Weekend Fun!

With the lovely shot clinic beginning Friday afternoon, it was almost like we got a "half-day Friday" to go with our weekend! Even though the weekend is just about half finished right now, I have already done some very great things I would love to share with you.

To begin with, Friday evening I went out with seven other girls, most of who are going to South Asia, and a family to a local Indian Restaurant. I have this strange fascination with Indian food. The idea of eating it is always appealing, but I don't always enjoy the food that much. See, I am not big on spice. Although many Indians say that it is not "hot", but rather "spicy", my tongue generally does not recognize the difference and my eyes begin to water as my mouth is aflame. At the restaurant I ordered Palak Paneer with MILD spice, a spinach and cheese dish which came with Basmati rice, and an order of garlic naan. I have discovered that no matter what, naan is delicious and serves as a good fire extinguisher. The order came and it was FANTASTIC! It was not spicy at all and I enjoyed it very, very much. I tried act like a good, culturally-aware person and once again sat on my left hand so I would use only my right hand to eat. I also, for the most part, disregarded the silverware placed on our table and used my naan to pick up my rice and spinach dish. I was actually quite successful at this and found it easier to tear naan one-handed than the bread I had eaten earlier in the week.

The fellowship with my friends was also fantastic. We were there about two hours. After reading a culture book last week I think I'm beginning to understand why eating at Indian and other east country restaurants often takes a long time. Instead of time-oriented, these people are more event-oriented. So, eating at one of their restaurants is also an event, not a quick meal! This restaurant also has a lunch buffet, so I think my small group here is going to go eat there some Sunday.

When I got back to campus, I heard there was a henna party going on in a neighboring quad. Henna is a temporary tattoo drawing/fainting that is placed on your hand and arm or foot and is popular in South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. It is absolutely beautiful and can be used to represent different things. In fact, many workers in across the world and in South Asia are using henna to teach The Word through stories. One of the j-girls that had just finished her term overseas was here on campus for a debriefing conference and was a henna artist. During her time in South Asia, she learned how to do it and ministered to people using this skill. She put a small design on my hand. It is interesting stuff. It comes out in a thick paste. Then after about an hour the paste dries and flakes off. Dye is left on your skin and stays there for about a week. A picture of my hand is below. (I know Dad, you told me not to draw on my hand or have others draw on it, but this is really cool stuff…It did scare me a bit this morning though when I woke up and looked at my hand, I thought, "What happened to me?!?!")

This morning a couple from my quad and I went to downtown Richmond. We saw the canal that comes off the James River. There is a walk that you can stroll along the canal and view the historical things they have along there. The most interesting thing I saw there was a replica statue of Henry "Box" Brown's Freedom Box. Henry Brown was a slave in Richmond who worked in a tobacco factory and his family was sold away from him. He was desperate to be free, so he (with the help of an abolitionist) shipped him in a wooden box from Richmond to Philadelphia. If any of my former students are reading this, do you remember the book that we read together about him? I climbed into the box and it is a TIGHT fit. I couldn't imagine being turned upside down on my head for several hours. Oh, the desire to be free!




From there we went to the farmer's market. Several vendors had vegetables, clothes, and jewelry. I enjoyed talking with several people there and was able to share my testimony with two different people. Every one turned out to be believers already, which is great. Maybe I offered them some encouragement or something. I know I got encouragement from them!

Now for my favorite part of the trip! My family and I love to visit State Capital Buildings. In fact, it really isn't a vacation unless we visit one! So, with training close to Richmond, I naturally wanted to visit the capital building. This capital building was beautiful on the outside and inside. It has quite the history. It is the original, designed by Thomas Jefferson, and served as the Confederate Capital during the Civil War. Quite amazingly, it was not destroyed at the end of the War. Inside is a room dedicated to the presidents who claim Virginia as their home. Trivia time…How many Presidents are from Virginia??? 6! Can you name them? Leave me a comment if you think you can—NO GOOGLING J! In the capital is also a statue for Robert E. Lee on the exact place where he accepted command of the Confederate Troops. Surrounding the capital are also statues of famous Virginians. Virginia has quite a heritage in American History. I have never been out east before so it is very awing to me to see in person things I have read about for years in the history books.



How are your weekends' going? Comments are welcome! J