As this week comes to a conclusion we are amazed at how fast time seems to fly by; however, we are also coming to the realization of just how long eight months is. We have begun to settle into our apartment and we are making it feel like home. We are learning to make Bulgarian meals and we are excited to make them on our own. Last Wednesday we went to a lady from the Church’s house. Her name is Yanka and she taught us how to make Banitsa. Banitsa can be made with many different things. She showed us the simplest form which is made with just eggs and cheese. We are going to make a recipe book that is filled with only Bulgarian recipes we learned from a Bulgarian! It was a great experience to sit in a room with someone who doesn’t even speak the same language and her teach you a delicious dish! She is such a sweet lady and we are so grateful for her willingness to teach us.
The next morning we were boarding a bus at 4 am to go to Sofia for Thanksgiving! We were invited by Doug and Jen Mann (Missionaries to Bulgaria!) to celebrate Thanksgiving with them at their home. Jessica picked us up at the bus station and then took us to get breakfast at none other than…. DUNKIN DONUTS!!! I was super excited! That morning I had told Joshua that I would love a donut from Dunkin Donuts and who knew there would be one in Bulgaria! After breakfast we went and discovered the world of IKEA! We didn’t have any kitchen utensils or pots and pans and therefore needed to do a little shopping and Jessica was certain that we would want to do this at IKEA! And she was very much correct!! It amazed me how much we bought for how little amount of money. After our shopping adventure we went onto the Mann House to help prepare the meal! Many people came including Jessica and our new friend Gillian who is from Ireland! It was great because Doug’s mom and dad flew in for the holiday and for the youngest son James’s first birthday which was the following week! We ate a turkey, baked mashed potatoes, (which were the best mashed potatoes I have ever had… WAY TO GO DOUG!!) Green bean casserole, broccoli casserole, spinach salad, pumpkin and apple pie! We also had an amazingly made cheese ball! We later found out that 7 Americans, 2 Bulgarians, 1 Irish, 2 Brits, 1 Peruvian, and a Kosovar were all celebrating Thanksgiving together! We called it the “Misplaced Peoples Thanksgiving Dinner”! It was very much different than being with family but it was such a great time spent with friends! As Joshua and I concluded celebrating our first Thanksgiving together, after being married, we both agree that we will never forget that day! Thank you Manns for making it a wonderful day!
Friday morning we went to the city center of Sofia and went to the “Yellow Brick Road”. Since Sofia is the capital city we were able to see the parliament and the King’s quarters. We were at the parliament at the perfect time to see the changing of the guard ceremony. It was a neat thing to watch. The guards were definitely not as stiff as all of the pictures look… Maybe it was just the one guard that kept moving! I think he had a problem with standing still! After walking around the city center we met up with a couple named Sylvia and Illco. We met them the night before at Thanksgiving dinner. They came in after dinner was over because they had a doctor’s appointment to go to before dinner. They are actually from Razgrad and so Friday they were very gracious and drove us back to Razgrad. We made it back in time to go to the city prayer meeting. It was a neat experience to hear many people praying in a different language other than my own. It was neat because of all of the different denominations and the different ways the people prayed. God’s love was all over the people in that room!
Saturday we went with all of the teens to Pyce (pronounced: Ruse) for a teen worship service. Different churches prepared songs to play and sing during the service and everyone took turns singing and playing for the congregation. We were there from 9:30-4:30. I will admit it was an amazing day but it was hard to stay in a spirit of worship when you can’t understand the skits and some of the songs that were being sung. God has really helped with giving all of us patience with learning to be listeners and to simply remain in a state of prayer and worship even when we are frustrated with not knowing what is being said. We left the church and walked downtown for about an hour then came back to Razgrad. We rode back to Razgrad in the train car with Pastor Nikolay and Yanita. It was a great time of talking and listening to Pastor Nikolay talk about Bulgaria and the way it came to be. We are excited to learn more and to be taught the rich Bulgarian culture. I also feel like plugging in that I jumped off of a moving train when we arrived! It was a fantastic experience! I was getting off the train and apparently the conductor felt like he needed to be a little further up and therefore he just started moving while I am half way off of the train. It was definitely something that I will need to tell children that I did.
Sunday at church I helped with the children’s Christmas musical. The choir director picked two songs. One Bulgarian and one English song and I taught the children the English song. It was a great experience because I didn’t know the song either! After service we went into choir practice and the director wanted all of us to sing in the choir. Joshua and Debbie did great with it because they can read Bulgarian however I didn’t do so well considering I cannot read. My goal over the next few weeks is to really concentrate on learning to read Bulgarian. After choir practice we went to the apartment and ate lunch and then went to Osenents, which is a village outside of Razgrad, for their service. Joshua preached and we sat around a living room, sang songs, and listened to the sermon. It is so awesome to sit with fellow believers and sing the same hymns in different languages.
Tuesday and Wednesday we spent the day cleaning the apartment. We also went to look for Christmas trees and Christmas decorations. Although we didn’t buy anything we did find lots of good deals. We came back and waited on Misho’s parents and Nikolay and Yanita to prepare the food at our apartment for the party. Misho lives in a village right outside of Razgrad and it was easier to have his party at our apartment where there is plenty of room and it is in the city. Everyone arrived between 8 and 8:30pm and we ate and played games until 11:30 and then everyone went home. It is so much fun having people over. We are truly enjoying having the space to have plenty of teens over! There was lots of laughing, break dancing (by Andrei) and whip cream smearing in the birthday boy’s face. All in all it was a great evening!
Thursday was a mile marker for me because I ordered mine and Joshua’s meal CORRECTLY and without any help! I feel like I am seeing the benefits of my work learning the language when I can have a conversation and understand what is being said to me and they can understand what I am saying to them! Friday we spent the day strolling around the town looking at all of the Christmas decorations that were being put up. We came back to the apartment and had an awesome Chicken Parmesan Dinner! It was definitely the best thing that we have made since being here. It was so good, but it was definitely more food than what we have been used to eating!
Jessica is in town for the weekend and she is meeting with Debbie and Joshua and I while she is here so that she can just get to know us better. We met her at the church around noon and at that point Joshua left with Pastor Nikolay to go to a soccer game. The Razgrad Futbol (Soccer) Team is number one in the Nation and they had a home game in Razgrad so Joshua went and watched with some of the men from the church. Debbie and I went with Jessica and she showed us where the best second hand shops are in town. I bought an awesome winter ski jacket for less than $5.00! It was such a great deal. After seeing the shops I left Debbie and Jessica to talk and I went shopping on my own. I felt like it was a big step for all of us to be separated for the day. We go everywhere together and today felt like a normal day in the states when you leave the house and go and do errands alone and then return to the house at the end of the day to everyone being back together. I bought Joshua a new sweater completely by myself and asked questions and everything! I am excited that my language is getting better. There is still much improvement to be done, but nonetheless after only three weeks of learning the language I feel like we are all doing amazingly well with not only learning vocabulary but the foundational grammar of the Bulgarian language.
Tomorrow is a big service at Razgrad. We are celebrating Thanksgiving, Hanging of the Greens and the beginning of the Christmas season so please be in prayer for all that is going on tomorrow. God is doing great things for us in Bulgaria! Keep us in your prayers and enjoy the pictures from this past week.
Blessings,
Joshua and Katie Haun
Dani decided to play us Christmas songs on his Clarinet while we rode to Pyce (Ruse)!
At every train station there is a person who lets the conductor know it is safe to leave.
This old man was a drummer for one of the worship bands. He was so cute :)
We were so excited to do our first load of laundry! We decided the jeans would dry faster inside than outside in the cold so we hung them above our apartment entry door! This was definitely a new experience for us all.
The food and set up for Misho's birthday party!!
HEY! IT'S MISHO'S BIRTHDAY!!
Misho's Father Andrei made this wonderful cake from scratch! He is an awesome baker!
Andrei was trying to keep a straight face and was failing miserably!!
Everyone is hanging out!
We are about to play a game and Ani is explaining the rules and everyone is drawing a name!
Before Misho could sit down and eat his cake many of the teens covered his face with the whipped cream! It was fun to watch! I am glad the camera was close by!
Friday night before Dinner was ready we saw this gorgeous sunset off of our back balcony! We thought you all would enjoy!
Our Candle Lit Dinner!
Chicken Parmesan with sauteed mushrooms and onions!
The Chicken was so moist and juicy!
Debbie really enjoyed the Chicken Parmesan! She said it was the best she has ever had!
We hope you enjoy looking at our pictures as we make memories!
Hey Friends,
ReplyDeleteWe just read your updates and prayed for you in chapel. Just letting you know that I'm so excited for you both that you have accepted this opportunity to learn, grow, love, and be loved. I will continue to pray for you both, as well as Debbie. Thank you for your sacrifices for the sake of Jesus!
Melissa Langston