On the road again...

Sea Organ

On Friday we packed our overnight bag, hopped in the little blue Opel, and headed out to Zadar.  We planned on meeting up with the Devers and going out to dinner, staying overnight at the Hotel Bastion, and attending church on Sunday.  Zadar is a beautiful city on  Croatia's coast on the Adriatic Sea.  Our hotel room overlooked the Zadar harbor and two marinas. My sailor companion loved to look at the boats. We walked a short way to see the the Greeting to the Sun which is a huge circular array of solar collectors situated on the main promenade facing the ocean and next door to the unique Sea Organ.  The energy collected in Sea Organ plays music by way of sea waves and tubes located underneath a set of large marble steps overlooking the sea. It is amazing to hear.  You can listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeGDjvCCkfk

View from our room

We walked into Old Town from the lovely waterfront promenade and found ourselves in the remains of an ancient Roman forum.  It was fascinating to see something so old.  It made me want to go back in time.  I would love to walk the streets, mingle with the people, and experience what life was like so long ago.  Wouldn't that be amazing?  Then I would come back to the present and enjoy all the conveniences I love and be back with my family.

We attended church and met the  members of the Zadar Branch.  It was good to see a large number of youth attending. It reminded us of how much we love the young adults.  Afterwards, we went over to the Devers for tacos and then headed back home to Karlovac.  It's always good to come home after a road trip. 

Church of Donata amid ruins

We had Nenad over for dinner this week.  He is one of our English Language students, and he is the greatest guy.  I made Italian Spaghetti and salad and we had a good discussion over dinner.  He is a smart and thoughtful young man.  He asked us questions about our Church and we discussed many things from Word of Wisdom to the Restoration of the Gospel.  We have a common interest in good movies and he promised us that he will select a good one for us to see the next time we meet.  

We had English class on Tuesday and we had a full house!  We have a family with a mother and her three children who come, along with four other people.  It makes for a fun class.  We usually start with a grammar lesson.  Then we do a reading or writing project, and if time, a game of some sort.  The missionaries always end it with a spiritual thought for those who want to stay.  There are two additional missionaries in Karlovoc for two weeks, serving a "mini" mission.  Elder Mangeris is paired with Nenad Rašović, and Elder Poore is paired with Elder Andrewsen.  We had everyone over for a dinner of taco's and fudge cake.  I think they liked it!  They are working hard and deserve a good dinner. 

We had the most beautiful snowfall last week in Karlovac. We took a stroll down by the river to take  some pictures of the snow on the trees, and of the river.  It was a winter wonderland.  It reminded us of Wisconsin, but without the below zero temperature.  The snow would gently fall off the branches, and glisten in the sunlight.  As the week progressed, the sun and warm temperature melted most of the snow, including  the snowman that the neighborhood children had made.  It was perfect because I love snow, but not the cold that sometimes comes with it. 

The word of the week is: sunce (soon-say), which means sun.  We have had many beautiful sunny days.