Student Interview: Fiona

What is your name?
My name is Fiona Vécsey.

Where are you from?
I live in Hungary, but I'm from Serbia. =]

What are your favorite things to do?
I love reading, playing basketball and hanging out with my friends and for the first time, I love going to school.

What is your favorite kind of music/band?
I love rock . My favorite band is Nirvana, but I like Three Doors Down, The Script, Alicia Keys...etc

What is it like going to school in Hungary? At Kossuth Lajos?
When I was in primary school, my teacher told me to try Kossuth, because it's a very good school.. And now I know, that it couldn't be better. I realy like it.. I love the teachers, I love my class... I love everything about Kossuth.. I don't want to change anything... =D

If you could change one thing about Hungary what would it be?
Well... I think I would change some things. But if I have to choose one, than I would change the "fun" part.. I think it's a bit boring place.. I live in a little city near Budapest, and I realy don't have what to do.. Maybe Budapest isn't as boring as Szigetszentmiklós is, I don't know.. That's the one thing I would change.

Why should people come visit Hungary?
I think Budapest is a very nice city.. and there are more places you can visit, and I'm sure everyone would like it. Budapest is beautiful city..:D
and you can also meet Miss Petty and Miss Reynolds.=D

How do you feel about your American teachers? ;)
I think everybody knows that they are the best =) I like the way they teach, it's not boring, it's very fun.. They are very kind, we have a lot of fun.. I like the program's at the bázis... :D

I think that's it. =)

Vidampark 2008

You can see some pictures of when I went to the Fun Fair with my students on Facebook.

Now I am leaving to go to Italy for the week to visit Tracey.

Breath of Fresh Air

Some of you may have heard of Mars Hill Church in Seattle.

All I have to say is that I really appreciate that you can watch and/or listen to their sermons online. Amazing. So far I really like Mark Driscoll and what he has to say.

:)

Quote from a Student

"After you learned me that..."

A typical sounding quote... until you hear that this was said by none other than RJ... an American and native English speaker.

We died laughing... he can not speak English any more...

Student Interview: Kristof

This is completely unedited, just the way he replied to my questions in writing.

What is your name?
- My name is Kristof Toth.

How old are you?
- I'm 14 but my birthday is on the 29 Oct. So I'm almost 15.

What are your favorite things to do?
- I like swimming,cooking,reading Harry Potter books,listening to music, watching movies,especially comedies,surfing on the Internet and playing volleyball. I like hanging out with my friends too.

What is your favorite food to cook?
- My favorite food to cook are Gyros and dishes containing tuna. I like tuna very much.

What is it like going to school in Hungary? At Kossuth Lajos?
- Going school in Hungary takes too much time of my life. It's a fact. But it's pretty cool 'cause I can meet my friends every day. Kossuth Lajos is the best school! I love learning English 20 lessons a week. It's hard but I... don't know. I love it. Am I a mutant?!

What is your favorite thing about Hungary/Budapest?
- My favorite thing in Hungary is the Capital Fun Fair. I know it isn't as big as an American Amusement Park, but Hungary is a small Country so we have a small Fun Fair.

Why should people come visit Hungary?
Hungary is a very interesting place so come and visit.In Hungary we speak "Magyar" , it's a cool language.I don't know how it sounds for a foreigner but is funny, that's for sure.We have lots of cool places here.Not just in Budapest but in the country side too.We have lots of
Wellness Hotels and Aqua Parks. Our folklore is very interesting.If you are in Budapest you have to see the "Budai Vár" The Building of the Parliament and the Westend City Center. But we have no Starbucks in Hungary. It's a pity.

*How do you feel about your American teachers? ;)
- I love my American teachers!!♥ They are awesome!!!They just like "adult-kid" people.They almost never give us homework.Woow-Woow
Thy taught us first, Love the USA especially Montana, Ohio, Maryland and Virginia.They are cool.

Is there anything else you would like to say to Miss Petty's American friends?
- Please, Send Starbucks Café to Hungary!!! Please, we need it.
Oh, and Barack means Peach in Hungarian. So what's up with Barack Obama?

* Comment: I give HW like four times a week... Emily? What have you been doing? (Okay... so maybe I have hit a HW giving slump in the past week or so... but I have also been in ill...)

Venice anyone?

Does anyone know anyone else in Venice? or anywhere near Venice? or anywhere between Venice and Florence?

I am broke. I need a couch to sleep on for two nights, October 26-28.

Let me know if you have any helpful information.

The Shack by William P. Young

The first time someone mentioned The Shack to me was over the summer. I had no idea what it was about, but they acted like it was sort of a big deal. I proceeded to forget what they had said and moved on with my life.

About two weeks ago it seemed like every day someone brought up The Shack, asked if I had read it, asked someone else if they could borrow it, everyone had a waiting list, etc. So I figured it was time I read it. I asked at the Christian Library when I went for Wednesday night Bible study there. Carol said that they actually do not have a copy yet, but she has a personal copy that I may borrow. Yes!

At first I was a bit horrified... I mean... the beginning of the book is very sad. Missy is kidnapped and no one knows what happened to her for sure.

And there there was a lot of doubt... is this story real? Would God really send someone a note in the mail?

Next there was conviction... I need God... Papa... Jesus... Holy Spirit... I need to be in relationship with him/them all the time. I want to talk to Papa as if I were sitting on a park bench with my best friend... not all awkward, feeling like my words spin around the room and no one hears them. I know God hears my prayers... but I still doubt.
I also feel very convicted that I am not very good at building relationships. I am selfish. Very selfish. I only want to build relationships with people who will benefit me... instead of seeing how God has put them in my life for me to serve them, to impact them. It is not about me... it's about Jesus and what He did on the the cross for EVERY person I meet... not just the ones I like!

So... basically... what I am saying is... read the book. You can buy it online or borrow it from Carol at the Christian Library in Budapest (I also think the Ballantynes and Joanna have a copy).
Also... just remember that The Shack is a book that will convict you... and then you need to turn to prayer and the word of God to act upon the conviction.

Happy reading...


PS: Mary said this and I think it is important: Conviction is from God... Guilt is from the Evil One. The Shack will convict you... in your heart.

Thanks Joanna!

Like the new look?

Thank Joanna for giving me the link to a cool site that has lots of templates....

You can get a sweet blog makeover too!

Busy Procrastinator...

It has been over a month since I last wrote. A lot has happened in that time...

Team Mates
Everyone arrived to Hungary safely on August 20th. Since then I have really enjoyed getting to know Mary and Emily better, as well as the rest of the Hungary team. Our team here at the Bazis is getting along very well and I feel so blessed. I do miss Tracey and Lauren a lot, but I am also so grateful that God has sent such wonderful replacements.

School
School started September 1st. This year I teach 21 lessons plus "Open Bazis" which the school decided to count as an hour of teaching for us. I teach seven groups of students, only one of which I know from last year. So far I have really enjoyed the fact that students are new to school, therefore they are scared and behave very well. Of course there are exceptions, and I have had the chance to take away several ellenorzo's in the past week (that is the little blue book that students must carry with them at all time, it has their grades and behavior marks in it.) I feel the difference between being a second year teacher and not a first year teacher A LOT! And I love the second year feeling. It just helps so much to know some colleagues already, know who the Class Master is for a certain class, see familiar faces in the hallway, etc. Also... with expericne comes more responsibility. This year I have already gotten signed up to help with multiple school events: the teacher's dance at Salagavato, the Bilingual Education Anniversary Celebration, and I forsee being involved in the Christmas Talent Show also... So I am pretty busy, but enjoying it all the same.

Open Bazis
We have only had two weeks of Open Bazis so far... but it has been good. So far we have just had students from 10A come, but that is fine. Starting in October Open Bazis will be open for all of the 9th graders too. It has been so good to have the 10A's over after school, because I do not teach them at all this year. It was strange to go from spending 15 hours a week with them to zero. We have had our regulary students attend: Attila, Bence, Ony, and a few others. Hopefully as the year goes on we can build the numbers.

Livia in Budapest
Another highlight of my year: Livia is living in Pomaz, just outside of Budapest. So far we have been able to hang out at least once a week. She likes to come and hang out with my friends at Coffee House, or just chill at my house. It is cool to be able to see her so much... we have not lived this close to each other in five years. I love getting to spend time together talking. She has grown up so much in the past five years and it is so nice to build our relationship as sisters and as friends. She isn't the little tag along anymore, she's nearly a grown up. Hopefully she will learn Hungarian while she is here... but that takes time. :)

So that is the general update on life. I am going to work on a newsletter soon...

Please keep the following things in your prayers:
- Health and Energy - Teaching just sucks everything out of me at this point... I am not quite back into the groove
- Reltaionships with Students - I am really looking forward to building solid relationships with my new students and maintaining and deepening relationships with students from last year.
- Relationships with Colleagues - I have been enjoying getting to know Eva, Eva and Gabi more this year. It is so nice to talk to them now that I have known them for a whole year. I pray that God will open doors and soften their hearts towards him.
- Friends - There are just a lot of relationships with friends who are not Chrisitans, friends who are, Hungarians, Americans, etc, that I feel like God has placed in my life for a purpose. Please pray that He guide me in all of these relationships.

Grace and peace

Pécs and Miskolc Trips

The past two weekends I have taken trips to visit friends. Very different trips with very different friends.

The first trip was to Pécs and Villány with my friends from Kiskunhalas. Every few months they organize a trip or party so that everyone can get together and catch up. Since everyone has more free time in the summer we were able to go to Pécs and the vineyard and wine village of Villány. There were eight of us total and we spent Saturday in Villány learning about wine and tasting different kinds in the cellars. If you have never been down in a wine cellar I highly recommend going sometime. All of the cellars are underground and rather damp. The walls become covered with mold after a few years. In every cellar they told us that the mold is good for the taste of the wine and should not be disturbed. In some of the cellars people had pressed various coins into the mold on the walls, disgusting and cool at the same time.
On Sunday we visited the TV tower in Pécs and discovered some very skinny and steep roads in the hills there. (Thank you GPS for finding the shortest route... not the usual one... the shortest one.) After that we went to the downtown area and visited a church that was originally a mosque. It has verz interesting architecture, but I really like it. While we were in there one of my friends, Tamas, asked if I would pray for them. I was totally surprised, but jumped at the chance. I felt awkward and happy at the same time.
After that we walked down a nice pedestrian street and bought some ice cream. The girl working was really funny. They had coke flavored ice cream and Tamas asked if it was any good. She answered that it was "szar." Tamas said "excuse me?" and she repeated it... basically she just told him that it was "sh*t". Very professional. The scoops were humongous and it made me think about getting ice cream at the Pickle Barrel. I really miss that place.
That was about the extent of our trip. After that Fenyo and I had to head back to BP.

The best part of that trip was having a heart to heart conversation with Fenyo. God provided a great opportunity for me to share about how much Jesus loves us all, and how I try to live my life to show that. Then Fenyo said that he prays the Lord's prayer every night. I said that that was a great start and that he should keep doing it. We talked about a number of different things, family, faith, love, etc. Toward the end I asked him if he would come to church with me sometime. He said yes. Please pray that God will continue to work in Fenyo's heart and that when he does come to church with me he will be open and ready to hear what he needs to hear.

My other trip was to Miskolc. I went to visit my friends there, Ruth and Ati, and got to stay with another member of their church, Szilvi. Ruth is the daughter of my former German professor Dr. Dowdey and her husband, Ati, is Hungarian. They have been missionaries/ministers in Miskolc for a few years now. Anyways... on Saturday when I arrived I was greeted by Szilvi and a teenage boy, Attila (different from Ati... so confusing at times...) We had lunch at Szilvi's then we left to go to the "Gyermekvaros" or children's town. Essentially this "children's town" is an orphanage for kids who are not really orphans. Most of these kids know who their parents are, but their parents can not or do not want to take care of them. Szilvi later told me that Attila is one of nine children, and all of them live there in the children's town. Szilvi also told me that the "house" that Attila is in has about ten-fifteen boys in it who are all teenagers. This "house" is alloted 2kg of bread each day, or by Hungarian standards one big loaf or two small ones. Definitely not enough food for that many teenage boys. Almost every weekend the members of the Miskolc church of Christ go to the orphanage to visit either one of the specific "houses" or to do a big group event where everyone is invited. This time it was everyone together. There were probably about twenty kids from age 3 to 16 who came down. We sang some fun camp songs in English like: If You Love Jesus, I'm Happy Today, etc. A lot of the kids were at the English Bible Camp that the church hosts every year so they already knew the songs and were begging to sing their favorites. After we sang Ati told a parable about leopard that was adopted by a family when it was little, but then turned on the family once it grew up. A wise man had warned them that this might happen. The kids were really good at figuring out that the wise man was God/Jesus and the leopard was sin: cute at first... deadly in the end. After that we shared some snacks and did some crafts and played a game. It was really fun. The whole time I was sad in my heart. I just wanted to hug them and take care of them... but I can't take care of all of them. I was able to get a look at one of the "houses" where they live. It was a girls "house." It actually did look like an apartment in many ways. It had four bigger bedrooms with four or so beds in each of them. There was a big kitchen, a dinning area and a living room. Everything was decorated nicely with drawings and other crafts. The bedrooms were tidy, every bed made, shoes all lined up in a row. In some ways it reminded me of camp... but these kids never leave. Their parents have abandoned them. My emotions were on a bit of a roller coaster while we were there. Please pray for the orphans in Hungary. There are quite a few, and adoption is not common here.

Sunday I was pleased to attend church in Miskolc. They have a very small church in number, but they are strong in their faith. They meet in an apartment that belongs to a member who got married and moved to Germany. She decided to keep ownership and allow the church to use it as they please. This Sunday was especially nice because Ancsa, a teen who went to the Bible camp for a few years, decided to commit her life to Christ and was baptised. Bathtub baptisms are always fun to watch, but the true joy came from watching Ancsa confess Jesus as her Lord and Savior. After church we shared lunch together, played some games, went out for ice cream, then headed home. Ancsa, Szilvi and I watched a movie, then went to Ruth and Ati's to watch antoher one. Yay for movies! It was great to spend time fellowshipping with the women of the church.

Today, Monday, I got to go to the "Barlangfurdo" or cave baths. I was pretty excited about this, even though I had to go by myself. The cool part about these baths is that they are built into this hill so that you are actually inside of a cave. Unfortunately it was a little chilly so I felt like the water was too cold in all the pools except for one. I still enjoyed it though, relaxed, got some sun in, etc. I will definitely miss going to the "strand" after Aug. 31. That is when all of the "stands" in Budpest close. Too soon. Hopefully I can get at least one more visit in before school starts.

In two days the new teachers will arrive. I am pretty excited about that... but I have a ton to do tomorrow as a result. We are also having a party tomorrow night for Jo and my students from last year. Hopefully a few of them will be able to come.

Please keep Jo, Mary, Emily and I in your prayers as we prepare for the school year.

Grace and peace-
<><

Home in Hungary

I have safely returned to Hungary!

I arrived last Friday and have been trying to settle in since then. The Bazis had a little make over while I was away: we have new pergo floors in the bedrooms and they painted the walls! It looks so much better than before. I also got to upgrade rooms. Now I have what used to be Tracey's room, which is actually two rooms! So I have an "office" and a "bedroom/living room" that is all mine! The bathroom is also slightly larger, but oddly shaped and there fore it doesn't really matter that it is bigger, but I still appreciate the space.

Since I got back I have gone to Tesco 5 or 6 times, IKEA once (with a second visit scheduled for today) as well as a few other random stores to try to get things that I need like hangers, shower curtain, and other household items to keep me organized, etc. One thing has definitely dissappeard off the shelves though... those plastic hooks that stick to the wall/door with double sided sticky stuff. I bought some last year for my bathroom to hang stuff up and they worked great, but I can't find any this year. Maybe they will reappear later in the year.

Yesterday I started taking Hungarian lessons. It has been interesting so far. As far as speaking ability goes I take the cake. When it comes to grammar... I drown. I don't know any of the grammar words so that has been challenging. I can say things correctly most of the time, but I don't know why it is right. Today we were learning the difference between transitive and intransitive verbs. And then we had to conjugate based on some words that I do not understand... and so I kept messing up because I don't know what the teacher wanted. It is a lot of fun though to speak Hungarian with non-native speakers because they are actually pretty good, but then they make funny mistakes that I understand because they are translating directly from English. I find the class amusing. Hopefully I will learn a lot in the next 8 days of class.

The weather here has been quite hot. Then it rained last night. I got caught walking home in the rain and was pretty much completely soaked by the time I got home. And there was lightning. It reminded me of when Trace and I wateched a special about lightning on CNN last year... and then we were both freaked out about being outside during a lightning storm. The problem is that were I live there is no where to go if you are stuck out in it. You just have to keep going and pray that God will not smite you.

The other big project since I have returned has been budgeting. No one ever taught me how to do that. Last year I kept running out of money like five days before my next pay check... and then wondering what I had spent that money on. So... this month is evaluation month. I have kept all of my receipts, I made an excel document to enter the breakdown of what things were for, etc. I need to find out how much money I spend on groceries, personal care items, eating out, school supplies, etc. Then I can figure out how to save some money so that I am not broke. Wish me luck. (I hate money... I think it was an invention of the devil himself to tear the world apart and to distract us from God. Unfortunately "Money makes the world go round.")

Well.... that's all for now!

Please keep me in your prayers as I reconnect with my Hungarian friends and prepare for the school year.

Grace and peace-
<><

APU Round 3

Well... the past two weeks have been quite exhausting. I was at APU taking classes again. The first week was Pedagogy II: Reading and Writing. The second week was Grammar. In my first two semesters I had a very distinct one good week, one bad week experience. This time around they were both above average, but not exceptional. I did a lot of reading, a lot of thinking, and a lot of analyzing sentences and writing.

It was really great to see all of my friends from there again, especially my room mates Kristi, Jen and Kara. Kristi is now engaged to a Chinese internet pop star named Matthew. I got to hear all about trying to get him a Visa to come to the states so they can get married here, what kind of cake she wants for the wedding, how they are going to a few Olympic events in August and all sorts of other exciting things. Kara teaches third grade in Korea now and loves it. I am glad that she is in the program with me because everyone besides the two of us teaches adults and college level students. Jen is always fun to be around because she is also an ESI member so we know a lot of the same people from ESI.
This was also a great chance to get to know everyone else who we study with better. In Thailand it was the first time for us to meet a lot of our cohort members because they did the first semester through ELIC, instead of at APU. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone again in Thailand in January.

Now I am in Pasadena at ESI training. I am really enjoying spending time with some people who I don't get to see all the time, and also with my new team mates Mary and Emily. I am really looking forward to a great year with them and Joanna.

My time in the states is coming to a close. I fly back to Hungary next Thursday. I am really excited to be back there, although it might be a little bit lonely. Most of my international friends will still be in America or their home country. It will be a good time to spend quality time with my Hungarian friends and to practice my Hungarian skills.

<><

Beautiful Things...

My new haircut.

The "M" in Bozeman... still need to go up there...

Fuzzy picture of Bozeman....

Sunset in Bozeman

Cows on our property near Red Lodge... not our cows mind you... they keep drinking up the whole pond... my dad is really frustrated because the neighbor keeps putting a salt lick on our land... so the cows come and lick the slat and get thirsty and drink up our pond...and then my dad steals the salt lick and throws it off a cliff... i just think the calves are cute...

This is meat. Cooked in fat and grease. Yummy. Hungarian specialty.

This is the huge bed that I slept in at the Dream Castle in Paris. I missed my flight... after RUNNING through security, etc. I highly recommend the buffet dinner at the Dream Castle... it was dreamy... as was the bed...

My Home's in Montana, I wear a Bandana...

I am back in the states! I came home to MT on June 27th, a day later than planned, thank you Air France.

I spent my first week at home just hanging out with my family, working on my fund raising newsletter, and relaxing.

This second week I have been hanging out with a few friends, mostly Brian, Jake and Steph. As usual when I come home, I wonder, why don't I live here?
Bozeman is gorgeous. There are mountains all around. My family lives here. I have good friends here. I love the church here. I can do any outdoor sport I want to here. I can go to places like the Pickle Barrel, La Parilla, Mongolian BBQ, Cat Eye Cafe, and other great places to eat. Bozeman still has some small town charm. The mix of granola's, farmers, cowboys, university students, and other cool people is fairly unique to Bozeman... I love this town.

But the voice of the Lord has called me to serve Him in Hungary. I love Hungary too. Budapest has the stunning beauty of an old European city. The hills in Buda are green and filled with deciduous forests, which are my faveorite. The Danube, though not always blue, is beautiful, a great place to walk or sit by, or go on a boat ride. Budapest has all the things you want in a big city: malls, restraunts, cafe's, concerts, museums, cultural events, etc. I feel at home in Budapest, like my roots go deep there. I love learning new things about Hungarian culture... and believe me... I run into new things all the time! I love how ernestly the church in Hungary is seeking God. I love Hungarian hospitality.

There are so many great things about Bozeman and Budapest. A part of my heart will always rest in these two towns... but I have left pieces of my heart in other places too. Heidelberg and Cologne, Germany stole bits of my heart, Malibu and the greater LA area have also. These are places that I love to be...

-----------------------------------------

Fund Raising... so... for this next year I need about $10,000. Right now I have $300. On Monday I am supposed to pay for tuition, books and housing at APU... not to mention... buying groceries.
Please pray for that to get worked out... I need about $2,000 on Monday.

APU!
Next week I start my third semester of APU... I am really excited to see everyone again... not so excited about going to class... that's life.

Please keep me in your prayers as I am fund raising, studying and traveling around the US.

End of School... etc...

I have officially finished my first year as a teacher!

The last week of school was pretty intense. Lauren and I had to give oral exams three days in a row. Overall I was impressed with the progress that our students have made over the course of the year. There were a few students from our lower level classes who did not study and were pretty much silent, that was pretty frustrating. All of 9a did very well and that was good.

On Wednesday after school we had a big end of the year party for all of the bilingual classes. This resulted in a ginormous water fight, and I spent quite a bit of time grilling. One of our student, Erik, cooked in a bogracs, which is a big pot that you put over a fire. He made paprika potatoes, and it was very tasty. We had students at our house from about noon to nine pm. It was intense, but very enjoyable.

Last weekend I spent a lot of time with Lauren because it was her last weekend here. Friday night we went to Hero's Square one last time to climb on the horses. Lauren is more skilled in this than I am and can actually get on top of the horse, which I can not bring myself to do. Afterwards we went to a Turkish hookah place for wine and cheese. It was really relaxed and I enjoyed it. Saturday we both spent packing. Sunday we went to church, then to sushi one last time. In the afternoon we went to Godollo to meet Tracey. We visited the palace in Godollo, saw the museum, and had antique photos taken (for free!!! compliments of Tracey's friend Agi... Thanks!). All three of us decided that we would have done much better in the clothing styles back then than we do now... Eventually I want to scan those photos in so you can see them, they are pretty sweet.

Monday night we had a big going away party for Lauren. It was really cool to see how many people came out. A lot of our other friends also left or are leaving soon, so it was also a great chance to say goodbye to all of them. Once again I got to man the grill, which has now become my station at these parties. I thoroughly enjoy it. We also watched Eur08 games... Germany won and I was really happy! Tonight is the next Germany game... so I have to find a place/people to watch it with.

Tuesday 16 of our 9A students accompanied us to the airport to say goodbye to Lauren. They were really sweet, some of them made little photo dvd's and had other trinkets for her. Our students loved Lauren a lot.

Wednesday I spent packing in the morning, then went to meet my friend Gabor in the afternoon. He is the son of our old landlord from when my family lived here. I ran into him by accident last week in the grocery store and was so happy that I did. I have been trying to track him down this year, but he moved to a different apartment since I was last here, and I could not find his email. We went out and had coffee and caught up on life. I am looking forward to continuing building this relationship when I get back in August.
After that I went to the Hungarian Language School to do the language test. They had told me that they would call me when it was time for the test, but they never called, so I figured it was best to just drop by. They went ahead and let me take the test. There were a few questions I was not entirely sure about on the multiple choice and fill in the blank, but it turns out I got a perfect score. When I looked at the answer sheet for the fill in the blank it was funny because there was a question where I was thinking there could be two answer's and sure enough there were two possibilities on the sheet. When the lady went over the writing I had just had a few spelling errors or accent errors, so that was also good. Then she did the oral exam with me and that was a little bit more difficult. She asked me really difficult questions like: Why do you think that people in Hungary are hopeless? What was the hardest thing about teaching this year? What is the worst thing about Hungary? How can God and faith help Hungarians?
She really latched onto the fact that I was a missionary/teacher and had a lot of questions. I hope that this can be a good relationship opportunity. I will take a class at HLS for two weeks in August to try to get my Hungarian up to speed. :)
Last night I went to the Hillsong London and Matt Redmann Concert at Westend. Aniko, the secretary from school who is my age, went with me, Bogi and Ildiko from church. It was really good, with the exception of a lady who insisted on standing on top of something right in front of us, so we couldn't see very well. Later her friend got up in front of us too, but I asked her to move because then we truly could not see anything at all. I was frustrated because I know that they just wanted to see better, but it was really inconsiderate of us and the people standing around us who could not stand up on something to see around them. I was trying to decide if the right thing to do was just move somewhere else where I could see better or ask them to move because they were blocking ten people's view. When I finally asked one lady to move she looked like she was really hurt, but I didn't know how I could have handled the situation better. Regardless, the point was that Aniko enjoyed it, even though she could not stay for the entire thing.
My favorite part of the concert was when they sang "How Great Is Our God" in Hungarian!!! It was so amazing because Matt Redmann was singing in Hungarian and it was very touching and cute because his pronunciation was a bit off. At that point everyone was singing and raising up their hands and worshiping with their whole heart. It was fantastic.

I leave for the states next Wednesday. Between now and then I have to pack up everything that is in my room, say goodbye to lots of people, go to Kiskunhalas to visit people, purchase souvenirs, and write the last APU paper of the semester.

I will be back in MT on June 26!!!

Grace and peace-
Em

Crazy Days

As of today we only have 11 days of school left!

Last week was a bit crazy. On Wednesday I got an email from my friend Matt MacDonald saying that he and his friend Kris were going to be in Budapest the next day. I knew they were planning on visiting, but I did not know exact dates. Lauren's grandparents also came to visit in the same time slot, so we had four people staying here at the Bazis with us.

On Thursday Matt, Kris and I went into town and saw the sights: St. Stephens Basilica, the Buda Castle, Fisherman's Bastion, the Parliament (from a distance), the castle in the Varosliget, and of course Hero's Square. See pictures on Facebook.

On Friday Matt and Kris were kind enough to be Mr. Matt and Mr. Kris and help with my classes. They even subbed and entire class for me while I went to the immigration office with Joanna.
Praise the Lord for how well the immigration office visit went! Agi was so well prepared and so were we. For a few minutes we thought we would have to come back because of a scheduling mix up (there being two of us instead of one, but Agi only making the time reservation under her name indicating one person...sheesh.) I think the woman there realized that if they did our together it would be much faster than doing them separately and making us come back. Essentially we were there for about 20 minutes total: nice change from the three separate visits, with a combined total of at least 6 hours waiting in the fall. Every document that they asked for Agi had on hand. They said that we might even get our new visa for next year before we leave for the summer! We just have to run by and they will paste it in. Hallelujah!

Friday afternoon we had a graduation party for 13A. Tracey really wanted to see them one last time before they left so we had a BBQ, music, games and hang out time. It was really great to have them over. One guy, Barney, ate seven hamburgers and claimed he was still hungry!!!

That night I took Matt and Kris to Marcello's. They enjoyed it and it was fun to introduce them to one of our favorite places to eat. We stayed up late catching up on life over a bottle of Egri Bikaver (Bull's Blood, a famous Hungarian red wine.)

I was so glad that Matt and Kris were able to visit, I really miss friends from Pepperdine. It was unfortunate that they could not stay longer, but I enjoyed the short visit anyways.

This week at school we have just been working on speaking topics for the end of year exams. I am a bit tired of hearing about: hobbies, protecting the environment, sports, reading, entertainment, generation gap, London, etc. It seems like everyone has the exact same topics no matter what their skill level or grade level. Tomorrow Lauren and I are taking a break from practice for the end of year exams to watch Pirates of the Caribbean with all of 9A.

This weekend will be dedicated to writing a paper for APU. Fun. Please pray for me to have lots of motivation for that!

That's all folks!

ouch!

Last Saturday Lauren, Fenyo and I went bike riding. It had been awhile since I rode a bike, but it came back to me pretty quickly. We started out in Buda, where Fenyo lives, and went north along the Danube and then to an island. It was great fun and I was enjoying myself.
Then... we were turning off of a sidewalk into a driveway, the pavement was uneven, and my tire slid out from under me. uff. Lauren jumped off her bike to avoid running me over. Pain. ouch.
Luckily... it was just my elbow that was injured. I nice 2cm gash, now filled with rocks. We rinsed it off with some water, a nice guy gave us some bandages from his First Aid kit, we took a rest and then went on our way.
Later that day, when we arrived back at Fenyo's we proceeded to give my wound a thorough cleaning. Unfortunately there was still some gunk stuck in it. Lauren said it was deep enough that I might need some stitches... fun.
So we looked up the doctor's office closest to where Fenyo lives. We went there... but it was Saturday... and they said that they could not help. They did not have the supplies to clean out a wound. They directed us to Saint John's Hospital.
Saint John's is a very large hospital with many buildings. Hungarian hospitals do not operate the same way American ones do. There is not really an "Emergency Room." Instead, depending on what type of injury or illness you have, they send you to the specific building that takes care of those things. Then, once you are there they can treat only that type of ailment. So... we went to the trauma ward. Next confusing step... where do I sign in? I guess I have never been to the ER in the states, but I think someone signs you in ASAP. Instead I stood in front of a door for 30 minutes that only opened occasionally. Finally a nurse came out and took names and general injury information from those closest to the door. Then they called these people in, in order of severity of course. Since I only had a cut on my elbow I was not exactly priority. We sat down on a bench. I had a headache. We had spent so much time out in the sun, and I had not drank enough water, and then I was injured... I started to feel rather sick (in the British sense of the word.) The smell in the waiting area was rather bad as it was a hot day and there was no AC. Numerous people came in with dog bites, sprained ankles, and many other issues. Eventually I had to go to the restroom because I was so sick (in the very British sense of the word.) After that I fell asleep on Lauren's lap. When I woke up I was sick again... but only had water in me. That was pretty gross. At midnight, after five hours of waiting, they finally called me in. The doctor cleaned me up in about five minutes, then sent me to get an x-ray, then sent me one home. Five hour wait... 30 minutes tops of care. But... at least I did not pay a single forint! That is what government health care does for you!
Now my elbow is on the mend... hopefully it will close up soon... but I am sure that I will have a gnarly scar.

Old Friends, New Conversations

In the past week or so I have hung out with my friend Fenyo about four times... with plans to hang out again on Saturday. It's so funny because we have probably only done stuff together about five times before this past week in the entire year.
Last night Fenyo and I met with our friend Tamas who was visiting from out of town. We took a nice little walk up at Normafa, played some English word games, talked about life, then we to a little "Borozo" (wine cellar.) As we were drinking our wine and talking about things in the past Fenyo asked me something about why I was in Hungary and how long I planned on being here. So then I told him and Tamas the story.

In high school I loved my group of friends that I found in Hungary. Yes... they were crazy... no, they did not live the lifestyle that I wanted to live... but they accepted me for who I was, no questions asked. When I think back on high school, that half a year was the best semester. Of course it was completely different from any other semester and in no way comparable, but it was amazing and taught me a lot about who I am.
When I returned to the states I was disappointed because I had not shared my faith with these friends very well. I had tried a little bit, but I was too distracted by other things in life, like having everybody love me. (This is still a struggle for me... I want everyone to LOVE me and think that I am the coolest things since buttered toast. I might be a bit egotistical.)
As time passed I kept in touch with Tamas. I wrote many letters to him about God and life, and when we both got email we communicated that way.
In college I was able to go back. Tamas and I talked about God a lot, but he never really made any decision or commitment. After that I had no idea when I would be able to go back to Hungary again.
At that point in my life I had this longing to do mission work somewhere, so I got an internship in Cologne, Germany for the summer. Since I was already in Europe I decided to go visit Hungary. Tamas, Fenyo and our other old classmates planned a party by a lake in southern Hungary. This party was a huge turning point in my life. As the night when on everyone drank quite a bit. Then one of the guys decided that he wanted to drive home. A series of events ensued which ended in him breaking the window out of his car, then driving off by himself. At this point I was scared to death, memories of a high school tragedy involving drunk driving running through my head. I was so frustrated that I could not stop him. I was sad that he did not value his life more than that, and I was fearing the worst. I had to get away.
I walked to the end of the street to pray and cry out to God. I was all alone in the dark, tears streaming down my face. I wept and asked God to protect my friend. I asked Him what his plans were for Hungary. Who was he going to send to the youth of Hungary? Who will teach them about Him? Who will show them that there is more to life than drugs, sex, and money? And God spoke to me, there in the dark. In a loud voice He said: I am sending you.
In that moment, my life changed.

Last night, as I told Fenyo this story, I could see his face soften. He and Tamas know how much I love them. I love them with a love that can only come from the Lord. I want them to know whole heartedly that following God is a better way. God loves them. And I could not live in Hungry if I did not have a love for its people and culture that was deeply seeded in me. God put that seed of love for Hungary in me at a long age and he has caused it to grow over time.
Fenyo said that he wanted to talk about this with me more. He said that he needed to think about and process these things a bit more first though.
It was getting late, I had to leave so that I did not miss the last HEV.
The look on Fenyo's face was one that was open and soft. Hearing about how God has worked in my life did not turn him away from me, as I have feared for all these months.

Last week I read 1 & 2 Timothy, and we even discussed this particular verse at Bible study last week: For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Tim. 1:7)
This verse hit me hard last week when I went to the Gospel concert with my colleagues and Fenyo. It hit me hard last night too. All this time I have been forgetting that I do not need to be timid if I am trusting in the Lord. He gives power, love and self-discipline. Without knowing how much I love these guys, they might not have responded the same. God strengthened me to be able to give this testimony about Him and how He works in my life. It took so much self control to keep telling the story and not worry about the reaction. When you trust in the Lord He makes a way and guides you in doing his will.
As I mentioned before... Fenyo and I are going biking on Saturday. I think Lauren is going to join us. Please pray for me to have the right words and for Fenyo's heart to be open.

Grace and peace
<><

Hopelessness

The other day I had a very unnerving conversation with one of my students. He was having a pretty rough day and telling me how his life just absolutely sucked. At some point he said:
Do you know what is good in life? Tobacco, alcohol and sex. That's it.

Unfortunately I think that many Hungarian teens feel this way. They do not see anything else out there to live their lives for. They just party. They look at their country and fail to see anything good. They hate the government, they hate where they live, they do not see any good job opportunities, no possibility to move up in the world, no reason to hope.

This has been weighing on my heart since that conversation. It breaks my heart to see my students get mixed up in drugs. They are all so intelligent, they have so much going for them, they all are learning English, and I see possibilities. They only see walls. It kills me to know that most of my students will have sex as soon as they get a boyfriend or girlfriend (or even before that...) I think back to how I felt about sex in high school... and I realize that there is no way I would have been ready then. I would not have been able to comprehend everything that goes along with that. In fact... I know that I will never be ready for sex until I am married, in the safety of a covenant relationship, with the blessing of the Father. It hurts to see the change on the girl's face when they start getting into sexual relationships. They change and the innocence that they showed before is gone forever. Drinking is a huge problem here. Legally you are not supposed to drink until age 18. Since I have been here I have been "carded" once. That consisted of the lady asking "Are you 18 yet?" And me saying "Yes." She didn't even ask to see my ID. Most stores will sell alcohol to anyone without question. If kids don't get it at the store then their parents will probably buy it for them. Parents accept it as something "they will do anyways... better to do it safe at home." Many of the boys who I teach proclaim that they are or will soon be an alcoholic. My heart goes out to them. I want something better for them.

I want them to know that there is more to life. I want them to know that the hole they are trying to fill with tobacco, alcohol and sex can only be filled with one thing. The hole can only be filled by God. The wounds can only be healed by Jesus' blood. The change that they desire in their lives can only come about through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. I want to show them true love. But I cannot be Jesus for them. I can only point the way to Him. I want to show my students what real joy is. Not the happiness that comes from getting a new toy. The joy that flows out of your heart because you know the salvation you have in Jesus Christ. I pray that my students see that joy and that they will desire to have it too. And I pray that my students not think that it is because I am American. I want them to know that my joy comes from the Lord, it is my strength.

Heavy stuff. Please pray for Faith, Hope and Love to exist in my students lives.

Salvador

Last night Lauren and I went to another concert with Bogi and Ildiko from church... as well as David and David.
The first band up was called Revolution! They are from Holland, which was way cool because my friend Lian was also at the concert and she is from Holland. Apparently they are the most popular Christian band in Holland and also circulate in the secular music world there. Their songs were very uplifting and I really enjoyed them.
Then there was the "Lakatos Project." This is a Hungarian group that has some interesting Gypsy influence. They mixed some usual worship songs with Hungarian rap. I did not know that anyone in Hungary really did rap in Hungarian... not to mention Christian rap in Hungarian. It was very interesting and enjoyable.
The main event was Salvador. They are from the US, but have heavy Latin and South American influences. They sang some songs in Spanish (which Lauren really liked...) and also some great worship songs in English. This is the second time in one week that I have gotten to experience "Salsa for the Lord." The Gospel Choir had a Salsa number too!
Overall it was a great experience. As always it was fun to spend time with Bogi, Ildiko and David Squared. (I have decided that David is the single most used name in the world. We have four of them at our church, two of them on the ESI Hungary team, I knew at least ten in college, and without fail every time I meet new guys there is at least one named David. Lauren and I roll our eyes now when we meet new Davids...)

Other exciting things coming up in the Christian music circuit in Hungary: June 18-20 there is a big Gospel and Soul Fesztival at Westend, one of the biggest malls in Budapest. Hillsong London and Matt Redman are going to be there and I am so excited! I am purposefully going to buy my plane ticket back after this so that I can go. Yeah!

Golgota Gospel Korus

On Thursday night Lauren and I had a great opportunity to spend time with some of our Hungarian colleagues. Our office mates Eva and Eva, as well as a secretary from school Aniko, and my friend Fenyo all came to the Calvary Chapel Gospel Choir concert with us. When this choir says "Gospel Choir" they do not necessarily mean it in the way that we would in the States. This is not like your southern Gospel Choir that is all black, with the choir robes. They do sing a few songs that are like that, but they also sing a variety of other songs. Instead, by Gospel Choir, they mean something more like "Good News Choir." And they preach the Word hard core through their music. I really enjoyed it and to my surprise so did everyone else!!!
That night Aniko and Fenyo both sent me text messages saying that they really enjoyed the concert. The next day Anikor told me that she had the songs stuck in her head and that she told her boyfriend all about it.
My favorite parts of the concert: My friend Attis sings in the choir and they sang a song that had a country feel to it (although... if you live in Montana... this is not what you think of when you think Country music...) So my friend Attis and about 20 other people actually line danced on stage during the song! It was so funny and they did really well... and then when we thought it was over... they came down into the center aisle of the concert hall and danced there too! And Attis was right by us in the aisle! It was so fun to be able to point out our friend in the choir to our colleagues and friends. :) Good work Attis!!!
My next favorite part was a octet. The choir is very large, probably 200 people, and two thirds are women... at least. It was great to see a smaller group perform, with out the loud band, and actually be able to hear the different parts. The basses and the tenors just get overwhelmed by the soprano and alto majority.
The third thing that was amazing was when the choir walked down into the audience again and surrounded the whole concert hall. They sand a song completely acapella and it was gorgeous. That's the church of Christ coming out in me... still love and long to hear acapella music!
One more highlight of the concert was that they sang a song that I actually knew!

All praises be
To the King of Kings
And the Lord of Lords
He is Wonderful

Hallelujah.... He is Wonderful

Hallelujah, Salvation and Glory
Honor and Power
He is wonderful

The Lord our God is mighty
The Lord our God is omnipotent
Our God He is wonderful

It was so great to hear a familiar worship song in the midst of big choir variations of classic gospel music. I loved it.

So... I really enjoyed the concert, the singing and the dancing... it was great to see the choir praise the Lord and to join in with them on occasion.

Please pray, as Lauren and I did throughout the concert, for the hearts of Eva, Eva, Aniko and Fenyo to be open and to remember some of what they heard at the concert. It was the Gospel delivered through music quite simply. :-)

Grace and peace-
<><

Erdély

This past week has been pretty busy. Last Wednesday was Ballagás, or graduation at our school. As a result there was a lot of irregularity all week long. Monday and Wednesday we had short classes. It was just utterly useless to be there... oh well. The school was all decked out on Wednesday with lilacs (my favorite flower). It smelled heavenly. I was unable to actually attend the graduation ceremony because I left to go to Erdély.

Erdély is the Hungarian name for Transylvania. This trip was organized by Árpád, a friend of mine from the ICFB. Árpád grew up in a town near where we went to visit. There were about twenty of us, we stayed in a house that we rented up in the Carpathian Mountains. On Wednesday we drove 13 hours and arrived at four in the morning! Luckily it was a very relaxing trip, so we were able to sleep in the next day. We spent time out in "the nature," played lots of games, ate some amazing food, went to a museum in Kézdivásárhely, and spent a lot of time worshiping our Father.

Because of the international mix I somehow was asked to translate for our worship times. Árpád speaks English very well, but there were some people who only spoke Hungarian, so he wanted to give some devotional thoughts in Hungarian. We talked about communication with God, art, things that break down communication and things that build it up. It was really refreshing. We also spent a lot of time singing worship songs in English... which I really appreciated.

When we went to the museum they asked me to translate there too. It was such a good experience to try out translating. I have thought about this a lot and think that it would be good to practice more. Translating from Hungarian to English is not too hard and I can find the appropriate nuances. The museum was a little bit more difficult because there were words like "ceh" which is a guild. Or "asztalos" = carpenter. Things like that are more difficult to translate because I don't use those words every day. Church vocabulary I am pretty good at. I hope that there will be more opportunities for me to practice and that God will use this for his work.

This week has been really nice because we have seven days off from school. I got back from Erdély on Sunday and still had three days of freedom!

Yesterday we celebrated Cinco de Mayo. Lauren and I made a Pinata, tortillas, salsa, guacamole and margaritas from scratch. It was fun to have "authentic" Mexican food and hang out with some people.

Hopefully I will be able to steal some pictures from people of these great events to show you everything...

Prayer requests:
- Energy and Health to finish the school year with a bang! (Last day is June 13)
- Funding for a plane ticket home and other expenses (like grad school...)
- Harvest: we have been investing so much time, energy and love into our students this year and I just pray that they see God in it. I want them to know God so badly and I pray that they will know Him soon!
- SpeakOut: for students to have fun, enjoy and see God working at camp
- APU: I am still procrastinating... I have to do grad work... please pray for this to go well.
- Summer plans: I am still trying to work out specific dates for the summer. Please pray for the summer to be a time of rest and preparation for next year.

<><

Renaissance Night

Last night our school had a big production to celebrate the year of the Renaissance. There was singing, dancing and a few skits. I was privileged to sing with some of the girls I teach. If you want to check out the pictures you can see them here.

New Look

Since my students have found me out... I decided to remodel... hope you like it!

Discovered...

I knew it was inevitable... but it came about so unexpectedly that my jaw dropped.

Today, when I walked into one of my classes... before I even said "hello class... you may sit down..." my student Gyuri says: Miss Petty! I found your blog!

Rats. I've been found out. Yes... Miss Petty has a blog... and yes... she writes about you (her students) in it... and she posts pictures... and talks about how great her students are... and how much she loves Hungary... and she talks about God... and raising support...

So... students of Kossuth Lajos: Welcome! I love you all dearly and I hope that you enjoy reading my blog!

<3 Miss Petty

Spring is here!!!

I am extremely happy that daylight savings has passed now and it stays light until near seven! It makes me feel like I can do so much more instead of feeling like going to bed at 4pm because its dark already. Today the weather was beautiful and I spent some time reading outside. I am excited to start doing more things outdoors like play ultimate frisbee, have grill parties, visit Margaret Island, and just enjoy being outside in the sun. I know... the weather could still take a nasty turn, but right now it is beautiful.

Seeing as I am a procrastinator... I have been delinquent in posting about whats going on around here. Last weekend we had a few extra days off of school for Easter. I stayed in town for the break to relax and get some APU work done. I spent some time hanging out with friends, sleeping, reading for APU, sleeping, went to coffee house with our students, slept some more, helped a friend prepare for the TOEFL, and then slept a little more. I throughly enjoyed sleeping a lot. Apparently I needed to catch up.

Coffee House
About two months ago we started inviting our students to Rezkigyo Coffee House. This is an event every Friday night, run by YWAM. The location is underground, tucked out of sight, so its pretty cool when you get down there and realize that there is a sweet coffee shop there! They have live music every week, good coffee and tea, American treats (like cookies or cupcakes), lots of games, and it is all run on donations. They are only open on Friday nights for a few hours, but it is hopping during those hours!
The first week we invited students only one came, Attila. He had a good time, but was not able to come again until this past week. A few older students have come who I do not teach, and when they come we usually go to check out one of their hang out places after coffee house closes. About four weeks ago three boys came who absolutely loved it! Two of them have been back every week since then. One of them has been bringing a friend, who also enjoys coming. It has been so good to build our relationships with these students. Every Monday I ask students what they did over the weekend, and these two boys always talk about going to coffee house.
Every few weeks the guy who runs coffee house has one of the YWAMers give a short testimonial or tell a story. The first time this happened when we had students there I caught myself flipping out inside. I was so scared that our students would reject the idea of coming to coffee house because it is a Christian based thing. To my surprise they didn't really say anything about it or care. I am really thankful for that, and I pray that their hearts are open to hear those testimonials. I also pray that God would give me courage to speak his name boldly around my students.
Please pray for this to continue to be a good ministry opportunity, and for us to take advantage of the chance to have good conversations about God with our students.

Tuesday Open Bazis
We still have quite a few students coming over to hang out after school on Tuesdays. We did have a month where only one student would come every week, but attendance is up again and we are loving it. Thanks to a friend we now have a new tool for ministry: a skateboard. You would not believe how many of our students will come over just to try the skateboard out. Lauren happens to be a superb skateboarder so she shows them how and is a really good teacher (imagine that...) It is quite amusing to watch them go slow, almost fall, veer off and then just stop. I had my own fun on the skateboard and fell flat on my back once. Luckily no one saw and I didn't hit my head.

APU
Lets just say... I have a paper due on Tuesday. Have I started it? No.
I procrastinate by doing other things that are productive... like catching up on my blog... instead of doing what I should be doing. Go figure.

$
As summer approaches I am becoming more aware of the fact that I have procrastinated in something very important: fund raising. Ooops. Anyways... heres the deal: I have to buy a plane ticket ASAP to go home over the summer. I wish I could just stay in Hungary and not spend the money on the plane ticket... but that is not an option thank you APU and ESI. (My family is probably happy I am coming home for a bit too...)
Basically I need about $1200 ASAP so I can buy my ticket.
Then I need some more funds to pay for things like furthering my capabilities to teach English well through APU, ESI field support, teaching supplies, travel in the states (CA to MT and back), etc. The total for all of that stuff for the next year (June to June) is about $12,000. That comes out to about $1000/month... which for mission work support is pretty cheap! (My friends who teach at the Internationl Christian School of Budapest have to raise triple that every year!)
You can help by sending money to my parents or to ESI. Email me for more specifics on that. emeshea@gmail.com

Prayer Requests
*Coffee House- That students keep coming, bring friends, and that we can have some good God talk.
*Speak Out!- This is an English summer camp run by FEK, which is the Hungarian high school version of Campus Crusade for Christ. There are about six girls from our classes who are all thinking about going together. Please pray for them to all go and to take lots of friends. Most of my Hungarian friends who are Christians and speak English well went to this camp or a similar one.
*Tuesday Open Bazis- for good God conversations and high attendance.
*Funding for next year- please pray about if you should donate, and pray for others to feel called to help out too!
*APU- focus... I am a procrastinator.
*Health- I am just waiting for my spring cold/allergies. Hopefully there will be none. Also... Lauren and Jo are both sick right now. I don't want what they have.
*Parent teacher conferences- are tomorrow. Pray for good Hungarian skills on my part and good connection with parents!

Thanks for reading!
Grace and peace
<><

Spring Weather...

This afternoon it was pleasantly warm. The trees have started to bud and I have been looking forward to enjoying the warmth over Easter break.

Today when I woke up from my nap I was saddened by the arrival of a huge rain cloud that was pouring precipitation down in front of our house.

The rain alternated with hail for a few minutes, then the following sequence of events happened in five minutes:
There was a blizzard that covered the ground with snow.
The sun came out and it stopped snowing.
The sun stayed out, and huge flakes started falling.
The sun got brighter and the snow flakes got smaller, then dissappeared.
Now the sun is shinning very brightly, the snow is almost all gone from our lawn and there are blue skies...

God rocks with spring weather....

Second Semester zooooooom...

Well... I have safely arrived back in Budapest. It has been good to be back and I am very glad that the weather has greatly improved since before I left for Thailand. On Wednesday last week I awoke with some form of Montezuma's revenge and was achy all over. I stayed home from school one day, but was well enough to go back the next.

This semester has already started to get extremely busy. Some friends and I decided to take some classes from a Bible institute here so that is now occupying our Monday nights. Tuesdays we still have Word Alive at our house after school, and preparation meetings for that are on Thursdays. There are a number of other things that I can also choose to be involved in every week, but there still needs to be time for lesson planning. My weekends seem to be spoken for for the rest of the month and in March we have friends from Pepperdine coming to visit two weeks in a row.

Second semester at Pepperdine always felt like the blink of an eye. I am not sure if that will be true here or not because we teach into June instead of finishing in April. I hope that I can enjoy this semester without it disappearing before I get the chance!

Things to pray for:
- Students
- Health and Energy
- Focus in teaching
- Studies with APU

Second Language Acquisition

Our second week of class is over! I think that we all survived SLA all right... but it was definitely intense. Every night we had about 150 pages of reading (skim and scan.... if you can!) I think that the second week of this program is always going to be extremely hard because we exert ourselves so much during the first week. During Sociolinguistics I was so excited to be able to think critically and soak up information. My brain was a sponge. This week the sponge was already full so taking in information was very difficult. Hopefully I will still be able to pull off a good grade.

Last weekend my roommates Jen, Kristi, Kara and I, as well as Richard and Joanne from our cohort, went trekking. It was an amazing day. In the morning we got into a van with our tour guide, a Spaniard, a Singaporean, and a German couple and rode out into the countryside. The first activity of the day was riding elephants. Richard and I got to sit up on this huge elephant and a Thai guy sat on the elephants head to guide it. We fed it bananas and sugar cane and saw a little bit of Thai jungle.


After that we rode up into the mountains and visited a village. They showed us how they weave hand made materials, make cigarettes out of banana leaf, and explained how to know who is richest in the village. We hiked across some rice paddies, up into the forest, to a waterfall. We swam in the river there by the waterfall, even though it was really cold. Then we hiked back out to another village. At the village we got to see the inside of one of the huts that the villagers live in. The roof is made of banana leaf and the walls of bamboo and straw, or other wood. It was just one room, with a platform for sleeping, a fire place for cooking, and a table for eating.



Next we went to a restaurant where we ate "local food." Our tour guide told us it was elephant, then she said it was dog... then we realized it was just chicken. Chicken and rice in different sauces.
The last part of our adventure was a bamboo raft ride. Jen, Kara and I rode together. Our tour guide said "No wet, no fun." The guide who took us on the raft was probably fifteen years old. He was so full of energy and very intent on getting us wet. He would splash us and we would splash back. He fell off the raft a few times, but the river was not deep. It was a lot of fun.

Other fun things that happened this week: I got to see my friend Alex from Pepperdine. He is going to school here in Chiang Mai for a semester. I also got to visit with another TeachOverseas teacher, who teaches in Vietnam. He was here visiting his brother, so Richard and I got to hang out with him after class one day. I also found the church of Christ in Chiang Mai. It is right next to the YMCA... I just didn't know it. The missionary couple that works there has been here for 47 years! It was really cool to meet them and be encouraged by them and their dedication to serving the Lord here in Thailand.

Tonight I fly back to Hungary (Chiang Mai, Bangkok, London, Budapest...) and I arrive sometime tomorrow. Monday morning it is back to teaching... jet lag and all.

Please pray for a safe trip and easy adjustment with jet lag.

Grace and peace.

S'wati ka!

Greetings from a different part of the world: Chiang Mai, Thailand!

As you probably know I am getting my masters in TESOL through APU. As a result I have an excuse to spend two weeks in Thailand studying and exploring a different part of the world.

This past week our cohort (class) took "Sociolinguistics." Basically it is a mix between sociology, linguistics and anthropology. It was really interesting learning about language, dialects, language shift, death, and planning, World Englishes and things like that. We had class every day from 8am-3pm. Then we read a bunch, go for a swim, eat lots of Pad Thai and sleep. Today we had a quiz, which was more like an essay test. I think that I successfully described the difference between a language and a dialect, a pidgin and a creole, language planning in terms of status and corpus planning, Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis and what diglossia was. Spell checker does not like the word "diglossia" but I promise it is a real word with a real meaning in Sociolinguistics.

Tomorrow we are going on a little tour of Thailand: elephant trekking through the woods, riding a bamboo raft down a river, visiting some waterfalls and a mountain village. It should be a lot of fun and a good cultural experience.

I will be here another week taking Second Language Acquisition, then I go back to Hungary.
Please pray for me and everyone in our cohort to stay healthy and study well.

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Sometime soon you will probably get an email or letter from me about fundraising for next year. The total for the year to cover all my transportation, APU, ESI costs, etc. will be about $10,000. Let me know if you can help out and I will let you know how!

Please pray for funding to not be an issue. It is difficult to focus on ministry when you are distracted by monetary concerns.

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I will update more on Hungary when I get back!!!