South Africa 2012 - Day Six

Day 6 - Table’s Can Be Tougher Than You Think

Today was a day for the physically fit, well at least for some of us. Two car loads of the Brittons (including Matt) headed for Table Mountain early in the morning. In the physically fit group we had Julian, Cleo, Rory, Guy, Elliot, Max, Matt, Hunter, Barbara and me. As we arrived at the bottom of our route up which was Planterklip’s Gorge we were all excited about the climb which was estimated to take us about 2 and a half hours. The path looked a little daunting but we were ready for the challenge. After about two minutes of basically rock climbing the men had been separated from the boys. Julian and I were sucking wind while the youngsters bounded up the path.

Having done a lot of climbing in my time I knew that the climb would have its steep parts but then have its flat bits as

well. Well apparently in South Africa they don’t follow the same protocol and all this route had was straight up. What Julian, Barbara and I realized is that when you get to our age you learn to appreciate the beauty that surrounds you and so stopped regularly i.e. every 15 yards to take in the breath-taking views, well that was when we could pick our heads up out from between our knees. The younger crowd made it up the mountain in about 90 mins, followed by Guy and the two youngest about 15 mins later and then the nature appreciating trio came up 45 minutes after that.

As for the rest of the Britton group they decided to take the cable car up to the top of the mountain. That took a 45 minute wait and they were all tired from waiting when they got to the top. For some reason the climbers really had no sympathy. The views from the top were really incredible as we had a completely clear day with great views over Cape Town, out towards the Stellenbosch

Mountains and then out over both the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. After lunch on top of the mountain we all took the cable car back down and headed back to the Lodge to swim and relax. I think over the next couple of days there will be a few sore muscles around the family.

One thing that became evermore apparent today taking my

car part way up a mountain is how small it is and how much power it doesn’t have. In the picture my car is in the middle and it just about comes up to the back door of the car next to it. There were times today where I had my foot pinning the accelerator to the floor and I wasn’t quite sure we would make it. I think if I was ever pulled over by the police for speeding in this car I would either bust out laughing or celebrate. The Chrysler company really have done a nice job with the body work around the lawn mower engine.

In the evening we headed down to the Waterfront in Cape Town for dinner and I was somewhat surprised how modern it was. The shopping area and restaurants could have

easily been in any coastal US city. After the meal I think there was a definite need to get back to the Lodge and get some sleep. I for one am feeling the muscles in my legs and feeling a little tired.

Tomorrow we head north for an hour where 6 of our group will jump out of a perfectly good plane for their tandem sky dive.

Psalm 90:2 - “Before the mountains were born or You gave birth to the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.”

South Africa 2012 - Day Five

Day 5 - Penguins and Pizza

I finally got to sleep until a normalish time and woke up at 7 a.m. I went down stairs, read my bible and had a cup of coffee. Over the next couple of hours there was a slow trickle of people emerging from their rooms. After breakfast a caravan of 5 cars left for Simon’s Town and then onto Boulders to see the penguins. The drive took us over Chapman’s

Pass which was truly a beautiful drive. There are a ton of cyclists over here and usually they are not a problem but when they start to pick up speed down the large hills they become a problem. They are not going fast enough to sit behind but they are going too slow not to try and pass. But tied into this is the fact that they never look quite stable enough to overtake. We had one guy who, every time he peddled, looked like he was about to go head over the handle bars and I could see myself running over him.

After about an hour’s drive we arrived at Boulders and walked down the beach front accompanied by a load of penguins. I don’t know why but I never associated Africa with penguins. When I asked I found out these are African penguins - well I guess

that explains it. Hunter thought he would go over close to one and was summarily

reprimanded by the guard. Funnily enough as you work further down the beach front the penguins are right there by the path and then the path goes down into the penguins so I am not sure why they are so strict by the car park. We came up on a small beach that was pretty secluded and most of us ventured into the water only if up to our knees. Even though this was the warmer Indian Ocean it was still pretty cold. Unfortunately the penguins didn’t join us for the swim, in fact they just kind of looked at you like you were some kind of annoying disturbance to their otherwise peaceful existence. Miles had at least seen the penguins he wanted to see on the safari.

From the penguins it was back into Simon’s Town for lunch at Bertha’s. We also spent a while haggling with the local merchants for the little trinkets they make. We really felt good about the price we got for a giraffe made of wood. As we walked away feeling chuffed about our haggling ability we then realized we had bought a 4 foot tall giraffe that somehow we had to get back to the US. With my luck of packing things in suitcases I think this is going to have to be carried onto the plane. Just another

complication for our 4-flight journey home.

We also ventured into the stores in Simon’s Town and I noticed one strange phenomenon. I was wearing a T-Shirt with Philippians 4:8 on it and as we looked to buy a couple of things the music was changed from secular to Christian. I am not sure about the psychology of it all but I ended up buying 3 things.

Today was Valentine’s Day and with all of the Britton boys being true romantics we decided to treat our wives for dinner. The pizza was very tasty and didn’t take long to order. We also did let anyone, if they didn’t want pizza, to cook their own meal. It is hard to imagine how much romanticism can exist in one family. After dinner, which in hindsight probably wasn’t the best time, we had the weigh in for sky diving. Mark was surprisingly heavy for how he looked coming in at 15 and a half stone, Julian and Guy were both surprisingly light for how they looked both coming in around the 16 stone mark. I had obviously eaten way too much pizza (and noodles and french fries etc.) and managed to slip in at about 17 stone. I am not convinced that weight was completely accurate as the needle on the scale seemed to get stuck on the high end. Not sure sky diving will work for me unless my tandem partner is a small child.

I do have one more chance which is to carry the scales up to the top of Table Mountain which we will climb tomorrow. Hopefully at the high altitude I will be lighter.

Philippians 4:8 - “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Day 4 - No more quiet time in South Africa

My body clock is still all over the place and I woke up at 2:30 a.m., wide awake. I knew I had to go back to sleep. By about 3 :30 a.m. I had gone back to sleep. Only to be awoken at about 8:30 a.m. by the first 11 people from the British contingent of the Britton family to arrive. They seemed to faring okay after a 12 hour flight from the UK. In this first group was my Dad, who had orchestrated this trip to celebrate his 80th birthday, and his wife. My youngest brother and his three young children and the brother just older than me, his wife and 3 of their 4 children.

It didn’t take long for them to get used to seeing the sun again. In England they have to watch TV to see programs where they can see the sun. The young kids were immediately in the pool. Shortly

after the first group arrived Julian and I went back to the airport to pick up my eldest brother and his family and the 4th remaining child from Julian’s family. With the luck Mark has on vacations no-one is really willing to travel with him any more and so he often finds himself travelling alone. Suprisingly everything went like clockwork for their travel and they got through the airport with no delays. Getting their rental car was another matter. Somehow their reservation had been closed even though they had only paid for it 2 days before. After close to an hour of researching and sorting everything out they got their car ... which had a dead battery and so had to be replaced.

Finally we had the whole of the family back at the Lodge and as always the typical Britton family banter began. It is amazing to see how we all so quickly get back into a jovial mood having not seen each other for a year or so. The first chore was to go food shopping. The Britton’s have never been shy when it come to eating and so we all left for the local supermarket. After about 30 mins in the supermarket, Guy, Mark and I had a nice blend of food and drinks in out shopping carts. Julian on the other hand had a nice blend of wines in his shopping cart. Luckily Alex was there as well and she reminded Julian that food would probably be a good idea as well.

After a Mediterannean style lunch it was time to relax by the pool again. This seemed to be mostly for the adults and older kids who seemed to be suffering from their long 12 hour flight. My family and I had no sympathy as we reminded everyone about our 20 hours of flying and 10 hours of layovers.

That evening we decided to go out to eat because no-one wanted to cook. We ended up going to eat at the same restaurant Barbara, Hunter, Savannah and I had eaten at the night before. And surprisingly they had no proble

m making a table for 22 people. Luckily the waiters had a great sense of humour and put up with our constant wise cracks and even give it back. About a half hour into the meal two of the youngest kids were asleep at the table and I think you could see a lot of people flagging.

When we got back to the hotel I think it was the fastest I have ever seen our family retire for bed. Tomorrow it is the penguins and fish and chips.

Colossians 2:2-3 - “... that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

South Africa 2012 - Day Three

Day 3 - Quiet Time In Cape Town

I woke up to day at 4:30 a.m. wide awake and raring to go. As I lay in bed I realized I had absolutely nothing to do today. I didn’t have to go to work, I didn’t have anything to clean or fix around the house, I didn’t have anywhere to go. I am not sure when I last had a day like that. By 6:30 a.m. the sun was up and looking out of the window you could see how beautiful Cape Town was.

With nothing to do and the kids still sleeping it was the perfect time for my quiet time. And so with my bible and sitting outside in the sun I had my quiet time. It is during these kinds of experiences that you truly see the beauty of God’s creation.

With the whole family still trying to adjust to the 8 hour time

difference we just spent the day shopping and relaxing by the pool. The one thing that was nice to find out is that the house has 2 dogs. Every time we leave the house we always miss our animals and having other pets helps.

The only other thing of note today was that we got our rental car. Just like in England the cars are right hand drive and you drive on the left side of the road. It always takes a couple of minutes to get used to changing gear with the left hand and every so often I still wind the window down rather than change gear. I always find driving down a road is fine but when I make turns I have to really make sure I think about which side to drive on. Only once did I make a turn where Hunter had to say “Wrong side of the road Dad”. He didn’t really need to say that because the headlights coming at me prompted me to move over.

Psalm 46:10 - Be still and know that I am God

South Africa 2012 - Day One (and Two)

Day 1 and 2 - Getting to Cape Town

You know it’s going to be a long day when you get up at 3:30 a.m. having gone to bed at 1 a.m. the night before. Actually it was going to be a long 2 days. We left the house at 5 a.m. with the proposition of 20 hours in the air and another 10 hours of layovers. However, when we left in the morning the family weren’t really aware of what lay ahead. I had decided to break them in easy telling them that is was just one long flight of about 12 hours with two shorter flights either side. On the way to the airport I revealed that the long flight was a little over 13 hours but it wasn’t long before they found out from the airline people that it was in fact four flights altogether:

• Flight 1 - Houston to Washington Dulles - 3 hours
• Flight 2 - Washington to Dakar in Senegal - 7 hours
• Flight 3 - Dakar to Johannesburg - 8 hours
• Flight 4 - Johannesburg to Cape Town - 2 hours

Needless to say no-one was enthused.

In Houston Barbara saw a pilot with an Eastern Airlines sticker on his bag. That was one of the first companies she had worked for and immediately they struck up a conversation reminiscing about the building where they worked and the people they worked with. I think she forgot that Houston is a pretty big airport and the likelihood of this being our pilot was pretty slim but she decided to continue to walk with him. It wouldn’t have been too much of a problem but he wasn’t our pilot and his plane was completely in the opposite direction. Hunter, Savannah and I just stood and watched as she walked further and further away down the terminal but when she started to turn the corner I thought I should send one of the kids after her. I tell you these youngsters just get carried away with excitement some times.

The trip to Washington was pretty much routine and we then had over 5 hours in the airport to think about the two long flights. When we boarded the plane we got ourselves settled. Barbara was going to hold on to her purse for the flight until we convinced her that no-one would steal it because essentially they couldn’t get away. As always the challenge on a 7 hour, red-eye flight in coach is whether you just watch movies the whole time or try and find a comfortable position so that you can sleep. Hunter wasn’t feeling good so he decided to sleep as best he could. Savannah and Barbara wanted to watch movies but then decided it was time to sleep. They had three seats between the two of them and spent the next few hours trying every conceivable position so that they both could lie down. I had never seen Twister on a plane before but it kept me entertained for hours. And that was just as well because as seems to be common practice now I got the seat where the entertainment unit was broken. I did try and sleep but the contortions of Barbara and Savannah and the occasional head butt to the gut made it difficult.

One of the interesting requirements for South African Airlines is that for every take-off and landing all pillows and blankets have to be stowed. Barbara had a blanket over her legs for our landing into Senegal and she was asked to fold it neatly and stow it under her seat. Meanwhile I would sit there with a computer or an iPad and nothing was said at all. I am pretty certain I would rather have a pillow or blanket flying around the plane if we hit turbulence rather than a computer.

In Senegal we actually did not get off the plane but sat on the plane for an hour while some people got off and others got on. I was then transported back to my time working in the Caribbean and flying on Liat. Prior to taking off on all Liat flights they spray the plane and ask you to close your eyes if they are sensitive. Despite the uncomfortable feeling of figuring out why they had to sanitize the plane with a spray it generally was not too bad. Just before taking off for our 8 hour trip down to Johannesburg they announced they were going to spray. And that was an understatement. Two flight attendants each with 2 cans with the sprayer broken off so they were just constantly releasing the disinfectant, walked the length of the plane. I have never seen so many people grab for their blankets and cover their faces. I, for one, still think I smell like a newly cleaned public toilet.

In Johannesburg airport we had another longer layover and so decided to grab something to eat. By this time I had had several plane meals and an airport meal in Washington. I really had no clue what meal I should be eating. Breakfast sounded good but apparently it was 5 p.m. As such we got adventurous and tried something authentically South African - Subway. I am glad we got this out of the way early because the sandwiches were terrible. This was also the first time I had spent money and was not quite ready for the bill being 119.00. Luckily this was Rand which works out to about $12 which for three sandwiches, two packets of crisps (chips) and 2 waters was actually a great deal.

The final leg of day 1 or 2 or whatever day it was, resulted in a drive from Cape Town airport to the Lodge where we were staying which was thankfully only 20 minutes away. Unfortunately it was dark when we left Johannesburg and arrived in Cape Town and so we didn’t get to see much of anything.

As I reflect back on this traveling experience I realize how blessed I am to have my wife and two kids. At some point during the trip one of us wasn’t feeling well, I know we were all tired and I definitely know we all just wanted to be there but at no point was anyone complaining. They just dealt with everything and got to laugh at a lot. Can’t wait to see Cape Town in the daylight.

Philippians 3:13 - ...but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead.

Romania 2011 Day 10: The Final Countdown

Romania 2011 Day 10: The Final Countdown

Well here it is the last day in Romania. This was, as expected, an emotional day. It was the sadness of knowing we are leaving dear friends but also anticipation and

excitement of seeing our families and friends in America again. The last few days were tiring days but very rewarding. The only disappointment from VBS was not being able to do the weather balloon trick in Varfuri. And so we rectified that this morning. A small group went back over today and about 20 kids turned up to see Savannah get in the balloon. We were in the same hall that VBS had been in and when the balloon popped it was, by far, the most impressive bang we had had all week. It really did sound like a bomb had gone off. Also the wave from the rush of wind was pretty impressive as well.

After this we returned to Pucioasa and went through the routine of packing and loading vans. Gradually we were edging closer to the goodbyes. All loaded up we went to the church to have pizza with our Romanian friends and as always they would not us leave without providing us with personalized gifts. Again out of the little they have they gave so much. It was great to see the reactions of Oana and Emma as we gave the laptops for college. The tears were plentiful (form the ladies and Don). For the person who gave me a donation to use in Romania I had waited until the last day so I could see where the greatest need was and it came down to Marian needing his car fixed desperately. The money went a long way to allowing him to get his only means of transport back working. He sends his heartfelt thanks.

At about 2:30 p.m. we set off for Bucharest. As always the driving provided for some fun. In Romania the traffic lights are on the side of the road not overhead. In Targoviste Don went through a traffic light and then I saw cars coming across the road and realized it had changed to a red light. I had to break a little firmly. Russ had the 2 second delay and ended up having to put his brakes on rather abruptly. Izzy has recovered from the seat belt bruise but it at least we didn’t crash 2 rental cars. Halfway to Bucharest we came up on a big red truck which Don proceeded

to overtake. As I came up on the truck I saw the blue lights flashing and saw the word “Pomperi” on the side of the truck. I was already committed and so continued to overtake the fire truck. Yes we had just overtaken a fire truck on the way to put out a fire. I am not sure which was more troubling, the policeman on the side of the road who I thought for sure was going to pull us over, or the fact that we had overtaken a fire truck because it was going so slowly. I guess if your house is on fire the firemen go just to tell you how your house burned down to the ground because there is no way they could get there soon enough.

When we got into Bucharest Don, Russ and I decided to have some with everyone and pretend we were lost. Russ had asked Oana to get him to a certain road and when he thought we were there he took over leading. The problem was that we weren’t on that road. I recognized where we were and saw us miss our turn. Russ finally realized we were not in the right place and so

we pulled over. You know when you are asking a toothless street cleaner where to go you are desperate. Surprisingly he got us back on track. It was then that Don took over and then relinquished the lead to me. I recognized where we were but took the wrong exit off a roundabout. Now it was my turn to pull over and ask for directions. I think I picked the most technically armed incapable person in Bucharest. He had every technology gadget including two GP units, phones etc. but somehow failed to get any of them to work. The best he could do was tell me to go left. He did invite me to sit in his car as he spent 20 minutes showing me how he couldn’t use all of these gadgets. I also shared a couple of cigarettes with him. I didn’t smoke one but felt privileged to spend my time with his second hand smoke.

We did go to the end of the road and take a left and then as we got to the end of that road and looked and saw a monument that I recognized and knew where I was. Russ was behind me and also saw the monument and recognized where we were. The problem was that it was two different places and so I went one way and Russ went the other. Don was torn whether to follow me or Russ. Let’s just say that 2 minutes later I was at the hotel and had unpacked and checked in and gone back out on the streets in the car to find the other 2 vans and then returned to the hotel. It was about then 30 minutes later that the two vans turned up behind a taxi

Of course Don, Russ and I had staged the whole thing so everyone thought we were lost. And if you believe that I have a house for you to buy in Jersey City.

This year we stayed at the hotel for dinner and it was definitely the right decision. The food was good and the entertainment was tremendous. This came from the stupidity of the table bolstered by the group singing at the restaurant. It is the same group that has been there every year we have been to Romania and every year the lead singer’s pants seem to get gaudier and

gaudier. I am not sure whether he thinks he looks good but we were not the ones to tell him he didn’t.

We need him to be that way for years to come. He also seemed to speak English with a lisp which really got uncomfortable when he tried to say “I have a special song for you and it came out “I have a special thong for you”. Sue really had a bad visual image of this error. In general the Romanian songs are lively but lively soon becomes outright annoying especially when you play the same thong, I mean song, for 20 minutes. Don ended up paying the singer to pick something else.

Tomorrow we get up at 4:30 a.m. in 4 hours to leave the hotel by 5:30 a.m. The majority of the team will be America in the evening. Savannah and I will stay in London for a few days.

1 Peter 2:9 - But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light

Romania 2011 Day 9: VBS Ends

Romania 2011 Day 9

Have you ever just sat down and wondered where the time went? I know it is like that a lot of Sundays at Harvest when Lance preaches. I know it takes a few minutes to wake back up again but the time went really quickly :-) The reality set in today that it was our last full day in Pucioasa and for most of the team in two days they will back at home.

Thursday really started no differently than the last couple - devotion, breakfast, and then off to VBS. This morning we did take some time for us to share some of the highlights of our time in Romania. I think most people echoed very similar or at least connected thoughts. The feeling of family with the Romanians, the embarrassment of complaining while we have so much whereas they praise God and smile through their lack of physical possessions and the hardships they go through. It is a genuine feeling of love we have for each other.

All trip Sue has been making sure we are fed and watered and it is such a blessing to not have to think about it. I am sure it has been a thankless job with its fair share of strife but she has done it with a smile and without fail the meals have been delicious. Tomorrow morning she will have a break from organizing food as we are all fending for ourselves.

For the final day of VBS the number of children was about the same although in Varfuri there were a few new kids and the team ended up giving these kids the T-Shirts off their own backs because they had run out.

After lunch back in Pucioasa we were on the road to Vulcana Bai once again (yet another game of live Frogger). The kids in Vulcana Bai are so polite and respectful and they love to join in. When we got to Sister Avi’s home, where the VBS is held, there were about 20 kids already there sitting calmly on a bench. In Pucioasa it is like herding cats the children are so unruly. I did not see this anywhere else but several of the kids in Vulcana had memorized the VBS verse (Matthew 6:21) and they had only had one afternoon to do so.

Tonight we had probably the most emotional time we have had on the trip. Don and others we crying like babies. Russ almost broke a tear but knew when he should start to wrap up. Thankfully I have the English “stiff upper lip”. It was good to hear others on the team share their thoughts from the trip.

A couple of years ago a tradition was started in that at the mid-week service I did a trick for the church. Today was no different but I was really praying I didn’t have to do any fire-eating. I am constantly burping up gas i.e. Romanian gas for cars, and I did not want to add fuel to the fire.

After the service we spent a couple of hours saying good byes and just discussing the relationships we have between the churches and us. It was hard to stop this time because we know tomorrow will be even tougher on the emotions. Dinner was again provided and then it was off to Vienna for relaxation. I think the waitress there will miss us as well. At one point Don and Damien wanted to try the Way of the Master approach on the waitress. With Nicu translating, the questioning started and almost instantaneously the owner decided to put on some very loud and very annoying Romanian music.

It is now just after 1 a.m. and I still have to start packing. We will leave just after lunch tomorrow and another blog will hit the presses some time tomorrow night.

Matthew 6:21 - for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.