This week has been such a series of ups and downs. I was very disappointed to have my new bike stolen on Tuesday, after having it for less than a week. It was the equivalent of 1.5 days of work this summer! However, I am very blessed that God has led me to a fabulous church! On Sunday Sarah and I finally made it to St. James American Episcopal Church - the church we'd been meaning to visit since we'd arrived here.
When we walked through the arched green gate, we were greeted with a friendly "good morning!" (In English!) The service had already began, but upon entering, I was amazed! Unlike Birmingham, Alabama, this church was the definition of diversity. There were Americans, Africans, Australians, and British people. The dress was a mix of African, casual, and traditional. The pastor is Australian, but has had parishes all over the world. The church has four or five choirs that they encourage students to get involved in. They also offer Bible studies, international youth dinners, a thrift store, community service, and if that's not enough - they have a English library complete with romance novels!! (Now you know I've found the right church for me! haha!) The service itself was great! After visiting a couple Catholic masses in Italian, we were thirsting for a message in English and the chance to take communion. This service was mainly in English, but also in Italian. The music was gospel, contemporary, and traditional. And we experienced the most interesting baptism. The building itself was of course absolutely stunning - a totally different type of architecture than most Italian churches in Florence (perhaps because it's English style!) After the service, the church provided refreshments. The friendly pastor encouraged me to attend the youth dinner on Wednesday. The only down-side about this church is that it is about a 25-30 min walk from my apartment. On Sunday, that was not a problem - I said "it will be great! I'll just take my bike!" Now, I don't have that option :-(
I did attend the youth dinner and was it amazing! For five Euro, you receive a 4 course meal - complete with wine/water. For anti pasta we had freshly baked bread with a myriad of toppings (salmon spread to blue cheese spread). Then we were served pasta with primodora sauce (HUGE servings). An exciting new (and usually unaffordable!) substance arrived! Meat! Chicken and tomatoes, mashed potatoes, and carrots were the main course. A fabulous bread pudding was served for dessert - absolutely fantastic. And then (when in Rome do as the Romans do!) we lounged with our plush juicy grapes. Before dinner we listened to a speaker speak on keeping a journal - he is a professor from Syracuse's Student Life dept and reminded me of the special professors I love at home - his speech was very interesting. I also met a new friend - Kelley. She is a graduate student at Syracuse - studying art history. She'll be here for the remainder of the semester. I'm so excited to get to know her!
I had planned to go back to church on Sunday (and attend the church garage sale (estate sale really!) but instead I am going to half my Italian class tomorrow and then taking a field trip to the olive groves at Fiesole. When we get back from Fiesole late afternoon, Sarah and I are hopping a train to Milan to stay with her Italian friends! I'm ready for a fun weekend!
When we walked through the arched green gate, we were greeted with a friendly "good morning!" (In English!) The service had already began, but upon entering, I was amazed! Unlike Birmingham, Alabama, this church was the definition of diversity. There were Americans, Africans, Australians, and British people. The dress was a mix of African, casual, and traditional. The pastor is Australian, but has had parishes all over the world. The church has four or five choirs that they encourage students to get involved in. They also offer Bible studies, international youth dinners, a thrift store, community service, and if that's not enough - they have a English library complete with romance novels!! (Now you know I've found the right church for me! haha!) The service itself was great! After visiting a couple Catholic masses in Italian, we were thirsting for a message in English and the chance to take communion. This service was mainly in English, but also in Italian. The music was gospel, contemporary, and traditional. And we experienced the most interesting baptism. The building itself was of course absolutely stunning - a totally different type of architecture than most Italian churches in Florence (perhaps because it's English style!) After the service, the church provided refreshments. The friendly pastor encouraged me to attend the youth dinner on Wednesday. The only down-side about this church is that it is about a 25-30 min walk from my apartment. On Sunday, that was not a problem - I said "it will be great! I'll just take my bike!" Now, I don't have that option :-(
I did attend the youth dinner and was it amazing! For five Euro, you receive a 4 course meal - complete with wine/water. For anti pasta we had freshly baked bread with a myriad of toppings (salmon spread to blue cheese spread). Then we were served pasta with primodora sauce (HUGE servings). An exciting new (and usually unaffordable!) substance arrived! Meat! Chicken and tomatoes, mashed potatoes, and carrots were the main course. A fabulous bread pudding was served for dessert - absolutely fantastic. And then (when in Rome do as the Romans do!) we lounged with our plush juicy grapes. Before dinner we listened to a speaker speak on keeping a journal - he is a professor from Syracuse's Student Life dept and reminded me of the special professors I love at home - his speech was very interesting. I also met a new friend - Kelley. She is a graduate student at Syracuse - studying art history. She'll be here for the remainder of the semester. I'm so excited to get to know her!
I had planned to go back to church on Sunday (and attend the church garage sale (estate sale really!) but instead I am going to half my Italian class tomorrow and then taking a field trip to the olive groves at Fiesole. When we get back from Fiesole late afternoon, Sarah and I are hopping a train to Milan to stay with her Italian friends! I'm ready for a fun weekend!
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