Travel Agent Jokes

Palace of Versailles

Home Again

I'm happy to be back in Calgary. Everything is so green here...I love the street by my house with all the big trees...so beautiful! My flights home went well. Our team left Athens late Sunday night and arrive in London about 3am. I stayed with the team at the hotel for about 4 hours, then Susannah and I went to the airport to catch our flights home. On both flights I had quite a bad earache which made things unpleasant, but I managed to get some sleep.

I wasn't planning on anybody picking me up in Calgary...I was just going to catch the bus home. I came out of security and was walking to go out the door when James showed up!! He and my mom and dad came to meet me at the airport and it was a BIG, GREAT surprise. They took me out for something to eat, Krista came over and we had a good evening visiting. I wasn't that tired thankfully and this morning I woke up feeling really rested and full of energy.

I was happy to drive again...I missed that. I was also so happy to see my roommates and sleep in my bed. I guess one good thing about travelling is it's nice to be away, and then it's so nice to come back home too.

Thank you for all who commented and sent me e-mails while I was away. I hope you enjoyed my blog and reading about our adventures in Europe. I'll have to keep this up with my goings-on in Calgary.

Wild and Crazy Athens

Things are going well in Greece. We're winding down our time in Athens (which has gone by fast). This morning we finished a kids camp at the refugee centre. There were 30 + kids and their moms. It was crazy, but fun. Tonight we have English classes and a Bible teaching time. I've been learning alot and feeling very blessed to have been given this opportunity to be here.

Tomorrow night we will fly to London, then I fly home. It's been quite the adventure! Yesterday we packed 11 people plus a guitar into a tiny car. We were at some people's house and it got late so they were going to give us a ride home. It was about a 15 minute drive. Susannah was crammed with 2 other people in the little hatch and I was crammed up in the front. Other people on the road were giving us funny looks and smiling. Another thing...I got to ride a motorbike!! It was really fun, kind of like the dirtbikes we ride at home. It was in our neighborhood, which is quiet and I went around the blocks. (Susannah would like to interject a comment: The guys now call Yvonne "the man" because she does crazy things ...in a very nice, not-manly way of course)

(my camera battery died and I don't have any more so sorry, no more pictures. I will have to put lots on when I get home or show them to you in person!!!)

Things I like about Greece:

-gyros and souvlaki
-ice cream (although nothing compares to Italy)
-kind people at the refugee center
-crazy traffic (yesterday I ran across the road yelling "we're gonna die, we're gonna die")
-fresh donuts at the train station (for breakfast)
-The outdoor market
-Beautiful ocean
-riding the train
-Corinth, the Acropolis, Mars Hill
-walking in the middle of the street or anywhere you want

Things I don't like as much:

-pigeons
-people smoking
-sickly dogs and cats
-grumpy salespeople
-garbage everywhere
-graffiti

Bungy-jumping

Suzie and I

Daniel, Robbie, me, Matt, Mike, and Josh

Fun times in Greece

CorinthCorinth
The ocean!

Today we went to the beach in Greece...it was beautiful! The water is my favorite color (turquoise). It was quite warm too. I also looked for rocks and found some cool ones to bring home.

Yesterday it was raining a bit and I slipped on the sidewalk, my feet flew totally out from under me...and this big old Greek guy totally caught me. It was so funny...and embarassing! I said "signome" in my best greek (excuse me) and ran back to the centre with a red face!

Yesterday we had the craziest experience on the train going home from the refugee centre. The UEFA Champions league game was being held here in Athens. It was Liverpool vs. Milan. There were SO many fans...we were packed onto the train with a bunch of Liverpool fans, being crammed into the train by the crowds. Somebody stepped on my sandal and broke it! (but I fixed it so I didn't have to walk home barefoot). Where we get off is near the football stadium so it was BUSY. The stations had riot police and tons of security. Everybody on train was wearing red and drinking and singing and going crazy. I've had those chants stuck in my head ever since. It was a pretty fun experience all in all, besides feeling like being in a sauna for an hour on the train! I always wanted to experience a European football game, I think this counts, even if I wasn't at the actual game.

We had butter garlic shrimp for supper yesterday...yum! Robbie and I cut and de-veined shrimp for about an hour...it was a pretty gross/messy job. I don't think I ever want to work at a shrimp factory. I like it when they come as a shrimp ring!!

Athens

Athens is such an interesting city...
We've been taking the metro and buses everyday. Everywhere is busy and crowded and dirty and covered with grafitti. Our group is staying about an hour away from the centre where we work with refugees. Our days have been full and long, but good and so rewarding.

Susannah and I are enjoying making breakfast everyday for the team...this morning we made french toast. Susannah is such a good detail person (she even thinks to pick flowers from the yard to put on the table).

I enjoy playing the piano at the place we are staying (it's like a big missionary guest house with over 100 beds--bunk beds).

At the refugee centre we took care of kids today, had english lessons, there was a men's shower ministry (where men can come and get clean). While that was on, us ladies went to the port where big ships come in. The missionaries here want to start a floating church because there are many refugees working on cargo ships that can't leave the ships--because they don't have any papers and would be sent back to their country or detained. So they want to have a church that will go out to the ships.

I haven't been run over yet...crossing the road here is quite the experience. You get used to dodging in and out of traffic though.

Tonight we saw the Acropolis and Parthenon all lit up at night. It is so amazing...I could hardly believe it was real. In a few days we will walk to Mars Hill, where Paul preached in the book of Acts.

It's been hot here and I've been having headaches...please pray that I'll have enough energy to give all I have to help these people. Our team is fun and we are enjoying being together...we have laughed a lot!

See some of you soon...next week!

Greece

Guess what I did today....I jumped off this bridge. NO JOKE!! We were on our way for a day trip to Corinth. We stopped at the Corinth Canal, built thousands of years ago, connecting the 2 seas. There was a bungee-jumping place (featured on the Amazing Race last season!) and some of us really wanted to do it! I really wanted to do it....so 5 guys from our team and myself signed up to jump. Our whole group got to come out onto the bridge to watch and take pictures. It was AWESOME! I loved it. The initial jumping off part was scary but such a great feeling. I have some sweet pictures of me with a really scared look on my face!! I'll have to get some of those pics up soon.

Work here in Athens has been really good so far. I'm tired, but I've been learning so much and been challenged. These refugees really have an impact on my life. It's hard to sum it up in a few words right now, but God is really working on me as I think about my future ministry and loving people, and serving them, and building friendships with people. It's really cool.

We've done a feeding ministry, English classes, home visits, a kids program, a prayer walk, and a worship service so far. Tomorrow we are taking free family or individual portraits for anybody that wants one. I hope lots of people will show up.

p.s. I love Greek food. Tzatziki sauce, fried cheese, souvlaki, feta cheese, pita bread. yum!

Paris

Susannah, Grace, and I had quite the adventures in Paris...

The first night we went on a cruise on the Seine River, to the Eiffel Tower at night (which is gorgeous), and walked around the Arc de Triomphe, and down the Champs Elysees.

The second day we all split up and did different things. I walked to Notre Dame because I heard there were free English tours at 12pm. This little old lady was the tour guide...a British lady who has lived in Paris for 30 years. Her name was Marita Kern and she was just so cute. There were only 3 of us in the group. It was really neat to talk with her and learn so many things about this amazing Church. I stayed there for 2 1/2 hours...she talked alot but it was interesting (not about Notre Dame the whole time, but about life and faith and theology etc.) I'm very glad I went. I strolled through the streets, ate a croissant (yumm!) and had a really nice afternoon.

That night Susannah and I hung around the hotel, went to buy some groceries and found a local Parisian restaurant for supper. (totally out of the touristy areas). I used my limited French and ordered some supper. It was lots of fun.

On our last day in Paris, we went out to see the Palace of Versailles. It is a 40 minute train ride outside Paris. We navigated the Metro pretty well and the Palace and gardens were beautiful!! We split up for a bit and were supposed to meet at 5pm to go back. I waited for Grace and she didn't show up....we were getting worried and waited for a couple hours. Finally we decided that we should just go back and she would find her way. We had to take a bunch of different metro lines to get back to our hotel. Later that night we found Grace, she had decided to stay longer and thought that we wouldn't wait for her...she was going to find her own way back! We were very happy to see her though!!

Susannah and I got up at 3am to get to the airport to fly to Greece. We had kind of a creepy, too-friendly, taxi driver. We were happy to get to the airport. He offered to take us for coffee at 3:30am....NO THANK YOU!

I liked Paris...there is lots to see and I really liked the architecture and river area. Definitely a place I'd like to explore some more. (and brush up on my French)

More Pictures

Venice

Prague

Grace in Venice

On the Grand Canal in Venice
Lunch in Prague

A yummy coffee in Prague

Switzerland--my "almost" adventure

We just spent 2 days in Switzerland (which is a beautiful country). I was really looking forward to going paragliding. There is an adventure company near Luzern where I was going to do this. Susannah even drew a picture on my hand because I was so excited.

I called the company in the morning and the weather was pretty nice, but they said it was too windy to go up! I was really disappointed...I've always wanted to jump off a cliff. Susannah was a little bit relieved that I wasn't going :) ...because if I was, she was so torn whether or not to come with me! Anyway, I'm glad to report that I'm still alive. I'll just have to go paragliding sometime at home. Anybody want to come with me????

This is what I COULD've looked like (above)

This is as close as I came to paragliding in Switzerland! (below)

p.s. You may wonder who "Muffy" is....well Susannah has given me that nickname on this trip and we have had numerous laughs about it. It started with me making a comment that my hair looked like a poodle...how come I always get nicknames from my hair? :)

Along the lake in Lugano

"The Old Chapel Bridge" in Luzern

We went to a Swiss Alpine show in Luzern. It was quite fun....they had all types of Swiss music (I even learned how to yodel--ask me for a demonstration sometime!). There was the big "ricola" horns, bells, bottles, accordians, etc. It also included a traditional cheese fondue which was delicious! It was a fun night.

"Yvonne passes out trying to maintain a tradition of holding her breath through a tunnel"

Yes, the other day we drove through the Gotthard tunnel is Switzerland, which is 17 km long!!! No, I didn't actually try and hold my breath but I tell you, that would have been quite the feat. The tunnel goes through a mountain and you can imagine that often the weather can be quite different entering the tunnel than exiting it.

Venice the magical city

Venice

the beautiful Grand Canal

taking a water taxi

For the last few days, I`ve been in Italy, enjoying their delicious coffee, and trying not to get pooped on by the hoards of pigeons. It`s been quite hot, which is nice for a change...to be out in the sunshine!!! yahoo. From Germany we drove through the Austrian Alps down into Italy.
We stayed in Venice, which is a beautiful city. The city is built on wooden piles in the middle of a lagoon. Quite amazing actually. Walking through some of the backstreets, I was reminded of India (some of the smells). We took a gondola ride...which was even serenaded by this funky Italian guy. All the streets are water, so we also took water taxis down the Grand Canal, passing water buses, private boats, and also some cruise ships.

"Yvonne`s Gelato marathon in Italy"... it was my goal in Italy to try as many types of gelato as I could. I won`t tell you how many it ended up being. ha ha But if you guess the right number, I`ll take you out for a gelato sometime, ok?

We are staying in the small town of Lugano, Switzerland. It is in the Italian lake district and they still speak Italian here. It is a beautiful town...looks similar to Harrison Hot Springs. Tonight we walked around the town, it is quite pleasant.

Happy Mother`s Day Mom (and Heather and Grandma too!) I was thinking about you....hope you have a nice day! Love you

Prague, Czech Republic

Did you know that Prague is the world's 6th most visited city?

1. London 2. Paris

3. New York City 4. Rome

5. Florence 6. Prague

A view of the city of Prague. We are looking down from Prague Castle and a monastery that is on the hill.

The city was amazingly not destroyed during the World Wars and so most historic buildings remain intact. Last night we took a night tour of the city. It was absolutely beautiful. We walked across Charles Bridge, their famous pedestrian bridge. It is 650 years old and still holding up thousands of people each day! I love learning about the history of this country...all the way from Roman times, through the wars, through communism, and how the country is changing today.

Prague at night (in the main square of the Lesser Quarter). During the day, this square is packed with people! This night is was quiet. These horses are waiting to take people for carriage rides through the cobblestone streets.

The beautiful downtown square (daytime and nighttime views). Today in this square we had lunch--a traditional Czech meal of goulash, dumplings, and green beans.


We were on our feet for almost 6 hours today! In addition to walking everywhere, Susannah and I got a good workout from laughing. We got the giggles at the hotel and couldn't stop. We were running up the stairs to our 8th floor room and oh my, we just about didn't make it. Grace, Susannah, and I have been having a lot of fun together. They are great travel partners.

Rhine Cruise

The other day (I can't remember when...my days seem to all blend together!), on our way from Amsterdam to Frankfurt, we stopped and took a 2-hr cruise on the Rhine River. Vineyards, small villages, and castles line the banks of the river. By the end of the cruise it started raining and blowing quite hard...all the chairs on the top deck were blowing everywhere.

Cruising the Rhine

A castle up on the hilltop

We stopped in Nuremberg (in the Bavaria region of Germany) on our way from Frankfurt to Prague. This city was quite significant during the time of Nazi Germany. The Nazi party held many rallies here and eventally the war tribunals were held here as well. This is Nuremberg Castle behind me. We were here for lunch...down in the main square they had this cute market with flowers, vegetables, fruit, and fresh gingerbread. I ate pastries for lunch. (don't worry mom, I don't do this everyday! ha ha)

flowers in the market

Throughout most of Europe there are open borders between countries (many countries are part of the European Union and use the Euro as currency.) The Czech Republic has just recently joined the European Union but still has border patrol (we had to stop and show our passports) and they use Czech Crowns for currency.

We had a picnic at the border (we've been doing that a lot...picnicing that is.) We usually take some extra fruit/bread from breakfast and eat it during the day. We've been pretty good and scrimping and saving our money! But not so much that we don't enjoy ourselves. It's one of those balance things....it's nice to travel and enjoy a vacation, but at the same time I want to spend my money wisely. I realize that being able to travel and experience these things is a blessing from God.

Krista, I know what you mean about wearing the same coat all the time while travelling. :) I think the reoccuring theme in all my pictures is going to be my red jacket!

Germany and Czech Republic

I don't have time to write much now...I'll update it tonight when I can add some pictures! I'm in Prague right now...it's beautiful!!

We're on our way out for the day to see this gorgeous place. We've been through Germany, staying in Frankfurt, and now we'll be here in the Czech Republic for 2 days, then back to Germany.

Happy Birthday Hannah!!!!!! miss you
To my family: I love you lots and hope things are going well at home...send me a note. Do you miss me? :)

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -Mark Twain

Amsterdam

Susannah and I were walking past Buckingham Palace in London yesterday when I was wondering..."I wonder how long it would take the guards to tackle me down if I were to jump over the fence and just start running?" hmm...I guessed about 10 seconds tops. Although that would be an utterly crazy thing to do, there's something about it that would be exciting...give you a real rush. (I mean, what's the worst that could happen?) As we talked and laughed about this, I thought--"If we, relatively normal and sane people, think that would be a tad adventurous and even would joke about doing it, I can imagine that some people out there would be willing to try it!"

We left London very early this morning, drove to Dover where we crossed the English Channel to Calais, France. From there, we drove through part of France, Belgium, and up to Amsterdam. We saw many dairy farms, and windmills. Apparantly 1/3 of the land in the Netherlands is reclaimed land that is below sea level (kind of like Richmond I guess), and they have over 300 people per sqare mile!! (Canada has something like 5 people per square mile). The canola fields are blooming here (which they call "rape seed"?)

We took a canal cruise in Amsterdam and it is fascinating. We saw the Anne Frank House...that story has always fascinated me. We had supper at a cute little streetside cafe (not to be confused with "coffee houses" in Amsterdam where you can smoke marijuana!)

It was a good day...I'm reading a good Elizabeth Elliot book on the bus ("A Slow and Certain Light"), while looking out the window every so often of course. Maybe one day I'll write a book (an autobiography or something like that)...hopefully I'll have an adventuresome and meaningful life/walk with God so I have something to write about!

The Amsterdam Canals

London

Me and a guard at the horse stables for Buckingham Palace

Big Ben

I like Yogi Berra's advice, "If you come to a fork in the road, take it." That' just what we did. Yesterday Susannah, Grace, and I enjoyed walking around London, soaking in the sights. I like walking when you have no set destination. We explored side streets, stopped in stores, and strolled in parks.



We took the double-decker buses and the tube. It was a beautiful day. I love watching people. Wherever I am, I always imagine myself living there. London would be too busy for me, but when you get out in the English countryside, it's hard not to imagine yourself living an idyllic life in a cute little cottage with maybe some sheep and a milk cow!



I was reminded this morning that God has me on a journey, a wonderful and beautiful journey--not because it's all perfect and easy, but because it's unique and created by Him...and He has good in store for me. I am enjoying the moment and I love this adventure because I am seeing more of God (in his beautiful creation, people he's made, and in my own response to it).

A Walk Through Downtown Birmingham

Did you know that Birmingham supposedly has more canals than Venice? This city was once the centre of the Industrial Revolution and they used canals to transport materials all over the city. We were going to take a boat ride, but it was cold and we didn't feel like being outside much (I bought some long johns at the market to keep me warm under all my summer clothes!)

This is the City council building. This was right beside the Birmingham museum and art gallery we visited.

I had some troubles to understanding people's accents. I couldn't even hardly order a coffee! It was quite funny. Apparantly the Birmingham accent is especially hard.

Heather, I figured out that the smell here really reminds me of Australia (specifically the Epp's house reminds me of yours in Australia). I kept having the feeling that I'd been here before, till I realized it was the feeling of being at your place (the air, the house, the trees, even the feel of the neighborhood)

For All You Pride and Prejudice Lovers....

Today one of my dreams came true...I felt like I was Miss Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice when we went to visit "Pemberley" and I must say, "I've never seen a place so happily situated!" It is actually called Chatsworth House and it is in the Peak District of Derbyshire. BEAUTIFUL countryside...I can't even describe it. It was so relaxing, peaceful, romantic, and serene. It was a 2 hour drive from the Epp's, we packed a picnic lunch and spent the day walking through the house and the grounds. The gardens were quite amazing. We drove back and enjoyed fish and chippy's for supper! yumm...

The front view of the house

The library

Susannah

In the garden

Sitting among the bluebells