Italy

Saw:
The Swiss Alps from 20,000 ft in an airplane. With no clouds that day, they were quite stunning.

Did:
Made my long awaited stop at an Italian fashion store to purchase a long awaited Italian tie. Before I left, Kaye and Bryan gave me a very thoughtful gift that had to be used to buy something for myself and couldnt be a necessity like food or travel expense. This had the effect of forcing me outside of my miserly world and spend lavishly on something i dont normally spend on. While i got my tie (yes, i have wanted an italian tie for many years) i also learned yet another lesson about stewardship, both saving and spending the money God has given.

Learned:
Rome was my first and only stop of any length by myself. 6 months ago i failed to win a large foreign studies scholarship that i was sure i desreved and would have allowed me to make my own itinerary for the semester in Europe. from my vantage point now, I think God in His infinite wisdom called that one right. Rome was fun by myself, being able to linger where i wanted and skip what i wanted. But i doubt very much whether i could have done it for 3 months. Many things like drawing and travelling and reflecting work well alone. But some things, like touring, were never meant to work alone.

Saw:
Our third and equally beautiful collection of buildings built into a cliff (the other two being Rhonda in Spain and Mont St Michel in France).

Did:
Went swimming in sea, at night, in the middle of a rainstorm, next to rocky cliffs. probably not one of my smartest decisions.

Learned:
This stop was my last visit with any classmates and from here I go to Rome solo. I came to the humbling realization that back in August, one young college kid from Idaho set out to witness to his peers. Standing here now, I see that it was 8 atheist, liberal peers who unwittingly ended up witnessing to me.