To update you all on the status of my last blog, things are pretty good actually. Thank you all for your prayers, God has answered them, definitely! As I mentioned in that blog, I really love a good glass of wine and was a bit bummed that I felt called to give it up while on a tour of Italy and France, the motherlands of good wine. I know I couldn't have done this on my own and I am thankful that it happened in the beginning of the trip, rather than the end actually. Alcohol has sounded a bit awful since I got sick, making avoiding it a lot easier. I was a bit worried that being surrounded by wine tastings would make me want to drink lots, but it hasn't. I've participated in the wine tastings at the farm and did a tour of the Chianti wine region, where we tasted a few wines, but having a sip and pouring out the rest hasn't been an issue. Actually, the day we did the tour of Chianti my stomache was upset the whole day, on and off. I had barely eaten, which was definitely a factor, but I think it was God making it easy to not over indulge or even be tempted with a whole glass of wine, bleh! So all in all, thank you Jesus and thank you all for praying for me.
The rest of my time on the farm was absolutely wonderful, I would recommend WWOOFing to anyone! It definitely provided it's challenged though. Gianpaolo had lost a business partner a few days before we got there, so he was barely at the farm at all and his frazzled status led to lots of miscommunication. It was definitely the little town and the fellow WWOOFers that made my experience so great.
On our last weekend off Gianpaolo arranged for us to hike up the largest mountain in Sicignano, with a 70 or so year old guide. It was more or less like other hikes I've been on, but it was so wonderful to be back in nature. We slept under the canopy of the trees only, no tents, had a huge bonfire, hiked all day and most of the next and the view from the top was outstanding! There are caves on the top that are so cold they still have snow in them, even in over 100 degree summer heat. We brought lemons and sugar to make Italian Lemon Ice with the snow, which was delicious! We met a few local hikers at the top that hiked down a ways with us and were so much fun!
While on the farm we bottled almost 1,000 bottles of wine and 100 bottles of honey. We watered the new Fiano vines, did a lot of weeding and watering of the fruit trees and herb garden, collected honey and bottled. My fellow WWOOFers ended up being
Chet, a homosexual artist from Seattle who taught me lots about Chinese medicine and has an amazing sense of humor!
Barbara, the sweetest 21 year old woman who just finished a schoolyear in Italy. She is fluent in Italian, born in Ghana and grew up in the Bronx!
Daniela, a quirky German traveller, fluent in French and just finished studying in Northern France. She hitchhike by car and sailboat, rode trails and walked her way to Sicignano.
All in all, we had a fantastic group to work with and I wouldn't have picked a different crew if I could! We were all very different and all very similiar at the same time; it was such a diverse group!
When the final few days of WWOOFing came around, Barbara, Daniela and I decided to leave together. Gianpaolo drove us to Salerno, where we hopped a train into Naples and then parted ways. My friend Dan flew in from America later that night.
I think this is where I will end this blog, so it doesn't get too too long. We are heading to Venice tomorrow and then on to hiking through the Alps and around Mount Blanc! I'll do another post summarizing our trip through Italy around then!
Until then, I am continuing raising support for my mission trip to Argentina to work with a family ministering to travellers and hikers and pursuing my calling to opening a Christian Youth Hostel! You can learn more about it and donate online through my fundraising website: http://bit.ly/M2AsLb
Prayer requests:
– Greater intimacy with Christ
– A stronger thirst for His word
– Strength with spending so much time with Dan
– Safety on the roads and trails
– Health, my body has been doing lots of funny things lately
Thank you all for your support, as always! I am deeply blessed to have so many people that lift me up from overseas with prayer, encouragement and love! Italy stories are soon to come 🙂
