Cloudy, Cold but Colorful Weekend

Here are a few weekend "Kodak moments"-- Janine, from New York state, was a graduate student in chemistry at the Univ. of Tennessee when God put it on her heart to take out 1 year to serve overseas. She's working in Chemnitz, with a team of people starting a church. She told her life story to our college group's Thursday worship, & then stayed to visit until Saturday. She & I took a walk Friday afternoon to the "Landgrafen" hill & up where Napoleon won a famous battle. It's only about a 20-25 minute walk up the huge hill from my apartment & you get a fabulous view of Jena. (Wanna learn more about my city of Jena? Click here!)

Sorry, the photos are dark. Imagine that in parts of northern Europe we get MONTHS of this-- at times combined with precipitation & sometimes just plain overcast! (taken at 3:15 in the afternoon; at 9 a.m. it can be the same!).

Later it was back to my place for coffee time with Lukas. He studies physics & co-leads a Bible study on Tuesdays in a Cafe, Grünowski, with our ministry.

That evening, (after a day of 9 hours on the sofa, of breakfasts & coffees!), Janine, Deanna & I went to eat at an Indian restaurant on the Market Square. By the Taj Mahal's entrance, we wondered if "you have to be this tall to ride this ride" - ha! Deanna wow-ed us with stories about a 3-week trip she had made to India & the Himalayas!

This Saturday morning was a delightful treat of a "breakfast for 2" in Stilbruch Cafe with my good friend, Susanne. She and I attend the same church and she's a judge. After a luxury breakfast of fresh rolls, ham, cheese, a hard-boiled egg, fruit & a Latte coffee -- it was time for grocery shopping (to get MORE food!) & my work-out at the gym (for now obvious reasons).