Funny story:
As we were leaving the Drion's, I asked Stephen if he wanted coffee from Fix. We didn't have many pounds left, so he decided to wait and see if there was a Starbucks on the way. Surprisingly, we recently discovered that his Starbucks gift card works here! Just as we were exiting the Tube station, the very first and only thing that dominated our view was a Starbucks store! Coincidence? yes, actually it was.
As we walked down the cold and rainy streets of London, the warm coffee tasted so nice. We roamed around Buckingham Palace...outside the gate that is...then walked through the Park and headed back. It was a short trip because we needed to get to the airport.
Just as we were walking down the Drion's street, I saw this little girl in a pink rain jacket and pink rain boots run up to us yelling, "My friend Jill!" Carys, along with her parents, were taking a walk and jumping in rain puddles..well, Carys was. We had a little time to spare, so we walked with them to a graveyard just at the end of their street where John Bunyan, Susanna Wesley (the mother of John and Charles Wesley), and a few other famous and non-famous people were buried.
We quickly said our good-byes, and we hurried off to grab our backpacks and make our way to the airport. The Lord was gracious to us in timing, because we arrived at the airport just before they stopped checking baggage for our flight and lines were minimal so we made it to our Gate just as they were boarding.
Other than taking off 20 minutes later than planned, the flight was uneventful. Stephen and I were split up for the flight so he talked to an English businessman about..well, business. I also had a great conversation with the lady next to me who is getting her PHD in Biology. She's from Germany but knows English very well and even traveled and gathered samples from the United States for awhile. I was able to share the gospel with her but she claimed Atheism and was convinced that evolution explains much of the Earth's science. We had a great discussion in which I completely shared my faith, and if you think of it, you can pray that the Holy Spirit would convict her and save her.
When we landed in Berlin, we had to wait awhile for our baggage, but once it came we rushed out to meet Katrina and Stephanie. It was SO good to see them again and catch up while riding the train back to their house. It is important to note that when we landed, the sky was sunny and warm. As we were riding the train, we noticed that the sky began to darken and we even saw some lightening! It was still very warm outside, but as soon as we walked outside, it began to sprinkle and Mr. Andreson made sure we got home quickly because a storm was escalating very quickly!
The Andreson home is very lively and filled with guests because of Katrina's wedding this weekend. We met some of her family and, of course, her fiance. While eating dinner, the storm was in full force, pouring down rain, thundering loudly, and flashing some of the biggest lightening I have ever seen! (Mind you, I live in California where we rarely get thunder storms) Mr. Andreson quickly realized that the garden was flooding which would soon turn into the house flooding! Without further ado, we all took off our shoes, grabbed buckets and brooms, and began channeling the water in a different direction. Within minutes, we were soaking wet and having the time of our lives. The beginning was a bit chaotic because none of us knew what we were supposed to do, but we soon had a smooth routine in which we lined up, scooping and tossing the water towards the person ahead of us. Ten minutes later, the garden was no longer flooded, and we could once again see the grass. The rain had also slowed down which afforded us time to remove the excess water. It was all so much fun and none of us minded the fact that we were soaking wet. :)
Once we had dried off, we finished dinner, sang happy birthday to Stephen as he blew out a candle in a cookie, and had a great time hanging out. It's so nice to be back with the Andreson's (I visited about 7 years ago on a missions trip) because they are such a fun family and so welcoming. Sure, we can only understand about half of what they say (they switch back and forth between German and English when talking to each other) but its fascinating to listen to them as well.
Guten Nacht! (good night!)
My new friend: Bobby
As promised: a jumping picture
On my way to have tea with the Queen :)
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