Because I Love to Blog

Because I love to blog, I am going to keep blogging.

Tonight I came across a site called Etsy, which promotes upcycling by selling trashion (etsy.com). Basically, someone with creative gusto turns something ready for the bin into something uniquely stylish and cool. I love it! I found out about this through my wonderfully amazing Dinner at Your Door authors, who graciously gave me a necklace made by an eco-friendly artist named Millie Hilgert (misscourageous.com), who is based out of Boise. Because I love my necklace so much, I am going to post a picture of it in the morning. Isn't this inspiring? I can definitely see many of you creating all kinds of beautiful works of jewelry art like this! Get busy. Life is too short for only dreaming. (I hope that lit the fire under you.)

Merry Christmas to James and Marlene in Cairo

Since we all miss James and Marlene, whether they be our aunt and uncle, grandma and grandpa, mom and dad, brother and sister, or son and daughter, all of the Lindsays wanted to say hi and that we love and miss you! Here are some pictures and videos from our crazy Christmas party Saturday night at Julia's.

Christmas in Bethlehem

The Pyramids Live

The Western Wall

Jalike One Dove

We found this Hawaii Pidgin translation of Mark 1:9-11 at the River Jordan where they do baptisms. It was our favorite of all the languages! Yes, partly because we couldn't understand the other translations, but mostly because this one's hilarious. Enjoy!

Waiting all Morning in Jerusalem

Our story in the video didn't really cover all the details, but the whole reason we needed a cell phone was to get in touch with Mandy so we could meet up in Jerusalem once she got her medicine in Tel Aviv before our flight left to go back to Egypt. Mandy had a cell phone that could get texts, so we spent all morning trying to track Shadi down to use his cell phone to text Mandy to see if she'd gotten her medicine and find out where she was. Shadi kept saying, "Five minutes. Five minutes." That really means thirty minutes. Then he said he'd come get us at the Windmill, but then we gave up and decided to walk to his store (which he said was near the Pool of Siloam). Then when we got to the Pool (since we couldn't find the store), a man there called him twice for us. Forty-five minutes later Shadi got there. His phone didn't work to text Mandy either, so we bought a SIM card. Still no luck. That's when Lori pulled out her phone. Success!

So much for our last day touring the city, but at least we had some more adventures! :) We think we found the Sultan's Pool on the long walk from the Windmill to Shadi's store, and the whole way there was really cool, like stepping back in time before the hillsides were covered with apartment buildings. And Lori got back her cartush necklace from Egypt that she didn't even know she'd lost! That's a whole other story. So is the one about not getting into the Dome of the Rock and finding the Via Dolorosa where Christ walked carrying the cross and the church in honor of the crucifiction. Amazing places!

Hezekiah's Tunnel After Hours

The second we flew in to Jerusalem, we hurried to find a bus to get us to the Western Wall before sundown so we could see the Jewish celebrate the beginning of shabbat (the Sabbath). We found a shuttle bus, jumped in, sat while keeping an eye on our luggage visible to passersby through the open trunk, and waited. And waited. And WAITED. We had to wait until all of the seats on the shuttle were full, but soon we were off. It felt like we were anywhere but Jerusalem. It just didn't sink in, couldn't sink in yet. Some days it unsinks . . . sinks out? It's like your feelings negate themselves, and you forget where you are. But then you let yourself think deeper again, and you're back. Back to Jerusalem.

After watching the Jewish men sing and dance, and after joining the Jewish women on their side of the wall (Strangely they don't sing and dance! It seemed like church on our side and a fiesta on the men's side. What do you expect?), we went in search of Hezekiah's Tunnel and the Pool of Siloam. Dusk turned to dark as we walked the streets of the Arab side of town. Good thing we learned Arabic in Egypt! Salamo alecum. Is mac ey. Shukran. Afwan. Ashara. Quais. Soon we came to the end of the road and spotted some cool looking archways and ruins, and headed up a little hill to take a look. Then a group of little boys came running to tell us we'd found the right place!

Shaddi soon came out, one of the pool's tour guides, and offered to take us through the tunnel even though it'd closed an hour before. He said the gates would be locked, but he knew how we could "get down inside easily." Super! We'd brought clothes we could get wet in, so we headed back up the hill to the pool entrance we'd passed on our way down the street.

Then there was the 20 foot gate we needed to climb to then easily drop down in, as Shaddi had promised. We laughed in disbelief, especially because the other side drops down even farther onto stairs going down, but we climbed it no problem! Mandy was our scout and tried it out first to make sure Lori and I could handle it. Thanks, Mandy. :) Once we got into the Pool of Siloam, I felt like the hard part for me was over, but Lori gets claustrophobic really easily so her challenge had just begun. Luckily, just knowing that there was no other group of people behind us helped her know she wouldn't be trapped. Until Shaddi told us the story about when a man got stuck inside and died. Nice, Shaddi.

We had so much fun in there! The water was up to our shins—much lower than we'd expected—so we really didn't get that wet. Once we reached the locked gate at the end of the tunnel, we turned around and headed back to the entrance in the dark. Very cool experience to feel like your world could be upside down and you wouldn't even know. It reminded me of being underwater in the ocean after getting smashed by a wave.

He is Risen!

You know how sometimes if you let yourself think you could just start sobbing uncontrollably? So you don't think. You don't let yourself. No one wants to let their emotions surface, so it's easier to just block them. But in those moments when you do let yourself think, you change. Thoughts lead to conclusions and inspirations and impressions and gratitude. Let your thoughts go—go deep, deeper than ever before—every once in a while, and your perspective will change. The Tomb did this for me. It still does it for me even now as I'm typing. Allow yourself to think. Let yourself remember. What is worth fighting for in your life?

International Friends

Joann: We love this little lady we met in Egypt. She's from Virginia and she rocks! She is my hero and taught me so much about what it means to know God.


Shaddi: Lucky for us we met this Arab friend in the City of David (just beyond the Western Wall) in the exact moment we were looking for the Pool of Siloam. And what do you know? He's a guide to that very same pool. A very cool, fun guy who really actually liked hanging out with us! He got us into the locked tunnel and hooked us up with dinner and breakfast for the next morning even though we didn't know how to accept. What guy really wants to pay for everything?? We felt really bad and insisted we at least pay half. He informed us that we're not in America and in Israel some guys are just nice. Thanks, Shaddi.


Cyprus Missionaries: We love you, elders! They made our trip so entertaining and were super nice and patient to take 50+ pictures of us on our trip to the Turkey side of the island.


More missionaries: We love these couples, Sister Vought, and Sister Erickson!! They are hilarious, spiritual, great shoppers, and great picture takers, and were so welcoming to us!


Teeder Swing Thing: Throughout this trip we've made friends with all sorts of statues, rocks, and playground equipment. We had SO much fun on this thing that the elders gave in and started playing on the playground too.


Robert, Jane, and family: We met them in Bethlehem while buying nativities from their shop. Eventually we went to their shop and home, and Robert drove us to Shepherd's Field! So nice! And their wood work is amazing. Jon and Dee, I really think you'll love to see the pictures of their shop. You should totally move to Bethlehem and go into business together! :) I'd visit you.


Basset: He finally agreed to about 45 shekels (about $11) per pair of Jesus sandals and even threw in a free 5-shekel purse for each of us because he felt bad that he didn't go as low as we'd wanted.


Neils and Lissi: These two are a new extension of our families. We love these Greenlandian people! We met them Saturday night in Jerusalem at Lions Gate, saw them again Sunday morning on our way to Bethlehem, and then ran into them again Sunday evening on our way to the bus station to Tiberias! They're going to visit us in Utah, and we're going to the Grand Canyon. Anyone want to come with us??


Señor España: We don't know his name, but he was our neighbor in Damascus Gate Hostel in Jerusalem. He's from Zaragoza and has an awesome Spanish accent.


Little people: On our way to see the fisherman boat from Jesus' time, a woman with a shopping cart full of kids passed by. Aren't they so hilarious! We made friends quickly and then said good-bye. Their names were all in Hebrew, so I have no clue what they were. One was Amber in English, but it sounded nothing like that in Hebrew. Brad, how do you say the word "amber" in Hebrew?

Too Many Blessings to Count

Miracles. Blessings. Answers. Yesterday on the bus ride to Tiberias we decided to list some of these miracles that have happened. I don't have time to include everything, but it really helped us remember just how watched over we are despite all the craziness of this side of the world. We also admit we're not the greatest at staying out of trouble either. Sometimes we look for it without realizing it, so I guess our list of things to be grateful for really could be twice the size if we even knew what could've happened.

EVERY place we have gone, everyone has told us that the weather has been so great while we are here. It was pouring rain the week before we got to Cyprus, but it was beautiful and sunny the whole time we were there. We bring the sunshine! And Egypt had been killer hot, but the week we got there it cooled down.

We've done so many incredible things with very little planning. Okay no planning (e.g., Hezekiah's Tunnel after hours with a tour guide we happened upon). The experiences that matter and make up a successful trip are every moment you stop to notice what's around you rather than just seeing the destination. (I could go off about his but I won't.) Some of my favorite moments were on the way to somewhere else, like seeing the countryside on the way to Alexandria.

The Friday before we left for Egypt, my friend Kayla taught me and all the girls in my ward how to make loom hats. Then once Lori, Mandy, and I were in Egypt we went to the leprosorium with the Cairo Relief Society to teach women—relatives of lepers—how to make the same exact kind of hats.

One night in Cairo we were out till 11:30 p.m. with our friend Joann, and Taxi Driver Tarek got out of bed to come get us. We'd totally spaced it, not realizing how late it was. We didn't know how to explain to taxi drivers how to get us home because the streets were so weird, so we really relied on Tarek, who already knew where we lived from driving my aunt and uncle around a couple times. He was always able to get us home when we needed him to, and for the most part we could understand each other. Ha ha. Okay, maybe that's a flat-out lie. But he liked us and we laughed a lot and at least tried to speak Arabic.

As we were leaving the Cairo Museum, a security guard named Taffa offered to buy us sandwiches for $1 that were normally $3 for tourists. We definitely got the hook-ups. Thanks for working it Lori. About 30 minutes before some other security guards had angrily taken away Lori's camera for taking pictures in the museum. She decided to complain about them to the other security guards outside, so that's how we met Taffa.

Mandy's family friend Ahmed showed us around Alexandria with only a few days notice—so, so nice of him. And then he called us right when we were supposed to be getting off the train or else we would've kept going on to who knows where. He was just inside the station to meet us.

I sprained my ankle pretty badly in Alexandria, but some how I still walked on it the rest of the trip. Right after I sprained it, Ahmed took us to the Alexandria Library, where his father is the head of security, and they got me an ace bandage that I've used every day since! Still purple but no more swelling. I remember what a huge blessing it is that my ankle works every time I'm climbing over rocks and up walls on our trip. I'm amazed at how it's not been hurting me more.

My new memory card worked fine until I'd taken about 100 pictures, and then it asked to reformat. The only way was to delete all photos on the card. Even though I lost all of those pictures, my uncle and Mandy had taken some and at least I didn't lose more than a day's worth of pictures. I just remind myself I can't take pictures with me when I die.

We got to go to Turkey on Thanksgiving! How many can say that? :)

In Cyprus we discovered the most delicious cheese ever—halloumi cheese. This cheese is to die for! I could eat it twice a day till I died. (Update: For a pretty penny I found some halloumi cheese in an in-door marketplace right next to the SL Farmer's Market. You must try some. You will be a fan.)

We went shopping on the Turkey side, and the prices were listed in Turkish money, instead of Euros, and Mandy and I both bought a skirt and almost paid the shopkeeper double—the price in Turkish money (which is double that of Euros) with Euros, but he was honest and gave the right amount back. We were also about to leave the store a couple of times, but we didn't and then found things that we had almost left behind, like a wallet and a bag of purchases from a previous store and Mandy's red sweater. The shop keeper just laughed at us.

Our last night in Cyprus, I got on facebook to contact my friend Catherine, who knows Jerusalem better than anyone. I was super lucky to find someone—Mike Jensen—online on facebook, and he was kind enough to call Catherine to ask her to get on facebook so that I could get the low down the night before we flew to Jerusalem.

After an hour of questioning, the Cyprus airport security guard escorted us to the plane so that we were able to make our flight and not have anything happen to us on the way. They really were worried about us going to Israel.

Susan Madsen who is a missionary in Tiberias, Israel, told Mandy that we really should buy plane tickets instead of take a bus from Jerusalem to Egypt (which I thought sounded much more adventurous and much cheaper), so we went ahead and did that. Now the border keeps closing and opening with day-long delays. The airport officials were pretty particular in following our itineraries and would've been pretty suspicious if we had no set way of leaving Jerusalem. Until we talked to Susan about buying tickets we couldn't even find planes that would fly from Tel Aviv to Cairo.

We got to go into Hezekiah's tunnel the first night that we arrived in Jerusalem even though it was closed. While we were looking for the tunnel, some little boys ran outside into the street to talk to us in Arabic. They were the brothers of one of the guides, Shaddi, and he offered to get us into the tunnel for free! Lori gets clastrophobic—she doesn't ever ride the elevator with us—but can feel okay in a tunnel if she is either the first or the last, and so she was able to make it through without freaking out because there was no one else in the tunnel. She was thankful. Plus, the guy with the key to the tunnel came right when we were just about to go into the tunnel, so we only had to climb the 15 foot fence once! Hamsi, Shaddi's cousin, showed up afterwards and drove to get dinner, and we didn't crash on the way there when he swerved in his car and almost hit the wall.:) And then again we didn't die in that scary liquor store in the Muslim-only part of town. So many good stories.

Shaddi and Hamsi taking us to get dinner, and then we were able to also buy food for Shabbat, because everything had already closed at sundown.

My new memory card is having problems and all of a sudden all of my pictures disappeared last night, but they reappeared later today so we hurried and got them off my card and safely onto the Madsen's hard drive. Fewf!

Okay, I'm only including half of our list of cool experiences for now because I know I've already lost most of you or your nodding off. :)

Today we went to the spot where they think Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. The Greek translation of the bible says something to the affect of, "Blessed are the poor in heart, for they shall see God everywhere." Pay attention to the little blessings in your life. They're everywhere!