Of Italy & Unexpected Happenings
Our time in Hungary ended on Sunday morning after a refreshing worship service with Calvary Chapel Budapest. In our short stay in Budpest, I was coincidentally able to see a couple of my sweet friends--one of them was my roommate from New Zealand! I walked into the CCBC kitchen on Saturday afternoon, and there was Penny! Once again, worlds collide more often than it seems possible, and God continued to work everything out in His unexpected way.
We boarded a plan to Venice, Italy, and the three of us set off. Little did we know the many unforeseen turns our six days in Italy would take us on--both wonderful and difficult. After a kind Italian gentlemen saved us from nearly paying a horrendous fee, finding the most-picturesque canal on Venice, trekking uneventfully across Italy to Rome, meeting up with more Calvary Chapel friends by God's grace, our six days in Italy were capped off with one of the longest delays/travel time any of us had experienced.
We hopped on the train toward Fumicino Airport on Friday morning and quickly discovered that our plane had been downsized. To our dismay, they couldn't get us out for about 12 hours. Then, we would have to land in London where we would take a 4-hour bus ride to Manchester--one hour from our final destination. We gathered up our courage and decided to laugh through it. We found a crowded table in the middle of a restaurant and made ourselves at home!
In the less-than-ideal places, I realized I was often filled with the most thankfulness. When there were dozens of sleep-deprived, weary travelers pushing there way into an over-stuffed restaurant, I was suddenly so aware of my many blessings. First, the "unexpected" difficulties made me extremely thankful that I was only backpacking for a month (!), and then I was aware of the two sweet people I was traveling with, the voucher for free food (seriously so wonderful), a water bottle, an apple, and--you get the point!
We boarded a plan to Venice, Italy, and the three of us set off. Little did we know the many unforeseen turns our six days in Italy would take us on--both wonderful and difficult. After a kind Italian gentlemen saved us from nearly paying a horrendous fee, finding the most-picturesque canal on Venice, trekking uneventfully across Italy to Rome, meeting up with more Calvary Chapel friends by God's grace, our six days in Italy were capped off with one of the longest delays/travel time any of us had experienced.
In the less-than-ideal places, I realized I was often filled with the most thankfulness. When there were dozens of sleep-deprived, weary travelers pushing there way into an over-stuffed restaurant, I was suddenly so aware of my many blessings. First, the "unexpected" difficulties made me extremely thankful that I was only backpacking for a month (!), and then I was aware of the two sweet people I was traveling with, the voucher for free food (seriously so wonderful), a water bottle, an apple, and--you get the point!
There are too many stories from Italy to retell here, and many of them are far more exciting than the one I chose to tell, but I can't seem to get away from the unpredictable, lesson-teaching stories--the ones you may wish you could forget, but inevitably, the stories that shape, conform, challenge, and grow you the most. Thank you for patiently wading through all my thoughts and reflections, friends! I hope and pray that you are blessed.
Italy: September 24-29
My Mama's family is Italian. This is definitely a place I want to go someday!
ReplyDeleteReally?! That's neat. You'd love it there!
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