Christmas Trip to Vienna

This was our first Christmas without being with family (ever for either of us), so Lisa and I decided to travel for the holiday season. Given we are on this side of the world we did not want to miss out on seeing one of the most beautiful cities in Europe: Vienna, Austria. Vienna is only a 10 hour drive from Sofia, so we decided to take the trip. Given Budapest, Hungary is on the way – we also decided to stay there for a couple of days along the way. We chose to go to Vienna because of its reputation and it being within a “days” drive. Austria is also a Roman Catholic country and was never under communist rule – thus the tradition and celebration of Christmas is alive and well within Vienna.

Given Budapest, Hungary was on the way to Vienna, we decided to stay there for two days. What a wonderful surprise. Budapest has amazing architecture and most of it’s historical buildings are still standing. Budapest is built on the Danube River and has some remarkable views. We will post pictures and write more soon.

Vienna, or Wein as the locals like to call it, lived up to our expectations. It too is steep in history, culture and architecture. Vienna was all dressed up for Christmas and it definitely gave you that yuletide feeling. We also spent a day a Schombrum Palace – learning the history of the Hapsburg Empire and snacking on roasted chestnuts at the local Christmas market.

Below is a link to our pictures. We plan to post more details soon, but we wanted to let you all know how we spent this years Christmas.

We hope that you too have had a wonderful Christmas holiday with your family.

We feel so blessed that the Lord has allowed us the opportunity to explore some wonderful sites on this side of the world. We feel privileged for being able to take this trip and it has been a wonderful distraction from not being home for Christmas with all of you.

Christmas in Vienna

Christmas in Bulgaria

“It’s beginning to look a lot like…” Well… maybe not – or at least not the kind of Christmas we are use to. Christmas in Bulgaria has been different – contrasted to the Western media educed, economy driving Christmas we have come accustom to. To some extent – that has been a good thing – avoiding all the hype and focusing on the true reason for Christmas. However, we really find ourselves missing all of that Christmas “buzz” – decorations everywhere, malls packed with people trying to find that last minute gift and sipping on a Starbucks Peppermint Mocha, watching all of those frantic people. Its funny how those things you considered frustrating are actually missed when you don’t have them.

When you drive through Sofia it is hard to recognize it is Christmas time. (Other than the two new malls build by foreign investors). It is not completely barren of Christmas – you will see some lights downtown and small downtown shops will cater to the Christmas crowd – but you will not see it on the grand scales as you expect in the States. There are only a few Christmas lights in people’s homes and those who buy Christmas trees only do so a day or two before Christmas.

Growing up in the States, Christmas was always the grandest holiday – the presents, the family, all the hoopla – I just assumed it is that way all around the world. Although we know Bulgaria was under Turkish and Soviet rule for the last 400 years – I just assumed Christmas was still celebrated (naive American). Bulgarian Christians still celebrated in their homes, just not on the grand scale we are use to.

Last week we had a good friend, Maia, over for dinner. She is Bulgarian and is our age (31). We asked her how she celebrated Christmas as kid and to our surprise she said her family did not celebrate Christmas. She did not grow up in a Christian home and up to 15 years ago – Christmas was illegal to celebrate. For them and many other Bulgarians, New Years is the big Bulgarian holiday. I could not imagine growing up without Christmas.

Maia’s story helped me to understand the “lack” of Christmas in Bulgaria – they have never had the traditions of Christmas. I am talking about a lot of the extra tangibles of Christmas, as I do believe the Orthodox Christians did celebrate the birth of Christ – especially as a family, but they do not have a lot of the built up traditions of the season that we have become accustom to in the States.

We are not saying one is better or worse – just different. We realized we would have many different experiences living in Bulgaria. I was presently surprised how much more Bulgarians celebrated Easter than back home. I guess I am a bit disappointed to not see the same exuberance over Christmas. Then again, maybe they got it right.

Christmas Letter

Today, a Savior has been born unto you...

Merry Christmas! How we wish we were there to celebrate with all of you! Know that you are missed and are in our thoughts often, especially during the Christmas season.

Drew continues to be our pride and joy. What a pleasure it is to see the smiles and attention he gets from others in a society that can use a little extra joy and hope. He is growing so fast and is a mere shadow of the baby he was when we arrived. He is fiercely independent with a sweet disposition. Favorite activities include talking to his grandparents on skype, “play toys” and playtime with his little friends. Favorite phrases now are: “I do it ME-SELF”, “Actually, ...”, “I need a hug!” and “Sing it again.” Neither Marc nor I have singing voices, but we cherish the brief time he enjoys us singing to him. While there are hints of the terrible twos, most of the time he is a fun and adorable little kid.

We have now been in Bulgaria for almost a year, and although it does not seem like “home,” we have settled in and are adjusting to the Bulgarian way. We are still experiencing times of intense learning and growth, followed by times of routine and normalcy. We have slowed more into the Bulgarian pace, getting less annoyed when things don’t happen instantaneously, or at all for that matter. We are finding the slower pace to be more enjoyable, as we have time to build relationships with our teammates and Bulgarian friends.

Marc is really involved with the Bible School here – helping to establish process and procedure that will continue to help the school long after we are gone. Lisa continues to brush up her design skills, working on 3-4 design projects here in Bulgaria and Croatia.

We pray that you and your family are enjoying this Christmas season and are taking time to reflect on the many Blessings God has given all of us.

With much love-

Marc, Lisa and Drew