Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Last Day in Rome

This is it...the last day.  So bittersweet.  


We awoke this morning at 8 a.m. for a 9 a.m. departure on the bus to the Roman Forum.  Sandro took us through the forum for an hour, showing us all of the amazing historical sites, including the place where Julius Caesar was betrayed and the Curia -- the building where the Senate of Rome would've met to make decisions for the people.

After the forum, we jumped back into the bus to travel to St. Paul's Basilica, located outside of the walls of Rome.  Traditionally held to be built over the grave of St. Paul, the beautiful basilica has many small chapels located within its walls.  We were lucky enough to use one of these chapels, the chapel of St. Stephen (the first martyr), to have a service of Baptismal Renewal.  After a call to worship, a short meditation, and a reading from Paul's letter to the Romans, we called each student and adult in the group to come forward to receive a renewal of their baptism.  We read each of them their personal verse chosen for them and then gave them a blessing to remind them of the covenant they took in their baptism.  It was a powerful and reflective moment for all of us.

Following St. Paul's outside the walls and lunch, we travelled to see the Pantheon in the heart of Rome.  Springing up from nowhere between the narrow streetways, the Pantheon was originally built as a temple to the old Roman gods, but has been used for hundreds of years as a Catholic church.  Built as a perfect half of a sphere, with the width of the building equal to the height, it is an amazing work to behold and also houses the burial of the great Renaissance artist Raphael. 

We finished our day with a visit to the Colosseum (see above picture!).  We had about an hour to walk through the levels of the Colosseum and explore what is the only of the Seven World Wonders that is located in Europe.  

Our night concluded with a trip to Piazza Navona for some shopping and our final group dinner.  We posed with street actors, grabbed some trinkets, and enjoyed a wonderful two hour dinner at the Old Bear Taverna just north of the piazza.  Walking home from dinner, we made sure to end our trip in the best fashion, with a stop at Giolitti for some of the most delcious gelato in Italy (maybe the world).  Thanks to a generous donation, each student had a chance to get their own gelato on us as we wrapped up our last night together in Europe.  As you can see, they really hated it!


Tomorrow morning, we'll be rising at 6 a.m. for a 7 a.m. departure to the airport.  We depart at 10:00 a.m. Rome time on Alitalia flight #628 for Chicago.  We should arrive around 1:40 local time in Chicago, retrieve our baggage and clear customs, and then jump on the bus to head home.  Our estimated arrival time will be around 6 p.m. at the church, but we will notify via text a more detailed time as we get closer to home.

Please pray for our safe travels, and that our health would stay positive as we deal with long travel after a long trip together.  We are all very exhausted and tired already, and the jet lag surely won't help.  Please also be respectful of your students as they return home tomorrow evening.  Trust me, they really want to tell you all about the trip, and they will.  But it may not be tomorrow night.  We will all need a good amount of time to decompress and really put our journey together into perspective, and that will mean that we can't share everything about the trip right away.  Be concious of your student's needs as they return home, as right now more than anything they will be looking forward to the comfort of home and family and their own beds!  

We have had a simply amazing journey together over the past ten days, and we are thankful in so many ways for the people who have made this trip possible.  Our lives will never be the same, and the people here with us will forever have a special place in our hearts.  From Athens to Samos, from Patmos to Kusadasi, and all across Rome, the spaces, places, and history we experienced will be sealed on our hearts.  As we move into a new chapter of our lives, may we all be transformed by the same God that has transformed the world through those whose footsteps of faith we followed together.

May we continually and eternally follow in their footsteps of faith, and perhaps leave some foosteps of our own.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Vatican City & St. Peter's Basilica

Our second to last day has us wanting to slow down time here in Rome.


This morning, we woke at 8 a.m. to get out to the Vatican Museum for our first tour of the day.  We explored the museum with our guide, Sandro Pelligrini, and ended with a trip through the sacred halls of the Sistine Chapel.  A place with so many artifacts (even some that were missing or "borrowed" from the sites we saw in Greece and Turkey!) kept all of our camera shutters busy as we meandered through the halls among the masses of tourists who travel to the Vatican City each year.  There's something that only half of 1% of those visitors get to do, however.  That's 0.5%, for those math whizzes out there.  The Scavi.

The Scavi is an excavation of ancient ruins that is two floors underneath St. Peter's Basilica, which is located adjacent to the Vatican Museum.  It was discovered during WWII, and was excavated in secret to be kept from Hitler's knowledge.  Today, it is open to select people (usually seminary students) to tour and actually see the area where St. Peter would have been buried, and also the place where they found what they have deduced are St. Peter's bones.  An extremely powerful and once-in-a-lifetime experience, our students all spoke of how valuable the tour of the Scavi was to them -- so be sure to ask about it when they get home! 

After the Scavi, we had some time to walk through St. Peter's Basilica, one of the largest and most beautiful churches in the world, including La Pieta (seen below).  There was even a 5 o'clock Catholic mass taking place in the basilica while we were there, which made the place come alive even more.



Tonight we took the metro back to the hotel, and we explored the area near our hotel with our small groups to find dinner (and gelato, of course).  Tomorrow morning we plan to have another full day before returning home.  We will tour the Roman forum, the Colosseum, Constantine's Arch, the Pantheon, and culminate with a visit after lunch to St. Paul's Basilica outside the walls of the city.  

As we head into our last day of our touring together, please pray for endurance and strength along the way.  We are all extremely exhausted, yet our spirits are just as high as ever and we're feeling so blessed for this opportunity.  Please pray for us as we start to reflect on the amazing things we have experienced and seen, much of it we will continue to fully learn from weeks, months, and even years from now.  

Monday, June 18, 2012

Corinth to Rome

Good evening from Rome!

We hope you sincerely enjoyed the posts from some of the students yesterday!  We had a relaxing morning on Samos yesterday, doing some swimming and shopping, before we made our way back to Athens in the evening and checked into the Hotel Poseidon on the coast.  We had a delicious beachfront buffet meal, and enjoyed another wonderful evening in each other's company.

This morning, we awoke at 7 a.m. to travel to the ancient city of Corinth.  After a stop along the way to see the canal, we arrived at the ancient city.  The bus parked at the base of the Acrocorinth, which is where the acropolis would've stood on the very top of the city.  Many students chose to hike up to the top, and they could really get a feel for how intense it would've been to be a part of these fortified ancient sites.  After the Acrocorinth, we made our way to lunch.  Not just any lunch, however, but a lunch where we sat overlooking the ruins of the ancient city.


After lunch we went into the ancient city of Corinth and toured the site.  Eleni showed us the layout of where the temples and the agora would have been, and we tried to hide under some Cyprus trees to keep cool.  We found an area with a few benches in the shade, and that was where we had the amazing experience of taking communion together just a few feet away from where Paul would have lived while he stayed in Corinth as a tent maker.  


Once communion and our worship together was completed, the students were given their letters from home to read and reflect on.  As you will surely hear upon their arrival home, the students were very touched by the kindness, thoughtfulness, and support of those friends and family who took the time to write letters.  This day was one that they will surely remember all of their lives.

We drove straight from Corinth to the airport and took a two hour flight to Rome, changing time zones again.  After checking into our hotel, some students took a short hike down to the Colisseum and Constantine's Arch.  We will be waking up tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. for the first of our two days in Rome.  We will be going to see the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, the Scavi, and St. Peter's Basilica in what will surely be a long and busy day.  Please continue to pray that in these finals days of our journey we remain energetic and bear with one another even in our fatigue.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Daniel


This trip has been a such a wonderful experience! You hear about these buildings and places, such as Mars Hill, Ephesus, and the Greek temples, but to actually walk through them and see them first hand is truly breathtaking. You can imagine what they'll look like, but to stand next to them is inbelieveable. The feeling you get when you know that Paul stood here on this exact spot and preached is undescribable and life changing. The landscape is beautiful and all of the people here are so nice to you. I'm so thankful to the church for letting us have the oppurtunity to go on this incredible journey.
-Daniel

Emily, Christine, & Rachel


Hi GUYS!
Its Emily, Christine, and Rachel!  We are having a wonderful time in Samos right now, we can't wait for the rest of the trip.  It has flown by so far!
Here are some of our favorite parts so far-
Rachel: The Grotto of St. John,  riding in the hydrofoil (no seasickness yay!), 
Christine: playing in the ocean together- so fun to have everyone get in, the Parthenon- felt like I was on top of the world but felt so small compared to the huge building
Emily: the view from the Monastery at the top of Patmos, meeting all of the friendly locals, walking through Ephesus- sooo cool that it was the original city!

This trip has been awesome and we have loved getting to know everyone in the group. We are all exhausted but in a good way :) Today will be a nice day of rest and we're looking forward to being in Athens again because we loved it the first time. Thanks for all the prayers and for supporting us to go on this trip!
 
HAPPY FATHERS' DAY DADDIES!!!!!

Katie

Hi, guys! Despite the heat and the fact that I'm the only person in the group to have gotten sick 4 times, I'm having an awesome time seeing the ancient sights! I wanna give a shout out to each and every one of the lovely folks back home. Mom, I'm taking lots of pictures so it'll feel like you were there. Dad, happy Father's day, and I'll give you your present when I get home. Mimi, Pop-pop, Pa and Loretta, you guys are the most awesome grandparents a girl could ask for! Jack, I'll get you a present if you promise not to use it against the neighbors. And Clayton, guess what: I haven't gotten a parasite shoved down my throat OR been kidnapped!! HA!! Can't wait to see each and every one of your smiling faces when I get home! -Katie

Hannah & Katie


Hey Everyone :) Yesterday was our favorite day by far. The ruins were pretty impressive, which is actually an understatement but we can't figure out how to describe it with words, so I guess our families will have to just come back here and see them. Our guide was the best yesterday, we learned a lot of fun facts. Such as the thumbs up sign of America (see above) in Turkey symbolizes one man searching for four wives. Cute old man alert! When we went to the Mosque of Jesus the Imam (head honcho dude) there also owns a shop right outside.  He was super sweet and wrote all of our names in Arabic.  He was a great example of all the people we've met here because he was just so genuine and excited to have us.  Happy Father's Day! 
               -Hannah and Katie 
P.S. I've been wearing the SPF 50 Mom. Shout out to Rick Griggs the best dad ever! Love you guys and I miss you !!
P.P.S This is Katie haha don't worry Bill I'm alive and well the service/wifi is just a little spotty here.  I guess I miss you all too, haha jk I totes do and love you all too. Bye :)

Caroline

I am so thankful that I've had the amazing opportunity to travel to Europe with such an amazing group of people! Greece, Samos, Patmos, and Turkey have been quite an experience. We have seen unbelievable ruins, beautiful beaches, and gorgeous mountains. I am so excited for Rome and I feel so blessed to be here! I really don't want to leave!

Drew & Scott


Getting ready to check out of our hotel in Samos, which has practically been invaded by flys. About to go grab a bite to eat in town before our flight. Our stay has been great. The view from the hotel is beautiful. Samos is a place where we could see ourselves coming back. The people of the town are extremely nice and we have been exploring the  town and finding great deals and bargining on the prices of fake raybans sunglasses. (faybans) =) Happy Fathers day to all the great dads out there. You deserve some recognition. -Drew and Scott

Jordan

My favorite parts of the trip so far has been the times I was able to literally stand where Paul stood thousands of years ago!  We got to do that in Athen when we visited Mars Hill, where Paul preached to the entire city from.  It was so cool to stand there and think of how bold and brave Paul was and how dedicated he was to serving the Lord and sharing God's love with others.  We also visited the ruins of the city of Ephesus which were overwhelming in the most awesome way.  During our tour we visited the theatre where Paul wasn't allowed to preach from.  And because he couldn't preach there, he wrote the letter to the Ephesians.  I got to stand in a huge part of Paul's history!  This trip is teaching me so much and I'm loving every minute of it!!!

Adrienne

This experience has truly been unreal. Each and every day when I see or experience a new place, my breath is taken away. There are no words to describe all of the emotions that rush at you when you see these places. Everything about this trip is amazing, and I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to go on it. Thank you to everyone that made this possible. I look forward to the next few, and can't wait :) 

Emily



 Hi mom :) the trip has been great so far! My favorite parts have been the Cave of Revelation and going to Turkey and visiting Ephesus. Turkey was awesome not what I expected at all. Today we got up early and went swimming in the ocean; now we are about to have lunch and fly back to Athens for a night. I'm excited to get to Rome! Happy Fathers day Dad, love you both! 
-Emily 

Lizzie & Sarah


HEY! This is Lizzie speaking for Grant and Sarah. We've been having a wonderful time here in Samos. Even though we are causing quite a commotion in the hotel, this place is so incredible. Sarah and I really liked Turkey when we visited there yesterday. We really hoped to have the chance to stay there longer. Even though we all sweated out most of the fluids in our body, Ephesus was our favorite. Grant didn't like it as much but he will agree that it was really impressive and we were all struck by the genius ideas of the time and the city as a whole. Today we head to Corinth and hopefully that will be as awesome! Sarah says that it's really excited to go place to place a new place is exciting everytime, the views from the rooms are incredible.
Byee!

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Boat to Kusadasi, Bus to Ephesus


See that in the distance?! That's the Turkish flag, people...at the port of Kusadasi!

This morning we woke at 6:30 a.m. and hopped on an 8:30 a.m. ferry to Kusadasi, Turkey.  After a ferry ride of about 90 minutes, we met with our tour guide Namik (pronounced "Nah-Meek") and went straight to the ruins of the Basilica of St. John.  The Basilica of St. John is the site at which John the Apostle resided after his return from his exile to the island of Patmos, so for the past few days we followed in John's footsteps rather than just Paul's.  The basilica is also the place where custom says that John is buried.  


Next to the Basilica of St. John sits the Mosque of Jesus.  Not named directly for Jesus of Nazareth, the mosque is named after a man who was named Jesus.  Still, an amazing juxtaposition considering that the man was surely named after Jesus Christ.  The Imam of the mosque was extremely welcoming of the students, and he gave each student (and adult!) a gift of a postcard with their name inscribed by him in Arabic.  More interesting still, both of these sites -- the Basilica of St. John and the Mosque of Jesus -- were largely built with borrowed materials (brick, stone, marble) from a ruined temple of the goddess Artemis from the Greek and Roman eras.  It was amazing for students to see how the religous landscape of hundreds of years was playing out literally right in front of their eyes in one place.

After a stop at a local Turkish restaurant with a delicious Turkish buffet, the group continued to the ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus.  As you may know, this is the city in Asia minor that Paul would have preached in and lived in multiple times during his ministry and life, and home to the group of believers that received his letter to the Ephesians in the New Testament.  Ephesus is also considered the second best preserved ancient ruins in the world, bested only by Pompeii.  Namik helped our group imagine what the city would have looked, sounded, and felt like in the first few centuries as we walked down the marble streets and saw the homes and places of gathering and worship.  We even got a group picture in front of the library of Ephesus, which was the third largest library in the ancient world!


After what Nam called possibly his hottest day in Ephesus (coming from a professional tour guide!), the group got a chance to sit in the shade near the ruins of the gymnasium, directly across from the entrance to the ampitheater.  David Berry led us in a devotional and we recapped what we had experienced for the day.  Special shout out to Dave who went through the entire ruins with us -- up stairs, down stairs, uphill, dowhill, mostly on slick marble and all in oppressive heat -- only months after recovering from a broken hip!  He has been a great asset to our group.


After we returned to Samos, we got to once again head down to the port city to have dinners and relax with our small groups.  After many gyros, sandwiches, fish platters, and even pizzas, we returned to the hotel and had a meeting to discuss our day tomorrow.  Kim Berry also led a short devotion time and shared a few stories from her experiences over the past months as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia.  The students had yet another chance to reflect on their experiences thus far and how that might inform the persons they are becoming.

Tomorrow we have a rest and recovery day.  Students will get to sleep in past 8 a.m. and will have the chance to swim, shop, and eat to their hearts' contents before we fly back to Athens in the evening.  We will arrive at Hotel Poseidon and enjoy a dinner together on the beachfront in the capital city of Greece.  Since our itinerary is light tomorrow, we have a special surprise coming up for all of you blog readers out there in internet land, so stay tuned when you get up tomorrow morning, we're sure you'll enjoy it!

Until then, please continue praying for our group.  Specifically, prayers for healthful rest and nights full of sleep will be coveted over the final days of our journey together.  As we transition off of the island, back to Athens, and further to Rome, our already crazy schedule somehow seems to get even crazier.  All of us will need a bit of extra patience, bearing with one another as we travel along our path together in this amazing experience.







Friday, June 15, 2012

Jerusalem of the Aegean


Ladies and Gentlemen, this is how we started our day.  Jealous yet?!

This morning we woke up early (6:30 a.m. -- for those following along) to catch our 8 a.m. hydrofoil to the beautiful island of Patmos.  When we arived on Patmos, we met with our guide Nikolas who told us that Patmos is considered by the Eastern Orthodox church to be the "Jersualem of the Aegean."  After a short introduction, Nikolas escorted the group to the top of the hill on the island.  We had a devotional time with the group, led by Jessica, and then we got to walk through the grotto (or cave) where the Apostle John is said to have received and dictated the book of Revelation.  


After touring the grotto, we continued to the very top of the hill to the Monastery of St. John.  We had the amazing opportunity to tour the monastery and the monastery museum with Nikolas informing us of the history of each and every room and item.  One of the most interesting pieces in the museum was an early manuscript of the Gospel of Mark, written in the 4th century.  

After the monastery, the group walked through the neighborhoods of Patmos to Aloni Restaurant.  As we dined on Greek salads, tzatziki, and pasticcio, the same men who served us our meal entertained us with a few variations of Greek dancing.  Then the students got the chance for a lesson of their own, learning three different styles of traditional Greek dance!



As you can see, we had ana amazing day that was capped off with a return to Samos, dinners in the capital city at the port, and even a bit of shopping!  Vocab time from your students: Fay-Bans -- fake RayBans that can be bought for 7 or 8 euro in shops.  You can utilize this in a myriad of ways -- FayBans, Fucci (Gucci), Fakerarri (Ferrari), FayFarers (a specific type of FayBan), Faviators, etc., etc.

Tonight we rest and get some sleep to prepare for another early start tomorrow to visit Turkey!  Please continue praying that the group continue to be healthy well-rested, as we are now at the halfway point of our journey together.  Also, please pray for the guides and drivers that have served us along the way to this point.  They are an integral part to this being a life-developing experience for your students.


I blog with BE Write

Thursday, June 14, 2012

The Island of Patmos

Kalispera from Samos!

We have arrived on one of the most beautiful Greek islands; the island of Samos.  This morning in Athens, the students had a few options for how they'd like to spend their time.  Some students chose to stay at the hotel to rest and relax a bit, some students went to the Plaka for shopping, some students toured the Temple of Zeus, and some saw the National Gardens. 

 In the afternoon we took a flight from Athens to Samos, where we arrived at the Hotel Arethousa, our home for the next few days.  The students got the chance to swim in the sea and the pool this afternoon for a few hours before we went to dinner at the Doryssa Bay seaside resort.  We also had the chance to do a devotion and reflection time together on the amazing patio outside of the hotel, directly across from the beach.


Tomorrow morning we will be up early to get to the pier where we will take the Flying Dolphin (hydrofoil) to the island of Patmos.  Patmos is famous for being the island that the Apostle John was exiled to for ten years, also where he is believed to have received the Revelation.  

Please be in prayer for us as we enjoy our time on this beautiful island.  Even as we enjoy our travels and learnings, we are very aware of the fact that many people in the nation of Greece are dealing with hardships.  We heard while checking into our hotel today that they have been down 50% in bookings this year.  Many of us in the states can relate to situations such as these in the past few years, so please also pray for the people who make this amazing and life changing experience possible for all of our students.


I blog with BE Write

I blog with BE Write

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

The Acropolis of Athens

Where did we leave off?  Let's see...


Yesterday evening we had a beautiful walkthrough of the Plaka (small shopping & restaurant district in Athens) on our way to a wonderful dinner together.  We had souvlaki, spanakopita, tsatziki, bread, veal and potatoes, and delicious salad, among a number of other appetizers and desserts.  After a walk back to the hotel, we were all very quick to get to bed for the evening!

Wednesday, June 13th

This morning after an early breakfast, we made our way around the corner from our hotel to the Acropolis of Athens.  We toured the Acropolis, Aereopagos, and Agora.  We had our first teaching and devotional time in the shade near Mars Hill, where Paul gave his famous speech to the Athenians (Acts 17, starting in verse 16).  



After lunch, students had a few hours to relax, get cleaned up, and maybe do a bit of shopping in the Plaka and flea market.  We're heading to the new Acropolis Museum this evening, which will be followed by small group dinners around Monastiraki square and the Plaka.  

Please continue praying for us as we wrap up our first full day in Athens and prepare to travel to Samos tomorrow!



I blog with BE Write

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Arrival in Athens

Kalispera (good evening) from Athens!
After leaving Second Presbyterian around 9:30 a.m. yesterday morning, our group has arrived at the Hotel Parthenon as of a little over an hour ago.  Everyone is currently getting settled, cleaned up, and refreshed after hours of overnight plane travel.  We are all in high spirits, and had no issues with travel which we are always thankful for.  

Tonight, we will be doing a walking tour of Athens and the Plaka (area of street markets, restaurants, etc.) before we have dinner together in the city.  

Tomorrow morning we will depart at 8 a.m. from the hotel for a busy morning tour of the Parthenon, with a trip to the Parthenon museum later in the evening after lunch.  There is a heat wave in Greece right now, and temperatures could be near 40 degrees Celcius tomorrow--we'll be drinking plenty of water and reapplying our sunscreen often!

Thank you for your prayers as we traveled over the past 24 hours, and please continue to pray for our group as the next 24-48 hours will be important for everyone to get well-rested and beat the time change.  

I blog with BE Write

I blog with BE Write

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Itinerary 2012

If you would like to see where all we will be heading during our journey, please look at our itinerary here.

We are looking forward to an amazing journey.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Preparing to Leave

One week from today, a group of 21 recent high school graduates will continue their journey in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul and the early church.  This journey began nine months ago and now takes the group to Greece, Turkey, and Italy.

Save this site as one of your favorites and follow their adventure.





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