Odds and Ends...

In case anyone's wondering, yes, Jamie and I are home, which is why we're not blogging. We landed running and haven't stopped yet, so you can imagine this is the last thing on our list of priorities. I think Jamie's going to grace you all with more posts of our last week in Italy, but I thought to post some quick testimonies I had typed up before. They might not really go together, but hey, they were part of our time there so I thought to share them with you all too.

So, on to some testimonies of the Lord’s doings:

I had intended to borrow a vehicle from a car dealership contact I have, but the Lord had other plans in mind as it didn’t work out, and looking back I know it was the Lord too as the gas prices are FREAKY (and that means at least 3 if not 4 times the price of the US) so it could have been discouraging to spend so much on gas, and who knows if it was just pushing in our own strength. The owner of the car dealership, I was told, retired, so that was a bit disappointing as he’s someone that I’ve known since I was 9 or 10, and has helped with vehicles over the years. Due to a mix-up though I actually found out that he had opened another car dealership, and it was by mere chance that I found out about it. So we were able to meet him, follow up on him, and he’s promised to help as soon as he can (they’ve been opened for only 3 months – please pray their business goes real well as he’s someone that I am praying I can approach about sponsoring a vehicle for the Home in Mexico). - Here's a pic of us when we went to see him! :)

We also went to the Sella e Mosca winery that day - though we don't have too many pics of that, as it was a bit of a quick visit!

I had to get on the barrel too otherwise Jamie was too shy to. Ha! I love how tanned we look in this shot. :P

On to the next testimony:

The last Friday we were there Jamie was sick, so I went to the mall on my own. I know Jamie felt bad, but honestly, I had a great time. I had guys buying me coffee, ice-cream, and I was able to have a chance to talk with some of the people there who I knew from other years, who obviously felt awkward chatting with me more when we were in two (as Jamie doesn’t speak Italian, so they obviously didn’t want to exclude her), but the best part was that the general manager of the actual malls showed up and dragged me away from the table, offered me coffee, and we ended up spending over an hour talking. It was a good time of witnessing, and a real breakthrough where he opened his heart and was able to talk to me about things that I know he wouldn’t have talked about if there were others in our group. – So again, even out of a seeming snag, the Lord had His way and it worked out for good.

The last day at the mall though I actually had one of the most fulfilling days ever! I won the soul of this sweet McDonald worker who kept us company every now and then, bought us fries, drinks, and I even had a beer too the last day. (Yes, they sell alcohol at the McDonalds in Italy.) I wish the same exhilarating feeling to everyone, as in all honesty I am one of those people that feels such a rush of joy when I win a soul. – And when I say “win a soul” I mean that there’s that obvious breakthrough in the spirit, that connection where you can tell the person has really understood that what you’re giving them is the best gift ever, and something that they will thank you for all eternity that you gave them.
At some point I’ll have to write an account of this awesome encounter I had (with my parents) when I was a kid in India, going door-to-door, and we came across this man who used to be a staunch religious man (Hindu) who had a life-after-death experience, but wasn’t allowed into Heaven because he didn’t have “the ticket”. He was sent back when they were already doing the burning of his body on some altar, so he was good and dead, but before he came back he was told that someone would come by and offer him “the ticket to Heaven”, and sure enough the night right before we came by he was told in a dream that a foreign couple with two kids were going to show up and offer him that ticket, so you can imagine the goose-bumps we had when he opened the door and right away exclaimed “Finally! I’ve been waiting for you to come and offer me the ticket to Heaven!” I was seven years old at the time, but that story and that day is forever seared in my memory as it was just so awesome to realize that it really was the ticket. ;)
Right, so I mentioned the above story as when I recounted that story to the guy at the mall, it was the key to him receiving Jesus. He actually had tears in his eyes when I prayed with him and thanked me profusely, telling me he'd get everyone he knew to pray the prayer with him as he wanted them to experience the same gift.

I don't have any pics of us with these folks at the mall, but I do have a pic of my little family at the mall (minus my dad) - they all look great, minus me with my clown outfit, but hey, it's a pic, and pics liven up posts, so here you go:

I love this next pic of Jamie - she looks like she's throwing a fit at not being in the "in crowd". :D

And then the last day of our trip was a special blessing of the Lord’s supply. There were so many people we wanted to see, and two very key people in particular. I’d been trying to contact them ever since I got here, but it wasn’t until the last day that it just all worked out and the Lord really did some sweet and wonderful miracles of supply. We even met a man who, I’m praying, I can follow up on as he’s very interested in what we do, and he’s someone who can help. – Please pray that works out.

I’m still claiming awesome miracles, as I know that though our time in Sardegna is over, the Lord’s blessings and how He can supply for us, can happen anywhere. Last time I was there it wasn’t until the last day when the Lord supplied the funds to pay back the trip, and at the time we were needing some furniture for our rooms in our new house, and it wasn’t until a month after that this couple (which I met here in Sardegna) gave me a donation that was JUST the right amount (including tithe) for the furniture, etc. - So I’m still claiming the miracles the Lord’s promised us!

And I think that ends our time in Sardegna - well, for the most part. I'll close with a pic of us all with the sweet family (who I mentioned above) who also was key in not only helping us find an apartment for the 5 weeks we were in Sardegna, but who also covered half of the rent. GBT! Please pray for them and for their business to flourish. TX! :)

And a few more...

One of my contacts has a restaurant on a floating barge which he's anchored to the island of Santo Stefano. - It's a gorgeous island, rather untouched seeing as it used to be where the US NATO base was stationed (hence no tourists were permitted), and the best part is that you have to get there by boat. We went out there for lunch one day, he came to pick us up with his boat and we had an awesome meal. The restaurant is set to give you the feel as if you're sitting on a beach, the floor is covered in sand, and again, it's an awesome spot! I totally know where I'm having my wedding reception when/if I ever get married. Ha!

Pics follow...

Speaking of boats, this other evening we were able to go out to this same area to watch the sun set, drink some wine, eat some chips, take a dip, etc. - It was quite beautiful! Jamie and I both got to drive the boat (Jamie was relieved it was an automatic), and all in all it was a special treat too.

So, yet more pics to show...

Leaving Rome ... sniff

Written on: Tuesday, September 09, 2008

I’m writing this at the airport, as we wait for our flight leaving Rome to DC, and then to Houston tomorrow. Wow – time flies! I can’t believe it’s been 6 weeks – it’s been an amazing and once-in-a-lifetime experience. So much has happened and I’m still amazed every time I think of all that happened and all that the Lord did. I should have blogged more, ha! – But at the same time, probably not, to save myself the flack, heh…

We were able to take the last 5 days for vacation (since our Home was taking vacation days at the same time) and it’s been amazing! We will definitely blog the photos and events, but most importantly, the Lord was there each step of the way and set everything up perfectly.

And to sum it up – Italy is all that they say it is and more. I heard SO many stories and opinions before coming here, but all of the good things they say about the people, food, wine, drinks, coffee, beaches, sights and sounds, it’s all true. Heh! [Most] men ARE beautiful, the food IS amazing, the coffee IS addicting and the sights ARE breathtaking. It’s been a memorable trip and I do hope to return again, some day.

Oh, so about the guys – this is what I experienced. (Note: This is from the perspective of a first-time tourista Americana, so bear with me all of you Italian-savvy people). See, in Mexico, when you feel a guy staring you down, if you turn and look at them straight in the eyes, kind of like “yes?”, then they look away guilty, like they were caught with their hands in a cookie jar. (This applies only for the middle/upper-class Mexican men – I am not talking about market guys and their whistles/growls/barks, etc. That is a whole different story.) But here, I feel some guy staring at me so I turn to look at them and give them my “yes?” look, but OH – they just keep on staring and if anything, it is more intense, and they are thinking “YES, there’s hope! She’s looking at me!” So I learnt that VERY quickly – don’t stare back at them, heh. Although they do have beautiful eyes … *sigh*
For this particular case, I had the benefit of not speaking Italian, so these guys would come up and start blabbing in Italian – “Que bella … etc etc … bellisima … etc etc”, to which I would be able to say, “I’m sorry, I don’t speak Italian” and at least that would cut them off – unlike poor Celeste who had to deal with all of them, haha!

Oh here’s a funny story – on the first weekend ballooning at the mall, when we're jet-lagging like crazy and looked like death warmed over (infatti!), it was during the Italian siesta time when everything slows down. So we were sitting there struggling to stay awake, when these two young guys come up and start talking to us – I was able to bow out with the “Sorry, I don’t speak Italian” after they tried talking to me, but then they turned to Celeste. This guy was love struck instantly! They bought two hearts and then he stood there to confess his undying love to Celeste – saying, “I’m in love! I’m in love! Maybe it’s the fact that I didn’t sleep at all last night, but looking at you, I’m in love.” Mamma mia! His friend was so embarrassed it was hilarious. Anyway, I thought that was pretty funny – heh. – Not to mention the fact that we are dressed like clowns, but that really doesn’t stop any Italian man!
I tried taking some photos of Italian men, for my chicas at Home who asked me too – but the ones I wanted to take photos of, usually had hot girlfriends by their side, hence the reason most of the photos are off-center. We were being VERY sneaky, heh!
So here are some photos of Italian men -- BTW, these are just photos OF Italian men, not photos of "Italian men that Jamie and Celeste think are hot" Italian men. heh.

You can't see much of this one, but you have to trust me ...

This is Daniele -- he was one of the guards who worked at the mall we ballooned at. They're not allowed to take photos in their uniforms, which is rather unfortunate as their shirts were pink -- not sure which one I liked better, them or their shirts! :P

This photo was from a night out -- these are two cute bartenders who don't look cute in this photo. Darn!
To explain: #1 -- Bouncer Jamie thought was cute but who definitely doesn't look so in this photo. #2 -- Bartender Celeste thought was hot. #3 -- Apparently some famous Italian TV dude ...?
This was from the night out with some friends -- photos 1 & 2. Check out the faces on the guys standing next to Celeste, tee hee.

John also asked for photos of Italian girls (although we have two resident ones – beautiful Cristina and Celeste! Bellisima!), but we found out that they were way more shy and timid when we asked to take a photo. The guys were like, “Sure, no problemo, let me just put on my cheesy grin here”, whereas the girls would never let us – unless I offered to stand with them or something.
But here is one photo we took in Sardegna, with a Sardinian girl. We had lunch at this restaurant with Cel’s dad and a friend, and when we were leaving the restaurant there was this beautiful girl with her father there – and she was talking to him about how he just needs to get hooked up with someone. So he noticed Cel and thought he could ask the father for permission to date his daughter – so the two fathers struck up a conversation instantly, and started talking about how they could swap daughters. Har har! Not so funny for the daughers, heh! But hey, we got some photos.

Backtracking …. Again!

We are in Rome – hurrah! There is so much to blog about, and our trip is nearly over – so bear with us as we backtrack over the past 6 weeks, to share with you our adventures, testimonies and fun times that the Lord blessed us with. So, so, SO much happened on this trip – more than we could ever blog about, but we’ll just cover the main highlights for you, mm’k?

So, back in Sardegna…which part? Oooh, a relative day! Those were always interesting. For those who don’t know, Celeste has a relative on every block in Santa Teresa – as I was soon to find out. On the days that we went to visit relatives, we go walking to a certain destination and stop at least 4 to 5 times by people calling out “Avellino” to Celeste or her dad. Then we stop, talk, have a coffee (and YES, coffee here in Italy IS as good as they say it is! And more!) and then continue on – only to be stopped again by another relative for another coffee and so on and so forth. So even though I didn’t understand what they were talking about (except the part where they ask me where am I from – American – how old I am – 22 – and then “awww, bambina!” and that’s about it), at least we were able to drink a good 3 to 4 coffees a day. =)

On this particular relative visiting day, we went to see a few of Celeste’s many relatives – this cousin owns a horse riding place, so we were able to go horseback riding! Following are the photos …


Kristian (the afore mentioned cousin) took us around on this nice little path overlooking beautiful Santa Teresa. Even though it was only walking (because of the little tykes we had with us), it was still fun and a beautiful view.


Afterwards, we were able to go swimming in one of Santa Teresa’s famous beaches, this one called Capo Testa. Cel’s nephews (Niel & Esther’s boys) told me that when you go snorkeling there, you feel like you’re flying – and this was definitely true! The water was beautiful and blue, and so so clear! We swam around and snorkled for a bit, then Niel took us to these rocks where we climbed to the top to jump off.

And these are photos from the drive home – a view overlooking beautiful Santa Teresa.

So….here we are!

I started typing this on the ferry as we crossed back to mainland Italy but am only finishing it after our arrival in the Verona Home. It was 5 weeks, to the day, from when we made it to Sardegna, and though it was great, to be honest, I’m happy the “Sardegna” part of the trip is over. - I didn’t squeal as I thought I would, but I have honestly breathed a sigh of relief.

The Lord’s done so much for us these past weeks, it’s awesome to look back and see it all, and with this post I wanted to try to bring into perspective somewhat our actual time in Sardegna. There are so many things we did, people we met and witnessed do, and of course awesome miracles the Lord’s done that pictures can’t show. (Though I have pics of contacts and friends I am not sure I will post them.) In case anyone is wondering why Jamie and I stopped posting, yes, it’s because things were incredibly busy! But more than the busy-ness of things, we felt kind of bad posting about all the fun things we got to do as we were concerned people were getting the wrong impression of what we’re up to. Maybe I’m too concerned of what others think, and in the end the concept of “those that matter don’t mind, and those who mind don’t matter” is what I will go with, but it has been quite an intense time for us, and the fact that this trip took place in Sardegna (or in Italy for those who don’t grasp the concept of what Sardegna means for Italians) has made it somewhat of an obstacle in helping people understand the goal of our trip. – Not vacation, not some time to rest or party, but actually part of our Home’s Offensive Strategy planning as we were trying to fundraise and gain some needed financial support.

To give an outline; we literally spent most Thursdays, all Fridays, Saturdays, and most Sundays at the mall, which left us with Monday for a rest day (though even then we skipped the last 2 weeks), and only Tuesday and Wednesday to try to fit in follow up, and other forms of fundraising. – This was, of course, limited to the fact that we didn’t have a vehicle to get around, but I know we did what we could, so I have peace with that, and as bratty as this might sound, it made such a difference having all those other opportunities for fun and distraction. Our expenses were minimal (so for anyone wondering, the extra fun was all just a treat of the Lord’s supply), and the whole trip has been, so far, a real miracle in itself, so all in all we’ve felt the Lord’s hand in it all.

I can imagine lots of people are saying this, but isn’t it awesome that the x-factor GNs and that summary of the book “Megashift” came out at just this time? Jamie and I have been enjoying our Word time so much (which, TTL, we were able to faithfully take every day – it was our lifeline) and knowing how vital any extra boost of faith to see this trip through was, it made me (and Jamie too) feel as if the Lord knew JUST what we needed to read about to have the strength to hold on.

As we go through our “catch up” I’ll try to include some testimonies of things the Lord did for us in our witnessing and outreach, but suffice it to say that it was good, and though we haven’t seen the full answers to our prayers yet, the Lord sometimes says “yes”, sometimes “no”, and sometimes “wait”, so at this point I have faith that it’s a “yes, wait” concept of things, which will hopefully show more clearly as we follow the little dog-line of His will.

So after all is said and done, we are now going to start posting more pics of things we did during the in-between times of work, work, and more work. Ok? ;) – And I’ll throw in testimonies too!

Thanks everyone for your prayers, we know there were many of those going on for us, and we felt them. It was quite awesome to get to some moments where we weren’t sure how we’d manage to overcome some of the challenges, but then feel the Lord working in answer to a prayer request we sent out. – There were marked changes.

I’ll stop blabbing now so we can get to the other posts…ciao for now!