(This entry is filled with random pictures at random places because it's so long and words tend to become a blur when they come together in chunks like these.)
Our entire group, including the English learning people, the administrative people, and the people who've been here for a few months already... if that makes sense. We're all in the training program together.
Day 1
We helped a needy family move house on Monday, and since there were 5 of us on the team + some helpful church members, the moving process was quick and painless. The mom was so grateful for our help, she cried buckets.
In the evening, we went bowling with the church youth group. It was fun; teenage girls are pretty much the same everywhere - they dress the same, they like the same kind of songs, and they are very clique-ish.
Gotta love Chinatown everywhere in the world.
Day 2
On Tuesday, we went door-to-door to distribute flyers about an event the church had, but no one was in, so we gave up after a while. We also had prayer and share time in the church, which was a fail for me because the church is so tiny and enclosed that I kept falling asleep. Of course, I can blame it on my short attention span or my tiredness or my inability to listen and pray for long periods of time (okay, less than one hour), but really, I think it's because of the lack of oxygen and circulation in the room. It makes me so sleepy even when I'm not. And so I was nodding off the entire time. To make things worse, we were sitting around in a circle, so all the church elders could see me snoring away, but of course, being Christians, they were too nice to say anything. I just hope they don't think I'm some sort of pagan or something.
Some museum in Birmingham city
Day 3
On Wednesday, we had our OFF DAY, which was SUCH a welcome change. No chores, no work, no study, and best of all, no waking up at the unearthly hour of 7.50am (we're actually supposed to get up at 7am, but we don't have to do chores until 8am, so I figure I might as well wake up at 7.50am so I have 10 minutes to get my life together before cleaning the bathroom or doing the breakfast dishes).
So my team hopped on the bus and went to Birmingham city! We spent a long time (in the rain) trying to figure out what to eat for lunch (we're given money every month for ministry and food) with the miserly few pounds we were given, and at last we decided on Pizza Hut because it was located right next where we were standing, and we were too hungry to care (this does not count as a betrayal to Sarpino's because I was outnumbered). And in there, we argued some more because our treasurer is a little bit stingy, and so when our pizzas finally came, I wolfed 3 slices down so fast I didn't even have the chance to taste it. So I would say Sarpino's Pizza is still the best. Haha.
Speaking of pizza, everytime we go out, somehow we end up at the pizza place. No idea why. Well, I guess because it's cheap and good.
After lunch, we split up because we all had different agendas. Me and another girl went straight across the street to embark on our SHOPPING SPREE. Another two girls went their own way because they were more athletic and sporty and didn't care about girly stuff like accessories and dresses. The two guys headed for the bookstore because, well, they're guys. It was hard to control myself, but I managed to only spend money in cheap places like Primark and H&M. It turned out to be a very long day, because when we headed back in the evening, some guy tried to jump off the bridge to end his life, and so there were police blockades everywhere, and we had to walk half an hour to get to the bus stop and wait another hour for the bus to finally arrive.
View of... somewhere in the UK. haha.
Day 4
On Thursday, we went to the church for fellowship and tea with the elderly. I don't know if I've said this before, but old people scare me. I know there's nothing terrifying about their grey hair and slow gait, but when I see their hands tremble while holding a cup of tea, I nearly pee in my pants for fear that they might spill the hot tea all over themselves and keel over and die or something. It's a weird fear. But on the whole, they are really nice and sweet, even if I have to yell 5 times to them before they get what I'm saying.
Our dance group for the International Night event 2 weeks ago. We learned the dance in a few hours and danced to an 'I Love Jesus' song.
In the evening, half the team went back to the church for kids' group, which was super fun. I was feeling a little discouraged before that, because I wasn't very passionate about anything we'd been doing so far, but I was so glad I went for the kids' group, even if I went grudgingly initially. The kids are aged 8-12, and they're so adorable and hyperactive. They're like little balls of energy bouncing off the walls. The entire program was so well put together, I was very impressed. We had games, workouts, storytelling, songs, and more games. I felt like I was one of the kids, listening wide-eyed to the story about Esther and shrieking and running around during the games.
The church we slept in during our mini mission outreach.
Day 5
On Friday, we had our study day, which is, in essence, another free day. Although we have essays and projects to do, it's not a big deal, especially since English is my first language. It's just a little bit annoying because I just graduated and I thought I had bid goodbye to homework forever.
After 'studying' for an hour, we decided we were done and went back to Birmingham city for more shopping. We braved the pouring rain (it rains every other day here, and when I say rain, I mean it rains the entire day), and the only money I spent was on horribly overpriced but yummy food in the mall.
We learned how to do face painting; I like it, even though I'm not very good at it.
In the evening, we were exhausted. But we gathered up a group of people and went for karaoke at the local pub. Good music + crazy dancing + crazy people + karaoke = So. Much. Fun.
Fridays = karaoke nights :) The blond guy is the hilarious American guy who has crazy dance moves. Well, actually, both guys were super funny and fun.
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