Being Naked

Today we are heading to this medieval town four hours south of Prague called Cesky Krumlov. It is a town out of a dream or movie, from what I hear. Really small and very magical; you can walk across the town in 10 minutes, no joke. We have been in Prague for about 4 nights so far and it has been a riot. I am meeting tons of really cool people. There is this Scottish guy who is very Scottish. He is like the guru of the Hostel. He is 35 and always seems to have wise words to say. We were at a pub the other night and I asked him what the meaning of life was, kind of half jokingly, and he ended up going off for about a half hour on his thoughts. It boiled down to being truthful with yourself and with others. I think he is on to something, but it is a something that is almost impossible with humans at time. I find being truthful with myself, with others, and even with God, to be very hard. For some reason we like to conceal the truth. Maybe it is out of fear of what people might think of us when they discover what is really going on inside. Maybe it is a pride thing- we are too proud to let people know that we don't have our lives together. Maybe it is just an ignorance thing- we were not taught growing up how to open up, so as a result we do not know how to be real. What ever the case, I know that being truthful is a hard thing, and it's something that does not come easily to me. I have spent that past four years only being truthful to a few select people. This isn't bad I feel. We are not suppose to open up to everyone or anyone; there needs to be boundaries and we need to be selective. However, I know for a fact that I should have opened up to more people then I did. When asked how I was doing, I would almost automatically say I'm doing fine, when in reality, something was bothering me. Part of me was afraid to be truthful because I had feelings that I did not know how to explain or put to words; many of you probably know this feeling well. Part of me was just scared what people might think of me if I was honest about my doubts and struggles. Plus, I didn't want to be the consistent downer. However, I am learning that being open and honest can be a freeing thing, and it is vital for getting through life and struggles. The verse about carrying each other burdens is coming to my mind; Galatians I think. I hope that on this trip I can learn to be more honest with people and get in the routine of practicing this when I come back. Being naked with each other is what I like to call it. So if you see me, ask me how I am really doing, and try to see if I am bs'ing or not. These are just some food for thoughts. Keep it real and in the words of a Scottish man spoken from a dingy dark pub in Praha, be truthful with yourself and with others.

Poland to Prague

Poland to Prague Poland is probably our favorite place as of yet. Krakow is an amazing little down that is centered around probably the most amazing cathedral I have ever seen. I think there is something majestic, something even reverent, about having a church that is sort of decked out. That means that the Reformers kind of messed up when they decided that Icons were of the devil and that churches should be as boring as a Michael W Smith concert. If you like MWS, I am sorry to offend. This is just my opinion. We meant some crazy Brazilian guys who were spitting images of Jay and Silent Bob. We hung out with them for a night and enjoyed ourselves. We also spent a day at Auswitch- a Nazi concentration camp where over 1 million Jews were brutally murdered. Words can not explain the experience that I had here. There were moments where I was sick to my stomach. Seeing the barracks, the places were innocent Jews were slaughtered, and the history behind it all was one of the most powerful things I have ever experienced in my long 22 years of life. Being at the camp caused me to think a ton about life and the problem of evil? I am still pondering this question so I don't really have any thoughts as of now to post. It's just crazy that humans can do such horrible things to other human beings, and then think they are justified in doing so. Maybe you have some thoughts on this topic?

From there we took a train and yesterday we arrived in Prague. Prague is a huge place! I mean huge!! I can not believe how big it is. Our hostel is a pretty crazy place as well. There are tons of people here. Phil and I meant a guy from Texas and a guy from LA the other day. We kind of had our little US crew, reminiscing about stuff like In-n-Out and Taco Bell. I was also talking to a girl from Australia about communism and how it would be the best political structure for any country to adopt. Being that I don't know much about communism, I just asked a ton of questions and tried to understand her insanity. Today we will be going the Communist Museum and then tomorrow we are probably going to the Prague Castle. We will be here for about 8 days and then we will head out to Amsterdam to tour the Netherlands for a couple of weeks.

I am doing and feeling pretty good. I still get kind of homesick at times, but I am feeling alright at the moment. I am worrying less and less about money. The worry comes and goes at time, but I quickly get over it. I have also been doing a tone of inner soul thinking...or what ever you want to call it. It's been good for me. I am learning a ton about myself, who I am, and why I do the things I do. I am also learning how to relax and be in the moment more. Pray for this journey. Pray that I can see things clearly and that God reveals stuff to me. Also pray for the usual- peace about finances, provision, houses, and good stories.

I miss you all a ton. I can't believe that it has already been a month! See you all in a few.

Bryan

PS. I am going to try to post some pictures in a bit so hold on for those

Our Craziest Day Yet

I am not use to swearing, but yesterday really sucked. It was crazy. We started out the day by waking up at 4:30 am to get to the bus station by 5:15. We did arrive on time, but our bus did not. It turned out that the bus from Budapest to Krakow (Poland) did not run on that day. So we went to another bus station and their buses did not run on that day either. From there we went to a train terminal in hopes of finding a train to Krakow...however, we went to the wrong train station. We ran to the other station and bought our tickets 4 minutes before the train was leaving. Do you know those movies where the people are running to catch a train and jump on it...well, that was really us. Then we had the amazing privilege of spending 9 hours on a train. It was cool though, we got to see the beautiful country side of Hungary and Poland. It looks a lot like MI, minus the snow.

Once we arrived at Poland, Phil, Myself, and our new crazy friend form Hungary set out to find our hostel that we had reservations for. But guess what, our hostel didn't exist. We walked around until we finally found a hostel for a reasonable price, and then we finally got some shut eye. All is well though- after a good nights sleep we set out and found a really sweet hostel where we are now at. Once again, free laundry, which is very good news. Today we are going to chill in Krakow and see the old town, and then tomorrow we are taking a tour of Auschwitz, the notorious consecration camp that is the site of the most gruesome mass murder in world history. We are planning on staying in Poland until next Tuesday, and then we are heading to Prague, which is in the Chezk Republic.

Life is good on my end. I really miss home and all of you guys, but I am definitely enjoying my time out here. The people in Europe are amazing. They are very nice and welcoming towards us. We are also meeting tons of amazing travelers like ourselves. I still have not found my future wife, but I have a long trip ahead so don't you worry. On another positive side, I am not worrying as much about money and learning to trust more. I am also learning how to live in the moment better, and not feeling all the internal pressure to journal, read, or do what ever constantly.

I have been thinking about the future a ton and what I am going to do when I get back. I still have no clear direction, but I guess I am becoming more OK with the lack of direction or clarity. I am planning on staying in MI for the summer, and then come August, I have to decide if I will continue to stay in MI or move home to California or something else- perhaps Hawaii. It will be one of the hardest things I have ever don to leave all my friends and family in MI, but I miss the ocean and my family back home. We will see. I have also been thinking about youth ministry and I am becoming more comfortable with the idea of continuing in youth ministry for the time being when I get back (not sure if this will be in a church or not), and then maybe going to seminary down the road. I am not in a huge rush get back to school- school is where my faith was almost destroyed, but that's another story for another time.

Keep on praying for peace and good times. Don't pray for any more adventure though, I think I have had enough of that for a life time...jkd. Also pray for the usual- finances, food, weird people, and housing- continual provision, and ruthless trust on our part.

I love and miss you all,
Bryan

Budapest, Hungary

Well today we arrived in Easter Europe at Budapest which is in Hungary...and we were quite hungary...ha...thats a funny pun. We were quite ready to leave Rome. Our hostel there, the Freestyle Hostel, was a party hostel so Phil and I did not get much sleep bc it was so noisy. We did however meet a ton of cool people and now have new friends. I meet this cool Ausie guy named Paul who has been living in Poland for the past 6 months. We might catch up with him for Aussie day on Jan 26 in Warsaw.

Rome was a pretty cool city. There is so much history. On the day before we left we went to a church that sapposely has the chains that were on Saint Peter. We also saw the Vaticin, the Collesum, the Patheon, and some other cool stuff. On our last day a lady tried to pick pocket me. I felt bad bc here daughter was there and I kind of went off on her. How cool would it have been to actually give here money or buy her food even after she tried to do that- but I didnt do that. Maybe next the time I almost get picked pocketed I will do that. I am also thinking about putting small mouse traps in my pockets- that would be funny. If that is the case, pray that I get pick pocketed.

Anyways, we are now in Budapest Hungary. I am really excited about this place. Eastern Europe is so chill, and way cheaper then Wester Europe. There also seems to be so much more history and tradition out here. We are not sure what to do in Budapest, but I am sure we will find something out. Let me know if you have any suggestions. We are staying in this really cool hostel that is so chill. Already the people seem really nice. There is much more space here and they actually have a laundray service for about 4 Euros- thats really good news for me. We are going to tink around this side of the content for a few weeks and end in Prague, where we will fly out to Amsterdam.

I am not really sure what God is teaching me. It has been hard to pray and read the Bible. I have all these things that I feel like I should be doing- like praying, or reading scripture, or journaling- and if I don't do one, I feel a ton of anxiety. This is a lot of pressure to carry around all day. Every time I have free time, I feel like I should be filling it with one of these things. I just feel like my relationship with Him has been all performanced based, me doing things, and not very relational. I dont want morality, I don't want religion, I want a relationship. If you know me you will understand where my heart is on this. I still miss home but this sickness is gradually going away with every new place we go to. I also still worry a little about finances, but it all seems to be working out.

Pray for peace for me. I am learning that I am a really anxious person who stresses out about things. Also pray in whatever way you feel after reading the above paragraph. And then the usual, health, finances, food, housing, ruthless trust on our part- just continual provision.

I miss and love you all. Thanks for everything. I am greatful for the blessings that you have all been. I am sorry if I ever had taken advantage of that, and if I didn't say it enough, thank you!!!

Much Love,
BC

ps. the spell check does not work on this computer so I may have spelled a ton of things wrong.

Prayer for Phil

Hey all,

My friend Phil who I have been traveling with has been really sick for the past week. He has a bad cough and is hacking a ton...especially when he sleeps. Pray that he has a quick recovery and that I do not catch what he has. I have been downing the Vitamin c so I should be good.

Thanks,
BC

Rome, Italy

We are currently in Rome. The other day we flew out of Barcelona and headed to Italy. Let me tell you, I am supper excited to be out of Spain. Nine days anywhere is too long. We were meeting a ton of cool people, but we were ready to move on.

Rome is amazing. We walked to the Colosseum the first night and then went out on the town. Today we walked pretty much across the entire city to hang out with the Pope in the Vatican. It was amazing. We meet a English girl was going to give us a group tour, but we were the only ones who showed up, so it ended up being a private tour. The Vatican is so amazing! Especially the Sis Teen Chapel. It almost took my breath away seeing it for the first time. I tried to take some pictures but I got yelled at by the guards- I guess you are not suppose to do that. They say that if you were to look at every piece of art for one minuted, it would take like somewhere around 16 years or something to get through the museum. After the Vatican tour, we went to see the Church Giovanni, the official church of Rome. It is where the Popes seat is, form where he speaks infallible words.

There so much history in Rome. You can not walk five minutes without seeing something that looks important. There is so much church history here, yet so many people are not church goers. You should see the reactions we get when we tell people that we are religion majors.

Our hostel that we are currently staying in is crammed full of people. It is nice though bc we get a free breakfast and dinner. I am not use to roughing it though. I feel like this is a stretching experience for me. There are a ton of Australians who seem like they can do this for a living. We meet so many people out here who just come and stay and get jobs. That way of living seems so far from what I am use to.

I am excited but I really miss home. I look forward to my routine again and I look forward to seeing all my friends again. I am not worrying about finances as much. Keep praying that peace comes over me and I don't worry about things that I can not control. Next stop, Budapest.

Madrid and Barcelona

we finally made it. it is amazing out here. our trip started out bad. my bag was put on the flight behind me so i had to stay in the airport for three extra hours. the same thing happened to Phil and he could not come out of the terminal, so i did not find him for about the same amount of time. it was kind of crazy. but a cool thing came out of it. we meant a German guy named volker (and in Germany they pronounce the v with an f so it was kind of weird) who hung out with us in Madrid and now has offered us a place to stay in Munich. i have never been to Munich, but he swears by it. he says it is one of the best places on earth compared to Michigan.

new years eve in Madrid was crazy. we spent the night in Sol Square- a place like time square- but more crazier. everything is more crazier in Europe. it´s as if there are no rules. people were dancing and drinking in the streets. but it was supper fun none the less. we meet some Canadians who were awesome. i think i am in love with this girl named Charlete. It´s too bad i didn´t get her facebook info. maybe we will see the crew again in Europe- it´s a pretty small place.

after new years we spent a few more days in Madrid seeing churches and the Royal Palace, and then we took a train to Barcelona where we are now staying with my cousin Brian. Barcelona is way cooler then Madrid. there is so much more to do out here. today we went to the beach and saw about 40 people surfing. the waves were about 10 feet and barreling. it was amazing. we have also been to the Picasso museum and the Guadi buildings that are pretty famous- as well as the olympic stadiums from 1992.

we are surprised at how little the dollar is worth out here. we have been eating honey and bread for break feast and lunch (and even some dinners), and then trying to find cheap places for dinner. we splurge every once in a while- it´s Europe. don´t be surprised if i come back skinner then before. and more mature i guess.

any way, life is good. i miss home and all you guys, but i am happy to be here. i am trying to keep my eyes open. these past few nights i have not slept as well bc i have been worrying about finances. it´s not that i don´t have enough money, but i am just worrying. i just need to trust that God will provide. some prayer request are for housing, food, and just continual provision and guidance. also, if you can pray for peace for me, that would be amazing. i don´t want to spend my trip worrying about money. i asked for an adventure, so i guess i am getting one.

our next stop is Rome for three days, and the Budapest.

til next time,
love,

Bryan