Sunday, January 10, 2010

so far so good...

I'm here after an uneventful, good flight last week. Thank you for your prayers for my transition!

Here are some early impressions as seen thru my design lense...


  • Ancient Architecture: My "flat" is in Athens Centre in the shadow of the Acropolis, the famous hill in the middle of the city. I had lunch at the base today and watched people climb to the Parthenon at the top - the ancient Greek's temple to the goddess Athena.
  • Sustainability: My trip to the grocery 2 blocks away resulted in the purchase of some unfamiliar and unrecognizable items. I'm hoping whatever they are will augment my bread and cheese diet.
  • Infrastructure: Bad news re the plumbing. You can't flush TP. Shoot. And I have to turn off the hot water heater before I shower... or I might DIE! (Those were really the instructions... :)
  • Picturesque: I have a lovely balcony off my room with these tall doors & shutters. It's very quaint and European.

  • Orange: Orange trees are everywhere! But evidently they're not edible...


My Greek life starts tomorrow. I'll ride the metro to the Nea Zoi office to meet the team, go the staff meeting, and then join the Monday evening outreach to people working on the streets. I'd appreciate prayers for that first outreach....prayers for peace and courage. I should also start my language study soon. Studying with my good "buddy" Rosetta Stone helped me get familiar with the Greek alphabet and sounds...but now I see how important it will be for me to have some basic conversational Greek in my daily interactions with locals.

"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." " 2 Cor 12

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Thanks for the pictures, Holly! Your room does look European. I think that chair-and-table set might have been what made your "Big Mama" suitcase as heavy as it was, though. :)

AJ said...

Love the pics! Looks beautiful!

crystalgoodsell said...

The pics are great! Now I can visualize where you're living. I will continue praying for peace & courage.

Suzanne said...

Agreed! The photos are incredible and give me some peace of mind as to where you're at. Please keep sharing here.