Monday, January 26, 2009

Backtrack- Beautiful Bali

One thing I love about living on this side of the world is the (cheap) opportunity to travel to beautiful places.

After my time in Thailand, I went on a little vacation to beautiful Bali, Indonesia, with 5 other girls. It was a wonderful vacation. We were able to rent a private villa with a pool and a short walk to the beach. There, the staff fed us a delicious breakfast every morning, cooked an amazing Balinese meal for dinner and did our laundry daily! If that ain't a vacation, I don't know what is. We traveled to different parts of the island to shop in the markets, visit other beaches and see a traditional dance show. We ate at the Hard Rock Cafe, drank coffee at Starbucks and had seafood at sunset right on the beach.

Perhaps the best thing about the trip was the company. The girls I went with are amazing. We had a great time relaxing together, talking late into the night and shopping. I am so blessed!

Here's a collage of photos from Bali:

Backtrack- Thailand for New Year's

I really like Thailand! Every six months or so, I head out of my country for a little refreshing and fun. I usually get to meet up with friends who live all over South Asia. It's a good time.

For New Year's I was in Thailand, first in Pattaya for a little retreat, then in Chiang Mai to do a little babysitting. While in CM, my friends and I celebrated 2009 together. Apparently, in Thailand, CM is the place to be for New Year's Eve. It was packed!

Here are a few fun pictures from the trip:

Monday, January 19, 2009

Backtrack- Christmas

So, I am going to backtrack a bit and fill you in on Christmas. It was great to have AYo here with me! We had such a good time and were welcomed by several families here to celebrate with them. Here we are in front of the Georgia Gold sign, a company that sells sweet tea.



On Christmas Eve, we visited with two families for dinner, had a white elephant gift exchange and sang Christmas carols for the neighbors. That night two other girls spent the night with us at my place.







On Christmas morning, I cooked my family's traditional Christmas breakfast of sausage casserole, biscuits and mayhaw jelly (brought over by my sweet mama back in November). Several people came over for breakfast. We exchanged gifts, ate breakfast and spent the rest of the morning listening to Christmas music and just hanging out. We went over to another family's home for a late Christmas lunch and had a delicious spread of Southern cooking! It was great.





Finally, Angela and I exchanged gifts from our respective geographical locations. It was so much fun!





I was able to Skype with my family several times and got to see cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents! It was a great Christmas, and I can hardly believe I'll be at home for the next one!

Monday, January 12, 2009

The Love of God



I just got back from beautiful beaches in Thailand and Indonesia (more on that in a post to come), and every time I sit on the beach and stare at the stunning majesty of the ocean I think of these lyrics.

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

Oh, love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
The saints’ and angels’ song.