Deanna Young's Blog

Winding down

deannayoung — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:49:54 +0000

I hate to say it but our trip is almost over.

Thursday we slept in and Hannah and Mom cooked all afternoon and some friends came over for dinner. They have a daughter 12 and son 9 and the 3 kids played Monopoly forever. They had lots of fun.

Friday was a busy day-we went shopping, had lunch at Mc Donalds and took a tour of the US Embassy. The Embassy was cool. The do not let many people in but we have a friend that was able to get us in and let us see some of the behind the scenes places and it was neat. Then we went to Mom and Dad’s favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner. Hannah, Grammy and Gramps had ice cream at home before bed.

I hate to see the trip come to an end but we are ready to get home to Gary. Two and a half weeks is too long.

Pray for us tomorrow (Saturday) night as we get ready to leave and fly 15 hours to New York and then 6 hour lay over and 2 hours home. Problem is we do all of that in 13 hours on the clock because of the time change.

Taj Mahal

deannayoung — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:10:55 +0000

Needless to say, we rested most of Sunday. We did go to the church service at the jobsite Sunday night. It is so neat to see these people praising Jesus and to realize that most of them had not even heard the name until the last few months. We stayed after and served them a snack and drinks. It was really fun.

Monday and Tuesday we went shopping and just spent time with Mom and Dad. We went to a nice flea market on Monday and a very modern shopping mall on Tuesday and had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. There is a little bit of home in this otherwise 3rd world country.

Wednesday morning we got up early and took a train to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. We were delayed because of a train wreck in front of us that killed 20 people. Not real conforting but we were fine. We hired a driver who took us to a nice restaurant for lunch and then we spent a couple of hours at the Taj. It is very spectaular. Our train coming home was running late but we got home around midnight. I may never catch up on sleep!!

Hope you are all well, we miss everyone and will see you in a few days.

We are still alive.

deannayoung — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:10:28 +0000

Sorry for not updating in a while. We had a rest day on Monday, I slept most of the day. Tuesday we spent the day getting ready for a little journey. Tuesday night we got on a train at 11pm and rode 7 hours to Kathgodam which is east towards Nepal. A friend of Dad’s picked us up and we were supposed to drive 2 hours East to Nepal. 2 hours became 4 including a dirt road that literally went through a river and a jungle. It took 90 minutes to clear the border to Nepal. We went a couple of miles in and ate lunch at a little restaurant and turned around and went back. It was not the trip I was prepared for. It took 4 hours to get back to the city where we went up on top of a mountain to an “ashram” that was built in 1820. I about had a nervous breakdown going up the mountain. Imagine going up the mountain in Gatlinburg, driving on the wrong side of the road and the road being washed out in a bunch of places, driving 40 mph. Now make that times 10 and you have our trip up the mountain. The Lord got us down the next morning and after about 12 hours, I could breath and talk again. Not the best day of my life.

We drove to Jim Corbett National Park about 2 hours away and stayed in the Tiger Reserve in a nice hotel on the riverbank. Made up some for the day before, at least I could talk and sleep. We got up on Friday morning at 5am and took a 4 hour Jeep safari in the jungle. We saw deer, monkeys and birds. Several tiger tracks in the road and fresh elephant dung but not the actual animals. After we got back and checked out, Mom and Hannah rode a huge Asian Elephant for a 30 minute trip and really enjoyed it. We drove back to the train station and took the overnight train again back to Delhi and got here Saturday morning.

We slept and rested most of the day. Today is Diwali (The Festival of Lights) which is an Indian holiday where they decorate the houses with lights and shoot fireworks off. Kind of like Christmas and 4th of July all together. It is almost midnight and the fireworks are still going strong.

We are going to try and sleep.

Hannah says hi, she is having a blast.

Sunday was Fabulous!!

deannayoung — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:17:28 +0000

We went to an English service on Sunday morning but there were more Indians than Westerner’s, it was a great service. We sang traditional hymns about 15 minutes then praise songs for 15 minutes with keyboard, 2 guitars, drums and 3 singers. Then the kids went to Bible study and the preacher spoke for about an hour, I think he was from the UK. The only real difference is there was no invitation. If you want to join, you talk to the pastor privately.

We came home and rested most of the afternoon.

Sunday night we went to Dad’s jobsite where his friend has a service that is for the locals and it is all in Hindi. Did not understand a word but it was wonderful to see the people worship. There were about 40 adults and 10 kids and all are new to the Christian religion. They were so into it and listened to every word the pastor said and praising God with all they had. They took the kids to a side room for a Bible Study and the leader spoke in Hindi and then translated it into English for Hannah.

They served some Indian snacks afterwards. One was a fried wrap with potatos and peas, it was good but a little spicy. The other was like a mini funnel cake but not the same.

It is obvious that the work being done here is having some effect. You have to be discreet and careful, but the Lord takes care of the rest.

First full day-Saturday

deannayoung — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 17:20:55 +0000

Got a good nights sleep, it is really hot here but I have an air conditioner in my room so it is great!!

We got up and went with some friends to a Little League baseball game at the American Embassy. We stayed for lunch and Gramps and Hannah swam. It was really fun.

That night we went to Dad’s jobsite-it is amazing. 30+ people living in the building that is 50% built with a “swatty potty” in the alley behind the building and they think they are living in luxury. There are so many people but they are not intimidating at all.

We went to the next area over from home and went to a restaurant called “The Big Chill”. A little nicer than Shoney’s, little less than O’Charleys. The food was good. Then we went to the grocery store, much like shopping at at 7-11, not even 1000 sq ft. Mom goes to about 4 different stores to find what she needs.

We rode an auto rickshaw home. It is like a motorcycle with a pull cart behind that holds 3 people on the backseat and Dad rode in the front with the driver. We rode about 5 minutes and it costs 60 cents. I still can not get over the traffic, makes New York rush hour look like a walk in the park.

We are still very happy to be here, Hannah and Mom have been about inseparatable. Glad to make Mom’s day for a few days.

Keep praying for us, it is definately working. We are having a great time.

Getting Here was half the fun??

deannayoung — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 15:19:28 +0000

Well we spent 9 months planning, lots of shopping for Mom and Dad and 4 other friends in Asia and finally it is paying off. We had very few issues thanks to Ray weighing the crates before we got to the airport. They weighed 50, 50, 48 and 47. That is pretty good packing.

I failed 2 security checks at Nashville International Airport, turns out it was metal buckles at the bottom of my capris. Not wearing them on a plane again.

We had a small plane from Nashville to New York-JFK but very smooth. Then a 5 mile hike at JFK to their International terminal and I was about to die. Flight from New York to Asia was long-14 hours- but OK none the less. Slept about 6 hours so it could have been worse. Cleared customs in Asia with no problem which was a blessing.

Trip from airport to Mom and Dad’s apartment was an experience in and of itself. 2 lane road with cars and ricksaws 5 wide. Dad hit a motorcycle on the way home, the driver just looked up and kept on going. I can not imagine what insurance is like here.

Several friends came by to get their goodies from America and then Mom made dinner.

Slept good, very tired. Very happy to be here and thanking God for such good travel.

We’re Here!!!

deannayoung — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:48:15 +0000

We have made it all the way to Mom & Dad’s apartment safe and sound. It has been an adventure just getting here.

I will right more later.

Thanks for all you prayers!!

Deanna & Hannah

OK, can I do 2 days in a row??

deannayoung — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:44:10 +0000

Still testing. Hoping to add photos tonight to see how that works.

Pray for me!!

Am I smart enough to have my own blog?

deannayoung — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 18:45:29 +0000

Hello there, this is a test. Trying to see if I can work my own blog.

Hello world!

deannayoung — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 18:40:25 +0000

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!