Our First Fun hike!

These are all out of order, but some of the pictures that I took on first group hike! Chris wasn't feeling well this day (sad...he's all better now!), so he didn't end up going, but we took a 10km hike down the road, and kind of got our bearings as to what's around us. Here you go!

Me and Laura...a real sweetie. :)

Crazy Dave...he grew up on a dairy farm, and apparently loves cows!

Steve and Laura eating PB and J when we stopped for lunch

Just a fun picture...we stopped for lunch at a Chai shop on the side of the road, and there was a milk man that lived next door.

Love doors. :)

Laundry hanging out to dry...so colorful!

We were hanging out at the Chai shop, and a big group of high schoolers from Ireland walk up out of this valley! They'd been staying on Woodstock property, and doing community service at some villages around. It was a really fun moment. :)

No one lived here any more, but this is a typical house that someone would live in.

There are pumps all along the road for people to drink from. They couldn't get it working...but we couldn't have drank from it anyway. :)

A beautiful view. :)
This is actually taken of the valleys on the other side of our hill...on a clear day,
you can see the snow-covered Himalayans!

A Hindu temple along the side of the road.

Our hiking partners!

The group. :)

A small cantonment (settlement) along the way.

We liked this sign..."Caution, Woodstock School". Probably not what your original impression makes you think, but we thought it was funny. Yay for new friends and fun hikes!

Cute Kiddies...

Now that the overall "this is our life" posts are done with, I'm happy to announce that I'll be starting to blog our regular daily lives! And can I just say, our lives here have been AWESOME so far. This place lends itself to being physically active, and every day so far I've done something to try and acclimate myself to the new altitude and climate more quickly. This last Wednesday, we decided to play ultimate frisbee!

Just so you know, the only "field" is at the VERY BOTTOM of the campus, so we had to trek. And when we got there, no one else showed up. :( UNTIL...

KIDS! About 15 employee kids just randomly started migrating toward the loud noises, and before we knew it, we had a great game going! (Note: "staff" refers to the salaried, more academic workers, and "employee" here refers to janitors, food workers, etc.). So, under normal circumstances we won't have much interaction with these kids. This day, though, we definitely did!

With our new friends Laura and Steve. :)

#3 of 3: Our New Home!

This is a shorter post, and I decided to not include the people we've met or the school yet, since I have yet to really understand what our lives will look like on a daily basis. SO, here are some pictures of our house! We were a tad big "underwhelmed" when we first saw it, but it's growing on us, and we'll soon make it much cuter. :)



Our bathroom

Bedroom...a hard bed, but it's a bed!

Our kitchen! It also doubles as a bowling alley on Friday nights. :)

The school set out the basic necessities that we'd need for when we came. Very welcoming!

One side of our living room

We have a screened-in porch!

The "guest bedroom"...not so cute yet, but it'll get there!

Another view of our living room, looking out to the guest room/porch.

The main part of the living room.

#2 of 3: India

Wow, India. One of the first thing people said when they found out we were going to India was, "You know what India stands for, don't you? I'd Never Do It Again." After being here for a week, I guess I can understand how they'd say that! Let me clarify: how they'd say that on first impression. After you get over the sensory overload and culture shock, you realize that India is a BEAUTIFUL culture, filled with depth and rich experiences and wisdom. Instead of journaling about India, I'm just going to give you some sensory experiences we've had so far.

Sight

1. Our first experience of the Indian culture were the stewardesses, who all wear matching saris as their official dress. Beautiful!

2. We quickly observed that Indian people dress up to travel. We felt a little out of place in our sweatpants and t-shirts!

3. My first visual overload in the actual country of India came in the form of trash...and trash, and trash, and more trash! There's no such thing as a garbage can, and it doesn't seem to faze anyone!

4. The power lines. A picture says a thousand words.

5. A shocking site was seeing all the naked kids in Delhi. I saw one little naked boy (probably around 3 years old) running down the median of a 6-lane highway...no parent in site.

6. Monkeys are EVERYWHERE! It's actually kind of scary, because they've been known to attack people...one of them actually ran after our friend Laura. The key is indifference, don't look them in the eye (which is why there are no pictures yet!)

7. The homeless or less fortunate people just lay anywhere they can, and no one pays them any mind. It was a shock to us, but the locals didn't bat an eye.

8. The women's outfits are BEAUTIFUL! So many colors, so ornate, so pretty. Even very poor women have a beautiful outfit. They may only have one, but it's beautiful!

9. The view on our walk to school is SPECTACULAR. Truly breathtaking!

10. It's totally normal to see a cow walking down the middle of the street, surrounded by cars and motorcycles.

Smell
1. You would be surprised by how gross a place can smell when it's chronically moldy.

2. There is monkey poop and cow poop and dog poop everywhere. And when I say everywhere, I mean EVERYWHERE (including the cuff of my pant leg!).

3. The Delhi airport SMELLED! The Delhi streets SMELLED! The Centaur Hotel SMELLED! But once you get past the initial shock, you realize that the smells aren't necessarily bad. One person commended that they felt they had never really used their sense of smell before coming here...the smells here are so rich!

4. You quickly learn to carry deodorant with you, and forgive body odor smells from your colleagues. We just all sweat, multiple times during the day from the walks at school!

5. The air around Woodstock is that crisp, clean mountain air...like an air freshener, but real!

Taste

1. The Indian food is really different, but actually really good! We found that there are many different types of curry, so even though all the food is spicy it's not all the same taste.

2. We went to a Pizza Hut in Dehran Dun, and a cute coffee shop in Mussoorie. I'm a little shocked at the things that are available here, I didn't quite expect it.

3. Mutton is goat in India (and used often), and the milk is definitely not cow milk...we haven't dared ask.

4. All fresh fruits and vegetables are OFF LIMITS if you can't peel them. Once we get settled we'll be able to eat more fresh produce...but only AFTER soaking them in water filled with potassium crystals.

5. Mango...need I say more?!

Touch

1. First, everything is HOT in Delhi. You sweat through your clothes sitting in the taxi, your pants stick to your legs, and your hair quickly goes into a ponytail.

2. Second, everything is WET in Mussoorie. There's something special about crawling into damp sheets or putting on a damp shirt. And, monsoons have barely begun! It pours every night, but our days have been surprisingly rain free. Not for long!

3. My favorite touch so far has been the hugs I've gotten from our new friends, which came when I decided to break down and cry after breakfast on Monday. Good touches!

4. This isn't a "me" touch, but we quickly noticed men holding hands or walking with their arms around each others waists. Apparently, it's completely normal for men to show their affection to friends in this physical way. Different than the West!

Sound

1. The horns in India are a language unto their own. We quickly discovered that honking is actually a kindness....if someone doesn't see you in their blind spot, it's your fault because you didn't honk to let them know you were there!

2. I was reading my Bible on our porch yesterday morning, and heard what sounded like human footsteps running across our tin roof. A few seconds later, a languor monkey crawled onto our gutter, not 3 feet away from where I was sitting. Since then, I don't wonder what's on the roof...I know it's the monkey pacing back and forth.

3. Every night there are big, thundering rainstorms! It's very exciting, and has helped to fill the jet lagged sleepless hours.

4. The accents here have been quite difficult at times...I have to ask people to repeat their names three or four times, "very slowly please!"

5. The locusts here are deafening!

6. We keep hearing these "horror" stories of people falling off the road, and of seeing big scorpions and spiders...I've decided I can wait to have those experiences!

Other Experiences

1. Tuesday morning we had 2 ayahs, 2 phones calls, a fellow Woodstock worker and the bread guy stop by before 8:30 Am. Definitely different than living in Iowa!

2. Laundry is proving to be quite a quandary here. Since it's so humid, NOTHING DRIES! And, washer/dryers are considered luxury items, definitely not normal. I hand-washed some clothes two days ago, and they're still WET...not damp, WET!

3. Ayahs are maid-servants that most of the staff hire to do household chores. It's been confusing, but we'll probably hire someone to do general cleaning and laundry/ironing...probably for two days a week.

4. The Bazaar was SUCH an interesting experience! The shops are all connected, and are often little more than a hole in the wall. We saw cobblers, tailors, electricians, grocers, hotels, restaurants, a Hindu temple, you name it! The most interesting part is that there is NO order to the chaos in these stores. Basically, you just rummage around the shelves until you find something you want.

5. To get clothes is a very interesting process. You can buy things at bigger stores that are pre-made, but not in Mussoorie...so if we want to get some shirts or pants, we go to a fabric guy, pick out the fabric you want, and bring it to the tailor. You explain what you want, he draws a pictures, and it's ready in a week and a half or so. It's actually really neat, everything is so personal, and ou get to know people really fast!

6. The Bread Guy: is SO cool! He knocked on our door Monday morning and invited us to see his "box" of breads...he had probably 20 loaves of freshly baked bread, and bags of all different kinds of cookies. We bought a loaf of bread for 30 rupees (about 75 cents!), and a bag of cookies for 40 rupees. He also let us know that we can special order cinnamon bread, cinnamon buns, garlic bread, etc. etc. whenever we want. How cool!

Neat Pictures

(cows along our train ride...the cows here are holy, so they can go wherever they want, but no one really takes care of them, so their ribs are always showing)

(a man picking up garbage on the train tracks...lots of little jobs to keep people employed)

(a sweet looking old dude!)

(a sign on the train station...I felt thankful that I had someone taking us to Woodstock!)

(from January to April, a certain religion sends it's young men on a pilgrimmage to pick up water from it's holy river. This is what the men carried to bring the water home...and there would be hundreds of them in a row! It was really neat)

(a beggar sitting on a public bench)

(women walking right next to our train...dressed beautifully as always!)

(the VERY crazy traffic in Delhi)

(a guy sleeping at the train station...surrounded by men working and lots of activity)

(an all around sweet picture!)

#1 of 3: The Trip

Well, we’re officially here! It was DEFINITELY an interesting journey, to say the least, and we’re still adjusting and unpacking and nesting…and probably will be for a long time. I decided to split my update into three blogs, since there’s SO much to tell. SO, this is part #1 of 3…The Trip.

The last week in the States was really wonderful, filled with great family time and lots of fun memories. We made the final transition out of U.S. life into India mode on Tuesday night, when we brought all our stuff to Chris’ parent’s house and packed everything up for the final time. Our luggage included: 2 backpacks, 2 laptop bags, 2 trip backpacks, and 4 sterilite plastic bins. About an hour into our packing escapade, that switched to 5 plastic bins. We couldn’t make everything fit, so we caved and added another piece of luggage to the madness!

(our very packed bin)

We got everything settled (around 11:00 Tuesday night!), and then Rachel and I went to the midnight showing of Harry Potter! Crazy, I know, but I thought it would help me to transition to such a drastic time zone difference. I realized on the plane that it was actually backwards of how I should have done it. Oops!

(Rach and I going to the movie)

We woke up early Wednesday morning, said a tearful good-bye to the dogs, and headed to the airport.

Rachel and Tom came with, and my parents met us there. Everything went VERY smoothly, we got everything checked, and then said our very VERY tearful good-byes to everyone! It was sad, but it did feel good to finally be on our way. We’d been preparing for so long, that we definitely wanted to just be there.

First we flew to Chicago, (we had a 4 hour layover) so we slowly made our way to the International “wing” of the airport. It was kind of bitter sweet, because even though we were still in the states, it FELT like we were in a different country once we were there! Kind of a premature transition. We met up with Dave and Cookie Wiebe before we got on the plane, and then settled in for our first 8 hour flight to Frankfurt, Germany.

We had a 2 hour layover in Germany, where we met Laura, Nan, Kate, Nancy, and Harvey (who were also traveling with us to Woodstock), so that was fun! Brushed the teeth, changed clothes, got something to drink, and then we were off again. This was ANOTHER 8 hour flight to Delhi…and we started noticing a subtle change in the food. We were now getting rice and Dahl (a sort of lentil soup that goes on rice), crazy tasting yogurt (not sure what the name is yet), and mango juice. Hmm…

(airport food...mmm!)

When we arrived in Delhi, it wasn’t quite the shock I imagined…ORIGINALLY. The airport was very clean, we got our India stamp in the passport, and found our group very easily. There we met Mark, Elizabeth, Julie, Ray, Steve, Nisha, Tim, and Serena. We stood around for a LONG time, and finally made our way to our bus. More to come on the accompanying smells later.

(Cookie and Kate waiting for luggage...both of them had some that never showed up!)

(Our crazy Kansas friend Dave)

(Waiting to get the luggage into the bus)

We stayed in the Centaur Hotel…which, to be honest, reminded me of the scary hotel ride at Disney World. It was all marble, really stark, kind of freaky, and smelled HORRIBLY. My bags still smell like our hotel room. We had a great time getting to know people, but as soon as we got into our room we started freaking out a little bit. J Everything smelled horribly, it was excruciatingly hot (around 110 and humid outside…thankfully they did have air conditioning), and we were SO tired. Poor Chris was pretty sick to his stomach too…maybe the food or sleep deprivation? Not quite sure, but he was not a happy camper!

(The Centaur Hotel lobby)

(Eating at the Centaur Hotel)

We made it through the night (woke up around 3:00 AM), and on Friday made our way into Delhi as a group. HERE’S where the shock came…but more about that in #2 of 3. The one thing I will say, though, is that Indian driving is INSANE. Chris wasn’t feeling very good before we left, but halfway through he had to jump out of the car to get in the front seat, and near the end he was leaning out of the car throwing up. Definitely wasn’t the worst thing on the streets. J When we got there, we went to Fab India…a WONDERFUL Indian clothing store where they have sizes and dressing rooms and everything else we take for granted at our shopping malls. Chris ended up leaving halfway through the trip, but the rest of us walked around the very hot bazaar, sweat a lot, and bought some cool clothes! I got a full suit (a kurta: long shirt, a dupatti: the Indian equivalent of a pashmina, and

pants…can’t remember the name), and got Chris a men’s kurta as well. Just did our best to jump into the culture right away!

(In our new outfits)

The rest of the day was very laid back…supper together at the hotel, cards that night, early to bed. BECAUSE…the next day we left at 5:00 AM to catch the train to Dehra Dun. Again…SUCH a shock at the train station, but we made it!

(The people at the train station...crazy!)

(Aman, Steve, Brady, and Matt)

(The group on the train)

We had a 6 hour train ride up to Dehra Dun, stopped at Pizza Hut for lunch (which was surprisingly very western!), and then started the VERY windy, VERY fun (for some), VERY stomach wrenching (for others!) bus ride up to Mussoorie. Wow.

The ride itself was so great. The farther up we got the cooler it became, and the better the view was. The driving was pretty crazy, and we were afraid for our lives at times…but in all, it was a WONDERFUL introduction to our new home. Chris isn’t very excited for the next trip, but he’s hoping it was just the travel fatigue and upset stomach.

When we got to the school we met up with our buddies (people that have been there before…paired up to make things easier for us!), and came to our homes. We were a little underwhelmed with our housing at first, but it’s growing on us, and I’m determined that it WILL be cute some time soon. We were supposed to have supper at our buddy’s house, but we ignorantly laid down for “just a minute”, and were dead to the world within seconds. Definitely a long trip, but we were finally here!!!

**House pictures to come later!**

Butterflies

I'm definitely feeling butterflies in my tummy, every time I count the hours down to our departure. 48 hours. 36 hours. 24 hours. 18 hours. GREAT butterflies, but it is a little scarier than I was imagining!

You know when you picture something in your mind...and then you actually experience it, and it's totally different? That's this. :) Not a bad different, just different. Last night we had supper with my cousin's family, and had a great time. They've taught overseas as well, first in Saipan and then in Dubai. They told us to keep saying..."If you want things to feel like home, then stay home!" We're definitely experiencing that struggle already, as we've sold our cars (good-bye independence!), are saying good-bye to family (good-bye comfortable relationships!), are having our last American meals (good-bye happy stomachs!). I guess we're ready to get uncomfortable!

So, this is the last post from the states! We've had a GREAT couple of last days, probably the best we could have imagined! We moved our last things on Friday, went to a wedding/spent time with family Saturday, had a birthday celebration for my mom/small group good-bye party Sunday, last good-byes to students and final packing on Monday, and birthday girl's day/final FINAL packing today. Rachel and I are going to see Harry Potter at midnight tonight...I thought I'd give my new sleeping schedule a jump start.

And then, to the airport tomorrow at 8:00 AM, say good-bye to family, and start the long journey at 10:15 AM. We fly to Chicago, have a 4 hour layover, then to Frankfurt (2 hour layover), and finally arrive in Delhi around 9:00 PM Thursday night. Spend the night in a hotel, then have an 8 hour train ride to Dehradun and horribly windy bus ride up to Mussoorie. We just found this picture of the ride...it's going to be interesting, to say the least!

Home Stretch People. Buckle Down!

I've been feeling a little MIA in the last couple of days, I feel like my brain has checked out. But don't worry...I dramatically checked BACK in today, and I realized that we're leaving in less than 1 week. WHOA! So, I'm posting my processing. Just a warning, proceed with caution.

Schedule/To-Do's for the Next Week:

Wednesday Night:
5:30 PM Show truck
OFFICIAL India packing done
Last "fun" ride on the motorcycle

Thursday:
9:00 AM House-showing
Final house packing done
Visit court house about changing car title
Power of Attorney documents drawn
To-Do list done
Talk to my sister :)

Friday:
9:00 AM coffee with a student
Mow the lawn
11:30 AM lunch with a student
1:00 PM Mom here to finish packing/cleaning
5:00 PM Move out of the house/move to Stellmaker's house
Drop off keys to realtor
Drop off car and motorcycle to new owner/do transaction

Saturday:
9:30 AM Chris and Nicole pictures with Rachel :)
Katie Steveson's wedding!!

Sunday:
Mom's birthday party
Skype call with the Stellmakers
Skype call with Tom & Yvonne
Going-away party with Small Group

Monday:
Go through ALL paperwork
Pay final bills
Send forward of address to businesses
Have supper with my cousin and his family (YAY!)

Tuesday:
Mom's birthday! Fun girl's date
Move India stuff to Farley's
Hang with Tom, Brian, and Rachel

Wednesday:
7:00 AM leave for airport
10:15 AM fly to India

*Prayer request: Please continue to pray that God will sell our truck and house...not a big thing for our big God!

**Praise: Between when I wrote that last statement and now, we showed our truck...and it SOLD! He drove away with it, and we have the money. God is teaching us about faith. WHOA.

***Praise: I went in to the doctor's office today to get a follow-up CT scan...and I'm TOTALLY normal and health. YAY!

WHOA, I feel blessed. More processing later!

Great sayings in life....

My cousin's wife posted 45 "life-sayings" on her blog that were written by a 90-year-old columnist...what wisdom! A couple of them really resonated with me as we're preparing for this huge life change, so I guess these are my reflections.

1. Over-prepare, then go with the flow.
We've been packed for the last couple of weeks, and today are doing a "mock/official" packing, where we'll write everything that's in each bag, and then weigh everything to make sure we won't exceed the weight limit when we add in our toiletries on the last night before we leave. And after that, we can't do anything but wait and go with the flow!

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
We've had LOTS of doubts, but many people have helped us take the next small step.

3. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful, or joyful.
The useful things are in our bags, the beautiful things are the relationships we'll continue to invest in when we're far away and the new ones we'll invest in when we get there, and joy comes from the Holy Spirit, who will never leave us.

4. Everything can change in the blink of an eye; but don't worry, God doesn't blink.
This just feels good to know.

5. Frame every "so called disaster" with the question, "In five years, will this matter?"
Perfect example...I crashed our car into our truck, 2 1/2 weeks before we moved to India. :)

6. Always choose life.
It was a really hard decision to decide to go...and then to CONTINUE to decide to go, even when things have been a little rough. But, the alternative would be to not go, and we really would regret that forever. So, I guess we're choosing to live!

7. Forgive everyone everything.
Chris and I have both needed to forgive each other many things as we've been getting ready to go. Good thing we love each other!

8. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
We're feeling like our house/truck not selling is still a pretty bad situation...but don't worry it will change!

9. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
Okay!

10. Believe in miracles.
I think we'll become much more aware of God' s presence/miracles during this next period of life!


My mother-in-law sent us the "official" place we'll be staying in Ireland next summer. Ahh...so excited!