Belgrade, Serbia

We left Romania with the intention of heading for the shores of Croatia. Our plans changed as the trip we wanted to do in Croatia was not available until the 16th--but at a discount. So we spent a few days exploring Belgrade--it was nice to walk around after the train ride that was supposed to last 13 hours ended up lasting 18+ hours. We still aren't really sure why.

In Belgrade we learned that you are either a smoker, a future smoker, or a passive smoker. So smoke 'em if ya got 'em. No we didn't take up smoking but indulged in a few days of passive smoking.

We went to the fortress on the banks of the Sava and Danube. It has been attacked through the centuries about 140+ times and ravaged about 40 times--due to it being on the edge of the Byzantine/Roman Empire and the Ottoman/Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Even so the city has style, classic buildings and the most fashion conscious population we have noticed in Europe.

The day we left we went through the downtown area that formerly housed the Serbian Defense department. This was bombed by NATO in 1999. The bombed out shells of the buildings are still there.

Blog Changes

I have changed a few things on the blog so that you can comment with out signing in and that the posts can be emailed.

Love reading your comments!

Camp Round 2 -- The Little Ones

We headed back to the countryside for the second camp with orphanage girls aged 8-11.

Riding up the the camp in "Ole Blue" the Dacia Truck that the missionaries have is a journey. The truck was damaged recently in recent accidents and leaks water and overheats--thus "Ole Blue" often needs to left of some steam particularly in the city. We were only involved in two slight car accidents while we were there but saw lots of them. So "Ole Blue" needs to have the heater going to keep the geyser from going off--when it is around 38 Celsius outside already with the additional heat in the truck you stay toasty warm :)

When we got to the last town before camp, the bridge had not been fixed and it appears that there is no plan for it to be fixed anytime soon. But the riverbed is now dry and you just drive through the riverbed.

The girls were so excited to go to camp--they did not even sleep the night before and were awaiting the van in the morning with all of their bags packed. Some of them are so tiny they appear to be about 4 instead of 8 or 9 years old. The missionaries said that this is very common.

The younger girls took a lot more time and attention by all the staff to keep them occupied and happy. They loved playing in the creek, catching frogs, going on hikes, picking flowers and with all this they worked up huge appetites. Paul and I were amazed that they could eat so much. Cooking for all of them kept us busy.

The last day of the camp the girls were very upset. They did not want to go back and they definitely told us this in the tears and crying as we left camp and then again as we arrived at the orphanage.

We so enjoyed getting to know the missionaries. We had a lot of fun it was like we had known them for a long time and were visiting friends. Scott and Cami are headed to the US to visit churches and individuals interested in supporting their mission this fall so if you or your church is interested in information or supporting children's ministries in Romania--let us know and we can put you in contact with them.

Camp

Ten of the older girls (ages 11-18) from the orphanage arrived as the first campers at the camp. The tents and pavilions were up and ready. Two of the Mather's girls had come and helped us complete everything in time.

It's so interesting to be out there working in the country--wagon after wagon would pass by filled with grass all cut with a scythe. Paul and Steve at one time had a crowd of seven local Romanians gathered around to watch them as they used the weed whacker to make paths through camp. They were puzzled by they use of such a device--one man brought over his scythe and helped clear an area to put up the staff tents.

Paul and I just helped with whatever needed assistance during the camp. There is lots of water to be gotten for 23 people and cooking over a fire for that many takes time. Noemi DeWeerd is amazing at cooking for so many with none of the modern conveniences such as refrigeration--you can not even find coolers over 2 gallons here in Romania.

The girls were so excited to be at the camp. The camp had bought a swimsuit for each of them and most of them just wore their swimsuit for most of the camp. They had devotions each morning followed by activities and then crafts each afternoon. Every evening we had a campfire with the main speaker and of course music--headed up by our newest Brazilian friend Matteos.

The girls are like any teen girls but after awhile you notice that things like being kind are generally afterthoughts--they have grown up fighting for what they have and with little to no security in the knowledge of knowing that somebody cares for them. At times this makes it difficult to work with them.

The evening of the last campfire--each of the girls took a stick and made a prayer request and then threw the stick into the flames. Some of them shared their request before we all prayed for them. The requests made me cry-- "I wish that I had a family", "I hope that I will get adopted", "I want to find a home to live before I must leave the orphanage", "I want to have Mrs. Mather as my mom"...The girls were all so serious about this and sharing the one thing that they wanted most--love and a feeling of belonging. Later as Paul and I talked we were increasingly aware of how blessed we are to have such an incredible family.

The day before we left the torrential rains had started as the campfire had ended. The downpour continued throughout the entire evening and into the next day. The river rose and was impassable--thus we remained at camp, altered the menu as there were not going to be any trips into town and attempted to dry out the wet bedding and clothes and keep the girls entertained.

We noticed that the traffic on the road passing camp had almost ceased. The river went down the following day and the truck went to meet the van that had been hired to take the girls back. The truck got stuck in the second water crossing as the flood had shifted the road and had to be pulled out by horses. Then they returned back to the camp with the local police to start shuttling the girls to the van. Paul rode in the back of the truck while I rode in the front on the Romanian police car--with a siren happy police man. We made it to the van and got all the girls loaded and headed into town where the van driver had gotten stuck trying to get to camp as a bridge had been washed out. We could see washouts on the roads going into town--then we got to the bridge. It was completely destroyed and the van got stuck trying to get around it on the detour. The van had to be towed out and high centered and damaged some of the center body panels. Thus we had to go to the police station and wait for over an hour as the paperwork was filled out so that the van could be fixed. Then we were off to Bucharest and arrived last night.

Next week we are off to camp again for a camp with the younger girls!

Getting Ready for Camp in Romania

Paul and I are here in Bucharest helping an organization called Stepping Forward--check out their website at www.steppingforward.ro

We spent some time touring the city as final preparations for Stepping Forward's inaugural camp were being made. We visited Peles Palace which was made as a summer home for King Carol--it is located in Sinaia. The castle is filled with exquisite woodwork. We enjoyed a picnic on the mountain top with the DeWeerd's and Mathers (the missionaries--read all about their incredible mission at their website listed above) and a team from Hershey, PA.

The following day we went to the orphanage for school age girls (around 50 girls at this orphanage). The girls were waiting for us with loads of almost overwhelming enthusiasm. They are so excited on the days that Stepping Forward comes to visit. The girls crave personal attention and contact--they are used to having to stand up for themselves. The Mather's and DeWeerd's are probaly some the only adults that can serve as friends more than as authority figures to the girls. The Hershey Team had brought pillows for each of the girls. The girls were so excited about that. We celebrated the birthdays for the month and gave out birthday gifts and served snacks.

We spent the afternoon at The People's Palace--the communist dictator Ceausescu leveled nearly 1/6 of the city and made homeless 70,000 people to make the 2nd largest building in the world. There is a great description of this masterpiece or aberration--depending how you look at it at: http://home.xnet.com/~jkelley/BucharestBugle.fldr/BuchBugle19-20.html .

Then it was off to camp. Paul and I went a few days early with Steve and his friend Steve to help build some platforms to set tents on and get the camp ready for the campers. Living Waters Camp is located over 3 hours north of Bucharest. As we drove their the proportions of horses and carts to cars continued to increase. When we reached the village it is near, the horses and carts outnumbered the cars.

The camp is primitive--but beautiful, located in the heart of the Romanian countryside. We had to drive through the river twice to reach the camp. There is no running water but an artesian spring is located about 1/2 mile away and provides great water. They have a generator that they use for operating the electric power tools. The one building on the site is the "Shout" house--a combination of outhouse and place to hang the camp shower. We cooked meals on the campfire and got ready to make this camp ready to welcome its first campers!

Bucaresti

Via a 15 hour night train we arrived in Bucharest. The city at first is drab and grey--filled with communist bloc buildings. Yet there are signs of better days ahead springing out here and there.

Today Paul and I visited the baby orphanage.....

Hiking in Innsbruck

Following the wedding it was off to the hills with some of our friends from Alaska and Jeff and Connie--the newlyweds.

We hiked in the Alps for a few days. We saw so many animals--goats, sheep, cattle. The little huts in the hills where you can get a bed and some great Austrian food often had heards of cattle, sheep or goats. You could hear the sound of the bells on the animals through out the mountains echoing through the valleys--it sounded as if some one was playing with bells. At first I did not believe that cattle could make so much noise with cow bells. The bells ring even as they sit there and chew their cud. The mountains were so beautiful.

Paul and I greatly enjoyed the dumplings and local beauty!

Austria

We said goodbye to our Slovenian Grandma that we had been staying with for a few days in her rental room. Grandma had told us so many things each day--all in Slovenian--but the time had come to leave for Austria.

So we were off we boarded the train and left for Innsbruck. Our friends were getting married near Connie's hometown of Thaur. So exciting to be going to a foreign wedding as niether of us had attended a wedding outside of the States. And so began the wedding weekend. I think that all Austrians must take classes in hospitality as all the guests raved about their host and Connie's family was so incredibly gracious.

Paul joined the guys for Jeff bachelor BBQ party up at a hut in the mountains while I hung out with the girls and sampled the local Schnapps made by a friend of the family. The next evening we all got together for the BBQ at Connie's parents--so much fun to see all the people from Alaska who were there for the wedding. Suddenly local folk dancers entered the backyard and began to do traditional Austrian dances they were dancing wíth hatchets and chopping this log--sort of a lumberjack tribute then came the salt miners tribute dance. Soon they had dragged Jeff into the circle and had him attemting to dance as well. It was such the experience.

The wedding took place in a beautiful location. A tiny chapel on a hill overlooking the mountains. The view--all around was mountains and we looked down at the valley. Then off to the reception and a incredible four course Austrian feast. The evening was filled with songs, skits, schnapps, singing and of course lots of dancing!

Slovenia

We arrived in the beautiful country of Slovenia. On the shores of Lake Bled we swam in this warm water lake and played in the local city swim hole. It was great and so relaxing. We hiked through Vintgar Gorge--the trail was created by attaching theboard walk directly to the rock cliffs along the river. The water was this amazingly clear teal color--so amazing to watch the fish all swimming in the holes.

Then off to the mountains! We took a bus south and started at Lake Bohinj. We set out for the Julian Alps. The Slovenians love to hike and I admit I was impressed at 70 plus year olds went by me on the path. We met an 84 year old man on a side trail--he and his wife who was close to the same age were hiking 600 steps to a local waterfall--he gave us all kinds of trail information.

We climbed and climbed from 650 meters to 2071 meters with our packs. We just jumped into it and it was great. We stayed and ate at mountain huts along the way. The one had the best view of the mountains--at the top of this little rock outcropping and a 360 view of mountains--I cant wait to post the photo. We hiked in the morning with Inge--a woman from Germany who has hiked all over the world.

Well then we went down and down and down the mountain and just managed to catch the bus we needed. Paul had to run and flag it down. So we were off to Bovec--a little tired and few a few blisters but mainly just sore toes from going down. We saw so many avalance sites and pine trees broken and laying on the snow in the canyons as we decended. So today we are sore but still walking.

Canyoning--we slipped into some neoprene suits, boots, and protective helmets and joined a group for going down the Soca River in an unusual way--by jumping down into clear pools and slidding down smooth water carved rack. The longest slide was 12 meters and there was an 8 meter slide into a cave--this was my favorite. Paul did a 15 meter jump into the water--I was too scared. It was so much fun just natural slide after another for 1.5 hours. WooHoo!

Canoeing the Vlata

Paul and I enjoyed South Bohemia so much that we returned to the region to do some canoeing. Little did we know what a popular choice that was. We rented a canoe from an agency and went to a little campsite where we would begin our 4 day paddle on the Vlata.

Well the little campsite that is the only one in town turned out to be home to thousands of Czech's who had 2 days of national vacation and canoeing the Vlata is an annual event for many families and groups of friends.

Day 1
We found but some miracle our canoe that we had rented amongst the thousands getting there canoes on the water after a long night of drinking and singing till dawn. We were off--part of the crowd, experiencing the culture and having a great time. The weirs--these are dam like things that usually have a ramp on the side for canoes to shoot down. We approached the first with apprehension, should we go for it? We did and came out dry. Whee--this is awesome!

The secound wier we approached and got in the canoe line to go over. We neglected out of our elation at completing the first to get out and scout the chute. We followed the canoes--they all seemed to be hugging the left side of the chute just next to the big dam. There was a straight 5-6 ft drop on the right side. Well we made down the chute, for a second all was well--then we hit the water "eddy" line from the big dam. I saw Paul leaning--suddenly the boat filled with water and we went over--into the rapids below the dam. There was a large rock at the bottom of the dam that had a boat wrapped "tacoed" around it. Paul and the canoe made it around one side of it and me the other. We bounced from one large boulder to another in the water--the current was strong and the banks were made of sloping cement. I saw Paul grab the canoe and I scrambled up on the bank and started going along side to catch up. Finally about 1/4 mile downstream we caught up with each other--we were both fine and all of our gear was still in the canoe which was also fine. We went back to the crash site to look for Paul's paddle. We found it and watched as yet anouther boat tacoed around the big boulder. We heard it crack. People and things were floating all over in the river. It was so crazy less than 50% of the canoes at times were making it through.

Well after awhile we had to leave the excitement and get back to our boat. We discovered that our waterproof containers were not so waterproof. We had to empty out all of our stuff and let it dry.

Well the next days followed the pattern of trying to dry out our gear, seeing castles in the distance, paddling past riverside beer gardens and incredible forests, looking for 2 square yards upon which to set our tent up on at the campsite and listening to lots of Czech drinking songs. On the third night it rained. Not just a little but a torrential downpour. Paul and I slept outside the camp sinks on a slab of cement as the tent was next to a new lake. So went our Czech holiday adventure--it was great.

Olde-Worlde Charm in Cesky Krumlov

Czech Police and Communism

We have checked out of the first hotel that we stayed in. As we were checking out we discovered that they were trying to overcharge us and we refused to pay. After arguing back and forth with the hotel clerk and saying that we were not going to pay the charges--she said that she would have to call the Czech Police on us if we left without paying "our bill".

Paul said that we would just go to the embassy--well we paid the correct part of the bill and just walked out of the hotel not sure of what was going to happen. Well we made it to the tram and out of the area--no police got us!

Now we have checked into our new hotel--its a former monestary that was changed into a Czech Secret Police Prision during the communist years. The former president was actually a prisoner there.

Today we took a tour regarding the Revolution. It was so interesting to learn about the people and how communism was outed 30 years after the student protests. Change comes but maybe not as fast as we think it should. The students in 1968 set something in place that did not come into being until 1989. After the tour we visted the Museum of Communism located above a Casino and next to McDonald's.

Czech Beer

The Czech's are famous for their beer and for good reason--some of the breweries that we have visited have been brewing since the 14th century.

We have actually went to a place where the beer was cheaper than water.

Prague Area Adventures

We are in Prague and have met up with Kimberly and her friend Anna whose family escaped from Czechslovakia in the early 80's. It is great to have her insight and knowledge of the language.

We have been exploring the region around Prague--visiting castles and churches. We are also getting to know the rail system. We had quite the adventure getting to Kutna Hora we mistakenly got on the express train and rolled past our stop plus some additional ones. We then caught a train going back to the place where we were supposed to switch trains and got off in the right town but at the wrong stop. We took a nice hike through the industrial train yard for quite awhile jumping into the ditch as trains passed and then managed a way out of the yard and a highway to find a bus to the correct station and find our correct train. Something that we hadn't planned on but quite the fun adventure.

We saw a church decorated with bones of the deceased from the plague and wars. Very unusual. Then we toured the former silver mining town of Kutna Hora--it was a very rich town at one time and has an incredible gothic cathedral. It is dedicated to St. Barbara the patron saint of miners.

Paris

Ah Paris The Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Notre Dame and the cafe we have enjoyed it all. Our cheap hotel honeymoon suite is located near Moulin Rouge. It consists of two twin beds shoved together and a bathroom that is so small you have to back in to close the door--there is no room for turns. Paul and I have laughed a lot about the crazy room--its real dirty but hey we are having a great time! We have been trying to not spend a lot of money on food. We have had great picnic with the Parisians in beuatiful parks. The French love to picnic like no culture I've ever seen--I enjoy it greatly. I am a picnic lover and Paul is begining to see the light :) What can you say and you lay in the grass eat your lunch and gaze up at the Eiffel Tower. We joined the city in thier annual celebration of soltice as musicians come out and almost every corner in some districts has street performers and musicians doing there act. We just wandered the city catching bits of classical Opera, the Eagles, break dancers, Jazz, mimes and everything in between. The streets were full like it was New Year's eve and people were all celebrating--it was so much fun.