Logos Hope Arrival!

Some pictures of arriving to my future home for the next two years...Notice all of the people outside with their home country flags waving for a warm welcome in the last picture.

Pre-ship Training in Trinidad

Even though training is now over and I'm safe and sound on the ship, I wanted to post some pictures of the area of Trinidad where I was staying. I will be going back to Trinidad on Tuesday, but I will be in a different area from where I had PST.

1st Pic- The building we stayed at felt like it was built in the late 1700's but it was actually built in 2004. The quality of construction here is incredibly low.

2nd pic- Neighbors

3rd- Me in front of the nearest town with the most "vibrant" driving styles I've ever seen.

4th- There were 96 people there in all, but we all had smaller fellowship groups for activities.

Before I leave....The Dutch Reformed Church in Dalden

Just wanted to post pictures of this Reformed Church built around the 1200's! It started out as a Catholic church but was transformed around the 1600-1700s. The church bell still rings on the hours and worship services are held every week to this day.

Leaving Delden, Going To Trinidad

Hello Everybody,
The GO Conference here in Holland has come to a rapid close and Sunday morning I will be on a 5 hour bus ride to the airport in Frankfurt Germany. Then my 50 person team will fly directly to Trinidad, then take another short flight to an island nearby for Pre-Ship Training (PST). During the two week training program, internet will be unavailable. I will have access again around September 9th when I aboard the Logos Hope for the first time and begin the mission.
During these last 10 days, I have learned a tremendous amount of info about the vast cultures around the globe. Conferences, workshops, and mission training daily really opened my eyes to new world views. They even had a "simulation" mission for us which was very challenging and intimidating. Know that I feel more prepared to pursue this and I realize how much harder the mission trip would have been if I didn't first experience this time at the conference.

Beautiful Country

I have been taking some walks around the camp to clear my mind and I'm always surprised to see how flat and straight every road is. But boy is it beautiful! I may be going into town again soon (I forgot my camera the last time) and will take some snap shots for you to see the wonderful flavor of the architecture.

Holland Time!

Well everybody, I made it to Holland safely last Thursday and it has been an interesting trip to say the least! Its wonderful to see people from all over the world join together for one reason. During my stay I have been apart of many wonderful workshops, conferences, and times of learning. In my cabin are people from Holland, Japan, Faroe Islands, Germany, and U.K. I will be here until Sunday morning when I catch a flight from Frankfurt, Germany straight to Trinidad. Should be about a 10 hour flight. I will update you more when the time is available.
-Steven

Seeing Family in PA before Departure

To give everyone a quick update, I have been in Pennsylvania for two weeks and will be leaving tomorrow (Aug 19th) for Amsterdam. My flight itinerary is as follows: Pitt-D.C.-London-Amsterdam. That it a lot of time on an airplane by myself, so please keep me in your prayers for concentration and smooth transactions from plane to plane. During my stay here at home besides being in constant preparation with O.M., banks, and getting everything sorted out for two years, I have been able to enjoy some great family time, weather, and places to visit. Every update after this one will be from international soil (or waters!), so please check back soon for updates. The pictures that I have posted are: (1 and 2) Rowing down the Allegheny River. (3) Hiking at McConnell's Mill state park. (4) On my brother's friend's dairy farm, milking cows.