Love. Everywhere.

NOTE: this is 2 days old. I promise I'll catch up this weekend!

I'm on the plane to Damascus! It was an amazing experience at the airport tonight...check it out:

Apparently the flight was overbooked, and I was only an hour early for my flight, so upon arrival I was running all over the place, backpack flopping around everywhere. At the same time, I'd learned just before arriving at the airport that Israel wants to attack Iran, which is a bit scary! I talked to my parents, who affirmed that I could stay and backpack around Europe, or continue to Syria, and that it was up to me. Mom called the state department, and then the white house! A woman there told her that if I was smart, and aware of my surroundings, I'd be fine.
 
So there i was at the airport, waiting at the ticket counter to find if I'm going to make the flight or not. As the clock inches closer to 10pm, after being passed from ticket agent to ticket agent, I found I had a seat!! (oh, but it doesnt end there!) I hurry off to security, and I realize I don't have my passport! The first ticket agent lady never gave it back! I sprint back to the counter, and see the lady that helped me leaving! I tell her my passport is behind the counter, and she tells me to stay away from the counter, and she will look for it, because they put me in first class (yes!?!) and they had changed their minds. She can't find it, I go help look, then she finally finds it on the floor. Hallelujah!

I ran through the airport to my gate, and at last got on the plane. Waiting in line at the gate, I met an amazingly nice woman with her husband and children who lives in Paris now, but is from Jordan. She raved about her country, especially Petra, an old city built into the side of mountains, and the sunset of a thousand colors, glinting off of the golden sand and stone. She promised I'd meet the nicest people, and would have an amazing time. She even brought up how she is treated strangely by many people in Europe/USA when she has her head covering on (which is always, bc she's Muslim) and said "We're all just human beings!" AMEN!!!!
 
Right now, I just finished eating a wonderful meal of salad, bread, ravioli, fresh fruit, pastries, red wine, and coffee (which is a lot more like espresso than the American kind), that is strictly for first class passengers. THEN I opened a letter I've been carrying around for the past 2 weeks from my best friend Lauren, and perhaps has never felt so loved and encouraged, at least from someone that isn't officially in my family (she's a sister in my book). 

Blessings? Affirmation from the Lord of the universe that this trip is where I'm supposed to be for this short month of my life? I think so. God is so good, and I'm so proud to be His. 

I mean seriously. Terrified of being alone in Rome, stuck it out and stayed positive with the help of some friendly Aussies, considered not going at all to the middle east, almost didn't get on the plane, and here I am, first class, full as can be, already having made a middle eastern friend, with my feet up, listening to Rufus Wainright (cd just ended, now Paolo Nutini is playing). I feel like the luckiest duck in the pond. 

Note: I'm not at all saying I think happiness is always blessing, and that all the people in coach are "not blessed." That would be silly, I just think God likes to throw down some encouragement for His babies (everyone) when we need it. 

I love you all. Please keep praying for me, as I am for you. I'm going to stare out the window and look at the lights of Grecian cities shining below, and try to sleep a bit. 

Also, my seat, or something near me, smells exactly like pee. Hmm. Alitalia air. Make a note: amazing upgrades to first class, but there may be pee smell.          

From Holy Land to Holy Land

Greetings! 

I am currently on the train from downtown Rome to the airport, where I'll be heading to Damascus! It's been a restful day, as I've slept a lot to prepare for my 230am arrival to Damascus (don't really know what I'm gonna do when I get there at such a strange hour). I ate some pizza an hour or so ago in front of the colosseum, which was amazing. I wish you all could have seen it. 
I was feeling super lonely and having a rough time until I met some australians last night...it's scary to be alone somewhere until you realize that there are kind people all around, you just have to be brave and start up a conversation! Oh! And with the Australians was a girl from NY, who is backpacking around for a month alone too! And obviously, if a girl can do it, then I can too! (chalk one up to the God of the universe for that bit of encouragement, and for my "boys are tougher than girls" spirit!) We all went out on the town and wandered the streets, and I even met some Israeli guys who raved about their great country.  I'm getting much more comfortable being on my own, and I really love getting to sit and think a lot.  
Let it be known that I have no idea what I'm in for when I show up in the middle east. I've heard so many things from so many people about this small, yet closely watched place, and I really am excited to see for myself.
I love you all and I'll write you more soon!   

Take off!

Hello Everyone!

I'm officially at the gate in Dallas, and the voices are calling for boarding over the intercom. It seems pretty surreal that I'm embarking on this adventure, and I have no idea what I'm about to learn, see, and experience on this pilgrimage. I'll be spending the night in Rome Monday night (such an inconvenience, right?) before I charge ahead to Damascus!

I gotta go! But I love you all, and ask your prayers of safe travel. Now, to the airplane (where a pretty girl changed my seat to an aisle!). I'm gonna watch a lot of movies. Then sit around in Amsterdam for a while!

Grace and PEACE!
Robert

An Introduction of Sorts

Hello All!

Thanks for visiting. This blog is being created for a purpose: I'm traveling to the Middle East for the month of July. July 5th is the day I set out for this pilgrimage, and I hope to keep you all up to date on my discoveries/adventures throughout the trip.

Oh! Did you say something? I thought I just heard you whisper "why would he go to such a crazy place?" Well, I'll tell you why!

Two years ago, I spent a month in southern Kenya (in Africa). When we got on the Kenya Airways flight from London to Nairobi, Kenya, we were ecstatic to find that we had little seat-back TV's that we could watch movies on, the whole 9 hours there! As we looked through the movies available to watch, we were quite dismayed to find films such as Hotel Rwanda, Blood Diamond, and Last King of Scotland. All of which were movies about the "bloodthirsty" Africans killing each other over various misunderstandings. I was sure we were just landing in the middle of a war, and would probably be chased out of the country by the Africans, if we made it out at all.

When I got to Kenya, I was shocked to see the complete opposite. I was welcomed with such open arms that I felt as at home as I ever had felt. I served tea to policemen with assault rifles in hand, who were delighted to take pictures with me, and laughed as they saw themselves on the tiny screen! The only violence I saw, by the way, was two Irish guys getting into a pushing match with two guys from San Francisco about who would get off the shuttle first at the airport. (Unbelievable, I know)

Therefore, I learned that this media-driven stereotype that Africans were either bloodthirsty adults, or skinny babies with flies on their faces, was completely destroyed to me. I saw for myself that it's false.

This means that all other media-driven stereotypes may be quite different than the information we get over here in the U.S. Part of my desire to travel to the Middle East is to see for myself what life is like in this teeny tiny place that receives so much news coverage, and who these people are that worship God differently than we do.

There will be a lot more to come as I get ready to go on this trip, and I'll be scouring cities for Internet Cafe's so I can tell you all about it as I go.

I'd appreciate your prayers, your thoughts, and your love as I go on this great adventure.

From the oldest city in the world, to castles carved into mountains, to Jews weeping in front of an old wall, to Muslims on a mat praying just yards away, to Mount where God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. I march on.

First stop: Damascus.