Loving It

sunshine 

Springtime {again}

Coke-Cola

some would say addicted but I say love

and

this precious face 

that needs so much lovin' 

So im really trying to drag out the details about Peru

just because it was my favorite 

and I want to make it last longer but..

I promise to finish it up this weekend

Also..

Today marks the 2 month mark of being in Chile

If I had to round the days I would be closer to going home then getting here

this makes me happy sort of

I can't wait to see all my lovely people

Skype isn't good enough for me 

sorry I require the finer things in life

but that also means leaving my friends here that I adore so much.

I'll have to go back to my old routine life.

not that I don't love that life

but studying abroad changes your perspective on things

so there will be a few shifts in that old life

Im off to enjoy this beautiful spring day were having here in Vina

hope everyone has a fabulous weekend

do something fun and unexpected

Today's Was The Day

this was the day we were most excited about

we had been planning our trip entirely around this one day 

and that day was the day we went to
Machu Picchu

this day started off super early at a  3:50 am to be exact

we started off hiking but it was so dark and we didn't have a light so we had to wait around till some other people started so we could see

so we started off hiking and got to the bridge to cross over to the trial 

and there was someone there checking tickets 

and luckily there was because some how we managed to leave without Phils ticket 

so he had to go back and look for it

(it was in Tawnis journal for some reason we don't know)

any ways while Phil went back me and Tawni pressed on hiking

so we didn't really know that it was going to be such an intense hike

I didn't eat breakfast so I was running on nothing basically and I was just not feeling it on the way up

but ahh what a beautiful hike up it was 

once we got to the top we had to wait till Phil got up there to go in

so we waited like and hour 

and then we stared to get a little worried and we couldn't get a hold of him

and we were like frantic trying to find a phone to use when I looked over at the road

and there he was walking up the road 

we were so excited to see him we went running and gave him a big hug

So as soon as he got there we went straight in because we already had a tour waiting on us 

my first glimpse of the ruins was kind of breath taking 

Its so hard to believe that people actually lived there 

really I can't use words to describe this place 

its so incredible 

pictures do not do it justice

Our tour lasted about 2 hours and then we went on a little hike

at the end of the hike we sat and just stared at the ruins from afar for about an hour

it was just so surreal to be there

we spent about 9 hours there exploring the place

the neatest thing about Machu Picchu is that you can actually touch things

you can go in the little caves

walk in the places they walked

we got lucky and got to see it in the fog and in the sun 

and both ways was just a cool

I personally liked it better with all the clouds

it made it a little more I don't know hidden and mysterious 

at the end of our time up there we sat down at the entrance and just stared some more

non of us could get over that place

its absolutely beautiful

I urge anyone who ever gets the chance to go 

TO GO 

Its worth every penny 

there going to be closing it down in a few years because the place is sinking from all the people

so go soon so you get the chance to really see it

Life in Chile

time is flying by

I don't know if I like that or not

I am so so so looking forward to getting home and seeing everyone

I actually miss being stressed out about test

living in a dorm room

and having to go to class 5 days a week

WEIRD 

yes I know that but its always the weird things you miss the most

like tootsie rolls 

I hardly ever eat those at home but I crave them constantly here

But on the other hand

leaving in 2 months kind stresses me out

there is still so much to do

and so many places I want to go before I leave

and besides that

leaving my wonderful friends down here

that really breaks my heart even thinking about it

what am I gona do when I can't see them everyday

it makes me so so so sad

like really sad 

thank goodness for Skype so I will at least still get to see their faces!

anyways 

those are my feelings right now

Im heading off to the hogar to play with some sweet little ones

It All Started With A Bus Ride

so we left really late on Wednesday the 14th 

we climbed onto a bus from Vina to Santiago

It’s about a 2 hour ride 

got to the bus station found a taxi and headed off to the airport

we got to spend 8 lovely overnight hours in the airport hanging out at Dunkin Donuts 

(I tried a Boston Manjar yesterday and it was just pure joy in my mouth)

so our flight left Santiago at 7 AM

we flew PAL airline from what I can understand it like the last choice of Chileans 

but I think it was pretty nice besides the face that the cockpit door would sling open when we took off

and we took off like 3 times it stopped like in 3 cities on the way up to Arica

Once we landed in Arica we grabbed a taxi and headed off across the border

It takes about an hour and a half to get across the border and to the next destination Tacna Peru

In Tacna we grabbed the first bus out  

we also grabbed some food because by this time it was like 1 and we still had not eaten yet

our bus left at like 1:30 Peru time (3 PM Chile time) 

this bus ride was about 7 hours long to Arequipa Peru

it was a pretty smooth bus ride through the desert of Peru

we got into Arequipa around like 9ish or so 

our next bus left at 9:30 

it was an overnight bus to Cuzco

this is where all the action took place

about 4 hours into the 12 hour ride I woke up really sick

I woke Tawni up because I was kind of freaking out a bit

I never get sick and I just knew that the food we ate earlier made me sick

So I proceed to the restroom on the bus

and at the same time I get up to go Phil wakes up really sick to

but he was really dizzy 

Tawni was passing out drugs to us and Phil was not responding 

so she just forced this pill down his throat

I somehow manage to get back to the seat after laying in the floor the of the bus in the back 

and then the floor next to our seat

I climb up in the seat with Phil and we sit in misery for a few minutes

I made it back to my seat and was miserable the rest of the bus ride

We make it to Cuzco and by this time it’s Friday the 16th 

we head off to get our tickets into Machu Picchu and our train tickets there

our train was from a town about an hour and a half away so we had to grab this taxi van thing 

it was so pretty driving through the country side of Peru

our train left from a really cute town called Ollantaytambo

we made out train and headed out to Machu Picchu city

as soon as we stepped off the train we were swamped with people wanting us to stay here or buy this

it was super overwhelming but we found a cute little hostel along the river

Macchu Picchu city is really small and literally the only thing to do was shop

so when did we do? 

well we shopped for hours

we all got some really fun stuff

Peru is really cheap compared to Chile

this was the most stressful part of the trip

we were rushing to get to Machu Picchu because this was the main thing on our to-do list

we made it 1904.8 miles in less than days
It was defiantly the most tiring part of the trip but still super fun!

Peru

this past week I got the opportunity to travel around the country of Peru

I feel so blessed to have gotten the chance to see the things we saw and do the things we did

during this trip I really feel in love with Peru 

(I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up back there someday)

Peru such a totally different place compared to home and even Chile

 words and pictures really can't even begin to describe it

there are places that don’t have running water or electricity

they still uses mules and cows to plow their land

kids have walk long ways to school on empty stomachs

or they may not even have the opportunity to go

the women take trips down to the nearest creek to wash their cloth

Peru is full of culture

It’s beautiful

It’s old

It’s full of poverty 

but the people their love their home

they take pride in where there from and who they are

I really feel guilty for everything we got to do and see

I spent my time in tourist towns and on buses 

I never once got the chance to step off the bus into those villages along the highway

I never got to walk around those small towns

I only saw the way they lived through a window

but it was through that window on those long bus rides

that God gave me the chance to really see Peru

He opened my heart and my eyes to a different side of life in Peru

and I hope one day He gives me the opportunity to return

and serve in the Sacred Valley of Peru 

over the next week or so I am going to tell you about my trip to Peru day by day

so stay tuned!

Wake Up Call

So last night I was resting oh so peacefully

when at about 4 AM I'm woken up 

by what you may ask

a EARTHQUAKE

yep that's right.

it was such a weird experience at first I didn't really know what was going on. It was 4am and I was kinda out of it. But then once I woke up a little bit I instantly knew it was an earthquake and not just a dream.

I woke up to my bed shaking a lot and the whole time I just stared at my mirror. It was rattling so much i could just see it being jolted around. The quake lasted about maybe a minute or so. I'm not quite sure and there was defiantly some aftershocks. My heart was racing the whole time I seriously could calm down for like 30 minutes after it was over. It was such a weird feeling I don't know if I could ever explain it.

It was just yesterday that some friends down here said that there was a tremor earlier that day and Tawni and I didn't feel it. We were bummed for some reason and talking about how we wanted to feel a real earth quake. I guess you could say we got our wish 

 Now that I'v experienced one I could live without another one the rest of my life. 

Earthquakes are a natural thing here in Chile so I wouldn't doubt if we didn't feel a few more the rest of our time here!!

New Week, New Adventures

{A}

Life has been really crazy! 

I don't know how but time has just passed by and I didn't even notice.

Im so behind on the bloging thing I am going to try to catch up soon

{B}

My parents came and visited this past weekend

It was nice to have home here for a few days

I got to spend the weekend showing them around my "home" for the semester

We went to a neighboring city, Santiago and explored around Vina all in 2 days and my feet are feeling it!

but it was wonderful to have them here

{C}

Im getting ready to take off traveling

Im super excited about all the places I'm getting to visit and I can't wait to share them will yall when I get back

{D}

Spanish is getting better

I'm learning slow but I'm learning and that's all that matters

I'm already planing on going somewhere next may for the month 

Hopefully a orphanage in Guatemala 

{E}

Ephesians 4

read it.

love it.

live it.

10 Years Later

Its hard to imagine that it has been 10 years since 9/11. It so mind blowing to me to think about I can remember that day like it was yesterday. Its probably one of my most vivid childhood memories.

My account of 9/11:
I was in the 6th grade at the time In Mrs. K's class. We had just returned from the library when the front office called for me to go home. I thought it was so weird because I didn't have anywhere to go. So I thought maybe I was getting checked out for a fun surprise. I got up there and it was my dad checking me out and that instantly made know something was up. My dad didn't tell me anything when he got me we just drove over to my moms school. I think the minute I knew something was really wrong was when we went to my moms school and he told me we were going to stay there for a little while. When I walked up to the front door they had a police officer standing there, strange. So once we got there I knew immediately that there was some bad stuff going on but didn't quite know what yet until I went to go see Mr.Crow and I saw the TV. I don't think I really knew what was going on I saw the towers burning and at first I didn't think it was real. But then the I watched the First tower fall on the TV and the reactions around me told me that this was real and it was serious. I was immediately scared. The school put me to work there were so many parents coming and getting their kids that they were sending me to go and find the kids. Finally once the school day was done we all went home. I remember going home and sitting in my room watching the news in just pure shock  We live in America things like this don't happen here I was so scared. I remember hearing that they had targets in Atlanta. So all I could think about was someone blowing up my neighborhood or my school. Later that evening Chase, Jeremy and I were sitting down at the bottom of my hill and talking about what was going on. I remember laying back on my back and looking at the sky. I can still see that sky in my head now. I can still remember the fear I had for weeks after when I went to bed. I didn't know anyone in New York City at the time but I think like every American we all mourned the loss of all the innocent people from that day. Not a week goes by without 9/11 crossing my mind. 

Walkin In the Clouds

So on Saturday Tawni, Jesse, Kyle and I ventured off to a national park about 45 minutes away from Vina. It was such a beautiful place!
The day started off really early, 8:30 to be exact. We had to take a train for about 25 minutes and then a bus the rest of the way. We accidently got on a but that didn't drop us off right at the park entrance and we had to walk a pretty good distance to get to the park when the bus dropped us off. Lets just say I was already huffin and puffin with just the little walk just to get into the park!
I didn't really know what to expect with the park. I just thought oh a national park it will be like Sweet water park near my house in GA. Well this sure was not like that at all. It was a huge mountain and I was not prepared for that!! I didn't wear the right cloths or bring the right stuff with me!
We didn't have a set route for us we just kind of picked which way as we went. Our first stop was only about 20 mins in and had a old mining cave and views of the big ol' mountain that we were about to hike. Jesse and Kyle went off into the caves and used the flash on their cameras to see where they were going. Tawni and I opted to stay outside and "rock climb". We took off next up the mountain and hiked for a good 3 hours up. We didn't make it all the way to the top that is about a 9 hour hike and we didn't have the time for that before the park closed. Our goal was to get up to the clouds but we just didn't think it was going to be possible because they were pretty high up. But at our last stop they just sank down and we got to walk up in the clouds for about 10 minutes. It was so beautiful and quite up there! I loved being able to hear the river flowing blow us, that is one of my favorite noises!

It was a super long day but worth the blisters on my feet!

One Month Mark

So we hit the one month mark this past week.

My thought so far:

{A}

Its been such a different experience than what I expected. I'v loved every moment so far. But its definatly not what I thought in terms of spanish. I gave my self very unrealistic goals for learning. I'v only studied spanish for 2 years back in the 10th and 11th grade of high school. I really dont even think that I really learned anything back then. I always ended up in the "bad" class. To this day I still think that the class I was in in 11th grade ran the teacher off. Becasue right befor we left for a holiday some smarty pants told the teacher to go back where she came from and when we got back from that break she was gone. So needless to say my 2 years of learning wasn't really learning. Anyways back to my unrealistic goals. I kept telling myself "your going to get down there and learn in a month and be fluent by the time you leave". Well one month has come and gone and guess what I wasn't even close to my goal. Now dont get me wrong I've learned alot just at A LOT slower pace than what I expected for my self. 

{B}

Bouts of homesickness. 

I've never been the one to get home sick and I dont know if you can even consider my feelings as homesickness. I just crave everything from home. I want to be around my friends, I want to eat my favorite foods (Chick fl A), I want to be stressing over studing for a test. I feel like im missing something here. Communcation with my friends has been really limited. Im used to the talk to you two or three times a day thing. Not once every two or three days.

Facebook dosn't help either! I get on and see pictures of my friends visitng each other and I have not even talked to them in weeks just dosn't help.  

I guess you could say im just home longing for everything home every once in a while

{C}

I didn't expect to come down here and make such amazing friends so fast!!

I was just talking to Monica and Tawni today about how wierd it was that we've only known each for a month. I feel like I've know them forever. My friendships have such a differnt depth to them since we have become such great freinds so fast. I love that God put these people in my life. Already I've been encouraged and learned so much from them. I've definitely made life long friends here! Its going to be so so so sad when december rolls around and we have to part ways. I don't even want to think about it now.

{D}

Im learning so much about myself.

I don't know if I it can put into words quiet yet

but im definitely learning so much about myself and what my future may hold.

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

I know most of those didnt sound positive but I really am loving everything here. In life most things don't turn out the way that you expect them to and thats what happened here. I took it upon my self to "plan" what I thought it should be like. Well like eveything in like God had a plan and it definitely wasnt anything like my plan. It was far greater that anything I could dream up.

I saw this verse today and it so fits my life right now

Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will recieve all that he has promised

Hebrews 10:23

I love this so much

patiens is what I need right now

and this is such a reminder of that

If im sitting here complaining about this and that then I'm not doing Gods will for my time here in chile.

I need to confidently trust that God has a plan here for me and that He has put me exactly where I am for that specific purpose.

I hope everyone back home has a wonderful Labor day weekend and enjoys the last few days of summer and I enjoy our last few days of winter!!