Yesterday I went to a mall in Fairview. It was air conditioned which was very nice because I am not use to the heat at all. It was very large 4 floors I think. While at the mall I bought a cell phone so I could contact the Kleyns and the Smits. Ahh! a cockroach just ran across my foot! Since I got a phone i texted right away and today I am going to visit the missionaries :) They are on their way to pick me up.
It is inauguration day in the Philippines He will be inaugarated in 8 minutes. This also makes for increased traffic in Manila. The coverage has been on tv since 5:15 this morning.
Other volunteers have begun to arrive. We went for a walk. It is amazing to see such poverty. The children just flock to us. They love to have their picture taken. They also point out all the animals for us to take pictures of.
Well thats all for now. The internet has been really bad this morning so I hope this saves.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
Go Tigers
Nothing new here. I have spent the day sitting around but I thought I should remind the Twins fans who is number 1 in the League!!!! Go Tigers
I have arrived
I arrived in the Philippines Monday around noon. Let's see where did I leave off last night? Oh after I left reLAX, I went and got my tickets for the next part of my trip. This was pretty uneventful. Once I got past security I had about a 3 hour wait until my plane left. I tried to find a quiet corner to sleep...not very easy to do. I fell asleep along a wall but that ended up to be were the line to get on the plane was suppose to be. Then I lay long the middle of the terminal. That worked for a little while. Finally I was able to get on the plane. For most of the trip I slept; except when it was time to eat. I got two meals on the plane--chicken and potatoes and eggs and tri-taters. On the flights they have cameras at the front and the bottom of the planes that we can watch. It reminded me of the flight simulator program that I play on in the upper room. The only difference was that the plane landed with out crashing this time :) Then we landed in Taipei. It was crazy quiet in that airport. Each gate is separated from the rest which helps cut down on noise. On the plane to the Philippines they served us another meal--rice, vegetables, and fish. The flight was only two hours long and I slept for most of it. I did have another chance to "play" flight simulator.
I went through customs and immigration with out trouble. Next I had to get on a taxi to get to CERV-Philippines. This was an interesting experience in a way. My driver was very friendly. He wanted to know everything about the states. He also wanted to know if I was single. After I said yes I wondering if I should have lied. He asked for my email, facebook, cell phone number and if I would be ok with a Filipino boyfriend. He said that I look like Drew Barrymore. On the way I got to experience traffic here. It is crazy!!! There seems to be no order but yet we never really had to stop. My driver bought me Japanese sweet corn. It is very similar to what we eat in the states.
The next part of my trip is the CERV dorm. It is very interesting. The people here mainly only speak Tagalog so I am not understanding much. But they are friendly. There is not alot of furniture in any of the rooms. My bed is a mattress on the floor. It is only 6 inches thick. It is so warm here. Eden, one of the ladies, makes sure I have a fan on me at all time. I feel bad because the other people do not but thats because they are use to the heat and I am not. For lunch we had rice, a sweet sausage and boiled fish. The fish dish had a vegetable that was similar to our greens in the states. I was a little worried about how it would taste because I dont like greens (well at least the way my mom cooks them) but these were very good not bitter at all. Then I slept for a while and now we are waiting for supper. It is 6:48 and it is dark already. It rained for a while--but did not help with the heat at all.
Well thats all for now. I am not sure how often I will be able to post but I will try as often as I can.
I went through customs and immigration with out trouble. Next I had to get on a taxi to get to CERV-Philippines. This was an interesting experience in a way. My driver was very friendly. He wanted to know everything about the states. He also wanted to know if I was single. After I said yes I wondering if I should have lied. He asked for my email, facebook, cell phone number and if I would be ok with a Filipino boyfriend. He said that I look like Drew Barrymore. On the way I got to experience traffic here. It is crazy!!! There seems to be no order but yet we never really had to stop. My driver bought me Japanese sweet corn. It is very similar to what we eat in the states.
The next part of my trip is the CERV dorm. It is very interesting. The people here mainly only speak Tagalog so I am not understanding much. But they are friendly. There is not alot of furniture in any of the rooms. My bed is a mattress on the floor. It is only 6 inches thick. It is so warm here. Eden, one of the ladies, makes sure I have a fan on me at all time. I feel bad because the other people do not but thats because they are use to the heat and I am not. For lunch we had rice, a sweet sausage and boiled fish. The fish dish had a vegetable that was similar to our greens in the states. I was a little worried about how it would taste because I dont like greens (well at least the way my mom cooks them) but these were very good not bitter at all. Then I slept for a while and now we are waiting for supper. It is 6:48 and it is dark already. It rained for a while--but did not help with the heat at all.
Well thats all for now. I am not sure how often I will be able to post but I will try as often as I can.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
LAX
Well folks I have made it to the international terminal at the Los Angles Airport. It has been a pretty crazy day so far. My flights got changed today so I would have enough time to make my connection to Taipei. My parents and I quickly drove to Sioux Falls to get to the airport on time. Then I had to change tickets because I have paper tickets. There was a mix-up of some sort but I got on the right flight to Denver. The flight to Denver is not my favorite by any means. Any sort of weather and its very bumping. There was weather today which ruined my view of the mountains. I was slightly bummed about that. After Denver I flew to LA. This flight was amazing. The Grand Canyon and the Mojave Desert are so beautiful. I have decided that some day, I will take a camping trip in the Grand Canyon. The next amazing sight was the Colorado river. It was so large even from the plane. Our God is such an awesome God. How he created everything for a certain purpose. When I landed in LA, I had to figure out how to find the correct terminal. This was a pretty crazy adventure but I will share later. I am out of Internet minutes.
About an hour later.
OK so I found where the free Internet is. Well not exactly free but cheaper than what I was paying before. After I ran out of Internet minutes before I walked around the airport for awhile to find a place comfortable to sleep. On the non secure side of security there isn't much. I sat, read and wrote in my journal for awhile. Then I decided to wander some more. I found this place called reLAX. You do have to pay to get in but I decided it was worth it so I can get a 3 hour nap it. They even will wake me up when I need to go check in and get my ticket. And in reLAX you get free Internet :) OK back to my story about finding the correct terminal.
I got off the plane and knew that I needed to check in and get a ticket for the next leg of my journey. I looked for a sign that said tickets and Check in. I found some and followed them to baggage claim. I was not in the correct spot. Next I asked at the airport security desk where I should go. He told me to walk down the stairs and outside. Then I was to get on the Airport shuttle blue line A and that would take me to the right place. Well I walked outside and waited for the shuttle. It didn't come. I probably wasn't patient enough. Then I asked an another airport cop where to go. He told me it would be fastest to walk to terminal 2 and that's where I would find China Airlines. So I walked the three blocks to terminal 2. Well there were no signs for China Airlines. I was a little worried but glad I had a lot of time. I went inside to ask for help. I found some guys who's job is to move luggage. So I asked them where to find China Airlines. Well they spoke mainly Spanish. I wanted to leave I find someone else but didn't what to be rude. But to my surprise they gave the best information. One of the guys asked me what city I was going to. I told him Taipei. Then with a realization he says international terminal. I was excited I had a place that I could look for. Then he pointed me in the right direction saying that its was cerca de tres (not correct spelling I'm sure but it means near three) Then I was able to walk to the correct terminal. It made so much more sense when I knew I needed to find the international terminal.
About an hour later.
OK so I found where the free Internet is. Well not exactly free but cheaper than what I was paying before. After I ran out of Internet minutes before I walked around the airport for awhile to find a place comfortable to sleep. On the non secure side of security there isn't much. I sat, read and wrote in my journal for awhile. Then I decided to wander some more. I found this place called reLAX. You do have to pay to get in but I decided it was worth it so I can get a 3 hour nap it. They even will wake me up when I need to go check in and get my ticket. And in reLAX you get free Internet :) OK back to my story about finding the correct terminal.
I got off the plane and knew that I needed to check in and get a ticket for the next leg of my journey. I looked for a sign that said tickets and Check in. I found some and followed them to baggage claim. I was not in the correct spot. Next I asked at the airport security desk where I should go. He told me to walk down the stairs and outside. Then I was to get on the Airport shuttle blue line A and that would take me to the right place. Well I walked outside and waited for the shuttle. It didn't come. I probably wasn't patient enough. Then I asked an another airport cop where to go. He told me it would be fastest to walk to terminal 2 and that's where I would find China Airlines. So I walked the three blocks to terminal 2. Well there were no signs for China Airlines. I was a little worried but glad I had a lot of time. I went inside to ask for help. I found some guys who's job is to move luggage. So I asked them where to find China Airlines. Well they spoke mainly Spanish. I wanted to leave I find someone else but didn't what to be rude. But to my surprise they gave the best information. One of the guys asked me what city I was going to. I told him Taipei. Then with a realization he says international terminal. I was excited I had a place that I could look for. Then he pointed me in the right direction saying that its was cerca de tres (not correct spelling I'm sure but it means near three) Then I was able to walk to the correct terminal. It made so much more sense when I knew I needed to find the international terminal.
Leaving
I am suppose to leave today at 6:50pm. My flight itinerary as of right now is Sioux Falls at 1 something. Flight changes. I have been on the phone for 24 minutes right now. One of my flights landing at 1:01am and the next one flight at 1:15 am. This is not enough time to figure out the LA airport make all my flights.
I am so excited to leave. I am completely packed. I just need to get cleaned up. And thats about all I have time for if this flight change happens. Well I need to teach my father how to use skype quick before I leave.
I am so excited to leave. I am completely packed. I just need to get cleaned up. And thats about all I have time for if this flight change happens. Well I need to teach my father how to use skype quick before I leave.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Seriously can it be Saturday Already?
I want to leave. I have packed my bags. Then I went shopping. I packed my bags again. And then I went shopping again. So I packed my bags again. I will not be opening up my bags until I leave.
(Sorry these posts are quite boring but I'm not really doing anything post worthy in my life right now. I pack, sleep, go on Facebook, watch baseball or softball in town and repeat.)
(Sorry these posts are quite boring but I'm not really doing anything post worthy in my life right now. I pack, sleep, go on Facebook, watch baseball or softball in town and repeat.)
Monday, June 21, 2010
Getting ready to go
Today I started packing for my trip. Not a fun experience. Pretty much everything I own is in a box or basket or in some other form of storage. As of right now there are four very large piles in my parents upstairs: stuff for the Philippines, stuff for Boundary Waters, stuff for college, and things that need to be sorted through. I wish someone else could do all the packing for me. On top of the piles i have lists of things that I need to remember. A list for what I have packed, a list for what I need to pack, a list for what I have packed for the Philippines but I also need for Boundary Waters, a list of things I need to buy, a list of things my parents need to do for me once I return. I really hope I am not forgetting anything.
I will end this post with a poem that my dear friend Kadie shared with my latest Boundary Waters group before she left for Romania. I know it does not have much to do with the Philippines but I like it.
Wendel Berry's "The Peace of Wild Things"
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things,
who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief.
I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light.
For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free
I will end this post with a poem that my dear friend Kadie shared with my latest Boundary Waters group before she left for Romania. I know it does not have much to do with the Philippines but I like it.
Wendel Berry's "The Peace of Wild Things"
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things,
who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief.
I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light.
For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thoughts from class
These are assignments that I wrote for my cross-cultural nursing class.
Given the amount of human suffering in the world how do you hold to the Idea of a loving and personal God?
I believe that God is a loving and personal God only to his own people. I also think that God gives his people struggles and trials to strengthen our faith in him. And that he will never give us more than what we can handle. When I think of all the troubles in this life, I think of Hebrews 11. Looking at verses 33-38 one can see all the terrible things that have happen to followers of God. The people of God in the past have hid in desserts, mountains, dens, and caves. But in Hebrews 12:1-2 a reader can see that the people of God are never alone "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith." Jesus is always right beside his people. Is that not a personal God? Once again in Romans 8 we are given a list of things that could separate us from our God. The list includes many things that we see today: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril or sword. the end of the Romans 8 passage say that nothing "shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." The Bible never promises us an easy life as a Christian. In the book of Revelation we are given this promise that at the end of the world he will completely take away all the pain and suffering in our life. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, no crying, neither shall there be any more pain for the former things are passed away." Revelation 21:4
Mother Teresa Reflections
Of the selected reading from Mother Teresa the one that affected me the most was the story about the little girl who ate her bread so slowly because she was afraid she would still be hungry when it was gone. I have no clue what it means to be that hungry. I have access to food all the time even when I am not hungry. I have no clue how to live that way. A few months ago I volunteered at the Banquet, the people that I served there came to receive at least one healthy meal that day. I got the opportunity to eat with them. I did not really like the food so it was hard to eat. Afterwards I thought how wrong of me to judge my food that way. I was provided with a healthy meal; I should eat it and not complain. This is an important lesson for me to remember, to be content with what I can get.
Given the amount of human suffering in the world how do you hold to the Idea of a loving and personal God?
I believe that God is a loving and personal God only to his own people. I also think that God gives his people struggles and trials to strengthen our faith in him. And that he will never give us more than what we can handle. When I think of all the troubles in this life, I think of Hebrews 11. Looking at verses 33-38 one can see all the terrible things that have happen to followers of God. The people of God in the past have hid in desserts, mountains, dens, and caves. But in Hebrews 12:1-2 a reader can see that the people of God are never alone "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith." Jesus is always right beside his people. Is that not a personal God? Once again in Romans 8 we are given a list of things that could separate us from our God. The list includes many things that we see today: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril or sword. the end of the Romans 8 passage say that nothing "shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." The Bible never promises us an easy life as a Christian. In the book of Revelation we are given this promise that at the end of the world he will completely take away all the pain and suffering in our life. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, no crying, neither shall there be any more pain for the former things are passed away." Revelation 21:4
Mother Teresa Reflections
Of the selected reading from Mother Teresa the one that affected me the most was the story about the little girl who ate her bread so slowly because she was afraid she would still be hungry when it was gone. I have no clue what it means to be that hungry. I have access to food all the time even when I am not hungry. I have no clue how to live that way. A few months ago I volunteered at the Banquet, the people that I served there came to receive at least one healthy meal that day. I got the opportunity to eat with them. I did not really like the food so it was hard to eat. Afterwards I thought how wrong of me to judge my food that way. I was provided with a healthy meal; I should eat it and not complain. This is an important lesson for me to remember, to be content with what I can get.
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