Dinant, Belgium - a Belgian Fairytale Town

Coming “home”? {can we call Brussels my home base for this trip?!} the previous night I was on such a high from a fantastic 3 days in Paris and I was pumped for whatever my last day had in store! Since the get-go I had been planning on doing Luxembourg on my last day so I’m typically Tracy fashion I got in from Paris, grabbed some fresh Belgian fries and people watched in downtown Brussels until late into the night before heading back to my hostel to plan for the previous day (have I mentioned that I’m a procrastinator?!) I had heard mention from other travelers that Luxembourg was a hefty day trip but I still thought it was doable. I started checking online and realized that not only was it more than $60 round trip to go to Luxembourg from Brussels, but it was also just over 4 hours each way; so 8 hours total in a train on my last day in Europe...that didn’t sound great. But to be honest I felt like I had covered much of Brussels already. So, back to the drawing board. I contacted my best friend Google and started trying to piece together my final day in Belgium. 

And then I saw it, the picture that caught my attention looked like a real like fairy tale picture. I couldn’t really find much other information on the small town though other than seeing that it was tiny and really had no public transportation other than a train that could dump you at the north end of town that I could snag for only a couple of bucks each way. SOLD...I was going to Dinant in the morning!

I went to the train station not too far from my hostel and asked the man behind the counter for a round trip ticket to Dinant for the day and he asked me twice if Dinant was the correct town and then if I knew someone there (I was beginning to doubt my decision at this point!) I hopped on the train & a quick nap later, and I was in Dinant....umm ish. I started walking, and then I found the actual town. O.M.G. it was BEAUTIFUL!

First stop for me was checking out the inside of the beautiful, town center; Notre Dame de Dinant, and it most definitely didn't disappoint! And lordy, the stained glass in this church is one of the largest and most impressive in Europe!

The town was so pictuesque that I spent the next hour or more just walking up and down both sides of the river than ran through the town. It's a small enough town that I was easily able to walk from one extreme of the town to the other side. 

 Flags from European nations flanked both sides of the main bridge in town providing not only a colorful focal point, but also a great landmark in town as well as a beautiful backdrop for photographs!

Next on my list came to tackling the Citadel that was situated at the top of the large "hill" directly behind the massive church. If you look closely in many of the pictures you'll see it taking up most of the hilltop. Once I purchased my entrance fee and assured them that I'd take the stairs instead of the lift {totally worth it for the views && bragging rights alone ;)  } I began my climb of all 400+ steps to the top of the hill where the 100 year old Citadel stands. 

 Though the Citadel itself wasn't anything overly impressive, the views from the top and the walk up were beyond breathtaking {also...they literally took your breath away after all the climbing 🤣}

The remainder of my afternoon was spent walking out of town to an underground cave where I was able to tour the cave and the rock formations & crystals inside, checking out an old brewery in town, as well as the old university on the other side of the river.

Hands down though, at the end of the day as I was taking the train back to Belgium with a happy belly and a happy heart, I couldn't have been more pleased with my impromptu trip. Dinant, you absolutely blew me away!

I got back to Brussels late in the evening, used the last few euros I had for one more go-round on the fries & beer and headed back to the hostel to pack. My 10 day Belgian adventure was coming to a close, and I had a classroom full of littles waiting for me back in the States.

Until next time Belgium!

One Day in Antwerp, Belgium

Day 3: Antwerp

Easter Monday morning, after I left Brussels, I began my hostel hopping through Belgium trip with my first stop to Antwerp. Because I've been asked a lot I will say I did book all my train tickets & hostels ahead of time, it was not really necessarily as most didn't have assigned seats, but it did save me the hassle of having to figure out train schedules while I was there. Unfortunately the weather in Antwerp was the least cooperative of any of my days in Belgium and it was chilly with a drizzly rain all day, so my time in Antwerp wasn't quite what I was hoping it might be, but non-the-less, I checked out the cute little town. 

I arrived by train just before 10am and departed shortly before 7pm so this was the only town I visited as well that I didn't spend the night in. One great surprise was getting off the train in Antwerp and realizing how insanely gorgeous the train station itself was {talk about an unexpected perk!} Not having gotten a SIM card in Europe on this trip I didn't have any internet so I walked out of the station and just started following people hoping they were heading towards something interesting!

Lucky me I quickly found myself downtown {ok I can't lie I did stop for a bagel break on the way!} in the cutest little town square capped off by the Cathedral of Our Lady towering overhead. I did a couple laps of the square and the surrounding streets and headed off in search of museum I had been told about and low and behold ran into a castle {don't you just hate when that happens ;) } so of course I had to make a quick detour!

Once I finished checking out my newly purchased castle I headed out again in the direction of the Museum aan de Stroom; now to be honest I still have NO idea what's inside this museum, I think it's art, but that wasn't my goal. This museum is 10 stories tall and features glass windows and panoramic views of the city on all 10 floors that are open to the public {{hello free & beautiful...my kind of attraction!}} And let me tell you, the views didn't disappoint!

On my stroll back to the train station  I noticed a sign that said "peep show" and before I knew it I was in the middle of a street full of large windowed shops "advertising" barely dressed women...talk about uncomfortably running from there! haha But none the less I made it to the station and was excited and giddy headed for Ghent!

Day 5 in Rio {{Downtown Walking Tour}}

{{4.12.17}} - A quickie half day walking tour through downtown Rio

Yesterday's hefty walk through half of Rio left me a little on the tired side so I let myself sleep in a bit today before getting up and ready for the morning...a little street side tapioca crepe and fresh juice helped me out a bit too!  I also knew I had to be back to Caitlin's apartment by early afternoon so I figured a quick trip to downtown Rio would be the perfect fit. Remember from previous posts, I LOVE w.a.l.k.i.n.g everywhere while I travel, so naturally walking tours are a favorite of mine!

I found a couple different free walking tours of Rio online and combined the best of each and came up with my own itinerary and it was perfect!

Highlights of the day included: 

-- The Abby of Our Lady of Montserrat (ok but really...it was gated off and I only saw it from the street lol --
-- Candelaria Church in downtown {this was huge and beautiful inside && out! --
-- Bank of Brazil Cultural Center {BBCC - this was a pretty building to check out & it came with air conditioning inside ;)  } --
-- Checking out the Olympic torch --
-- The museum of Tomorrow {honestly I didn't have much interest on the items inside the museum, but if you ever find yourself in Rio you have to at least walk by it...holy architecture! } --
-- Mercado Popular {this was very reminiscent of Taiwanese crowded day markets selling everything and ANYTHING you can think of!} --
-- Wandering up and down side alleys checking out all the fun houses --
-- Eating street food...lots and LOTS of street food! --

I met Caitlin and her roommates back at their place later in the day when they got off of work early and we finished packing up and headed to the bus station for a nice long weekend away {I mean everyone needs a vacation from their vacation RIGHT!} Unfortunately for us what was typically a 1.5 to 2 hour trip turned into an over 3.5 hour bus ride dropping us off to our hotel late at night with just enough time to find our hostel and crash hard...goodnight Brazil...until tomorrow!

Day 2 in Rio de Janeiro

Day 2 started off with Caitlin and another of her friends {Erin} heading off to breakfast where I had a chicken sandwich and tried my hand at a new juice made from acerola (also known as barbados cherries); it was good, probably not worthy of a repeat, but good nonetheless!

The graffiti in Rio was beautiful!

Post breakfast we multiplied the troops and grabbed a couple of the student teachers and headed out to Lapas for a walk around the area. One of the main attractions of this area of downtown Rio is the famed Escadaria Selaron steps that were built between the years 1990 & 2013 by Jorge Selaron by using tiles from 60+ countries and places in the world. The colors and artwork shown were mesmerizing and so worth the trip if you find yourself in Rio! Walking a couple blocks further from the steps we found the ­­­Rio de Janeiro cathedral which was on my personal “to check out list”! Though the outside of the church was far from impressive {think modern bomb shelter look} the inside was quite unique and the choir practicing was a nice touch as well.

Leaving the cathedral we had every intention of grabbing dinner; but as anyone who has ever traveled knows…things don’t always go as planned! Rio isn’t exactly rated as the safest city on the planet {{ok let’s be honest, it’s got one of the highest crime rates}} and as we were heading to lunch we found ourselves in a *slight altercation* Said altercation meant no lunch for us and we all promptly headed back to Caitlin’s house….for several hours. Life’s got to keep us on our toes!  Maybe…someday…eventually…I’ll make a blog post about it lol…for the meantime, just know we are all alright and just had our guards up a tad bit higher for the rest of our stays!

When our heart rates had finally subsided we ventured out for dinner {{and hello my first official Brazilian açaí berry drink!}} and then wrapped up the evening hanging out and playing cards. Goodnight Rio!

Merida y Mexican Matrimony

If you missed out on the previous few days be sure to check them out here: {Day 3} {Day 2} & {Day 1}

Saturday brought us to our last day in Merida {or my last day as most of my family was staying until Sunday or Monday...JEALOUS!} as well as the real "reason for the season" Sebastian && Rocio's wedding!

The wedding ceremony didn't start until 7pm so we had plenty of time to soak up the sunshine before we had to stop playing tourist and transform into full blown wedding mode. We took advantage of our lazy day and had a later start to our morning and decided to walk through downtown Merida as we had really only seen pieces and parts of it in passing thus far. 

We began by walking down Paseo de Montejo {a main road in town boasting dozens of large colonial style homes that have been renovated into museums, offices, and memorials of the homes and families they once used to be}. Later we grabbed breakfast at an out door market venue that we had passed several times and ran into a couple other people who were in Merida for the wedding, the more the merrier...always! Next stop was downtown {{el Centro}}. After our late breakfast we strolled around town without a real agenda in mind {including forgetting to reapply sunscreen...lovely burns for 1/2 the people at the wedding!} stopping by the Plaza Grande (a large, open plaza boarding the local government building), Santa Lucia Park (a park full of food vendors tucked away in the middle of town), Merida Cathedral (beautiful both inside & out), & Casa Montejo (an old time home restored & set up to mimic the home that it had once been for the local noble family).

Tired, hot, and ready for a nap before the wedding we began to head back to the hotel {{things don't always work out as planned, we hit a detour...ran into my grandma & uncle who were on the hunt for food}}....ok so after our 2nd late lunch of the day we actually headed back to the hotel with just over an hour of time to get ready and change for the big event of the day...wedding time!

---> Shower, wardrobe change, some makeup, & pre-wedding pictures <---

We were ready to hit the road! The ceremony was in a small church in downtown Merida and it was an absolutely beautiful mass for Sebas & Rocio. Afterwards we hopped in a van and drove nearly 30 minutes out of town to a beautiful hacienda {a Mexican ranch} that was the backdrop for their amazing reception. I'll let the picture mostly speak for themselves here but I'll recap some of the night's highlights! Reception ran from 9pm - 6am, delicious food, live band to dance the night away, && family galore...what more could we ask for?!?!

Reception venue hall

My flight out of Merida was scheduled for 7:30am so around 5:30 we said our goodbyes and headed for the airport. It wasn't until I was checked in and through security that I finally was able to stop for 2 minutes and change out of my floor length dress and into some more travel appropriate ware! Live life on the edge a little....until next time Mexico...I love you!

Merida, Mexico & Mi Familia!

Talk about a shotgun wedding, I think this most recent trip was just that and more {{not my wedding!!!!}} 

Quick synopsis 

Tuesday - teach 24 hyper 8 year olds

Wednesday - spend the day flying from Ohio to Merida, Mexico

Thursday - check out some little known ruins called Chichen Itza

Friday - float around with wild flamingos

Saturday - here comes the bride and all that wedding jazz

Sunday - spend the day flying from Mexico back to Ohio 

Monday - 8:20 am...hello again my hyper children!

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I suppose if you're here you're looking for just a *tad* bit more information on my trip than that though! ...I'll see what I can do for you ;)

I'm 2nd grade teacher here in Ohio where I'm currently living and we get a whopping 3 personal days a year to take as we please. So come March, having not taken any days off of work yet, coupled with the prospect of a family wedding && getting to see all my family that lives in Mexico, I dove in and took Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday off BEST DECISION EVER!  (besides 15 pages of sub plans, planning for conferences, and 4.5 hours of sleep before teaching Monday morning.....but I digress!) 

Wednesday was mostly a travel day. Leaving my house at about 5am and landing in Merida, Mexico after 8pm. I made a couple quick layovers and met and picked up my mom and brother in Huston on the way. We landed, found our way to our hotel, and then went knocking on random room numbers until we started to recognize faces that answered the door...we made it! A quick food stop for a late (like 11:30pm late) and well deserved dinner and it was time to hit the sack for these 3 amigos!

Thursday was a little {{ok a lot}} more entertaining than our previous flight day. We didn't even try to wake up early as our tour wasn't leaving until 11, but when I found out the restaurant in our hotel was serving chilaquiles verdes for breakfast, I was downstairs in a flash. Post breakfast my mom, brother, aunt, and cousin {let's give out some names here: mom, David, Carmen, & Susana} hopped in a tour bus with several other tourists that we had arranged the evening before and headed east almost 2 hours to  Chichen Itza, the Mayan pyramids in the state of Merida. 

h.o.l.y- m.o.l.y were they breath-taking

The Pyramids of Chichen Itza are one of the new 7 Wonders of the World and just as amazing as I had been hoping for {this book about the 7 wonders is drool worthy}. We arrived to the pyramids and found ourselves an English speaking guide to show us around the grounds. Pyramid after pyramid and ruins after ruins, this place was gigantic with each new site leaving us more and more in awe of the almost 1500 year old structures that loomed above us. 

Once we finished our tour and wanderings (roughly 2 hours and we didn't even see everything) we hopped back in the van and headed for lunch. The tour group we joined included a traditional Yucatanian buffet that proved to be every bit wonderful. Bellies full we headed to our last stop of the day; a natural cenote. Cenote translates from Spanish into Sinkhole or natural pit and the are quite literally one of the most beautiful things I have seen. 

Dozens of meters below ground level lies some of the clearest & bluest water that you could imagine in the Cenote near Chichen Itza where we were in Merida. We walked down several flights of stairs that had been carved into the stone on the sides of the sinkhole until we were at the bottom starring up at the sky above us like we were in our own little world. A dip in the cool waters proved to be as exhilarating as the views and we swam until the last possible minute when we realized our tour van was ready to up and leave us behind {{not the worst place in the world to get left at overnight though!}}

After a now almost 3 hour ride back we were able to meet up with the rest of our family that was still trickling into Merida as well as grabbing dinner and drinks with my cousins and some of the friends of the bride && groom to be. Food + Family + Warm Weather + Laughter + Drinks = There's really no more a girl could wish for!

Saludos Day 1 :)

It Truly Is a Wonderful Life

Wednesday, February 10th

Guys! I made it! Not only out of Thailand, but this is officially my last post about Thailand {bittersweet to be honest because I love any excuse to flip through my several hundred (hehe or more) pictures that I took during my trip!}

I warned you, we were all about relaxation these last two days! We woke up Wednesday morning and I happy to announce that I was the last one out of the pool when it closed Tuesday night and the first one in the pool when it opened Wednesday morning…fine living at its best! Waking up we were excited because our fancy schmachy hotel came with breakfast vouchers.

We had no idea what that might actually look like but we knew 2 things to be true 1) we would actually be eating breakfast that morning and 2) it wasn’t going to be toast and strawberry jelly! I’ll be honest, I’m not sure I’ve ever been so excited to scarf down multiple bowls of corn flakes in one sitting before! In Taiwan cereal is not really considered a breakfast food and milk is not super cheap so I rarely [read: never] have either milk or cereal, so having both offered to me was a little slice of heaven to start out my day! Coupled with scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, and salad, I left breakfast one happy camper. I would like to say here that after breakfast I went back to my room like a respectable adult to put on my swimsuit before going to the pool, but that would be a lie…I actually woke up at 8am and dressed directly into my swimsuit so as soon as breakfast was finished…it was hello blue water and sun for Tracy!

Around 3pm the hotel decided that they wanted to introduce us to this thing called “mandatory check out” I’m not so sure what that is though :P but sadly our swimming had to come to and end. By this time though, naturally, our tummies were rumbling once again so we decided to get a little adventurous after stumbling upon a street stand. This man was selling what appeared to be a flat dumpling or a fat pancake stuffed with different veggies. We each ordered one of each flavor and our taste buds thanked us graciously for the meal!
 

After lunch we walked to a ways to Wat Traimit temple to pay a visit to the Golden Buddha that we had read about in my lovely Lonely Planet Guide (remember as I mentioned in a previous post, by this point we had basically done all the “big name attractions” in Bangkok and we were just now leisurely visiting things as we discovered their existence.) The grounds of the Wat Traimit temple were beautiful with everything coming together in beautiful golds and whites and although not nearly as large as many of the other temples we had visited throughout the country, it was beautiful in its own respect. Unfortunately being my last day in Bangkok I was running a little short on cash {and still had yet to get my dear brother the soccer jersey I had promised him!} and hated to take money from an ATM with crazy high fees for a quick trip inside to see the gold Buddha, so Tina ran in for a couple minutes while I people watched outside of the temple; win-win if you ask me!

After checking out the temple we didn't have too much on our agenda until early evening, so we spent the rest of the afternoon wandering. Honestly, after two weeks of being on the go all the time, it was nice and relaxing just to walk around and see where we would end up. We stopped at a food stand for Tina to grab a bite to eat, we browsed a local shopping mall, stopped in  a local jewelry shop, and chatted with locals curious as to why 2 foreign girls were away from the touristy areas of Bangkok. 

With today being Ash Wednesday I was determined to find a Catholic Church to attend mass at some point during the day {easier said than done when 94% of the population is Buddhist and only a mere 1.2% of Thai people are Christian LET ALONE Catholic!} Low and behold though, I was able to find a church (at this point I couldn't get picky about the language!) and around 6:30 I left Tina at the mall and ventured to find the church {actually it was the Cathedral!} nearby for mass at 7:00. I was shocked when I arrived, not only was this a Cathedral, but also a primary school, high school, college, and convent all on the same grounds, and it was beautiful! I got to mass a little early and watched the high school band practicing for an upcoming competition before heading into the church. 

In terms of churches go, the Assumption Cathedral was brand new having finished construction only 16 years ago in 2000 but it was beautiful in its simplicity nonetheless. Through my years of travel I have had the opportunity to go to mass in several different counties and have experienced it in several languages as well, but I have to say, Thai mass was a first for me! Everyone in the church was Thai except for myself and an older European looking woman several rows ahead of me. As soon as I sat down she noticed me (being the only 2 non-Asians in the church!) and gave me a small wave. Periodically during mass she would turn around and smile to me {it was obvious neither of us spoke any Thai lol} and during the sign of peace she made a point of coming over and giving me a big hug before returning to her seat. When mass was over she made a bee-line for my pew and we both exchanged greeting before realizing we still weren't speaking the same language! She was from Germany and was visiting Thailand for 2 weeks. I don't speak German and she knew only a handful of words in English, but she expressed her happiness in seeing "a young person" in church and gave me the biggest of hugs and a kiss on the cheek before she left. It honestly left me with tingles. What a beautiful world that we live in where I can go to church that is speaking a foreign language {and still be able to follow the mass...one thing I love about Catholicism} meet another foreigner whom still doesn't speak the same language as you, yet leave the church feeling so fulfilled and happy inside!

Nap Time!

Once mass was finished Tina and I made our way back to our hotel where our bags were in storage (easier said than done as we had slowly been wandering further away from the

 hotel all day) grabbed our bags and settled in for one last Thai dinner before getting on our airport shuttle bus. Ok, in reality I wish our trip back was that peaceful! It was a bit of a time crunch, but we made it! Coupled with the fact that I was bound and determined to still find a specific Thai soccer jersey for my brother and make it back to the hotel before they closed the baggage room for the night. Needless to say all worked out, I've got the jersey, our tummies were fed, luggage in hand, and we made it to the airport with time to spare in preparation for our 2am flight home {hello naps on every airport chair I sat in!}


Thailand, you've truly been wonderful! I couldn't have asked for a better 2 weeks to fulfill my desire that I've had for years to visit Thailand. The temples, the elephants, the sights, sounds, and food, it was truly a vacation that I'll never forget...thank you!

Monday Morning Prayer

This little prayer card has traveled great distances with me lately (both literally and figuratively lol). Back in April when I found out I was accepted to my teaching program in Taiwan I was also attending a 3 week prayer class of sorts where we talked about the many different ways you can pray. One of the nights I was given this prayer card  and the 3rd verse jumped out to me and gave me goose bumps. At that point in my life I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do; or more importantly what God wanted me to do, and this verse couldn't have shouted my name any  more loudly.

"May you meet life's adventures with a clear mind and a bold heart." 

I was beyond upset when I arrived to Taiwan and couldn't find the prayer card that I had made SURE to keep out when packing my house. Low and behold, about 3 weeks after moving here I opened up  my Taiwan travel guide and this little card flutters out...it was meant to make it here :) 

It's been on my mind lately and I thought I'd share it and maybe it'd speak to someone else as well! Happy Monday my friends, have a terrific week!

Kaohsiung Take 2

I have to say my weekend in Kaohsiung may have accidentally  been one of the most relaxing weekends I've had in a while! Our hostel was withing walking distance of so many places, the subway was easy to get to and reliable, and the views around the city continued to amaze us!

We woke up Saturday morning well rested and decided that today would be the day, we saw a couple monkeys the evening before but we hadn't really been able to hike the Shoushan mountain (also known as Monkey Mountain) that we had come to tackle and decided to see what we could do about it today.

We weren't 100% on where the trail head started {still wining it like yesterday!} but we had a map and a rough idea. When we came to this location, we were sure we were on the right track!

--- Silly us! Of course it's not that easy! Though beautiful, this trail goes up only about 10 feet haha! --

We continued walking around looking for a trail to climb and though we never found it the changing views still kept up entertained! 

Eventually, as frequently happens in Taiwan, a man drove past on his scooter and could tell we were lost (apparently 2 white girls on the side of the road with maps, phones, and confused looks gives us away!) He kindly stopped and gave us directions, and in our defense, we hadn't been far off! Sadly by the time we get headed in the right direction poor Brody had had enough (he's a trooper for 5 years old though!) and we decided to call it a day with no more walking!

PingDong Mountains

--- --- Saturday, October 3, 2015 --- --- --- ---

Several weeks ago I was approached by one of the daughters of the family I live with and was asked if I wanted to go on a weekend trip “with my mother and her friends”. I was told they were going to Pingtung (or PingDong) at the southern tip of Taiwan. I was given a price and told that everything was included in the price…it sounded like a great deal for a fun trip (although what fun was to be had I still wasn’t sure!) so I agreed and gave them a thumbs up!

Packing for a weekend away when you have NO idea what is going on is difficult. I was told to bring walking shoes….I had no other information {where are we staying, how are we getting there, do I need nice clothing, a swimsuit?} NOTHING! (…I honestly thought about giving up, throwing in the towel, and bringing JUST my walking shoes lol….but I decided against that I grabbed some bug spray  on the way out as well! :P

Well let me tell you, it was my surprise when I show up to the meeting place bright and early at 6am last Saturday only to find 2 coach buses and 70 some people waiting to board for the weekend “with my mother and her friends”! I later found out “mother and friends” organized a guided tour and they all brought ALL their families…hence 70 something people at 6am doing the hokey pokey outside the buses (ok not really, but it did take some maneuvering to get us all in the right places!)

This tour ended up being a guided tour of some of the mountains near the south of Taiwan….oh my goodness, BEAUTIFUL!!! We had a nice hop-on hop-off guided tour service where we would drive a bit, get off the bus go around, get back on, drive a bit and repeat. I’m telling you, I also think they were preparing me for their personal Thanksgiving feast as all they did was bring more, and more, and MORE food! Our weekend fare included 7 full meals (yes please do the math I wasn’t even gone 48 hours haha) in which we ate at traditional Chinese restaurants where food is brought out (not ordered specifically) and served family style at the lazy-susan table. As soon as you being to think you were full they’d show up with another plate of food that you {{just HAD to try}}!

The pictures below are from our first day {Saturday} Sunday warrents it’s own blog post…. (I know I’m behind L I promise it’s coming!)

I found a church!!!

Before coming to Taiwan I was a little worried about what I was going to do about weekly masses. I had already talked to my priest back home and he gave me a book of prayers and the parts of the mass in English in case I ended up having to go to mass in Chinese regularly, but truth be told, I was just worried about finding a Catholic church period! Most of Taiwanese practice Taoism or Buddhism with less than 5% of the population practicing Christianity (let alone Catholicism!) Needless to say, I wasn't 100% sure what I was going to end up doing for the year.

As I continued to research I discovered that there were a decent handful of Catholic churches in the larger towns (aka, not mine!) and some of them even claimed to offered mass in English!! I was determined that I was going to find one! Fast forward to Saturday morning, I was looking online for what I could find (side note, I'm not sure what people did traveling before the internet! lol) and found a large Catholic Cathedral that offered mass in English twice on Sundays!! Downside, google maps claims it will take me almost 2 hours by bus to get there...I'm all about going to church, but that's a lot of travel time.

I was determined to find something better! I continued my research and found that there is actually one in my town! (I live like 2 miles outside of the town of Xinfeng although my address is still technically in Xinfeng). Excitedly I hoped on the bus (and surprisingly even knew which stop to get off on!) and in less than 10 minutes I was at the church!!! To my surprise it was not only a Catholic church, but also a Catholic school! It took me a little bit to actually locate the church...you'll see why momentarily!...but when I did I couldn't have been any more excited!

The church is TEEENY and sits about 100 people although we packed that baby church to the point that there was standing room only! I had to giggle to myself though, out of the 100 or so people in attendance, all were Asian (mostly Filipino) besides myself and the priest from Africa! Needless to say it was great to find mass in English, and I look forward to going back again!