Less Than Two Weeks...

Well friends, my time here is absolutely flying by.  With less than two weeks left here, we all are watching the days sweep away right before our eyes.  I've had an amazing time here, though, and I wouldn't trade my experience for anything.  And I'm definitely looking forward to doing as much as I can until we depart on June 24th.

This past Friday, I woke up in the morning to meet four other guys for our usual small group together.  This week for breakfast, we had scrambled eggs with meat mixed together, and we had juice to drink.  It was an enjoyable time together.  After we finished eating, we gathered around together and once again shared all that we've been learning this week, as well as anything else that's on our minds.  Later, another guy found a Papa John's and split a barbecue chicken pizza between the two of us.  The pizza was right out of the oven and really hot, but it tasted amazing.  Friday evening, my two roommates and I stayed at the apartment of two of the workers here because our host family was having a sleepover for a bunch of girls.  While some of the guys went out for a little while that evening, I stayed at the apartment and was able to skype and chat with my mom, sister, mamaw, and aunt.  Technology like this is such a blessing, and I am so excited that I was able to talk with my family.

Saturday, our team went on an all-day boat trip to the Black Sea.  Several of our new friends were able to come with us and spend the day with us, so I'm very thankful for that.  We were served an awesome breakfast and lunch, and for several hours we were anchored in the sea, so we were able to do some swimming.  We even spent some time jumping off of the top deck of the boat, which was about 30 feet high.  The weather was cloudy all day and it even rained on and off for probably the first time since I've been here, but I didn't mind the cool weather.  All of the food, swimming, and everything else, combined with the good conversations and opportunities to learn from/about our new friends made for a very exciting day.

Tonight, the students in our group from North Carolina are taking roughly a 10-hour bus ride to another part of the country, and we're taking the same bus trip back on Tuesday night.  I'm excited about the opportunity to see some of our friends from North Carolina who are working there.  Hopefully, we will be able to get some sleep tonight on the bus.

Thanks, and I'll talk to you soon!