the adventure begins...

so here i am in pescara, italy.
it's kind of a surreal thing. it feels like i'm just in another american city. except that everything looks italian. and not many people speak english. and i don't really know anyone. and nothing is familiar.
i guess it just feels the same as when i moved to chicago. a new place, new faces, and a new start, you know?

i've been here for almost a week now, so i'm at least a little bit more familiar with the city than i was when i arrived last sunday. i came without expectations. i came without fears. i came with nothing. so i guess there's no way to be disappointed, right?

the culture here is so different from in the states, though! the people may look like americans, but they definitely are not! i think that has been the hardest thing since i arrived, is how limited my communication skills are here. i know spanish, which is similar to italian, so that has helped out a lot, but spanish is far enough away from italian that i can't understand most of what is said, and definitely cannot hold a conversation.

these are two things that have been very discouraging for me:
1) not knowing the language
2) only being here for three months

i feel like whatever i do here will not be effective because i'm not here long enough to really build relationships with people even if i could have a conversation with them in their own language! grr... i know that this discouragement is not from the Lord, so i need to be praying against it. God can use me wherever i am, even if it isn't for a long period of time.

so here's a little bit more practical info..
the directors of the ywam base here are Giuseppe and Cristianna Restivo. they have a son, Andy (andrea), who is 18 (i think). Cristianna's family is all in pescara. Giuseppe's family is originally from Sicily, but are currently living in switzerland where he grew up. they are all very friendly, very nice people. i'm glad that i get to spend the next three months getting to know them and working alongside them :)

i am living at the ywam base, which is one unit of an 8-unit villa. the restivos live underneath the base in a first-floor unit. it's beautiful and has plenty of room for people to stay. i have my own bedroom that i will most likely be staying in for my entire time here. the base is located in a southern part of pescara called San Silvestro, which is named after a saint named sylvester. i don't know what he did to be a saint, but apparently he's pretty famous :)

the church is more in the center of the city. it takes about 10 minutes by car to get there. there is a bus that can take us there, but i haven't had to take it yet, so i don't know how long that would take. the church is just off of a major road for businesses in pescara... an exciting location!

we meet at 8am every day, tuesday through saturday, and do devotions and then discuss what we will be working on for that day. we work until 12:30, take a break until 1:30-2ish for lunch/siesta, and then work again until about 5.

the evenings are very relaxing. i make dinner for myself around 7, read, listen to music, and play games. ed and irene are a retired couple from colorado springs who are volunteering at this base until the end of the month. that's who i've been playing games with :)

it has been a great, relaxing week, and i'm excited to see what church is like in the morning. it's an important day, because andy restivo is getting baptized! it's exciting :)

as for me, i'm tired. it's almost midnight. and i'm going to bed.
gnight :)