Friday, March 7, 2008

Tuesday 2/26/2008

Although it was REALLY cold today, it was really relaxing! I woke up late (around 10:30!) after a disrupted night's sleep....no problems, just didn't sleep well....well, I was coughing (lungs irritated about something) and just didn't rest well. I was grateful when I did get to sleep, and was clueless that everyone else was up and about....Mark even said he had gone in and out of the room and I didn't budge. :) That was a good thing.

We showered and got cleaned up, but didn't have anything on the schedule, knowing that the weather was going to be colder. Mark and J2 ran out for these special "burritos" that are made by one of the vendors down the road (look for a video post soon) and they brought them back here for us to eat for lunch. After getting that cleaned up, we all ventured out to go to the local police station to "register". It's supposed to be done upon arrival in the area, but we had heard that we may be able to do it in the school foreign affairs office, and had some difficulty hooking up with them, and then when we did he said that we should just go to the police dept. since he was so busy. So we did. It just took a few minutes to walk to the office, and then about 10 minutes worth of us filling out the form and the officer doing her part to certify us. No biggie. It was a really cold walk though!

Once home, J1 resumed cleaning the house, and made a batch of brownies for our company later on. We met up with their friends, G and A1, and A2 and J3, for dinner at the little restaurant on campus. We had a huge assortment of dishes, some repeated from the few nights before, and some new, but all of it was really good. We were grateful to have one of their "private rooms" to dine in, and the heater was so nice....I even took off my coat! :) Usually the restaurants are so cold (or outdoor) that you end up eating with your coat on the whole time you are there.

After dinner, all of us came back to the apartment to have brownies and hot beverages (cider, tea or cocoa) and to visit. It was so fun to talk with these other young couples, and for them to all get to know each other better, as well as for us to get to know them too! It was so good to know that there are always new people moving into the area to learn the language and have similar goals for their future, as well as the same heart for today. I know that as time goes on, they will continue to bond, through good times and bad, and be their "family" when we are not there. That brings peace to my heart. :)

So, now it's late, and I'm relaxed and ready to hit the hay. The weather is still supposed to be cold, so I'm not sure if we'll make any plans or not. There are still a number of things we had hoped to accomplish this week, and we may just have to get out in the cold to do them...only time will tell!

~marina