Day 2 in Poznan

We spent our second day in Poznan walking around, eating lunch at Pizza Hut, and getting to know our way around Old Town and the mall. The Polish people are always in a rush, always seeming to have someplace to go to. To start off the day, we all cooked and ate breakfast in the hostel and then met outside at 8:15 to do some sightseeing in Poznan. The weather was gorgeous once again, although extremely hot! We had not been walking for 5 minutes before we started sweating.

We split up into smaller groups and explored the beautiful expanse of Old Town. There are numerous shops along the cobblestone roads and several unique buildings. After about an hour of touring, the team met again and we all went for lunch at Pizza Hut.

Despite the long trek through a forest path in order to reach a Christian school, our practice place, we made an attempt to sing. At first, we all sounded quite weary and worn out, but after a while, the energy began to flow in once again. We sang as much as our tired voices could handle and then dispersed to return to the hostel.

Upon reaching the hostel, we freshened ourselves up and awaited the small group from Alaska that was to add to our already rather large group. They arrived after a short delay due to airplane complications, and we trekked off to a quaint little restaurant to have our dinner. This consisted of dumplings, dumplings, and more dumplings. Any kind you choose. We were very much a dead table. Everyone was completely tired and some even fell asleep while waiting for their food to come. I'm positive the heat had something to do with it, but it was also the walking and the jet lag that I am sure many of us still possessed.

In order to get around town, we take buses, the kind connected to wires. They have got to be the most jerky machines ever running. If you stand up in them while they are moving and you don't take care to grip the handle bars, you are in for a fall onto the bumpy ground of the train. Racha seemed to have the most trouble, but the reason could be because she refused to hold on to the handle bar half of the time, so it resulted in near crashes.

After dinner came the time to relax. We finally got to go back to the hostel for good and catch up on much needed sleep.

Now, for pictures!

This is the boys' and men's hostel.

And the girls'.

The huge mall in Poznan that we went to for dinner at Pizza Hut.

And the beautiful buildings and streets of Poznan.

And of course, the people in the Polish team. Can't forget about them. ;)

I thought this was interesting. Cars 2 in Polish.

Until next time!
~Julia, blogger in chief~

On The Plane

Here are some pictures when we were on the plane. It was a very long 10-hour flight and none of us could sleep very well because it was so uncomfortable. The food was okay, but not the greatest. We had an excellent view when we went over land because the clouds completely cleared up. It was beautiful!

Some views from the ground, right before liftoff:

As you can see, my dad was scared of the liftoff. ;)

Liftoff!

The sun was so beautiful!

Land! This is Ireland and Scotland. ^_^

And this is Germany.

Our fancy pillows.

The next flight from Frankfurt to Poznan was uneventful. We met the other groups from CCC and RCC and went on the plane and slept. The long journey from Vancouver to Poznan was complete when we finally arrived. Everyone was glad to go rest up at the hostel and then go out to Pizza Hut for a late and much needed dinner.

Boarding the Plane!

Right now our group consisting of 6 people is sitting down and waiting to board the plane. We all passed security with no problems after waiting in line for almost 2 hours. We board the plane in 10 minutes! Our flight to Frankfurt, Germany is about 10 hours and then we wait for a few hours before boarding the next plane to Poznan, Poland. That flight is about 2 hours. Hopefully there will be internet access on the plane, but if not, we will see you in Frankfurt!

It is now two days before we leave on our journey. Our days are full of packing and final planning, and our hearts and minds FULL of excitement. From the moment I heard that our church was going to Poland again I was determined to take that journey. I've been waiting in anticipation for many months, and now, it is finally upon us! I still can't believe we are going to be travelling across the ocean to a different continent! It will be a differant world to see and experience. Many hundreds of pictures will be taken, many new friends will be made, and LORD willing, we will bring many people to Christ.

Tanaya

Welcome to the journey!

Hello all and welcome to our blog! Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be taking you along with us on a journey that will truly be one to remember. Before we embark on the adventure of a lifetime, I must first give you a few brief insructions and some details regarding the events of the trip.

First, the instructions. They are quite simple. You must relax, carry a positive attitude, sit back, and enjoy the ride. And most importantly, once you commit yourself to this adventure, you must be willing to take on any challenge. I must warn you, it will be a wild ride.

Next come the details. We will be travelling with several members from a church from Portland, Oregon called the Reformation Covenant Church, and members from a church in Alaska. The purpose of our journey is to spread the gospel to the lost souls in Poland and try to convert many of them to Christ. We will do this by singing hymns and psalms on the streets, and by handing out flyers to people to invite them to our evening concerts and to the Polish CRE (Christian Reformed Evangelical) churches there. The first of two weeks will be spent in Poznan, Poland, and then we will travel by train to the town of Gdansk and stay there for the 2nd week. The missions trip will end at the close of the two weeks in Poland, but the journey will continue for still another week. We will be renting a car in Berlin, Germany and touring through Germany, France and possibly some of their bordering countries. Thus will end our adventure.

Now, take care to remember the rules, and have a wonderful time! The journey will commence on June 27th at 6:00 pm sharp. Don't miss the plane!