Road Trip!

Hey Everyone!

I have had an amazing past three days! My sister and her husband, my mom, my sister and I went on a road trip all through Northern Cape Breton. It is so beautiful here, and there is so much to explore. It might also help that we had beautiful, clear weather (which doesn't happen often!) I now have an huge appreciation and a LITTLE bit of understanding of the culture of Cape Breton. It is so unique, being part of Nova Scotia but separated because it's an island... It is famous for all oceany things, including amazingly long beaches, lobster and fishing, beautiful long hiking trails with ocean views, and oceany crafts- like jewellery made from sea glass. Cape Breton is famous for it's own style of music (lots of improvised fiddling and piano playing), and much of the culture here has developed from the Scots, who first settled here. In the past few days, I did things like....

1) Tried my first sea fresh lobster (Good.... but a little expensive for the amount of meat on it!)
2) Swam and played in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean!
3) Watched a sunrise where John Cabot first landed (One the first European encounters of North America, taking place in 1497!)
4) Bent over for several hours trying to find the best sea glass on the beach
5) Hiked the Skyline trail, taking us a long a ridge overlooking the ocean the whole time
6) Heard live Cape Breton music in an pub
7) Spent many hours with my wonderful (can't have enough of them even after hours in a car together) family!

Pictures!

                                                            Our dip in the ocean!

                                                         At the top of the skyline trail.

                     At the top of the Skyline trail, looking down on the 'Cabot Trail" (the highway)

                                                        Searching for beach glass...

                                                              Beautiful Cape Breton


I am in Cape Breton until Monday morning, and then I fly out of Halifax (at 11:30pm!) to London, and on to Vienna to see my grandparents for a week. After that I am headed to Innsbruck to get settled into school, where I will be for the next 5 1/2 months! Until then, I will continue to explore Cape Breton!

I'll keep y'all updated as things happen!
God bless,
Christi

Cape Breton, Nova Scotia

Hi everyone

Whoever is reading this... welcome to my blog!
Just to let y'all know, I have had it for a while, but I've never been good at writing or keeping it updated. I also always thought, "Why write if no one is going to read it?". But now that I am giving this link to several people, I have incentive to write. Not to mention the fact that I'm away from Kamloops for 6 months and it's a great way to keep everyone updated!
As well... It is a weird thing for me to type, and then think about people who are reading this. Especially because when I finally get my thoughts typed down (or on paper), I look back only to find that my thoughts wander, a lot! Putting thoughts down in hard copy form is a really great outlet for my emotions and a way of organizing the many things I 'over-think'. So, this blog usually tends to get deep quite quickly.
Ok, that was a pre-cautionary warning.
Anyways...

I am now in Nova Scotia with my sister Alex and her husband Tim! I am very happy to be here! On my way to Austria, I decided to see if it would work to stop for 9 days in the East Coast. The one-way flight ended up being very cheap, and I am here visiting my family- praise the Lord! My sister and brother-in-law moved here last February and have come to Kamloops twice already, but I had not been out to visit them. They are also unsure right now if the move will be permanent or temporary, so this could possibly be the only chance to come over!
We arrived yesterday during the day, after a 14 hour travel time right through the night. We all made it safely and on time, but it was exhausting skipping a night of sleep! We arrived in Nova Scotia at noon so still had the whole day to be 'awake' for- but relaxed and enjoyed the company of family!
After 12 hours of sleep during the night, this morning we got to go to church. It is a very small church but the congregation is so connected! The church family is amazing, and the service was very good. I would just ask for prayer for the church because it is going through some trying times and facing some very tough issues. The church is small, but it  provided support to so many people and it would be devastating to see it go- if it came to that. Please pray for God to work here.
Other than that, we had a very good first two days in Nova Scotia, and I'm looking forward to the next 3, in which we'll be travelling and exploring the scenic Cabot Trail. Look it up!

I will probably write again after the trip, so have a good start to the week! I will be praying for all back home!

Christi

A New Season

It looks and feels like a new season is setting in! Life over the past month has been really great, but crazy and stressful as well! At the beginning of August I had my relatives from Austria come to Canada for two whole weeks! It was wonderful! With 10+ days of NO work for me, we toured the Candian Rocky Mountains, went white water rafting and then came home and left again for a quick trip to the hot springs in Nakusp! It was a really great time, but since after the family left, it seems that I have been running and haven't stopped for a breath since.
With the moving of my family, and the house that is hopefully selling soon,  I have started to pack everything in this house. I have been throwing a lot of way, and we have a very large "donate" pile! It is great to get rid of so much stuff!
And...
I am going to Austria on Friday (sept 14th!) So not only am I packing the house, but having to sort my belongings into a pile for the six months that I will be gone! Why am I going to Austria?
Well, I applied and got accept to doing the Study Abroad program through Thompson River's University. So I have the oppurtunity to go to Austria for the next 6 months (one semester) to study social work! It is a wonderful oppurtunity, but with everything that is going on, I am stressing.
As I tend to do a lot, I worry about everything that needs to get done, whether or not it will get done, and when I have time to do it all!
So, with 4 days left until I leave, I am balancing seeing people, packing, and getting everything else done!

But I know that it will all get done, because it always done when we put our trust in God. Suddenly the seemingly important things fade into the background!

Talk to y'all soon I'm sure!
Christi