Ireland Team 09 Update #1

Well it is 1:00 a.m. on Sunday morning and it has been a full couple of days! We did not have free internet access until this evening, which is why we have not been able to update sooner.

We arrived safe and sound Friday morning, with most of us getting little to no sleep on the plane. It was not because the movies were so good that we wanted to stay up and watch them, but that the seats were just so uncomfortable. It could be summed up by Alton's one phrase to me as were were getting off the plane. "My butt is numb!". But it did not dampen the enthusiasm of the team because we were just so excited to be in Ireland!

We were met at the airport by a coach, with a driver that could not speak English (Polish) and did not know the directions of how to find our hotel. So our 1/2 hour to the hotel ended up being a 2 hour adventure circling Dublin. After taking naps and showers in our hotel rooms, we split up into 3 groups and went to explore Dublin on the hop on/hop off bus. We learned some things about the city and most of us ended up walking for several hours around downtown and having a good time exploring. About 8 pm, Michelle Scott came to have dinner with us at our hotel. After dinner several went to bed and we went out exploring again with Michelle to find a this wonderful diner on the River that served desserts and coffee. Much laughing, bonding and feasting ensued!

This morning we had our devotional in the hotel, then headed off to view the Protestant and the Catholic Cathedrals in Armah. Both cathedrals were ornate and stunning to look at. (Pictures will be coming soon!) After sightseeing in Armah, we headed to Dungannon to be dropped off at our host homes. It really did feel like the host homes were handpicked by God for each of the team members. We will hit the church tomorrow for 2 celebrations where our team will be serving in children's, hospitality and Alton teaching.

Our weather has been beautiful and the temperature has stayed around 68 to 70 with partly cloudy skies. Please pray that the weather continue to stay beautiful, especially as we begin to serve next week.

The team has bonded very well and it feels like we are set to move into the week with unity! Thanks for all your prayers, we can feel 'em!

More to come tomorrow....