it was around 11:00 in the morning. The clouds were overcast, but the weather felt great! It was in the low seventies, and definitely better than Georgia weather! We settled into our hotel, which was all right---a little moldy and smoky. We could not find a place to exchange money, so Dr. Grant had to venture into town to find a place that would. He then exchanged Polish money for American dollar bills. We ate at the hotel's restaurant, and the food was delicious. Chicken and french fries are two foods you cannot beat! We then traveled by tram into the city later on in the day. I was so tired that I kept falling asleep, and as a result, I did not get off the tram when everyone else did. Apparently, they did not know that I was missing. I only woke up when the gentleman next to me nudged me so that he could get off at his stop. Luckily, Debbie had done the same thing, and so we were able to get back to the tram with the help of a man from the U.S. embassy. In my franticness, I tried to dial members from my group. I was not able to get anyone, but a little message appeared on my phone that says PL-PLUS. I do not know what this means, but I hope that the phone company is not charging me a phone calls that could not be placed.
Needless to say, everything turned out fine, and then Debbie and I went to dinner with the professors. I do not think that the food agreed with me; apparently, they like to put cabbage in their kebab wraps, and I thought for about half of an hour I was going to puke. I am glad I did not, though. On Saturday, we woke up bright and early at 5:30 and caught a train to Krakow in order to view Auschwitz and Birkenau. It was very saddening, and a very thought-provoking place. On our way back, we were all exhausted, as we had a lot of jetlag and we were carrying around a lot of heavy emotions.
On Sunday, I was able to go to church! I was very happy that I was able to go, and I was even able to understand what was happening, even though the entire Mass was in Polish. Then, we were free to explore the city of Warsaw before leaving for Armenia that night. We went all over downtown to places such as the Stalin Building, the mall for lunch, the Hard Rock Cafe, the main cathedral, the Jewish ghetto, and the remaining ghetto wall. We then had to head straight to the airport after dinner. Our flight took off around 10:30 p.m. and arrived in Yerevan at around 4:55. Yerevan is three hours ahead of Poland, so I have yet to face another time difference. :) We finally got settled into our hotel at 7:30 in the morning (bleh!) but we were able to sleep until 2:00. We then went to lunch at a local restaurant before touring a church and monastery. We finished off the afternoon shopping downtown and having dinner as a class at an authenic Armenian restaurant. Armenia is a very interesting place; it is much different than I conceived of it to be. I think that it has a very strong middle-eastern vibe to it, much like Turkey. We have a great view of Mount Ararat, too, which I think is so neat. You can only see it in the morning, though. It disappears in the fog during the day.
Tomorrow, we are going to be going to the National Museum before being transported to Vanazdor for our first day of work on Wednesday. I hope that I will be able to sleep some more. :) I hope that all of you are having a nice time in Georgia. I love and miss all of you so much! I hope that we will have Internet in Vanadzor, but I cannot promise that it will work. Just keep checking your e-mail and the blogs. Take care, and know that you are in my thoughts and prayers constantly!
Sincerely,
Ashley
When we arrived in Poland, it was around 11:00 in the morning. The clouds were overcast, but the weather felt great! It was in the low seventies, and definitely better than Georgia weather! We settled into our hotel, which was all right---a little moldy and smoky. We could not find a place to exchange money, so Dr. Grant had to venture into town to find a place that would. He then exchanged Polish money for American dollar bills. We ate at the hotel's restaurant, and the food was delicious. Chicken and french fries are two foods you cannot beat! We then traveled by tram into the city later on in the day. I was so tired that I kept falling asleep, and as a result, I did not get off the tram when everyone else did. Apparently, they did not know that I was missing. I only woke up when the gentleman next to me nudged me so that he could get off at his stop. Luckily, Debbie had done the same thing, and so we were able to get back to the tram with the help of a man from the U.S. embassy. In my franticness, I tried to dial members from my group. I was not able to get anyone, but a little message appeared on my phone that says PL-PLUS. I do not know what this means, but I hope that the phone company is not charging me a phone calls that could not be placed.
Needless to say, everything turned out fine, and then Debbie and I went to dinner with the professors. I do not think that the food agreed with me; apparently, they like to put cabbage in their kebab wraps, and I thought for about half of an hour I was going to puke. I am glad I did not, though. On Saturday, we woke up bright and early at 5:30 and caught a train to Krakow in order to view Auschwitz and Birkenau. It was very saddening, and a very thought-provoking place. On our way back, we were all exhausted, as we had a lot of jetlag and we were carrying around a lot of heavy emotions.
On Sunday, I was able to go to church! I was very happy that I was able to go, and I was even able to understand what was happening, even though the entire Mass was in Polish. Then, we were free to explore the city of Warsaw before leaving for Armenia that night. We went all over downtown to places such as the Stalin Building, the mall for lunch, the Hard Rock Cafe, the main cathedral, the Jewish ghetto, and the remaining ghetto wall. We then had to head straight to the airport after dinner. Our flight took off around 10:30 p.m. and arrived in Yerevan at around 4:55. Yerevan is three hours ahead of Poland, so I have yet to face another time difference. :) We finally got settled into our hotel at 7:30 in the morning (bleh!) but we were able to sleep until 2:00. We then went to lunch at a local restaurant before touring a church and monastery. We finished off the afternoon shopping downtown and having dinner as a class at an authenic Armenian restaurant. Armenia is a very interesting place; it is much different than I conceived of it to be. I think that it has a very strong middle-eastern vibe to it, much like Turkey. We have a great view of Mount Ararat, too, which I think is so neat. You can only see it in the morning, though. It disappears in the fog during the day.
Tomorrow, we are going to be going to the National Museum before being transported to Vanazdor for our first day of work on Wednesday. I hope that I will be able to sleep some more. :) I hope that all of you are having a nice time in Georgia. I love and miss all of you so much! I hope that we will have Internet in Vanadzor, but I cannot promise that it will work. Just keep checking your e-mail and the blogs. Take care, and know that you are in my thoughts and prayers constantly!
Sincerely,
Ashley
Friday, July 22, 2011
We made it!
Just to let all of the anxious family members and friends know---we made it! The Internet is a bit limited, but we will try our best to update the blog again really soon! Today, we arrived in Warsaw, Poland around 11:00 in the morning. After getting our passports stamped, we got our luggage, loaded up in a van, and were taken to our hotel. It is very close to the airport, which is a good thing. Then, we had lunch at the hotel's retaurant, which consisted of pork, chicken, or fish with sides of potatoes or fries, coleslaw, or sauerkraut. We are taking a brief break now before we go into downtown Warsaw. Hopefully, we will find a bank to exchange our American dollars. So far, we have not had much luck. Please keep us in your prayers, as many of us are suffering from jetlag, and we hope to be able to write again to you soon!
Sincerely, Ashley
Sincerely, Ashley
Monday, July 18, 2011
Welcome!
Dear Family and Friends,
As I write this message, I am just two days away from my first overseas mission trip! I am very nervous, but I know that God has a plan for me, and thus I am anxious to do His will. I will be working in Armenia with my fellow Mercer Service Scholars and the Fuller Center for Housing for approximately ten days before flying up to Georgia to work with the Evangelical Baptist Church in Georgia for another week. I ask that you pray for all of us as we travel so that we may remain safe and in good health. I will be posting as often as I can, provided that I have Internet access while traveling, so please do keep your fingers crossed and check back often to receive updates and view some pictures of our many adventures! I am thinking of all of you fondly, and I hope that God will bless every one of you, just as God has blessed me with your love and friendship.
Love to you,
Ashley
As I write this message, I am just two days away from my first overseas mission trip! I am very nervous, but I know that God has a plan for me, and thus I am anxious to do His will. I will be working in Armenia with my fellow Mercer Service Scholars and the Fuller Center for Housing for approximately ten days before flying up to Georgia to work with the Evangelical Baptist Church in Georgia for another week. I ask that you pray for all of us as we travel so that we may remain safe and in good health. I will be posting as often as I can, provided that I have Internet access while traveling, so please do keep your fingers crossed and check back often to receive updates and view some pictures of our many adventures! I am thinking of all of you fondly, and I hope that God will bless every one of you, just as God has blessed me with your love and friendship.
Love to you,
Ashley
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