Visa Trouble

I'm in a pickle.

Shall I enlighten you on the situation? Okay. I will.

When I left for France in September the policy was that as long as I left France briefly after a 90 day stay, I would be able to re-enter the country again. So, I didn't get a French visa. However, I found out a few days ago that in mid-October the policy was changed, so that those without visas who stay in France (and other countries within the Schengen region) for up to 90 days must stay out of it for 90 days before re-entering.

I was scheduled to fly back to France today so that I could pack and depart for Senegal with my team on January 2. But since I most likely would have been denied access into France without a visa, I decided I would stay put in England for the time being.

So, Peter (who also does not have a French visa) and I are still in England, staying with Abi's ever so kind family. We're at a bit of a standstill, waiting for the consulates in the States to open on Monday so that we can figure out what on earth we should do! We're looking into the possibility of getting transit visas, although we have no idea if it's possible to obtain those without being in our home states. We are also looking into the possibilty of finding a flight straight from England to Africa. We are also looking into the possibility of joining up with an outreach team in England instead of going to Senegal, should the first two possiblities fall through.

The other issue is that my flight back home to the states in March is out of Marseille, France. And if getting back into France is simply not going to be possible, I will have to pay for another flight home.

So how's that for an update? I've been so aware of all the amazingly good things God has allowed me to do and experience during my travels so far, and I keep thinking, "shall I take God's blessings and not the trials as well?" At this particular moment I am actually really excited for whatever God has. I'm comforted as I remember that he knows the plans he has for me, and that he works all things for the good of those who love him (Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28).

But oh, we have so very much to figure out. So many questions, so many unknowns, so many what ifs. Please pray that God would give Peter, his parents, my parents, and me wisdom as we contact the consulates and try to sort this out. Please pray that I would trust God as he opens and/or closes doors. Thank you! I am grateful to know so many folks are supporting me on this journey.

I'll post again once I have updates!

The Lovely Lyme Park

The day after Christmas Abi, Jamie (Abi's dad), Shea, Sam, Peter, and I went to Lyme Park. 

Lyme Park is a large, 1,300 acre estate just a few miles from Abi's house. The estate is vast, with hills that go on and on. Yet again words and pictures fail to portray how amazing this place actually is.

The ladder in the picture below is known as a stile, which allows people to pass over the wall, but not animals. 

Oh I loved it there. It is hands down one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to. 

Apart from the mansion, which I'll get to soon, the estate has several smaller structures known as the Lantern and the Cage. The Lantern once served as a lookout tower. 

The Cage once served as a hunting lodge.

It may or may not interest you to know that the Lyme Park mansion was used as "Pemberley" (Mr. Darcy's residence) in the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice.

It just so happened that a traveling exhibit with some of the costumes from the film were on display. We shouldn't have been allowed into the exhibit rooms without paying an entrance fee, but for some reason that was overlooked by the park volunteers, and we got a nice sneak peek!

As the English say, it was a "brilliant" day!

Merry Christmas from England!

Avignon

We went to Avignon this past Friday to get vaccinations for Senegal, but we made a day trip out of it, and enjoyed the sites afterwards. It was so fun!

I roamed Avignon with Anna and Sam, because we were all in agreement that H&M would be our first priority (For those of you who are about to Google "H&M", I'll save you some time; it's a clothing store). It was a large, two story one at that!

Our next stop was Le Palais des Papes.

Those two little specks in the lower left corner are Sam and me. The palace is massive!

We climbed several sets of stairs and turned around to realize we were in the perfect location for enjoying the sunset.

My favorite view of the day, however, was the bridge, Pont Saint-Bénezet. Anyone know the song Sur le Pont d'Avignon? The song refers to this very bridge. I love how clearly you can see the reflection of the bridge in the water!

 

Our final stop was the Christmas market, where vendors were selling all sorts of homemade/handcrafted wonderfulness (crepes, candy, hats, scarves, wooden toys, etc). Our time was limited, so I did me some quick window shopping.

Thanks be to God for a wonderful day of sight seeing. J'aime bien Avignon!

JEM Saint Paul Christmas Party

Last night we had a JEM Christmas party. We all dressed up, enjoyed a special meal, and played one of those crazy gift exchange games. I was asked to share some of my personal highlights from the past 12 weeks with everyone, and I thought I’d post a paraphrased excerpt from it here, for posterity (or something like that).

“Over the past twelve weeks God has given me many good gifts, and tonight I’d like to share some of them with you. The first gift: acceptance. I've always been a people pleaser. I've always wanted everyone to like me and accept me. But when you live in close quarters with others, as we do here, it’s pretty much impossible to be accepted and liked by everyone all the time. You're gonna get on peoples nerves at one point or another. Yet, each time I have messed up or sinned against someone, I have been met with forgiveness and love. The love I have experienced here reminds me of the love and acceptance I have in Jesus Christ. Amazing!

The second gift: the Bible. In the past I’ve relied on my parents, pastors and friends for advice when making decisions (big or small). But here, my "advisers" are not around, and I have been forced to turn to God and his word for answers. Because of this, my love for the Bible and my gratefulness to God for giving me his word has only increased!

This is just a sampling of the good gifts God has given me; I could share more! But tonight we’re gathered not only to celebrate gifts from God in our individual lives, but also the gift we have all been given—Jesus Christ—who came to earth to save us!"

After my little speech I read the story of Jesus birth in English, Sophie read it in French, and then we sang Christmas carols. It was a wonderfully festive evening!

Week 11 Festivities

Week 11 was full of good food and memory making! We ended up celebrating Thanksgiving this week instead of last week, because our instructor was from the States, and we thought he'd enjoy sharing an AMURican meal along with us.

We tried to make most of the traditional dishes, however, turkey did not make it onto the menu (it's crazy expensive here for some reason). We had chicken, mashed taters, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole (made by me...you weren't missing out), cranberry sauce, stuffing, pumpkin pie, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, and apple crumble (also made by me...this, I'm happy to say, got rave reviews).

Some of the other students even decorated our dining room to make things feel more festive, but it was oh so strange to celebrate without my family. Thanks to my sister, Cara, I did get a little taste of Thanksgiving at home. She made a video for me with clips of my family members saying "hi" and sending love during their Thanksgiving celebration. Thank you so much, Car!

After the big meal, we watched Les Misérables (the 2012 version). Man, the theme of forgiveness and mercy in that story is absolutely amazing! We've been humming and singing the songs from it almost constantly since then.

Thursday night our instructor took us out on the town. We admired Saint Paul's Christmas charm; it was decked out for Christmas with window murals and lights in the trees. I have pictures, but the quality is so bad that I am too embarrassed to post them! Afterwards we ate dinner at a little place called L'Auberg Inn. I ordered Salade de Chevre Chaud au Miel and a Banana Split, of all things! The salad had warm goat cheese and honey drizzled on top of a bed of greens. It was simple and delicious. Believe it or not, that was my first eating out experience since I've been in France! 

Friday afternoon a group of us went to a Christmas craft market in town and on the way home enjoyed a gorgeous sunset. Just look!

  I love late fall tree silhouettes!

The festivities don't end there, folks! Friday evening my small group—Peter, Shea, Sam, Anna—and I went to Mado's house for fondue. (Mado is one of the JEM Saint Paul staff members who lives in town). To be completely honest, I wasn't really a fan of the cheese. The white wine flavor was a bit too strong for my liking. Even so, I enjoyed the experience and the company.

So there you have it: a full, fun week of new experiences. I have many other things I could share right now, but this post is long enough as it is. Besides, I don't have pictures to hold your interest beyond this point anyway. Until next time!