Beautiful Feet

July 16th:

Good day, mate! We only had a quick 4 hour layover in Sydney, Australia, so we were unable to leave the airport. We did however get to add another country and continent to our list of places we've been! That was pretty cool. We saw several billboards describing the many creepy crawly animals that exist on this large island as well as the many different terrains. Leaving Australia we were able to catch a glimpse of the Sydney Opera House. It was cool to see even from the airplane! Flying to San Francisco the plane was only half full

I added a 5th continent to my list of visited places!!!!! =)

The Sydney airport Tired Kenon....

There was Krispy Kreme in the airport! The Figi airline!

The Boomerang!!!

The Sydney Opera House Sydney, Australia-there were a ton of boats!

We each had a row to ourselves and were able to lay down all 14 hours!

We arrived in San Francisco later than expected, and our flights got changed so we got to spend the night in San Francisco. I had been in this city in late May early June on vacation with my grandparents and family so we were able to do a little sight seeing. The whole clan was able to hike the 2 mile walk to the Golden Gate bridge. It was really pretty because it was near the sunset. Afterwards, some of the team went to get dinner while Natalie, Mrs Kawase, and I continued to do a little more sightseeing. I got to take them to Fisherman's Warf to see the sea lions, the Lefty Store, Pier 39, Lombard Street, and concluded our adventure by taking the trolly car which happened to finish right in front our hotel. It was a good, but quick, tour of this fun, breezy city.

San Francisco!!!! Kirsti with her body guards :)

Abi & I walking to the Bridge A beautiful church in downtown SF

The Golden Gate Bridge of San Francisco

San Francisco in the background (but its a little bright)

Sunset over the ocean looking toward Asia

We made it!!!!! We were pretty tired after the 2 mile hike!

See the lights way off in the distance? The roads are so steep!
Yeah, that's where we came from....

Pier 39 Lombard Street-the curviest in the world!

Riding a trolly Natalie's a lefty!

Riding the trolly in San Francisco

We left really early the next morning with half of us headed through Chicago and the other half through Houston on our way to Kansas City. It was so good to see our family upon arriving!!! We had many great laughs as we remembered everything that the Lord had done through us this summer. Thank you again for supporting me and helping this opportunity to serve become a reality!!!! Your prayers and finances blessed me and the people I came into contact with beyond what you could think or imagine. Thank you!!!!

Abi & I pretending to be tired since it was 4am in San Francisco! All of our luggage

Abi nailed the tired look ;)

July 9th-15th:

During the week, meals were provided for us by different families from the church. Some of them in the place we were staying (Capernray-a Bible college) and some in the homes. It was so much fun to be able to meet and fellowship with these families! Saturday afternoon we were able to do a little bit of sight seeing and went to Rotaura to see the hot springs with the youth Pastor, Dave Maugham. Because New Zealand is an island made from volcanoes, the warm sulfur underneath the surface occasionally will come through and make a muddy steamy mess. It smells like rotten eggs! There is this one place where two rivers come together, one being cold and the other hot, that you can swim in. The water is hot because of the sulfur and stuff under the earth heats it. It was so much fun to spend that evening there.

Capernray college Abi, Kirsti, & me at Rotaura

The natural hot springs and the steamy, stinky water

More natural hot springs......

Hot springs and a lake near Rotaura......

Josh & I became close friends this summer! It was cold taking off our clothes
so we could swim in our suits!

But the water was warm like a hot tub! We also brought candles so
we could see when it got dark

New Zealand is absolutely beautiful! We spent much of our car trips taking pictures through the windows and just breathing in the beautiful sights. We couldn't believe that it could be winter and still be so beautiful! There were many different types of trees, beautiful sunsets, amazing countrysides, lakes, waterfalls, and much more.

They have funky trees! Beautiful sunset!

Sunset from the car Natural countryside

Waterfall!!!! More sunset!

Countryside beauty! One evening the sky was all pink!

A gorgeous lake Beauty in the sky

Saturday evening we had a time of just relaxation and a crazy dance party mostly just relieving the built up stress from entertaining of 40+ kids all week. We also got to hang with Jordie & Livy, two of the other GLO camp teachers, that we connected with. We played some games with them and then got to do a little bit of worship while Jenna played piano and Jordie played guitar. It was a really fun time! New Zealand also has some funny signs and names for things that we couldn't resist taking a picture of. I also got to try the famous L&P drink, kinda like Sprite, and had more than my fill of delicious kiwis!

L&P is in their drink fountains!

We were slightly crazy at the end of the camp! New Zealand money has a clear spot!

Sibling competition: Jenna&Kenon vs. Jordie&Livy The kiwi bird

The guitar had my name in it! Did I mention we were a little crazy?

We are way down under!!!!! They call a parking lot, a carpark

The trash can, aka, rubbish And instead of yeild, it's giveway

They call candy, lollies This starburst item wouldn't work in the USA!

Our final days in Cambridge, NZ included a Sunday morning service where the team improv worship danced during worship and then had a short dance performance. Dr. & Mrs. Kawase shared their testimonies and then were interviewed by the church on the theme of reconciliation.

The church sanctuary and us dancing

On Monday we had to travel to Auckland so we would be able to catch our flight early the next morning. So Pastor Murray took us to a marina where the US keeps its boats, the beach, and an incredible underground sea world of New Zealand. We caught a flight early Tuesday morning to our next brief stop in Sydney, Australia!