Time Flies

Our last weekend in Prague. It's very hard to believe that we have been here for three months. In that time we have been blessed beyond measure. We have traveled throughout this country as well into others, we have met many great people and friends, and we've gained a lot of experience. Plus we got three months together in our first year of marriage to hang out, in another country! It's been truly amazing.

We leave on Thursday, have various flights and will arrive in Ohio on Friday. It will be a long travel experience, and we have an extra challenge because I like pottery, and bought some (and don't want it to break!) We're even hoping to see a teeny bit of New York Thursday night, just a little at least.

Perhaps after the trip I'll be able to answer the profound questions about how life has been altered from being here. Right now, I don't know those answers. I don't know where we'll live, or work, or when we'll know those answers. However, as Bryan mentioned the other day, God works it all out for us. There's no need to be worried. After I let the worry go a little bit, I got an email that was encouraging in the job hunt. It's a company in Nashville, not exactly sure what all I would be doing- but the pay is decent, benefits are available, and the guy who has been emailing me seems fun. If that's not the job, I'll be okay, find something else, keep hunting. Bryan is still hunting.

About a month into the trip I was ready to leave. I was done with the inconveniences, done with not knowing the language, not knowing the culture and customs, done with being here. Yet, being on the brink of return, I realize that the uncomfortable feeling I had was me being challenged. I feel that I took that challenge head-on and did pretty okay.

I can't wait to see everyone, show you things, tell stories, hang out, talk face-to-face. But, I'm going to enjoy the last few days we have here... 'cause who knows, we may never be back. Then again, we may get home, miss it so bad, and hop on the next flight back! Who knows?

-Brittany

Bulgaria

Our tour through Bulgaria, primarily the Rhodope Mountains was quite beautiful if nothing else. The goal of the trip was to help some people from the states come up with a video and other media to help promote their work throughout the mountain region. We traveled all over Bulgaria in an outdated van, but had a great time. The next two weeks here will be spent figuring out what to do with the media we got, such as Bryan making a video. Hopefully it will work out for the best!

Although we had a great time on the trip, I must reemphasize is how we did spend a lot of time in the van. This poor, poor van has been through it a time or two and we did not take it easy. We literally drove up and down mountains the whole time and the van was on the verge of giving up. One time it did over heat, because we had the air on while going up hill! However, this provided amazing photo opportunities of the mountains. We would just see layers and layers of mountains as the drive continued and I can't explain how amazing it was. The last night we were at a great hotel, with an amazing view, including mountains in Greece!

The focus of the trip is working with a Muslim people group. We were able to visit one village which was an interesting experience. Because we were Americans a lot of the ladies were intimidated, the children were shy, and the men were stand-offish. A few of the women who were a little more brave then the rest even approached us asking for money.



The main cash crop of the area is tobacco and they turn the school yard into harvesting area during the summer. They had all types of drying areas set up and were hanging the tobacco from them in the school yard. Most of the people in our group were overly amazed as they had never seen tobacco drying before... Bryan and I however were simply laughing at the fact they had never seen it and were overwhelmed by it. I guess that's part of living in Kentucky.

We also got to visit the mosque and play with some kids who were attending religion class. The teacher had left and they were playing around and tried to entertain us a little bit. They do take English in school and were able to communicate just a little but they were very cute.

We also got to talk to some adults in a different region of Bulgaria. It was very interesting to hear their take on various aspects of life such as religion, family, school, and what is important to them. One thing to keep in mind about this area- they were over taken by the Turks and forced to become Muslim some 500 years ago. They don't know much about their religion, but do follow a little.

They have a lot of fears, but do not mention them out loud. Christians and Muslims live in very close community to each other, but since neither are overly religious, it doesn't seem to have much tension on the outside. However we did find that with different missionaries coming to the area trying to rally the causes the tension is growing. And then there are some areas where it is segregated; either a Muslim or Christian village. This normally stems from animosity and the time when Turks did take over. Many Christian Bulgarians consider the Muslims traders. Therefore, many people are fearful that there will be a crisis as in other countries nearby. On top of those underlying issues, the country was under communism for years, that adds to their skepticism and worry. And now there are a lot of business coming in and capitalizing on their beautiful nature by building ski resorts and hotels causing a water and energy crisis.




So all in all the people we spent the week with are feeling hopeless and overwhelmed, but don't express it often. Hopefully the group we were working with can infiltrate the area and bring a little light into such a dark hopeless place.

Bulgaria was a lot different then the Czech Republic, a little dirtier, people seemed to notice other people (we especially stood out as foreigners), and being in the villages made it feel worlds away from the big city of Prague. But we enjoyed it, ate some great food (lots of shopska salad), got some pottery, and had a great time with the team.



I included a few photos, but as usual, the rest are on our flickr site!

We'll be home in less than two weeks!

-Brittany

Traveling Again...

Tomorrow morning we are leaving for Bulgaria.

Someone asked me what is in Bulgaria.

I said Bulgarians.

We're not sure what to expect on this trip.

This trip will be a different one as we are not working with students. It will also be different because we are attending a "vision trip. This means that the coordinators from the states will be touring around the country strategizing on that they need to do to help expand the ministry opportunities in Bulgaria. Also, another focus will be on how to reach the Bulgarian Muslims which is much different then anything else we have done this summer.

Keep us in your prayers as we travel to once again tackle the video/photo task. I am not sure of internet accessibility on this trip, so there may be little to no updating while we're gone, but we will update when we get back.

On another note, time has flown by and we will be leaving in three weeks to start our return to the states. Can you believe it? We're still having a great time and trying to focus on enjoying the remainder of time we have here while trying to get things prepped for our return home (jobs, apt, etc).

-Brittany

What We've Been Up To...

With so much going on, this post will be an attempt to touch of all of it without boring you to tears!

Olomouc went great. The students seemed to really enjoy themselves and their time in the Czech Republic. We really enjoyed our time with them as well. You don't realize how different it really is here sometimes until you are immersed in a group of people from home. It was a really nice break and a really amazing opportunity to be able to work with the IWC. The kids made films through the week, passed out, flyers, and did sports ministry. We mostly documented it and posted onto the website OlomoucLIVE and got the chance to get to know a lot of the kids. One aspect that was really inspiring was the mere fact that Czechs in general do not feel a need for God. This land of cathedrals is a land without a God and without a desire to know a God. Yet, the kids were persistent, encouraging, and strong in their faith.


Immediately after returning from our Olomouc trip we went back to Cesky Krumlov, this time to go camping. We had some rainy weather, actually a lot of rainy weather, but it wasn't too horrible. We spent Saturday raft/canoeing down the Vtala River. Mostly it was canoeing, or floating but at different places they have "rapids." The main purpose of the rapids is to control the flow and height of the river, however they're pretty fun to go down as well, not intense, but fun.


We've also done a little more touring of Prague itself which is always exciting. The more time we spend here, the less touristy we feel, which is always nice. That also means we have been tending to break out of just going to the main areas when we wander around town. We visited Vysehrad which had an amazing view of the city and in general was simply gorgeous. It was a nice way to relax on the weekend. Also, we've returned to the Charles Bridge and Lennon Wall, two of our favorite spots in Prague.



The last major thing we've done recently was visit Terezin. This is a concentration camp northwest of Prague. This particular camp was operated in WWII, but was not an execution camp (although many died there, and many passed through on their way to an extermination camp). It was a very surreal experience. We stood in many of the barracks and rooms where so many people lived- way too many for the size of the room. It was really humbling, and sad, but educational. It's always hard to realize some of the world's past- but lest we forget. On our way out we met Harold. We overheard him saying something along the lines of him being there in 1945. Once we realized he was not joking, we approached him and talked for awhile. Our first thought was that he was a Jewish prisoner at Terezin. However, we quickly learned he was a German who was thirteen in 1945 and was a part of Hilter's youth. He said that he was forced to be in it, and after the war taken prisoner by the Czechoslovakia government. It was really interesting to talk to him, and hear a different side of the WWII story.


So that's the details of what we've been doing the last little bit. Friday we are leaving for Bulgaria on another media trip. We'll be following around and documenting the work that is going on there, and the vast amount of need that exists in Bulgaria for more missionaries. It seems like it will be a good trip, but possibly a little stressful because a lot of details are still unknown.

Please keep us in your prayers as a lot is going on. We'll be arriving in the states in a few weeks and have started looking and applying for jobs, and also looking for an apartment. We're focused on the Nashville area right now for many reasons, but we do feel that is the right direction for us right now- so continued prayer for guidance would be greatly appreciatated!

Lastly, we will be producing a newsletter of sorts when we get back. We want to disperse it to whomever would like to receive it, but especially those who supported us in anyway. If you would like to receive one please let me know! I prefer to email copies rather then print and mail but am willing to do either. You can note in the comments here, or by emailing me at starlight724@gmail.com

Thank you so much for your continued dedication and supporting us while here. You have no idea how much it means to know we have so many people stateside excited for our opportunity here as well as anxious to have us return. We'll see you all soon!

Olomouc

photo: city center of Olomouc

This will be a quick one just to drop in and let everyone know we're in Olomouc, and things are going great. The students arrived safely on Saturday, and we've been here since Thursday focused on making videos, taking photos, and interacting with some American kids.

The basis of the week is interacting with the local people and the students are also making short films that we will be played for the masses on Thursday. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers and go visit the site we're "working" on this week for more pictures/videos/stories since I won't have time to upload to my personal flickr until we get back! (and thanks for everyone who already has!!)

www.olomouclive.ceemedia.net

Hulk-Tacos

The art of cooking in another country is not one easily obtained. Tonight was a prime example. I've made tacos many times at home and here. This time we went shopping elsewhere then normal and therefore the taco seasoning was not the usual type. This was a burrito seasoning and a "dressing-sauce" to top the taco with they came together but in two seperate packets. Well, since I couldn't read which was which, I guessed... it didn't look quite right, so I added the other one... and they turned out a little.... green. So tonight was Hulk-Taco night!

For an update of our life here... we're halfway through our time here and it's feeling more and more natural to be here, however somethings from home are dearly missed. It's funny how when you go somewhere you expect to miss certain things... and then you end up missing completely different ones. For example, we ate Kraft mac-n-cheese and it was the closest thing to manna from heaven I've had.

And Dr. Pepper is not the same.

Friday we took a small tour of the castle area as well as Petrin Hill. This was indeed a lot of fun. We didn't get to see everything we wanted to because there's so much to do and we went on a Friday which means it was really busy. However the castle was fun seeing part of the Changing of the Guard, and then at Petrin Hill we climbed the observation tower which was a model of the Eiffel Tower, but smaller then Kings Island's. The view atop the 299 steps was amazing and we got a lot of amazing pictures of the whole city! We also got to ride a Funicular which was....fun (haha) which is a tram that is made to go up and down a large hill/mountain. There was also a really pretty rose garden, check out our flickr for more pictures of this.






On another note, Bryan and I saw another side of the city this past weekend as well. We tried to venture out and see the sites less common, my choice, and it was an adventure. We tried to go to a fountain that had a show that went with music, to a giant metronome, and a few other places. We had a hard time finding them, and if we did, it was a bust. The metronome we didn't find, the fountain looked a little nasty and was expensive, and we saw this "carnival" that was the most pitiful thing I've ever seen. We decided the weekend was a bust for site seeing and to stick with what we know, but we had fun at least.

Thursday we leave for over a week. First we'll be in Olomouc working with International World Changers and we'll be doing videos, photos, journals, etc and posting them on this site. So feel free to check it out. After that we'll be going camping for the weekend possibly back to Cesky Krumlov... not sure yet. Actually once we leave this week, I feel the time is going to start going a lot faster. We'll be in Bulgaria July 25-30 possibly going to Terezin July 19, and trying to visit anywhere else in the time before August 14. So we'll be busy the next little bit.

Please feel free to check out the Olomouc website http://olomouclive.ceemedia.net/ while we're there as that's a prime example of a lot of the work we've been doing while here.

Macedonia

So how do you start to explain a life-changing event like my trip to Skopje, Macedonia. It seems that no matter how many times I go over it my head, I can’t not think about the kids. I guess I should start at the begging; I was sent by my company to Macedonia to film a youth group that volunteered a week of their lives to work in a Roma community. Now the Roma are a nomadic people group that are typically scattered in and throughout central and eastern europe. Largely, they keep to themselves and do not associate with “Godjoe” or none Roma. For the past twelve years, Betty, a missionary living in Skopje has been working tirelessly to set up connections, encourage relationships, and tell the Roma about Jesus. Joined after three years by Karen, who has devoted her life to assisting Betty in spreading the love of Christ to these people. With Karen's medical background, she as been able to set up a program to provide limited medical needs for the Roma people. The Roma are impoverished, largely Muslim, and typically unemployed.



Through the missionaries, the Lord was able to open the opportunity for the youth group to come in. Three Fuge staffers gave their time and planned it down to a tee, while I got sent to document it all. What an incredible opportunity for me. I have been working for the past month and a half in one of the regional offices in Prague and it has been difficult for me just being in an office. They planned a sort of day camp for the kids jam-packed with activities, songs, crafts, and general goofiness. This trip was a breath of fresh air, I spent my days filming, playing football (soccer), dodgeball, hacki-sack, and showing kids something they’ve never seen before, a video camera. Most of the kids wore the same clothes every day, some of them didn’t have shoes, and most of them will never go to school. But their hearts are full, and they just wanted to play, hug, and love on us, which was funny because that was what we were all sent there to do for them.




On Thursday, we visited a playground in the Georgie-Patroff area that was surrounded by a recycling plant. Huge stacks of rusted metal, old cars, steel and iron pieces, and glass encircled the playground. By playground, I refer to a basketball court with a ten foot fence around it, situated on the outskirts of a Roma community where 30,000 live in a place designed for 10,000; overshadowed by the construction of a multi-million dollar American embassy complex. It made my stomach churn to see such needs unmet. Truly, I have seen the face of God in the eyes of those children. Because the law in Macedonia prohibits anyone from using religious propaganda of any kind in the country, our ministry was love, it was the first time those kids have gotten to experience anything like that before. What an incredible witness to us and them...



“Praise God to whom all blessings flow...”

-Bryan

Night at the Museum (Not to be associated with the Ben Stiller Flick)

DSC_0097, originally uploaded by **brittany**.

Night at the Museum... more then a movie... it's an experience... at least in Prague! Once a year the city hosts "Night at the Museum" where they open the museums and have events at the museums all for free. This year this fell on June 14, and we went.

Total there were 25 museums open and 51 events going on according to the website, but I feel like there was actually a lot more. We visited the Police Museum, National Gallery, Galerie Rudolfinum, Bridge Tower, and Bryan visited a composers house in passing while I ran back home to get the camera. At one point (National Gallery) we were in Old Town where amongst all the Museum hoppers were the Euro Cup patrons. it wasn't a Czech game, but the screens were up and people were having a celebration. Very busy night for Prague.

Perhaps my favorite part was the Tower Bridge. Bryan had gone up in the tower when he was here before, but that was also in the day time. We were lucky enough to be there on an amazingly clear night and we had the camera. We had to improvise but I feel like we got some amazing pictures.

Every day continues to be a learning experience. This week Bryan is in Macedonia and when I talked to him (briefly) he seemed very excited and to be enjoying himself. He made it there safely, so just continue to keep him in your prayers for the duration of his trip. I should be deciding on the English camp soon, just waiting to see a few things about work before committing.

We did get to talk to some of the family this weekend via Skype which was nice. It's an amazing program, especially if you are living abroad! It's hard to believe we are one-third of the way through our time here. It is getting to be more of a lifestyle and less of a trip, we are adjusting. The duration of our time here I feel will go quite quickly because our calenders are a little busier, especially from now until the end of July. Hopefully I'll be able to keep this updated as well as the pictures, but we will be very busy... I will do my best.

-Brittany

Euro Cup 2008

FILE0019, originally uploaded by **brittany**.

It's always an interesting time when you happen to be in a country during a national event. When I was in Costa Rica I remember watching a soccer game in a local hang out verse Ecuador. It was a big deal. The locals were ready to fight if you were there for Ecuador and not for Costa Rica. Luckily, we were rooting for the right team!

There really is nothing like experiencing the local culture and seeing beyond the historical buildings and touristy culture. We went to the Old Town Square for the second game the Czech Republic played in the Euro Cup. There was a few places in Prague to watch where they had these HUGE big screens set up with people everywhere. The one in Old Town had two screens, booths, sponsors handing freebies out, and lots of people. It was actually different than Costa Rica because I saw a lot of flags for Czech, but also a fair amount of Portugal flags as well. And we did almost see a fight break out, but it wasn't between the two teams, but between two locals... possibly homeless... possibly drunk. We followed the crowd and tried to step away just a little bit.

However entertaining the experience was, we left a little before half time to go to a friends and watch it sitting down, and where we could see just a little better. Czech Republic lost... but they're not out yet. They have a game Saturday and pending if they win or lose they'll continue on (or not).

(The photo shows the screen in front of the Church of our Lady Before Tyn. A prime example of the modernizing being set amongst the local tradition and history.)

Bryan is leaving for Macedonia very early Sunday morning and will return late Friday night. That means I'll be doing the Prague thing without him for a few days. If anyone wants to come visit next week... feel free! I am also still trying to decide on the English Camp. I've been approved to go by work, but still need to decide if I'm really wanting to do it or not.

Be sure to check out our Flickr site, I've added a fair amount of pictures from the zoo, Dresden, and just some other shots from around town!


-Brittany

Getting Adjusted

Sorry it's been awhile for an update. A combination of being busy and being sick is to blame. My allergies have gotten a little out of control which has been irritating. I have been taking medicine, but trying to make what I have last. However, we have been a little busy... I won't bore with all the details, but will go over some highlights!

We ate at an AMAZING italian place called Cicala Trattoria. This place had seriously, the best food I have ever had! It was also amazing to look at the wall of celebrities and see Johnny Depp, Sean Connery, Anthony Hopkins and many, many others. We went with some friends to celebrate one of the girls going back to the states. Very good food, and good times.

We have also been to Dresden, Germany in the last week. It was my first time riding a train! I enjoyed the train ride- traveling through the country side and getting to sit back or get up and walk around, and the trip wasn't too long at all. Dresden itself isn't an overwhelming city. There were a few interesting things to see but the city has been destroyed a few times. One church had caught on fire five times! However the whole city was bombed in 1945 and that turned in to a large fire basically burning down the entire city. One building looked quite historical, however had actually been rebuilt and finished only a few years ago. There were a few things quite amazing in Dresden, one being paintings by Raphael! We actually saw multiple pieces but the highlight of my trip was seeing the Sixtine Madonna. Basically there was a small rope between me and the painting. Seeing a famous piece of art that close, close enough to see the brush strokes and everything was quite impressive.



A trip to the zoo has also happened since the last update. The zoo was quite an adventure. The Prague Zoo flooded a few years ago and they were on the verge of losing a lot of animals. They basically had to do an emergency evacuation, lost a few (mostly birds) but saved the majority of the animals. This also caused them to do a big renovation, therefore the zoo is really nice and really new. The zoo is very child friendly and had a lot of play areas, and a lot of kids. There were a lot of areas for kids to play in the water too; however it seemed a little awkward for Bryan and me to see all the kids playing in the water naked. Some were like one or two years old... and some... were a lot older. It was also fun to watch all the kids peeing in the plant areas- we have actually seen more kids then necessary peeing along the sidewalk, or in a tree planter, or whatever was convient since we have been here but apparently according to the missionaries it's a common way of life here.



Work has been going well. There have been a few setbacks such as equipment Bryan needs not being here, and then when we ordered it there were complications as well... things like that. I have been helping in the office doing photo work, and other general organization. And we've been helping out with children's programs and plays and things along those lines. Everything seems to be falling into place. We're getting used to shopping, traveling, and daily life in a foreign country. It is starting to seem more like a lifestyle, and less like a vacation. Bryan will be leaving next Sunday to go to Macedonia for the entire week. This is going to be challenging for me to be home alone all week, and probably a little adjustment for Bryan to be gone as well. We have spent pretty much the entire time here together!

Today however, I talked to a guy today about helping out at an English Camp. Basically it's for 18-24 year old Czech speakers to come and learn English with Christian English speakers. It's basically your classic church camp... for older people... and also incorporating English speaking classes... which is more so everyone sitting around in small groups talking about whatever the students want to talk about. It seems like a really awesome opportunity. It would be a week up in the mountains, and then after the week is over there is a few days back in Prague doing tours of the city, hanging out, etc to kinda wrap it all up. I'm really excited about it and am in the process of seeing if I can go because of work, and if we can afford it. I do think this will be something that I will do on my own without Bryan going, but I am completely okay with that. It seems to be an experience I can't pass up, so hopefully everything will fall into place for me to be able to go.

All in all things are going well. Adjustments are hard to make sometimes, but we did have our first friends over to the apartment so I guess we are adjusting. All the hectic traveling and graduating and everything else was going on about a month ago. Hard to believe we've been gone that long already. Just keep us in your prayers- the allergy issue may be because of mold... but hopefully not! And also just for us to find more of a place to belong and get involved, and for what to do and where we need to be when we get home! Although we've only been here a few weeks, we've already started to think about the plans for when we get home, which is necessary. We do appreciate hearing from everyone though! Thanks for keeping in touch, it's a great thing for us to hear from friends and family at home!



-Brittany

Yay for birthdays!

Today was a great blessing. Waking up and going into work on your birthday is never fun, but we went ahead and went into work... However once getting there we were told to be gone by lunch and go enjoy the day. So we did. First they got me pastries and brought in oreos- REAL american OREOS! Yum! We worked until lunch and then headed out.

After dropping things at home (and a quick nap) we headed out. We went through Wenceslas Square looking for a lamp-post that is really unique, however we couldn't find it. We eventually stopped looking since we work real close to the area and can always go back. We went on the train up to Namesti Republicki and found an Apple Store, went around and saw the area, and found Bohemia Bagel. That's a great place to eat that is an American-style cafe. This place introduced the bagel to Prague (self-claimed) and also the bottomless beverages. It's a nice break, and they have a menu in english. Awesome. And they serve breakfast all day. Double awesome.



We searched for the Jewish Ghetto and found a complete different part of town. However it was fun. We saw a square which was also in Mission Impossible. (photo below)

Rounded out at the Charles Bridge by accident, and then eventually found the Jewish Ghetto. Although not your typical birthday thing to do, we went ahead and went in. There's a lot of interesting historical items there, such as a few rooms with all the Czech Jews who were killed in the Holocaust's name written on the wall. There's also a section of children's drawings that were done in concentration camps which was really neat to look at, but also very sad. We also visited the Jewish Cemetery which is a small plot of land with hundreds of headstones piled on each other. There are also many unnamed and unmarked bodies buried there as well. It was sad to see how they were treated. All in all a very humbling experience.



After touring the town we headed home, then out to dinner at a place Bryan had gone to before when he was here. This was his favorite place and we had a hard time remembering where it was (thanks Laura!) It was really good and a nice way to end a great day.

So yes, my birthday in Prague was a little different, but good all the same. Thanks for all the birthday love!

-Brittany

Cesky Krumlov & Charles Bridge

(pronounced Chesky Krumlov)



Roadtrips are always entertaining and this one proved to be nothing less. We left here quite early Saturday morning (us being Bryan, Natalie, Sharon, and myself) headed off to Cesky Krumlov. As we arrived at the office to get in the car we found Natalie driving a stick shift for relatively the first time. She had driven before but driving in the city of Prague is a different experience than anywhere else. And she's also only driven the van, so the following problem makes a little more sense: she couldn't get the car into reverse. So as we enter the parking garage we find the car diagonally parked in the middle of a three point turn, stuck. So naturally I filmed it while Bryan pushed the car. It was a good start.

So we make it Cesky Krumlov which is the second most visited city in the Czech as well as home to the second biggest castle, and one of two Baroque style theaters in the world still in existence. It was a really nice city and I would suggest googling it actually. Parts of Hostel and The Illusionist were also filmed there. The city also has a river that snakes around the city center, almost like a natural fortress. It was really awesome to watch the kayakers going around the city and even watching some wipe out when going over this small dip in the river. Entertaining.

We parked right next to the castle and then walked under a wall of the castle to get in. It was different. Although it was a castle... it didn't look anything like Cinderella's in Disney. There was one section, the tower that looked like your typical castle but the rest was mostly a serious of buildings with corridors and courtyards along the way. The castle did have a moat of sorts. However instead of the typical alligator moat you think of, this one had bears. And there were actually bears in there wondering about.



The castle had a lot of neat architecture and corridors and things that we couldn't really see but from what we did it was amazing. One interesting this is all the detail inside buildings and outside is all fresco, meaning it's painted on. They have a theater, for performing arts there that is from the Baroque period. We do not have any pictures because we were not allowed to take any, and the lighting in there was horrible. But it was really neat. This building also had the fresco paintings so everything looks 3D but it's really painted that way on a flat surface. Kinda awesome. This theater is only used three times a year since it is so old, and only one of those times is open to public. it's very small inside as well so not many people would be able to sit in there anyway. We also got to see under the stage and all the machines they used to move things on the stage during performances, etc. And they had the wind machine, rain machine, and thunder board they used to imitate storms for plays. The bad thing was they only had German tours offered that day so we joined with one so we could at least see it. Good thing was Bryan studied this theater in school (which was one reason we wanted to see it so bad) and since he studied it, he knew a lot so it wasn't a waste since everyone else in the room spoke German.



We also climbed the castle tower and saw the overview of the city, which was too beautiful. We went to town square, saw old buildings with all their historical significance, went into the old church, souvenir shops, local shops, and a basic walking tour through the whole town. One food they have here which is amazing is a "turdlo". I called it a turd-load all day because I didn't understand what was being said. Classy. It's dough baked on a cylinder and once it's done they pull it off so it's a cylinder, empty in the middle and roll in cinnamon or sugar. Delicious!



Then we tacked a hike (the tour book called easy, I would disagree) called the Stations of the Cross. It was up a hill with the stages of Jesus' death along the way. I believe at one time the the markers (which were large) had paintings of each station on them, however now are mostly gone. These lead up to the Chapel on the Hill/Mountain which overlooks the entire city and has amazing, amazing views. it's a difficult hike, but would be great for anyone able to make it!

It was a great visit and being able to see another town, or even countryside and life outside the big life of Prague was nice.

Today we went over to the Charles Bridge. Bryan went before and saw the excitement but I was eager to go as well. And since it was nice all weekend (hallelujah) we went. Charles Bridge is going from City Center over to the Castle. It's really pretty and the castle sits right on the other side. The bridge is a walking bridge only and is often lined with tourists since it's one of the most popular tourist areas. Therefore the local artists, musicians, and street performers set up there as well. There are mostly jewelry stands and then artists. They sell a lot of pictures or paintings of the Prague scenery. As well as some caricatures and then you have the musicians. it's a very fun place to go, and you actually hear mostly English while there (it's nice!) I got a necklace that I just love from there today and there were plenty of other things I would like as a souvenir as well!

For those who have seen Mission Impossible that first part was filmed in Prague. (I hadn't seen it until tonight when we watched it so i could see all the parts filmed in Prague!) **Spoiler Alert** This movie came out mid-90's but if you just haven't gotten around to watching it... I may ruin something with my next few sentences! The "embassy" in the beginning of the movie (which I think is just some performance building or something) is right by the bridge and I saw that tonight & the bridge Jim falls off of when "he's shot" is the Charles Bridge! It's a true story.



All in all, great weekend. We traveled, saw some great things, grocery shopped, cleaned the kitchen, and did laundry. All with the sun shining brightly outside. Can't beat that!




-Brittany

Cinema City

Tonight I had my first movie experience in Prague. Bryan went a few times when he was here last time however I was new to the game. Luckily Bryan had experienced movie-watching here so we did go into it knowing there were assigned seats. So I went online to see the movie time and seat choices. I had been on there the other day and struggled a bit since I don't read Czech, but today I noticed the nice option on the tippy-top corner of the web-page for viewing the site in English. It helped a little. So I went on there, found the time, looked at the seats, and reserved them online. How awesome is that? You can also pay, but if you don't want to pay first you're only requirement to guarantee your seats is to arrive 30 minutes before the movie starts. If you're late... they give those seats to whomever wants them and you're stuck with whatever is left. It's a good process I feel.

So we ordered online, picked the tickets up quite early, wondered around the mall and ate dinner. There's a restaurant in the mall you should avoid at all costs if ever in Prague. It's called Panda Fast Food instead of Panda Express. Sunday some of the girls from church said the workers were rude. More or less the workers scoffed at their Czech-speaking attempt. Tonight they did the same to Bryan. It was also rude. So we ate at KFC.

The movie was good, pretty crowded. Since there are assigned seats there are areas of the theater that are super crowded and others that are completely empty. Theoretically I guess you could move if you wanted, but our seats were really good so we did not. However everyone was cranky since the rows are so crowded and with people coming and going you have no choice but to get up and push your seat up anytime someone goes in or out. Not a huge deal, but the surrounding folks did not agree.

All in all it was a good experience. Movie was filmed in English so it played in English with Czech sub-titles which are a little distracting but Harrison Ford's action hero poses kept me entertained enough to eventually ignore them.

Tomorrow is Cesky Krumlov. Excited? You betcha!

-Brittany

You haven't lived until you see Hungarian folkloric dance.

The rain has been a bit of a downer on the mood around Prague lately. It's really hard to get excited about being up early in the morning when the rain just beckons you to stay warm in bed. And Bryan and I aren't the only ones feeling this. However today was a little nicer in the sense that it was gloomy and did sprinkle a little but, but that was about the extent. A nice break. Typically it works out that it rains in the morning.... and starts again about an hour before work is over. Go figure. But the weather eventually will improve I'm told and we'll be able to get around the city a little better. Cold rain and cold weather equal sickness which is one thing we are trying to avoid while here.

With that said.... we've spent the last few days more or less in the apartment. We ventured out to the Tesco which is similiar to the Wal-mart. However it's in a mall type setting. Somewhat similar to Forest Fair Mall (for all you Cincinnatians) minus the ferris wheel. There seemed to be a lot of interesting stores but we opted to just grocery shop the first time and then go back on a rainy day (which I'm sure we'll have more of) and explore the rest. But the Tesco... the bottom floor is food and then you go upstairs. How do you get upstairs when grocery carts are involved? Just imagine a moving ramp... like an escalator minus the steps. It was pretty entertaining. Upstairs is clothes, toiletries, and just about everything else in the world. It's a nice shopping option. However one tip for shopping abroad. Even if you are going to a country with a tremendously difficult and different language... say the Czech Republic at least think about writing out major grocery items in that language so you don't have to rely on guessing. Just some advice. Luckily for us we made mostly good guesses. However we were looking at this beef and thinking it looked really fatty. Come to find out some of their "ground beef" has pork mixed in too. So if it looks a fatty... it may just be pork... no worries..

Tonight we went to One World which was hosted by some students at the university that attend the International Church. Not only was it quite informational, it was super entertaining. Between the dancing, singing, and food we had a grand old time. Not only did we hear some awesome songs... we got the privilege to see a Hungarian guy whose passion was folkloric dance.. of the Hungarian variety. He did two dances. They looked a little unintentional at first, but I learned quickly it is an art. And then he got the props involved. Overwhelmingly impressed. It was also hilarious when the speaker was talking about differences between countries and went on and on about different things that varied. Then he went on about what was the same... one was how everyone hates America. It was meant as a joke... and we all chuckled a bit too. Well afterwards we were talking to him and he then realized that our whole row was American. And he felt so horrible. That too was entertaining. But really it was a great night and a good time to hang out with new people from all over (but that we actually could speak with!)

Friday is Indiana Jones Night. We're going to go see it. We've thought about the last two days, but opted to make it a Friday night thing. Then Saturday we are going with some friends to Cesky Krumlov. Not 100% sure what is there but we're excited to find out. We're also going to hopefully be seeing some other places... possibly even some of the areas the Chronicles of Narnia were filmed.

Things in the office are getting a little more routine as well. As we get adjusted to being here, they too are getting adjusted to just being here which makes the workflow and teamwork come along a little nicer. Although we haven't gotten too deep into any projects while waiting for equipment (more so Bryan than me) we've gotten used to the idea which is the first step. We have got some work done, but it's all in phases especially when dealing with media in which the final project was created by many people.

And one more thing... one local place sells Dr. Pepper. It's by our friend's apartment. They're bringing me a 2-liter tomorrow...and I couldn't be happier.

-Brittany

Reasons It's Different In Prague

DSC_0018, originally uploaded by **brittany**.

1. It rains a lot

2. You have to walk everywhere (like get up, get ready, and walk 25 minutes to get to work.... seriously.)

3. If you don't buy food from a restaurant you have to pay 5kc, which is about 33 cents to use the restroom. But have no fear, you get a receipt and if you then choose to buy food you get 5kc off your food purchase. It all works out I guess.

4. There's never ice in your beverages, which is good since you don't typically drink the water from here, you would want to know where your ice came from and in public that's not usually possible.

5. If you order water you'll get "water with gas" ie mineral water, or soda water.

6. You get much smaller portions. A "value meal" has a small fry and drink with the sandwich and is typically a little more expensive then at home (but cooking at home is less expensive then home... it evens out)

7. Condiments are not free! You want ketchup, fork up 5kc (33 cents). Good news is the packets are not as small as home, one packet here is about two from home.

8. You don't smile at people on the street, or really make eye contact. Not different from all parts of the US, but a lot different then the KY.

9. Everything is recycled, even in McDonald's! And don't go to the store without bringing bags or you may end up with an armful of veggies for the walk home.

With all that said. We had McDonald's yesterday. Bryan was looking for the dollar menu, which does not exist. Quite entertaining. It's just easiest to order the "Menu" with is equivalent to our value meal. This particular McDonald's was in the square which is a high tourist area, therefore they spoke a bit of English. (which you learn to be grateful for quickly). We ordered our food and hunted down a seat... which was almost impossible. We were sitting by the restroom and seriously in about a 5 minute span that McDonald's made at least 5-10 dollars on the bathroom alone! And yes, there is a bathroom attendant who stands outside with a cash register. Crazy! However the bathrooms were lit by a black-light so maybe that's worth the money.

Also, we had the most "American" version of food since we've been here. It has to be because we were in the square. We had a medium fry and medium drink (WITH ICE) and they gave us each a ketchup packet complimentary. It was a nice little touch of home.

Watching us try and find a place to put the garbage was entertaining. There wasn't just a garbage can or anything. There is a small tower where you have room to put like 10 trays. You put the tray there and someone takes it and presumably sorts the garbage. A lot different.

-Brittany

Zombie Hamsters in Austin

FILE0075
Originally uploaded by **brittany**

It seems to rain quite a bit here. Last night on the way home, and once again this morning on the way to church. Just your average torrential downpour. We did go to the English-speaking Church today which was a little different than what we're used to, but it was good. There were lots of countries represented and somehow we embodied KFC and the Kentucky Derby for the church- Go Kentucky.

Afterwards we all trekked down to the local mall food court for lunch. Prague isn't much different than America I guess. It was nice since we haven't really done the group-lunch-after-church-thing in awhile, although that's kinda what I am used to. We are really grateful to be automatically included into everything even though we've only been here a few days.

This morning at church we met some new girls who have been here for awhile. They teach English and will live here until July. It was nice talking to someone new and hearing about their experience since it's different than everyone else's we've met so far. They were also telling us of their unique experience yesterday. They were walking in Old Town and looked up and saw a zombie. Random, but nothing to be concerned with... until there were lots of zombies. Zombie brides, nurses, you name it- pretty much having a parade. Well, actually having a parade. Apparently it was Zombie Day. Who knew?

Also, GI Joe is being filmed here... we may just have to hunt that one down too.

Made our first meal tonight. The spaghetti sauce was different. We couldn't read the name/flavor, so we just went with it. It was a little...well a lot too onion-flavored for our liking. Almost tasted like Mexican-Italian, if that exists. However the pasta and homemade garlic bread was great. We're waiting for the brownies to get out of the oven for our dessert!

All in all, good first weekend, work starts tomorrow! Should be a new experience as well. I will be going to the office everyday which we were not aware of at first. It should be entertaining since Bryan will be doing lots of technical work and tomorrow my job is making name-tags. Basically I'm helping where ever needed... and that job right now is name tags, so that's what I'm doing!

Last thing to accomplish before the weekend ends.... which is in about an hour here... is to try and get on a decent sleep pattern, we aren't doing too well with that. It's not that we're going on the time from home, no we're still going to bed at the normal time we would, which means it's just really late here.... and having to get up early doesn't work so well.... but we'll adjust soon...I hope!


-Brittany

Praha

We made it here! It was a long journey, but we are here in Prague safe and sound.

We left home Monday morning quite early and drove up to my aunt’s house a few miles north of Albany, NY. We spent the first full day there, Tuesday up at Lake George and surrounding areas. It was nice and had some great views of the Adirondack foothills. Wednesday we went through Albany to see the governor's mansion, capital, and tulip festival which was nice. Then we headed down to Jersey where we had good Chinese food, caught our car (which was running late and had Nana a little scared), and headed to JFK. The driver was less then personable so we really didn't know what we were passing, but noticed a few landmarks from the car through fog.





We had to wait to check-in like an hour, but after that it only took like 20 minutes to go through security and be at our gate. Everything took off well, despite being a little tight squeeze on the plane. By the way, British Airways keeps you well fed! They served us different kinds of food constantly- snacks, dinner, breakfast, you name it! We had some delay on the landing, then the runway, then the leaving of the plane. Apparently a plane not to long before us landed and the tires exploded. That put the airport down to one runway for arrivals and departures, and basically set everything back… in total we were about 3 hours late getting into Prague. The nice thing from London to Prague was we were in the exit aisle and although there were three seats, no one else was in our row.

As far as our apartment goes, it’s amazing. We’ve got so much room, more then we really need. The family that lives here left us a book full of instructions on how to use everything like our German designed washer and dryer. German is another language I don’t speak (I’m adding to that list daily here!) The inside of the apartment is great, but one super-different thing is how you get into a building. Every building has an outside door for added security, cool right? Well ours is uber-creepy. It opens on its own once you turn the key. It moves and creaks very slowly, and has an “eye” that if you get in front of the sensor it will stop moving. It’s not too disturbing now, but the first night- I went outside, the creaking door, spot lights coming on, men laughing in another language; most intimidating thing ever! But we’re good now.

Our first full day in the city was great, we slept. Once we did get up we headed towards town which means a decent walk until we get bus passes, and on this particular day a decent walk in the rain. We ate at KFC, which was amazing because first it was good, second because one of the meal options was the “Kentucky Menu” which was of course the fried chicken option. The guy working knew we were not Czech just about as soon as Bryan started talking. It was quite entertaining. Few differences; no ice included in beverages and condiments you have to pay extra for. Pretty much made my day. We also went to the office, found out I’ll actually be working in the office more then we thought, more like everyday, so at least I’ll have something to do! We also are going to Bulgaria, and Bryan will be going to Macedonia (jealous!) Otherwise nothing too much is set in stone.

We got the chance to hang out with some people remotely our age from the office last night, which was really nice. One couple lives really close to us. And tonight we were thrown a surprise party. I’m still not sure why they are calling it a surprise since that was about the first thing we were told about when we got here. But it was good. We actually ended up on that side of town after just walking around all afternoon and just went to their house. Then on the way home, we were rained upon intensely. But we made it home without really looking at the map. Bryan was grateful I was navigating (at least I think so).

We’ve seen a lot of the city, it’s beautiful. We will get the chance to get out more soon. We’ve got to go grocery shopping soon too! There’s local small places, but the bigger stores, Tesco (British chain, like a Wal-mart, has a lot more) are a little farther way, so we haven’t made it there yet. And just for anyone concerned, there is not only an Ikea in this town, there are two! Amazing!

In other news, Bryan broke a sconce the second night we were here. The apartment is an attic therefore there is slanted ceilings on one side of the house... well Bryan stood up and above the couch is a lamp, well his big head, or shoulder, or neck, or whatever it was busted it up. I was laying in bed and groaned aloud when I heard the crash. So now on our things to do will be to replace that.

That's about it so far, we'll keep ya updated. Be sure to check out our flickr account for more photos (it seems to take forever to upload on here!) http://www.flickr.com/photos/britspit/




-Brittany

Last Night Stateside

In a little less than 24 hours we will be on the plane on the way to Prague, with a brief stop in London for some fish and chips (for Bryan). It's been an eventful last week to say the least. Bryan finished school and graduated Saturday. We packed, moved, cleaned, spent time with friends and family, and came to New York, where we currently are.

It's been a bittersweet week. Between all the next steps forward, Bryan's Grandma-ma passed away. This has hit very hard since he was quite close to her, however had been watching her suffer for sometime now. The family had the funeral today, however we had to continue on with our travel plans to ensure we get to Prague on time. His family understands this, and it is what she would have wanted, but it's still been a hard day.

We appreciate everything everyone has done so far. Please continue to stay in touch as we want to hear from everyone while we're gone. We're flying out tomorrow!! That so much for all the prayers and support.

-Brittany

Two Weeks and Counting...

The latest update... We have two weeks from today (almost to the hour exactly) before we board the plane in NYC! Thanks to everyone so far for helping, encouraging, and loving as we have been on this journey. Bryan is almost finished with school, just a few more tests left. I am done with work and have started on the packing process. Oh, and what a process it is! Moving is always a joy, but I feel like between Bryan and myself one of us was almost always moving in the last two years, so I'm ready to get into a place a little more long term. But for now... boxes and furniture into storage!

Otherwise, everything is going quite well. No stress yet, just a lot to accomplish. It has seemed so far that we had so much to do, but it all must wait until the last minute. Well, we're getting into the last minutes... and finally able to move forward with the PRAGUE process! Keep us in mind! Feel free to call and say hey. We leave out May 14!

-Brittany

Update

Right now we're in a point of waiting, which me being impatient, has been a challenge. I know we're leaving, I know when we're leaving, so... I'm ready to leave. But, we still have a decent amount of time. So as an update, I'll share the "to-do list" as of now:

1. Finish work
2. Bryan graduate
3. See friends and family
4. Pack
5. Get greyhound tickets & storage unit
6. Move out of the apartment
(and probably about 37 other things I can't think of right now....)

Everything is going really well we're waiting and learning how to prepare. We know this is going to be a tough time, but we're just trying to prepare the as much as possible. We got an email from the family whose apartment we'll be living in. They seem to be very nice. She has a blog with pictures and stories and it was really nice to read a little from her point of view and see some pictures. There's a few photos of what the outside of the apartment looks like- very nice.... and the view from the apartment- breathtaking. I just can't believe I'll be in Prague, and literally be able to look out the window (the apartment is on the top floor- like fourth or fifth) and look over the whole city! It's basically getting to the point that we're super excited!

Thanks for all the support so far. We really want to keep in touch with everyone while we're gone. We talked to the cell phone company, and that's just not an option aside from emergencies but we really want to get together an email list as well as continuing to post on here. If you want to receive emails, please email me at starlight724@gmail.com and let me know you want to be added to the list!

-Brittany

We're on our way!

So we officially bought our tickets this week! I just had an inkling to check the web before I headed to work, and the prices were lower then we had seen in awhile. So I called Bryan, told him, and we rushed to get everything in order to purchase... and we did. So the official itinerary is departing out of JFK on May 14 at 10:30pm and returning into JFK on August 14 at 8:35pm with both ways having a 4-5 hour layover in London. We are flying in and out of New York because it was A LOT less expensive... so my Nana is taking us up there and we're Greyhound-ing it back!

-Brittany

Support Letter

Greetings from the Spitlers! We just wanted to drop a quick note letting everyone know the amazing things going on in our lives since we got married in October.

Brittany- I quit my job at Camp Kentahten, which sounds scary but was actually a great move. I wasn’t ready to commit to another summer of camp, wanting to spend that time with Bryan. I was actually without a job for awhile, but was then given the opportunity to work for a new company as a phone travel agent for Orbitz and Cheaptickets. It’s been a lot of fun and a great way to learn more about travel.

Bryan is in the process of finishing his last semester so he can graduate in May. He also is working for Orbtiz and Cheaptickets, which is a great job for him as well. Bryan is in the process of keeping up with school, work, and Spin 4.

Last March, Bryan went to Prague, Czech Republic through the communications department at Campbellsville University. While there he worked on video projects for the International Mission Board with the un-reached people group known as the Roma. This is a “gypsy” group found in areas of Europe, India, and Egypt. While in Prague, Bryan was offered an internship that would be in the form of a mission trip with a three-month commitment.

After a lot of prayer, thought, and consideration Bryan and I have decided to take the adventure of moving to Europe for the summer and seeing what we can do to help this small band of missionaries reach their country. Bryan will primarily be doing video work in the field and communicating with the Roma people. Brittany will be helping out where needed, but mostly with the women and children. She may also teach some basic Spanish classes.

We both are quite excited for this opportunity since mission work has been something large on our hearts for quite some time. We have been on many mission trips, even one together, however this time will be much longer and a more intense situation. Czech Republic in general has a lot of religious oppression and high levels of atheism. This will be a large obstacle to overcome.

On top of the life change we’ve experienced in getting married, we are now willing to take a large step. There is an opportunity in more of a long-term opportunity after the three month period. At this point, we are just taking the first step and then seeing where God will lead us once those three months are over; whether that’s into missions, back home to Cincinnati, or to a new city and adventure. We both would like to get into work associated with our schooling degrees, perhaps even onto master’s degrees, however are open to what God would have us do in this time of our life and marriage.

We are asking for support. In the form of guidance, prayer, advice, or any donations to cover getting and living in Prague since we cannot work over there. The housing has been provided already which is such a blessing, but we still need money to live off of as well as to help us get to Prague. Our hopes and the plan God has helped us devise to have anyone who would commit to helping monthly while we are gone as well as any one time donations to help. God has placed you in our lives and we’ll appreciate any help that is offered. Everyone has been such a support in past mission trips, school, and our recent marriage and for that we are ever grateful. If you are unable to financially assist, we just ask for any encouraging words and support you have to offer. This is going to be a new and challenging experience and we’re open to any suggestions for living internationally!

Thank you in advance for the support. Thank you for continuing to be a constant support in our lives, as individuals and now as a couple. We appreciate all your help and wisdom and assistance in following the opportunity God has opened for us.

Love and Prayers,
Brittany & Bryan

Decision 2008

A new blog, a new day, and a new page in our wonderful book of life together.  We're planning on leaving for Prague in May 2008 and have created this blog to hopefully keep everyone updated while we're planning as well as while we're gone.  For those of you who don't know... Bryan was offered an internship in Prague, Czech Republic and we have decided to move forward with that opportunity this summer.  Although I know few details, I will keep things posted as we go along.  Get excited!

-Brittany