Then I had to walk home. It was much better than the walk there because it was downhill and I could go pretty slow. But it was much warmer this afternoon than in the morning. Overall the weather has been so much better. Spring is finally here and I might have to shave my legs so I can start wearing shorts. Anyway, I'll be going to Morling Lodge every Thursday morning to help with activities and visit with the residents. That is all for now.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Morling Lodge
So yesterday I actually spent time doing volunteer service. Not that I mind sleeping in, hanging out at my house, reading, going for beautiful, leisurely walks in the cool spring afternoons. No I did not mind that at all, but I'm excited to start doing something else. So I got up early and went to Morling Lodge, a lovely little Baptist Retirement Home. Unfortunately it takes about 40 minutes to walk to Morling Lodge, uphill. And having spent the last two weeks relaxing and laying around it was a very long 40 minutes. But that's besides the point. I'm starting out working with the activities. We played Bocca, which is like Boules, for the first hour. All the residents there were really sweet and friendly. Then we did some stretching and played a game of beanbag toss. Not a bad day.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
A Little Bit of Roo....
First of all let me apologise to all those who actually check and read my blog regularly. I have failed epically in my duties as a blogger. But as anyone who really knows me remembers, I don't like doing thing if they're being forced upon me. I guess I was just not ready to say anything till now. It's hard to describe what we've been doing these past three weeks. Our schedule is a random array of meeting new people, exploring Canberra and learning about the culture. However, I will do my best to give a summary of a bit that we've been up to.
Arrived in Sydney on Tuesday the 22nd of September at 6:16 am. After 15 and a half hours of little sleep and much movie watching, I was able to move my legs farther than the eight paces it took to get to the bathroom.
We drove a scenic route along the coastline for a bit and then inland to Canberra. Moriah wouldn't let us sleep. We had to adjust our systems to the time change. I didn't like that rule. Not a great first opinion. To distract us Moriah took us to Floriade, a flower festival. Flowers make you sleepy. It was gorgeous and the whole time I was in a kind of dazed trance just wondering through the park.
First impression of Australia: Cold. It was freezing and rainy and it wasn't supposed to be. Everyone was always saying how warm and nice Australia's weather was. But do not be fooled like I was. It is a cold, wet place. Moriah assures us that soon summer will come and the heat wave with it. I have my doubts.
So like I said, most of our time is spent orienting ourselves to our new home and doing random things Moriah makes us do. Here are some highlights in no particular order:(actually just what order I remember them in)
Black Stump Music Festival
Around 2000 people came from around Australia to share in a weekend of Christian music and fellowship. Volunteered at Kids Stump helping lead Drama games. Heard some great bible studies, comedic talks and some fantastic Aussie music. Downside to the weekend was that it was constantly drizzling and sometimes pouring. We were camping in tents. I was wet about 93% of the time.
Tidbinbilla
So I mentioned in church the first week that I hadn't seen any kangaroos yet. The next thing we know a lady from the church offers to take us out to a nature preserve to see all the kangaroos we want. It was fantastic. That day was the day I fell in love with Australia. The scenery was gorgeous as we drove down winding roads through rolling hills. We saw a mob of about 60 kangaroos and were able to get really close to them. We also saw a father emu with five chicks following behind. Once emus bread the mum takes off and leaves the day to raise the kids. I like it. Other creatures we saw included a rock wallaby and lots of water birds. No koalas yet.
Canberra Baptist Church
Moriah is the youth minister at Canberra Baptist Church. On our first Sunday my team was commissioned and welcomed. Everyone was so friendly and hospitable. In between the services there is morning tea, which allowed us to meet and talk with a lot of people. We also attended youth group that Friday night and met the teenagers of the church.
Westley Uniting Church
This last Sunday we attended Westley Uniting Church. We live on their property. They also were very welcoming and hospitable. After church we were getting lunch ready and an elderly man drove up to our house. He said that he was moved by what we were doing and gave us a bag full of bread, meat and a 2 kilo bucket of honey. Then he proceeded to ask what else we needed and didn't really understand when we said we had all we needed. It was so touching for a stranger to take such an interest in our well being.
Overall everyone here is amazingly generous. I think some people here think that we are poor and starving, but in reality we eat really well. Especially after coming from JPUSA food for a month. People from the church have donated most of the furniture, appliances, dishes and linens in our house. We have been invited to dinner several times and also had groups over to eat at our house. Moriah sometimes brings random people over who swing dance in our kitchen and our living room. It's great fun. I have a room to myself which is awesome after sharing with five other girls in Chicago.
So there's a little insight into what I've been doing. I can't start volunteering until a police check comes through, but I hope I will be taken care of by next week. I am going to be tutoring kids after school, working with the Migrant and Refugees Resource Services. I am also looking into volunteering in a retirement home. There is such a wide range of service opportunities, I'm excited to get started. That's all for now. I will try to be more responsible with blogging in the future. Cheers.
Arrived in Sydney on Tuesday the 22nd of September at 6:16 am. After 15 and a half hours of little sleep and much movie watching, I was able to move my legs farther than the eight paces it took to get to the bathroom.
We drove a scenic route along the coastline for a bit and then inland to Canberra. Moriah wouldn't let us sleep. We had to adjust our systems to the time change. I didn't like that rule. Not a great first opinion. To distract us Moriah took us to Floriade, a flower festival. Flowers make you sleepy. It was gorgeous and the whole time I was in a kind of dazed trance just wondering through the park.
First impression of Australia: Cold. It was freezing and rainy and it wasn't supposed to be. Everyone was always saying how warm and nice Australia's weather was. But do not be fooled like I was. It is a cold, wet place. Moriah assures us that soon summer will come and the heat wave with it. I have my doubts.
So like I said, most of our time is spent orienting ourselves to our new home and doing random things Moriah makes us do. Here are some highlights in no particular order:(actually just what order I remember them in)
Black Stump Music Festival
Around 2000 people came from around Australia to share in a weekend of Christian music and fellowship. Volunteered at Kids Stump helping lead Drama games. Heard some great bible studies, comedic talks and some fantastic Aussie music. Downside to the weekend was that it was constantly drizzling and sometimes pouring. We were camping in tents. I was wet about 93% of the time.
Tidbinbilla
So I mentioned in church the first week that I hadn't seen any kangaroos yet. The next thing we know a lady from the church offers to take us out to a nature preserve to see all the kangaroos we want. It was fantastic. That day was the day I fell in love with Australia. The scenery was gorgeous as we drove down winding roads through rolling hills. We saw a mob of about 60 kangaroos and were able to get really close to them. We also saw a father emu with five chicks following behind. Once emus bread the mum takes off and leaves the day to raise the kids. I like it. Other creatures we saw included a rock wallaby and lots of water birds. No koalas yet.
Canberra Baptist Church
Moriah is the youth minister at Canberra Baptist Church. On our first Sunday my team was commissioned and welcomed. Everyone was so friendly and hospitable. In between the services there is morning tea, which allowed us to meet and talk with a lot of people. We also attended youth group that Friday night and met the teenagers of the church.
Westley Uniting Church
This last Sunday we attended Westley Uniting Church. We live on their property. They also were very welcoming and hospitable. After church we were getting lunch ready and an elderly man drove up to our house. He said that he was moved by what we were doing and gave us a bag full of bread, meat and a 2 kilo bucket of honey. Then he proceeded to ask what else we needed and didn't really understand when we said we had all we needed. It was so touching for a stranger to take such an interest in our well being.
Overall everyone here is amazingly generous. I think some people here think that we are poor and starving, but in reality we eat really well. Especially after coming from JPUSA food for a month. People from the church have donated most of the furniture, appliances, dishes and linens in our house. We have been invited to dinner several times and also had groups over to eat at our house. Moriah sometimes brings random people over who swing dance in our kitchen and our living room. It's great fun. I have a room to myself which is awesome after sharing with five other girls in Chicago.
So there's a little insight into what I've been doing. I can't start volunteering until a police check comes through, but I hope I will be taken care of by next week. I am going to be tutoring kids after school, working with the Migrant and Refugees Resource Services. I am also looking into volunteering in a retirement home. There is such a wide range of service opportunities, I'm excited to get started. That's all for now. I will try to be more responsible with blogging in the future. Cheers.
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