Most of my travels that I have embarked upon over the last 3 1/2 years have been solo ones. (Wow, has it really been just that long?!) When thinking about what's next for Karen, the world traveler, I think that I am about ready to put an end to my solo travels. It's fun, but it's intense. It's just so much more fun to have people to share it with! But, while I'm thinking about it, here's some reflections on traveling alone & what it takes. I've learned a ton!
You have to be gutsy, adventurous, smart, resourceful, confident, fiercely independent, and ambitious.
I’m working on it.
There is a definite mindset that I get myself into when I’m traveling solo. You are only as lonely as you make up your mind to be.
I do a mix of both staying alone and trying to find new people to spend time with. Too much of either would wear me out.
I do more talking on trains (bus, metro, plane, etc…) and in hostals than while I’m walking around. You can jump in with a harmless question about the destination, route, travel tip or story, or something like that. There’s no daunting commitment this way. It might end when I get off at the next stop, when we finish our glass of wine, catch the next flight, or when you can’t answer because of the language barrier.
However, I also have some friendships that started this way, and have lasted for years!
Some stories from past travels:
Overheard three groups of people from various parts of Australia that were talking at the train station. I joined their conversation with a travel tip. Then sat by one of the women on the train afterwards. Eavesdropping is definitely a part of picking up random conversation.
Met a mom and 19 year old daughter from Montana who were traveling together before summer study abroad program in Valencia, Spain.I gave some advice and stories from my time in Spain.They said that I was the 5th person from MN that they had talked to!Many said it had been a hard winter.Either that, or we’re just especially outgoing towards strangers in foreign countries. (I think this one started by talking about our Rick Steve’s travel books.)
I sat near family with three kids from Colorado on the train.The dad is originally from England and the mom is from Sweden.(sweet!) Talked to the kids about what they could see for a while.
I stayed in the same hostal as a pair of friends / sisters from Canada.One is from Manitoba and the other from Alberta.Amy Rice was my connection with this one!
A guy asked me a question about the bus we were riding in English.We were in Portugal, he was a Peruvian student at the University of Delaware traveling around.We toured a monastery, took pictures, and talked about art together.Kept in touch over e-mail and chat.
Met a guy in line for a sandwich in the Milano train station from Montana.He goes to the St. Thomas School of Law in downtown Minneapolis and was doing a summer abroad program in Roma.
Ate dinner with a mom, her son, and a seminarian at my hostal.Walked around the city with them that evening and met a local priest who gave us an in-depth tour & history lesson of the restored piazza. Awesome!
Asked people to take a picture of me in front of various landmarks (the trust-worthy looking ones) and struck up conversation with them afterwards while hiking or over a glass of wine.
Asked to borrow a travel book from the people next to me on the bus to learn about our destination. (Way to go to Portugal without any info on it, Karen... not the best move.)
Heard someone speaking English in Chinese grocery store and followed her to pick up some conversation.She was happy to talk as well since she had just arrived for an exchange program there.
Toured around Rome with two Austrian guys from my hostal for 3 days.Kept in touch by exchanging pictures through e-mail.Visited one of them over three years later in their home town when I was back in Europe!
Best story from this summer in Italy though is about Joyce & her husband Kelly:
They are a couple from CO who I sat next to on the plane from Sea-Tac to Amsterdam.They were traveling to Europe for business with a bit of pleasure mixed in.I ended up switching seats with Kelly for leg room because he’s about 6’3”. We talked for a while about traveling, and they were a really cool Christian couple.
Then, as we were getting ready to disembark, he misplaced his passport!The three of us started looking for it (and I prayed to St. Anthony, inspired by stories told by family members at the wedding I was coming from).He ended up finding it in the bathroom trash, between the bag and the container.
They helped me get through security quickly, we said good-bye in Amsterdam, and wished each other luck.
I was walking through the tunnel into my home base at Cinque Terre and the couple in front of me looked somewhat familiar.It looked like them!
I tapped the woman on the shoulder, and it took a second but then they recognized me too!We had said good-bye in Holland and now here we were in a national park in the Italian Riviera!I guess the knack for remembering people’s faces, names, and then running into them later on is genetic.Right, Papa?
The Lord was clearly doing something here, so we exchanged contact information and we’ll see if anything comes of it.Glory!
It's fun to travel alone and you learn a lot about yourself. But it's kind of scary. The Lord has been really gracious to me throughout the years on all of my various trips. I have learned how to trust people in a whole new way and also how to make quick, as informed as possible decisions. I can navigate an train station, airport, bus depot, and look up train schedules in a whole bunch of languages that I don't speak.
All Glory goes to the Father on those ones, because He's the one who brought me through it and taught me along the way! Who knows what we'll do together next!
We get up at 5:30am to gather my things, drive to Arona, and catch the early train to Cinque Terre.This is an ItalianNational Park within the Italian Riviera.In order to preserve it from tourism, the only traffic is train and pedestrian.I came here a little over three years ago, fell in love with it, and now we’re back.It is the one location that I will revisit on this trip. Approaching Cinque Terre by train is fun.We pass through innumerable small towns, switching trains in Genova and suddenly our train is hurtled into darkness as we travel underneath mountains via the system of tunnels.Boom!There is a flash of blinding sunlight and to the West you catch the first glimpse of the Mediterranean Sea.Just as your eyes are getting adjusted to the sunlight, you are sent back into darkness.This pattern continue for about an hour.But as the bursts of light become more frequent, the levels of anticipation and excitement rise because you know we’re getting close.You can hardly contain your joy and a smile slowly spreads across your face without really knowing why.What is it about this place?Finally, we arrive at Monterossa dell’ Mare and you try to restrain yourself from running as you leave the station and head to the water, beaches, mountains, and tiny towns of Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre (5T) means five lands, and it consists of five tiny towns that are smashed up against the mountainside and spill out into the Mediterranean Sea.It’s the birthplace of pesto and the air is heavy with the smells of the sea, basil, olives, and the mountains.The steeply terraced landscape spill over with flowers, vineyards, and trees weighed down by lemons, apricots, and olives.The towns are bubbling with the life of the natives patroning countless gelaterias, paninerias, and pizzerias.One of the reasons for the precarious nature of these towns was as protection from pirates hundreds of years ago.They tried to fortify their homes and make them hard to access… they succeeded! Riomaggiore is the first of the five towns.It is the biggest non-resort town, and seems like the logical place to start our day.Murals on the walls greet us as we head to the waterfront.We climb out along the rock outcropping in the bay to eat a picnic lunch.I look at you to say that it’s almost reminiscent of Grand Marais and we’re reminded of bouldering with Team MIS as well.Despite our attempts to be careful, I get splashed by the waves twice and am drenched in the salty water of the sea.We laugh and I cling to the joy that the Lord gives along with humility and humiliations.People we pass on the hike give big smiles and ask in Italian for the story.I just smile back and take a little bow.It’s an easy walk to the next town, and one section is referred to as the “Via dell’ Amore”.We split off from the main path for a while and hike up to the old castle-like stronghold and tower.Across from the tower, I spot an elementary school and tell you that I’m tempted to apply. We head back to the hike and wind our way over to town number two, Manarola.This is our home base while we’re here, so we follow the explicit directions to the hostal: “Go through tunnel, turn right, go up the hill, and take a left at the church”.The tunnel that is referred to there is painted a bright green and it’s a fun way to get from the train station to the town.There seems to be more of a neighborhood feeling here in Manarola, but maybe it’s because we know it’s home for the weekend. When we went to mass Sunday morning next door to our hostal, we were some of the only non-Italians there.The parishioners were all hanging around the piazza before mass started.Later on in the day, you spot those children who were altar servers that morning playing soccer in that piazza.The feeling of community is permeates this life. As we head down the path towards town number three, you point out signs that say the path is closed.We hope that they’re out of date, and decide to see if we can maneuver our way through anyways.About half-way there, we discover that the path really was washed out by a landslide and we are forced to turn around and catch the train.I heard rumors of an upper trail later on that day, but we were unable to find it before leaving.Corniglia is the third city of Cinque Terre, and even though we took the train, it is still hard to get to!After climbing the 382 steps up to the city center, we discover the “city on a hill” of this place.It’s the only town not directly on the water, and it’s open to a little more traffic than the others.There are lots of motorcycles and Vespas parked nearby.It seems somewhat fitting the the middle city, the heart of this place, would be the hardest one to access.Talk about being on a remote hilltop! I remember as we begin the next hike that this one (between #3 & 4) is the wildest, greenest, and toughest of them all.As our feet get splashed and muddied, you comment on the wet trail and how it’s not surprising there was a landslide on the other side of town.Finally, after an hour of arduous hiking, we spot Vernazza, town number four.This is my favorite town out of the five.I find it the most picturesque with it’s rambling staircases and reinforced walkway out into the bay.As we sit and take a rest, there are some ambitious swimmers in the bay, and lots of people sunbathing nearby.I recall that this is the town where I had the best gelato ever at “Gelateria Antigliari” so we visit it twice while we’re here.I’ve made a rule for myself that I can never try the same combination of flavors twice.Saturday brings me “Frutti di Bosco & Ciocolate” (Wild Berry & Chocolate) whereas Sunday is more adventurous with “Ciocolate con Pepperocini & Limon” (Jalepeno Chocolate & Lemon).Whew!Despite your grimace, I try to convince you that it’s really good… honestly! Finally, we reach town number five, Monterossa dell’ Mare.This last one was another intense hike of about the same length, but it took us longer because I was tired.It’s the most resort-like of the five, and is clearly more touristy and upper class.There are many more people who are here for the beach and the shopping, not the hiking like we are.It does have the only sandy beach, and it reminds you of more typical beach resort towns that you’ve seen.Once we venture off the resort path and start taking back ways though, we both start to see how it’s very clearly still related to the other four. We had mixed weather throughout the weekend, but it was nice in general.One thing that I couldn’t help noticing was how the scenery changes with the weather.This is most notable regarding the color of the water.When it was sunny on Saturday, the water varied from an amazingly brilliant royal blue to a true aquamarine.On Sunday however, the weather was cooler, cloudy, and brought some rain.The water then appeared a gray to dark blue-green hue.It was a packed weekend and we’re tired, but man was it worth it!Glory to God!
So, here I am, at the end of my last day of school. I don't know how it happened, but I do know that I continued to thrive throughout the craziness because of our gracious Father in Heaven. I have realized a few times this year how much I love teaching the Latino community. Last year in El Paso, I could see Mexico from my apartment, and it was a huge part of my life down there. Here's my 4th grade class: This year, I was hired by a bilingual charter school in Minneapolis. For the first half of the year, I kept my abilities in Spanish under wraps from the kids because I wanted to challenge them. I have predominately used my Spanish in communication with the parents of my school. I had a great conversation with one of the staff members here who recently left the police force in Monte Rey, Mexico and came here. It's amazing what lives some of my young ones have led. Here's a picture of this year's 8th grade class, who graduated this past Saturday. (They're just a little bit bigger than last time.):I am so blessed to have known these young people. Come, Lord, and bless their futures in return, those I will and won't see again. Prepare those whom I will be serving next year. Let Your Name be glorified in all things!
P.S. If you haven't heard already, I am leaving for Italy later on this week. I will be living and working in NW Italia for 6 weeks as a live-in nanny for an Italian family. I will probably be using this blog as a way of regularly posting updates for people to read. Come, Holy Spirit!
Whew! Let me think back to five months ago. There's no way that I'll remember everything, but here's a glimpse into that month of my life.I went to teach English in Zibo (tzee-bwah), China with my friend Sara Honetschlager from Morris. I was literally living on the other side of the world, with a 13 hour time difference. We spent our first couple days here in the huge city of Beijing (population around 15 million). We spent one day in the Forbidden City and at Tianamen Square. On the Fourth of July we hiked the Great Wall of China. We were only there for a couple of hours, but man was I beat! There are certain points along the wall where you can begin to climb. From where we were, you could go in either direction. I led the charge of 6 other people up the more difficult side. Whew! The steps were designed to make it difficult to climb for invading armies: they did a good job! Each step is at a different height ranging from a few inches to two feet. What a work out, but the view was worth it! Zibo is a city of about 4.15 million, but is only considered to be a "medium-sized". I created an American-style classroom. I even had my students recite the Pledge of Allegiance every morning! Luckily my advocating "liberty and justice for all" did not get me into any trouble in this communist, socialist country! :) I taught twenty-two students all about 8 - 9 years old (2nd - 3rd grade). It was quite a bit harder than I had anticipated actually, but we had lots of fun. Some highlights: bonfires, teaching dance in the studio, nature walks, teaching about Oregon, playing Field Games, BINGO, crazy Olympics, puddle jumping, talent night, having two dresses custom made for me, and literally stopping traffic because the drivers were staring at me! (It was beyond crazy.) On the first day of school, I gave my students all English names. By the end of the month, they gave me a Chinese one! So, my name is Man Yu Jie. Chinese names are reverse of ours, so I'll start the explanation from the right. I told them Karen meant "pure one", so my first name is "Jie" = "purity". My second name (Yu) means jade, as in the stone. My "family name" is taken from Coleman, and it (Man) means "full". So, I guess you could say that I am "filled with purity and a little jade on the side". :) I like it!The food took some getting used to and I was sick for a good while, but eventually I adjusted to the idea of having Chinese food 3 times a day for a month. They eat the same types of food for breakfast as they do for lunch and dinner!It was super difficult to be away from my life here in MN, especially my new roommates. But technology was a blessing, and this was clearly where the Lord wanted me for this month. Glory!
Three days after I graduated from UMM, I had an interview at Aurora Charter Schoolin Minneapolis (follow link). It's a bilingual charter school, with a 99% Latino student body of all native speakers of Spanish. The interview went very well and the next day I left for Europe with 40 others from my Concert Choir.
Our tour first took us to Norway, which was beautiful. We were able to tour in Bergen, Alesund, Lillehammer, Otto, and Oslo. Well, you can't very well go to Norway and NOT see the fjords, so that is exactly what we did. It was not an infrequent experience for us to have to take a ferry across a fjord in between cities. We were also able to take a 1.5 hour long ferry ride throughout the Geiranger Fjord, the second largest fjord in Norway. We started inland and worked our way out to another mountain town. It was a great time of year to be there, because the melting snow caused the waterfalls to be spectacular. I could go on and on, but you'll just have to ask me to tell you more when you see me next. :) Lots of Scandinavia is covered in forests and their buildings are made out of wood. That is also why the countries have burned down a few times. Here's what Norway looks like (city view of Alesund, a bit o' climbing, the Geiranger Fjord, and having fun in Lillehammer):
While I was in Oslo, I got an e-mail from Aurora offering me a teaching position for Language Arts, grades 6 - 8. I am super excited and this is an amazing way that the Lord has continued to bless me. It was fun to celebrate having a job in Europe as well!
After a couple of days in Goteborg, Sweden, we moved onto Copenhagen, Denmark. It is such a beautiful city! My father has been to Denmark four times (once with my mom), and my oldest sister Sarah studied abroad there as well. It was fun to finally be there myself and explore the beautiful streets with friends. Here's a peek at Denmark (buildings near the Nyborg canal, with the Little Mermaid statue):
Then, we went back to Sweden, where we were able to tour Linkoping and Stockolm. I really enjoyed Sweden, it's just a beautiful country. The feeling of landscape that I get from all of these countries is if you were to combine Minnesota with Oregon (at the latitude of Anchorage, Alaska). That's the best description I can give. While we were in Stockholm, we were able to stay in a hostel that was on a boat (two actually)! We pretty much had both boats to ourselves... it was great. Take a gander at Sweden (Stockholm, bikes everywhere, a token "singing" picture, and a picture with my director at our last dinner):
We finished off our tour in Iceland. After spending a night in Reykjavik, we headed to the Blue Lagoon for a few hours. Since Iceland is a volcanic island, there are many natural, hot, mineral springs. The Blue Lagoon is basically a 2 acre hot tub in its natural setting. It is unlike anything I had ever seen, and it was a great way to end our Scandia adventure. Here's a final picture of that (notice the swimmers heads peeking out of the steamy water by the bridge): So, now I am back in the states, anxious to start planning for this upcoming year. I moved into Dinkytown last night (at the Parsonage) and am very excited for everything that the Lord has in store for me. China will take up my entire month of July and then the school year will be here before we know it. Only this time, I'll be starting it as a teacher! Yes, I'm a bit nervous / scared, but I also know that I am ready, which makes me excited. Lord, come in power!
"Don't be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God... Having gifts differing according to the grace that was given to us... or service, let us give ourselves to service; or he who teaches, to his teaching... he who gives, let him do it with zeal... Abhor that which is evil. Cling to that which is good. In love of the brothers be tenderly affectionate one to another; in honor preferring one another; not lagging in diligence; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; enduring in troubles; continuing steadfastly in prayer; contributing to the needs of the saints; given to hospitality." (Rom 12:2,6 - 13)
I spent a good chunk of time this week in prayer, which is always a good thing. But this week, I was very specific in my thoughts and intentions to the Lord. I wanted to know if the Father was sending me to China for a month this summer to teach. I asked Him for a word when I was at Eucharistic Adoration, and the above passage is what I received.
The short version? I'm going!!! The above passage seemed very directed towards the desires of my heart and where the Lord is calling me. I am beyond excited! I also found out yesterday that the final cost to us volunteers is going to be a grand total of $500 for about a month. This includes our transportation (flight and travel within China), accommodations, tour fees, and our meals. More details to come soon. I can NOT believe that I'm going to teach English in China for a month. The program we're working with is connected to Concordia Language Villages, so it's a pretty prestigious / well-established deal. That brings my travel tally to an all time high = FIVE other countries over the summer (plus, I was just in Mexico). The Lord is ever loving!
Greetings from Morris! I'm back at it, full throttle for the next 2.5 weeks. Yesterday was the job fair. It went well, I got better at selling myself in 30 seconds, and I even had a couple of impromptu interviews. Come Lord! We drove back to Mo-town yesterday afternoon and stayed up until 3:30 am last night catching up with friends. The perfect way to spend an evening before our 8:00 am class this morning. :) Gotta' love it! Job hunt is still going strong, but there is something very pressing I would like some opinions on.
It's another discernment issue. My really good friend Sara (from UMM) just finished her student teaching at Burnsville High. Short version: one of the teachers she collaborated with has been working with schools in China to put on an English summer camp. It takes place in the month of July and they're in the process of selecting their summer staff. She's going. Bottom line? They've pretty much asked me if I would like to go to China for a month and teach English to students over there. In fact, it's a highly desired position (there are only 10 spots), and they've reserved a spot for me to go. The cost of the trip would be somewhere between $500 - $1000, including room, board, airfare, and some other expenses. We have to cover our visa, spending money, and very little else. A month... in China... for just that?!?!? It's a pretty sweet offer.
But, I'm already going abroad in May. Could I really go to China as well? Money is an issue: I would probably end up writing letters looking for people to sponsor me to teach. Time is also an issue: can I afford to be out of the country for another month of my job hunting time? Pretty much all of it is online, really. It's more a matter of interviewing in July. There's probably other factors as well, but my brain only got that far.
I need some advice. What do you think I should do? The Lord brought this to me... it is quite literally the opportunity of a lifetime. But, just because it's an option doesn't mean that I am supposed to do it. My heart is in it. I really think that I can raise the money and stay on top of the job hunt from abroad. I think that it would be extremely beneficial to travel to a non-Western European country and bring what I learn into my classroom. Plus, it's teaching... in my specialty area! So, please help me out and leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail. God bless and I'm very anxious to see what y'all think. I would like to make a decision by the end of the week. Come, Lord, make Your Will clearly known to me.
Happy Easter, everyone! I have always loved Holy Week and the Triduum, especially after experiencing it abroad two years ago. While studying abroad, I spent part of Holy Week (or Semana Santa) in Spain, and then went to Italy. That was probably one of the most ambitious adventures of my life thus far: I went to Italy for 10 days on my own and it was great! During my time there I was able to visit Lisa Rumpza and Katie Loesch. I always think about that time there at this point of the Liturgical Year. So, here's what I was reminiscing about this past week: I spent 3 days in Roma, venturing around one of my favorite cities in the world. I met a couple of great friends from Austria from my hostal: Michael (Michi) Zwantschko and Christian Granig. It was awesome because the Lord provided two "body guards" for me as we rode the Metro, bus system, and explored this amazing community... one on either side of me! :) We explored Classical Rome the first day, and finished with a walk so that I could see the Vatican for the first time. We got there at about 10:20 pm, with the gates closing at 11:00. Because of this, there was only one other person there. No tourist traps, people hawking rosaries, or horse-drawn carriages. It was just the Vatican as is: lit up, beautiful, in it's simple glory, with the lighted window of Pope John Paul II above in his final days as pope. It was perfect, and as I walked on my own, circling in prayer, I couldn't help but shed a few tears of joy and amazement at the Lord's goodness. (See Feb 18 post for picture. This one is of me and my Austrian buds with our respective flags.) The next day (Holy Thursday) was dedicated to the more religious sites: The Vatican, Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's, and Holy Thursday mass with Lisa and other UST students. That mass was one of the most beautiful I have ever experienced: two hours, in Latin, with a freaking amazing choir! As is common for many Catholic parishes, there is often Eucharistic Adoration (when the Holy Eucharist is displayed for people to spend time praying in front of the presence of Jesus). Romans have a somewhat unique tradition where they go from church to church to church, visiting the Sacrament in all of these different places. So, we participated in this tradition and it was a great way to see a bunch of different churches! (This is the famous spiral staircase outside of the Sistine Chapel.) I took the train up to Florence (Firenze) on Good Friday and was able to spend the Triduum with Katie and her Pepperdine friends. I also did a day trip up to Cinque Terre on Saturday for some hiking in the mountains along the Mediterranean (with a stop in Pisa en route). It doesn't get much better than that! To top it all off, we were able to go to Easter Sunday mass at the Duomo: the huge, gorgeous, very famous cathedral in Florence. The Florentines celebrate Easter like no other. .. ask me about that one! (Easter Morning in Duomo Piazza.) I then continued this adventure / pilgrimage and headed to Siena, the hometown of one of my patron saints: St. Catherine of Siena. It was such a beautiful city with its central piazza of the "Il Campo". It is one of the best spots I have ever known for people watching, one of my favorite past-times. I spent a couple of hours there in the afternoon and then went back at night to enjoy a glass of wine while seated in a balcony overlooking the piazza. I met a middle-aged British photographer who was quite fun to talk to. Lovely!
Then onto Assisi, the city of peace. This is also the hometown of two of my other favorite saints: St. Francis of Assisi and St. Clare. I was able to visit a bunch of churches and just walk around. While abroad I developed a great love for olive trees... I know, it's weird, but they're stunningly beautiful! I was blessed by having my hostal located in the middle of an olive grove below the main city. I think one of my favorite moments was walking through the tradition-ridden streets and suddenly hearing music. I followed the sound into an unmarked church and proceeded to kneel and listen for a while. I then discovered that it was the local priest practicing his organ skills. Gotta' love it! I love Assisi... it served as the perfect retreat. I ate dinner at the hostal with a family from Turino and a seminarian from L.A. We ended up meeting a local priest that night who gave us a more in-depth tour of parts of the Cathedral of St. Francis.
Finally back to Roma for one more day of sight-seeing with Lisa and staying up most of the night before catching a 4:00am cab to the airport. Thus began my 17 hour day of travel back to Toledo that will live in infamy: a taxi to Ciampino airport in Rome's outskirts, fly to London (Stansted airport), go through customs, fly to Zaragoza (Spain), customs again, shuttle from airport to bus station, bus to Madrid, Metro to different bus station, bus to Toledo, walk to apartment with luggage, climb steps to 4th floor apartment, and collapse. Whew! For the record, JP2 died two days after my last day in Rome. I wasn't able to see him because of his frailty, but I was still there. What an amazing transition period to be in Europe! I'll never forget these ten days and the amazing ways the Lord showed his love and protection for me. Praise God!
One of my favorite parts about traveling, especially on my own, is being able to meet other travelers. This was a perfect example of that. Maybe I'll even see some of these international friends again... who knows. I think that this can be a real advantage to being in many situations where you put yourself out there to talk to new people with maybe only one other person that you know. Maybe I should try to keep this mindset in the forefront when talking to people about the Lord in our mission work. :)
(This semester is the only thing I have ever scrapbooked and that book is a sight to behold if I do say so myself. I always love sharing stories and pictures from my adventures.)
So, over Spring Break (a couple of weeks ago), I went with my roommate Malorie and her boyfriend Pat to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. It was truly mind-blowing! I don't think that I've ever been in caves before. If I have, they have now paled so much in comparison that the memory is obsolete. It was about a two and a half hour drive through parts of Texas and into New Mexico. Along the way, we actually were able to experience another National Park: the Guadelupe Mountains. They are the highest point in Texas and are very beautiful... and very different from the Rockies. We spent most of the day at Carlsbad, hiking throught the caves. For the most accessible (and most visited) part of the park, you have two options: hike in or take the elevator. There was no question about our preference. So, we began the hike which took us circa two and a half hours. You're on a paved path the whole time, and it's dimly lit. I was actually really impressed with the artistry behind the lighting. There is so much to take in while you're down there, but the lighting guides you through it. Highlighting this, backlighting that. It did make it quite dificult to take pictures. To do it properly, you would need a tri-pod and a long shutter speed without a flash to capture the colors and feel of it. But, pictures don't do it justice anyways. The sheer amount of space within this caves is unreal! But, I'm jumping ahead. As you hike down, you are at a pretty steep grade, traveling throught the natural mouth of the cave, and down into the depths. Since you are the one guiding yourself into it, you are forced to realize the grandeur and the juxtoposition of this underground world. "Wait, weren't we just standing on top of this?!" You would have to make yourself look up and marvel at the vertical spaces. Almost like being in a cathedral but on a much grander scale, and way more beautiful (in my humble opinion). God is an artist that we aspire to be like. You hike from room to room of this cave, constantly working downwards until you get into the "Great Room". Oddly enough, it wasn't my favorite spot... I don't know that I had one favorite spot, but I really enjoyed the hike down. The Great Room is where the elevator spits people out, so they would miss all of what we had seen over the last hour and a half! This part is quite level and even somewhat wheelchair accessible. We also saw some more water that was still forming active There were fun formations with names such as: The Lion's Tail, Rock of Ages, Whale's Mouth, Fairy Prairie, and the Bottomless Pit. (I had to say the last one in the same voice as "The Pit o Despair". That only resulted in the ensuing of hilarity Princess Bride style. Heck yes!) It was a fay full of fun antics balanced by revered and awe-struck whispered. Because of the immensity, they ask that you keep your voice down to prevent a cacophony of echoes. The only disappointment of the day was when we discoverd that everyone has to take the elevator out of the caves. The path is one way only, probably for some unknown safety reasons. Despite our hike being shorter than we intended, we still had a grand old time. There are a grand total of 113 caves in this National Park, and those two and a half hours were spent only exploring one. They are also discovering more new caves every year! Apparently, you can pay to go on guided tours of other caves requiring some spelunking gear. Bring your own boots, gloves, and AA batteries, they'll supply the helmuts, knee pads, and headlamps. :) I would love to go back, camp there for a while, and do some more exploring... maybe someday. So, it was an adventure I would highly recommed to anyone. Plus, because we lived so close, it only cost us the price of gas (1 full tank) and $6 a person. A deal of a lifetime!
I went to Mexico today! El Paso is literally right next to the border between the USA and Mexico. You can see Mexico from outside of our apartment and drive along the Rio Grande on I-10. It's nuts. One of the UMM students who student taught down here last spring (Shelly) has an uncle living in El Paso who does mission work into Ciudad Juarez (in Mexico). She crossed over with him and another teacher (Alicia) many times to help out with his work there. Alicia is actually still living down here, working and studying. Today Malorie, Alicia, her friend Heather, Ed (Shelly's uncle), and I went over to Juarez for about 8 hours.
It was a great day, started off with great music by Manu Chao (courtesy of Joshua and Naomi Caneff) in Spanish, Portugese, French, and English... gotta love it! We met at the mission house in El Paso, loaded up into Ed's H3 (yup... a Hummer 3) and drove across the border. It's really easy to get into Mexcio, you don't even have to stop, just drive on through! Despite the fact that it only took us a few minutes to get into Mexico, the difference is immediately noticeable. Houses are falling down / over... actually, I would not call them all houses. Many are shacks, boards in a pile with a tarp or tin roof over them, and a fence around it if they're lucky. We went through many parts of the city and it was amazing the difference that a mile or even a few blocks could make. So, we're driving around, looking for someone to tell us where to find our first delivery point, and it started to hit me how akward this was. We're driving around an extremely impoverished area, and even though it's cool to be in a Hummer... this doesn't seem right. It's not like I don't already stand out enough in these Hispanic communities. :) We visited the first children's home briefly, got some lunch at a restaurant downtown, and continued on to our next location. We arrived at our final destination at the end of their lunch time. We walked into the main dining area and found about 30 children eating their noon-time meal. The four of us women ended up sitting down with the kids as they finished and began talking to them. None of them spoke English, so for the first time since I've been here, I was really able to use my Spanish! (Malorie and Alicia also speak Spanish.) One of the staff said that they have from ages 2 - 18 sometimes, but the majority are from about 5 - 10 years old. While introducing ourselves to one another, I started talking with some of the little girls about names. They wanted to know my complete name (I usually go by Karina when I speak Spanish) and they loved saying it over and over again: "Karina Maria Isabel Coleman" It was a lot of fun. Some were fascinated by my blue eyes or my freckles, but mostly by my hair. At one point in time I had two girls and one little boy playing with it... it was an experience! Malorie's digital camera proved to be a big hit, as is the usual case. All of these pictures were actually taken by an 11 year old girl from the Home who we spent most of the afternoon with. It's amazing how much can be translated through pictures and how exciting it can be to have your picture taken. They wanted to be remembered; they wanted to be in the camera, on the screen. For a while, they were all lining up so we could take a picture of each of them on their own... their moment to shine.
It was great just to be able to play with these kids and give them some love and attention. I think that they're pretty much on their own for playtime and don't interact with adults too often. You could tell that they loved every minute of it, and so did we. I was bouncing some of the little ones around, tickling them (see new profile picture), picking them up, carrying them around, and giving LOTS of hugs. I was talking to 4 year old Jose when they came over with the camera. I scooped him up and threw him on top of my shoulders. You could tell that he had no idea what was going on, and had probably never sat on someone's shoulders. He was squirming all over the place, so you can tell I'm cautiously holding him in the picture. He was all smiles though! We were only able to stay for a couple of hours at this Children's Home, but it was worth it! We said our goodbyes to the kids and gave another round of hugs. I don't know if I'll get back over in the last 3 weeks that I have here, but I'm glad I was able to go at least once.
When we were headed back towards the Mexican-USA border, the traffic was nuts (as we expected). As previously mentioned, we didn't even have to stop to get into Mexico, we just drove through the gates. However, it was about 1.5 hours that we sat in the car, waiting for our turn to get through the gates, talk to the border patrol, and be on our way. Whew! It was interesting to say the least. But, it was worth every minute of that wait to bring the children their needed supplies. More importantly, it was great to give them some love as we are supposed to live our lives. This was painted on the wall of the dining room... not only should we let the little children come to the Lord, but we should bring Him to them through our actions.
Life is always difficult when things begin to change, and it always brings with it an amount of uncertainty. I am really bad at good-byes. You never know the permanence of things. I realize that it's a part of life and things are not meant to always stay the same. That's the beauty of it, right? But, that doesn't mean that it's always easy. One of the reasons that friendships and relationships change is because of a shift in what is shared: that common ground, environment, those experiences, stories, etc...
That is one reason why I love my life within the People of Praise. I still have to say my good-byes and things are constantly shifting. But, we're doing it together. We're following God's will for our lives both individually and as a body, through discernment and prayer. Our good-byes are never forever because we're constantly being present to one another. I remember thinking about a friend in high school. "I don't know where either of us will end up in the future or how our interactions may change. But as long as I have him in my life as a friend, I will be happy." Now I am blessed to call him my brother! I have met so many amazing people in this life and even if I only see them once every couple of years, we are connected. We share that life.
As I think about the next few months of my life I see uncertainty and yet I am peaceful. I know that He will take care me as He always has. I am excited for this new adventure, wherever it takes me. I am ready for anything. Well, maybenot anything... but with His help I can be! Immediately following graduation from U of M - Morris in May, I am traveling abroad with my choir (Norway, Sweden, Denmark, & Iceland). I look forward to this blessed time of adventure and culmination with these wonderful people the Lord has brought into my life over the past 4 years. Here's a bit of a preview!
Some of my favorite places in the world that I have seen thus far (in no particular order):
The gardens of the Alhambra in Granada, Espana
Allendale, a section of the city of Shreveport, Louisiana
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern MN
Canadian Rocky Mountains (Banff and Jasper National Parks)
The rooftop of my piso (apartment) in Toledo, Espana
Dorothy Sayre's house in Morris, MN
Columbia River Gorge near Portland, OR
Anywhere where I can sit and pray in front of the Blessed Sacrament
Upstate New York, the Hudson River Valley
Quebec City, Quebec
Roma & Assisi, Italia
My uncle's small farm / acreage in NE Washington state
Cinque Terre, Italia (National Park of 5 tiny cities smashed between the mountains and the Mediterranean)
Anywhere that I can sing beautiful music with good friends... especially performing with my Concert Choir
South Minneapolis, near Lake Harriet
The Humanities and Fine Arts Center in Morris, MN (specifically the Choir Room and Ceramics Studio)
The branches of People of Praise that I have visited or lived in: Minneapolis & St. Paul, MN; Shreveport, LA; South Bend, IN; Northern Virginia (Washington D.C.); Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Canada); Colorado Springs, CO; Portland, OR / Vancouver, WA; and New Orleans, LA
I would love to visit the other 13 plus our new starts as well!
Vatican City, specifically within St. Peter's Cathedral
I am a teacher by trade, but I guess that's just the beginning. I am a City-Builder for life. This means that I am a member of the People of Praise; we feel called to help build the Kingdom of God by raising up the cities where he's called us to live. Life is full & busy, that's how I like it. Music is a big part of my life, so are the people that I live with, the students that I teach, the family I have, and the work the Lord has given me to do. Father, let me always serve you in what I do. Glory!
