A Social Sabbath

Sorry I haven't posted anything for a couple days! I started feeling a little sick on Friday, and pretty awful by Sunday. But I'm feeling much better now, so hopefully, I can post a little more often!

Starting Off
   Sabbath started off at Friday vespers. It was a nice, short service, of which I understood not a word. But afterwards, at the after glow, I was super proud of myself. I understood (almost) everything! When I concentrated really hard, I could understand more than even just the gist of her talk. Of course, the instant I let my mind wander, I was done. But how encouraging!

Mountainous Hike
   After church and lunch, Steven, Josh, Erick, and I went on a hike in the hills behind the school. I was really excited to take some awesome pictures. But of course, I forgot my memory card. But no matter, I soon found myself enjoying the gorgeous views and countryside for themselves. When we got up high on the spine of the hills, we could see the whole valley all around, the mountains, and the Mediterranean stretching from north to south. I didn't realize that there are even more small towns around. Some are only a handful of buildings with a church steeple presiding above. I found some rocks in the sun, laid down, and just listened to the wind and the crickets. How peaceful...

Interesting, Surprisingly Successful, Ice Breakers
   In the evening, all the high school, ACA, and theology students gathered at the gazebo. One of the deans/youth pastors/senior theology students/teachers (I really am not sure what he is.... all of the above?) had us mix through the crowd with unlit matches and talk with other people. We were supposed to introduce ourselves, tell a little bit about our lives, and then say una frase, a statement that was either true or false. The rules were a little confusing, but essentially, the other person guessed if it was true or false. And someone got their match broken, and whoever ended up with the last unbroken match won a Spanish worship CD. The game itself didn't work at all, but it did get a lot of us talking.
   I spent a lot of time talking to some other ACA people I hadn't met yet. One girl was from Mexico, and apparently there is a whole town in Mexico that her extended family basically owns and runs. Imagine being able to just travel to a random pueblo, and be taken in as family! Another girl is part Cuban, and her great uncle swam partway from Cuba before a Russian tanker found him and took him to Florida, hidden in a coil of rope. Alfred is from Germany, and already speaks French, English, and maybe one day Russian.
   Afterwards, I went and found one our deans, a lovely lady named Virginia. She's from Tahiti and spends her time making our lives easier in the dorm and studying Spanish. She and I talked for a long time. It made me so excited to be able to have actual conversations in Spanish!
   After several hours outdoors, the ACA students drifted into La Frontera (the game room under the guys dorm). There were loud games of ping-pong, cards, and foosball. I learned a new, complicated game called Presidents and Losers. I was very proud of myself when I finally figured out how it works.

All in all, a very good Sabbath!