Entry 17 - 12/12/11

Dear Readers,

I have to apologize again for not writing sooner. I have only now had the chance to sit down and write. I just got into Singapore a day and a half ago and it has been great hanging out with the family. This is another great opportunity as I will not only get to rest up and hang out with the fam, but I will get to explore Singapore and some of the neighboring countries.

However, before I continue on with Christmas break...

As our last stop, the U.K. was a fun way to get used to English speakers again. From Ireland, where pubbing is the big thing, to Scotland, where kilts and haggis abound (which is actually pretty good, just don't read what it actually is). Then we finished with Wales for a little heritage and London for all of the major sites and attractions. The trip was too quick to really do it justice, so I hope to one day go back. But both David and I had a great time seeing what we could.

Looking back, the past semester has been a wonderful blessing as an opportunity that God has given me to see more of the world and to have a better understanding of different cultures and their interactions. It is amazing to see all of the unique qualities each country still holds despite all of the global influences (especially American influences). I don't know what role it will play down the road, but I know I didn't go to Germany just to study. It will be great if ever have the chance to go back, but for now I am thankful for having had the chance to go. Thank you again for all those who have been reading my blog. I know it wasn't very consistent, but now I know a little more about how much of a commitment blogging can be. Thank you also for your prayers. God has definitely been watching out for me and the others at Ambex. Hope to see all of you soon.

In Christ,

Hayden

Entry 16 - 11/29/11

Dear Readers,

Well, here we are at the end of the school semester. It has come quickly and I am amazed at all of the experiences and that I will be going home before long. We ended the last week of the semester wrapping up classes/finals and checking off the last components of our cultural bucket lists. Though David and I won't be following everyone else home right away, it has been tough to begin our goodbyes with all the friends we have made this semester. This semester has been a great opportunity to learn about European culture as I have also learned that there is more out there in God's world beside Americans. I would recommend studying abroad to anybody. There is nothing quite like it. However, keep praying for me as I finish up my travels through the UK until I fly home (sort of home --> Singapore). We will start in Dublin, move to Edinburgh, continue to Cardiff, and then finish in London. It will be a busy finish, but a fun one. Pray that I will not lose focus and that my reliance would be on Him.

Thanks,

Hayden

P.S. I will probably add one or two more posts while in the UK before I'm done. Thank you for those who have been reading.

Entry 15 - 11/21/11

Dear Readers,

Here we are back in Regensburg. Sorry for having not written in over two weeks. The last two weeks have been hectic in a strangely good way (other than keeping up on my blog). We most recently just finished visiting Austria and Northern Italy. As part of our Art History class we spent a lot of time touring famous museums and churches to get a better understanding of how Western Art developed in Europe over the last couple Milleniums. However, before we were in Austria and Italy we began our two week adventure with a train to Memmingen, Bavaria...

After finishing the Bonhoeffer class, David and I took a train from Regensburg to fly out of the Ryan Air airport with our destination as Girona, Spain. We spent one night in Girona after walking around the city on an ancient wall that allows you to see the entirety of the surrounding cities and forests. Though it was raining we enjoyed seeing a smaller town of Spain before heading into the bustling night life of Barcelona. On Sunday the 13th we headed to Barcelona where we spent one night (we wish we had at least two, but it was great to at least go for a day) in a really cheap hostel that was amazingly located 20 yards from the beach. We were able to walk from our hostel to tour the city and see the awesome sites such as  all the shops at Las Ramblas and the unique structure of the church Sagrada Familia. On Monday we flew from Barcelona to Madrid and landed just in time to get some dinner and get settled down at our hostel before checking out a little bit of the city. Tuesday we went on a walking tour led by a hostel tour guide of the city to see the major sites and learn a little bit of Spanish history. Spain was a very intriguing culture with their North African and European influences. We also learned that their Spanish is not quite Mexican Spanish (and they will let you know it). On Wednesday we departed Madrid and flew into Marrakesh, Morocco. Once we landed we jumped right into the culture as we had to haggle for a cab and then drove through the city on unmarked roads that were somewhat reminiscent of watching an episode of the Amazing Race. We met up with some other classmates at their hostel before David and I split up as I joined a group that was headed to Fez and David decided to spend more time in Marrakesh. Morocco brought on  plenty of fun, but it also became a good learning experience; It was my first time interacting in an entirely Muslim culture. Instead of touring Cathedrals were looking up mosques and the different prayer times of the day as well as not seeing very many women without their head coverings. We were also able to spend plenty of time in the famed markets of Marrakesh and I am still not sure whether looking through and buying gifts is more fun than haggling for an extremely low price. After spending our last few hours trying some local food and grabbing a last few items, David and I headed from Morocco back to Memmingen via Rome. Once back in Germany, we took a train from Memmingen to Salzburg to meet up for the start of the Art Tour...

Once in Salzburg, our class began our tour with some delicious Austrian famed cuisine: The Schnitzel. Actually we started our tour with a walk around Salzburg to visit some of the many sites from the Sound of Music. It was kind of odd to see so many familiar scenes from a movie we all had seen at some point growing up. After Salzburg we headed to Venice for two nights where we went through the Doges Palace and St. Marks Cathedral as we began to learn about the various artistic influences of northern Italy. We then had time to walk around the famed city's canals and look at the various shops with masks and Venetian glass before getting some delicious Italian food. On Wednesday we headed to the world renowned city of Florence, known for its wide range of famous Italian art pieces. For several hours we checked out hundreds of pieces of Art that were absolutely astounding. I now have a somewhat better appreciation for why people go to see art in person; seeing paintings and sculptures (with the help of a professor) in person adds a whole extra dimension to the piece. I was especially impressed with Michelangelo's David, which is an amazing sculpture with such amazing detail put in stone depicting the young Bible hero. After some more delicious Italian pizzas and pastas, we left for the coastal cities of Cinque Terra. Though we were no longer focused on art, we were able to see some natural beauty as we traveled between the famous coastal cities that creep over the edges of mountains along the Liguria Sea. We spent Saturday hiking and walking through the towns before a number of us splurged on a seafood dinner made of local cuisine. Sunday (yesterday) we drove back to Regensburg despite some setbacks, and arrived around 1am this morning. Today we begin our last week of Art History and David and I will be leaving in about 9 days for the U.K. Pray for us as we finish up the semester that we will finish strong. We have been blessed with an awesome semester. Thanks for your prayers.

From Regensburg,

Hayden

Entry 14 - 11/3/11

Dear Readers,

Another week has gone by and so much seems to happen each and every day. This past weekend I took a train up to Berlin to visit Felix, a friend who was a foreign exchange student at Horizon for a year. Friday night (Oct. 30) I spent the night in the hostel while Felix was at work and met him the next day. He showed me a little more around Berlin that I hadn't seen the first time I had been up there. I was also introduced to my first German curry wurst followed by a Donner Kebab.We then spent the afternoon/evening hanging out, playing video games, and getting our Halloween costumes ready. We went out that night into Berlin as zombies, (some pretty legit costumes I might say), and went to different parties with all sorts of Halloween goodies, decorations, and the whole nine yards. It was a great time to catch up with Felix, I only wish I had longer. Sunday I headed back to Regensburg on the train to get ready for class the next day.

This past week has been quite a learning experience, going over German history during WW2 with and emphasis on the life of Bonhoeffer and others of the Confessing Church. Bonhoeffer is a great theologian and left quite a legacy of a life lived in difficult situations. I would highly recommend reading a little bio on his life as well as his book The Cost of Discipleship. This week, despite classes, has also been quite eventful in itself. It is fun to go work on homework in the old city and check out various cafes. Yesterday we visited Nuremberg and the rally grounds. The museum was very informational on the history behind the rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party and their reign through the end of the war. I had no idea that Hitler had plans for so many monstrous buildings near and around the rally grounds, and had only completed the famous stadium and part of the "Colosseum-like" building where they had the rally commonly seen on WW2 films/documentaries. It was also interesting to learn that all Germans have to visit the site and learn about the Third Reich heritage at a certain point in their education as a measure of preventing similar events from repeating. The Germans are far from proud of their country during the Nazi era and work hard to hammer into their children how terrible of a time it was. It was not all serious though. We were able to go into the center of town and check out the old city and shops where the Christkindlesmarkt  is held each year. We will return later this semester to go shopping there when it opens.

It just amazes me that it is already November. It has been a very fun semester, but has also challenged me in many ways. I know I can't see it yet, but God has me here for something more than just a fun cultural experience. Please continue to pray, and thank you again for your prayers.

In Christ,

Hayden

Entry 13 - 10/29/11

Dear Readers,

Continuing from my last post...

A group of 6 of us left our classmates in Heidelberg and left for Frankfurt on October 15. We toured Frankfurt, which is known for being a business city, and had the most fun haggling at their famous Saturday market. Later that night we took a bus to the airport and spent the night there since we had to be there at 4 am anyway. On Sunday we flew into Rome just in time to drop off our luggage at our hostel and attend a mass at St. Peter's at the Vatican. It was quite an experience as we sat outside the church and watched the service from the jumbo screens outside, since the place was packed. We even had the privilege of receiving an address from the Pope who came out of his window and spoke to the crowd outside. He spoke in English as well as in about 6 other languages. We then left the Vatican and worked our way through several of the sites in Rome's old city and saw sites such as the Pantheon and the Piazza Navona. We finished our first night there with some Italian pizza which was pretty good. The next day we continued our fast-paced tour by heading back to the Vatican to tour the Vatican museums and the Sistine Chapel, a great site I wish we had more time for. We then continued on to visit a few more plazas, churches, and gelato stops before ending our tour at the Via Sacra leading up to Constantine's Arch and the climax, the Roman Colosseum; the unanimous favorite site of us all and a quite magnificent piece of architecture. Given its legacy, it was quite a great experience to see it in person. That night we went out and celebrated our last night in Rome by eating out at a pasta place recommended to us by one of the locals. We all ordered different things and tried one an other's; I started with a potato based pasta with a meat sauce, but got to try spaghetti with clams, and really thick pasta I forgot the name of that had olive oil and a mix of spices. The next day we packed up and left for our flight to Volos, Greece. We arrived and rushed to figure out our itinerary since we could not understand the transportation beforehand. We stayed one night in Volos, and then took the next day to get to Athens (except one guy who was determined to get to Thermopylae and see where the 300 Spartans fought) as we were unsure of how the strikes would affect transportation. We were able to get through Athens and we spent the next two days (Oct. 19 and 20) in Corinth where we toured and saw some of the sites Paul visited as well as relaxing for the first time on our trip. My favorite food in Greece was definitely the gyros, of which I had 5. Our group as a whole consumed 29 gyros. On Friday we headed to the coast of Athens and stayed at a hostel where we left our stuff to tour Athens. The sites were absolutely astounding with the Parthenon and the Aereopagus, and we even had a lamb dinner just outside the Parthenon. It was a little bit of bummer to see Athens during its protest as garbage had not been collected for many days and the city was still going through quite a bit of turmoil. It was still quite a wonderful experience and opportunity. We then took the next day to hang out at the beach and grab a few things at the grocery store before heading to the airport where we spent the night because we had another early flight. It was quite a shocker to fly into Munich and head into 25 degree weather after being in Athens with 75 degree weather at the beach.

We have spent the last week studying the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Confessing Church, which has been a real eye opener as I haven't yet really taken a class on Christian Ethics. It can be really challenging material, especially his Cost of Discipleship, but it has been very enjoyable as I learn to understand the true Christian life and develop my theology. God has really been at work over here in teaching me more about Himself. If you would pray that I would be open to God's teaching as it can be tough at times, I would greatly appreciate it. As well as those things I have mentioned previously: a focus on Christ, discipline to keep from being lazy, and a genuine love for others.Thank you again for all those who are reading and praying, I see its power each and every day.

This weekend (Oct. 29-31) I will be in Berlin staying with a friend from high school (Felix Kubler for those of you who know him).

The semester is flying

Thanks again,

Hayden

Entry 12 - 10/24/11

Dear Readers,

I am sorry for not posting the last two weeks, but we just got back in Regensburg and I can now write on a reliable connection and not just from my Kindle. Since we so much has happened since I last wrote, I am going break it up into two sections: The Germany Reformation Tour and Travel Week to Rome/Greece. I will begin with the former in this post and discuss the latter in another post.

 The Germany Reformation Tour

We began our academic travel week on October 8 by driving to Dresden, and spending Saturday and Sunday there. In Dresden we toured art museums with art from famous artists such as Rembrandt and porcelain pieces that the area is known for. It was also our visit stay in Northern Germany where Lutheranism is more common and practiced than the Catholicism of the south. We were even able to see a concert and attend a church service in the famous Frauenkirche.
On Monday we went to Berlin and did a whirlwind tour of the city. We went through the massive history museum first before going to the Brandenburg gate and the holocaust memorial. Though we weren't there long, I was impressed by the massive city and hope to go back one day to see more of it.
On Tuesday and Wednesday we spent the nights in Wittenburg after stopping at the monastery in Erfurt. The youth hostel we stayed at was touching the church where Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses (supposedly). It was amazing to be able to walk through the town where Martin Luther lived while studying about him.
On Thursday we stayed in Eisenach and toured Wartburg castle where Luther hid after the Diet of Worms, and toured the Bach museum at the home where Bach lived. It was interesting to see how much Bach's work was influenced by Luther. I also ate, in my opinion, the best bratwurst I have ever had.
Friday was another quick day as we toured the Gutenberg museum in Mainz before heading to Heidlburg where we finished the class with our final.
The week was certainly fast and exciting with so many stops even though it was a class. I don't know that this will ever seem like school since it has just been to fun to be school. I have learned so much in the last two weeks with this class that I am still digesting it all as we head into the next class. I know it's cliche to say that "time flies when your having fun," but it has been all to true.
Please pray that I will not get lazy during this semester. I can already feel myself wanting to relax more and more.
I also promise to update my blog more often.
God has blessed me so much here and thanks again for all your prayers

Hayden

Entry 11 - 10/11/11

Dear Readers,

            Once again, we have been back on the road and I have only now gotten on to the internet. Sometimes it’s nice to not have to check Facebook or email (hopefully I’m not missing anything important). Right now we are at youth hostel in Wittenberg, and I can’t help but be amazed that I am sleeping less than a hundred yards from the door that Luther nailed his 95 theses to (our hostel actually touches the church). On Friday we finished up our last classes and began packing before heading out Saturday morning. On Saturday we toured an awesome Library on our way to Dresden. I have misplaced the name of the Library, but its home to thousands of several century old books and is decorated with several art pieces and wooden life size sculptures. We then spent the rest of Saturday and Sunday in Dresden touring the city and a few museums. The most impressive (to me) aspect of Dresden is its Frauenkirche, or Lutheran Church. We were even fortunate enough to attend a concert at the church, which was unreal. On Monday we did a rush tour of Berlin and went through the history museum, saw the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust memorial, among other famous sites which we only stopped at briefly (we even had time to see the MJ hotel where he famously dangled the baby). Last night we spent in Wittenburg and today we are back in class before we go out and tour the city. I woke up this morning and realized that we are already half way through the semester. Time has flown, but it has been an awesome experience. Please pray for me as I continue through the semester, to not let tiredness and travel have me become grumpy. Sometimes it’s easy to get grumpy when you’re with the same people all day every day. Everyone here has been awesome, but a combination of long class times combined with lots of moving from hotel to hotel can cause us to become a little edgy. Please pray that I can be more and more selfless and encourage others (haven’t been doing a great job). Thank you so much for those of you who have been reading and or praying. If you have any specific questions or want to know more please feel free to email me at uberbizy@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you.

God bless,

Hayden