Home Sweet Home!

Yep! We're back home in Elektrostal. We arrived in Moscow Thursday night at around 9:30, over an hour later than scheduled, but our taxi driver was there waiting to take us home. What a great trip we had! Let me catch you up on the last several days since I last wrote.

Our first 2 full days in Belgium were spent . . . in Holland. The 1st day, we took a day trip up to Enkhuizen, north of Amsterdam. After taking a ferry to get there, we wandered around the Zuiderzee, an open air museum where we got a little taste of what life in Holland was like a hundred or so years ago. We got to peek into people's homes, walk through the post office, the kids made rope and we all tasted genuine Dutch breakfast bread, which I learned the word for (ontbijtkoek). It was a fun day, but it was a bit far to drive for a day trip, so we were pretty exhausted when we finally arrived back in Waterloo.

The destination for our 2nd day trip into Holland was De Hoge Veluwe, a national park not far from Arnhem, a place World War II veterans might remember. This was the day the kids had been waiting for for so long. There, we rode bicycles at least 15 miles throughout the park. We pedaled past such diverse landscapes, from forest to grassland to desert. In the middle of the park, we put our feet back on the ground and entered the underground museum which wasn't quite what I envisioned when I read the description beforehand on the internet, but was still quite interesting. And hey, it was free.

On our 4th day in Belgium, we decided to actually stay in Belgium. This made for a much more relaxing day due to a much shorter drive. We almost stayed "home" because we were pretty tired from the previous 2 days, but decided to venture out to Brugge anyway. We were so glad we did because Brugge was wonderful. It is indeed, as they say, the Venice of northern Europe. We strolled around this medieval town with no particular agenda, did a lot of window shopping, bought a few gifts for friends in Russia and ended our adventure with a boat ride through the narrow canals and under the low bridges. It was a great day for our family!

At this point, we really began to slow ourselves down, mostly due to exhaustion, but also because we wanted to spend some time with our gracious hosts in Belgium. On Monday, our hosts took us to Villers Abbey, a 12th-century abbey now in ruins, but still quite beautiful in its lush, green surroundings. We were virtually the only visitors, so it was very peaceful ambling throughout the premises. The kids loved it too because they had plenty of room to run and umpteen walls to climb.

After resting awhile in the afternoon and a bite to eat in the early evening, we headed to the train station to go to the Grand Place, the most important tourist destination in Brussels. At night, the square was spectacular, especially the towering town hall, but the highlight was the chance to finally sample a real Belgian waffle along with several delectable local chocolates. It was a delicious day.

The next day, our last full day in Belgium, was even less strenuous. We spent 2 or 3 hours walking through a nearby forest and playing hide and seek in a Waterloo park and then visiting the workplace of our hosts, the offices of the Assemblies of God mission in Europe, before going out to a fondue restaurant together. Thanks, J & E, for such a great time in Belgium and for your words of wisdom and encouragement.

Our last full day in Europe started with a drive to Dusseldorf, Germany via Monschau, a quaint, German town not far over the border from Belgium. The surroundings were quite beautiful, but the town was a bit too much of a tourist trap for our taste. We strolled around maybe an hour and then continued on to Dusseldorf.

We had no idea what there was to do in Dusseldorf, but the receptionist at our hotel gave us a couple of ideas. So, after watching CNN's coverage of the unfolding events in Myanmar for awhile, we departed for Dusseldorf's Old Town for a bite to eat. After a leisurely search for just the right place, we settled on a nice little Italian restaurant. I hadn't had good Italian food for a long time, so it really hit the spot for me. After dinner, we walked to the Rheinturm, Dusseldorf's nearly 800-foot TV tower. Since we didn't get to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, we decided to go to the observation deck of this tower over 550 feet above the ground. At night, the view was amazing. The windows are angled out like a funnel, so you can lean out over nothingness and see all the way down to the base, a bit unsettling if you're at all uncomfortable with heights.

That was the big finale of our trip because we returned to Russia the next day. When we got back to our apartment in Elektrostal, we found a summons for me to appear at the police station the next day. I went, but we had to reschedule for October 3. As far as I can tell, it's just to talk some more about my wallet being stolen. More about that later if it turns out to be anything worth mentioning.

That about sums up our trip. I hope you enjoyed following along in our travels and experiences. We all really enjoyed the time together as a family. I think it was just what we all needed. Thanks again for your prayers for our family during this time.

Patrick

Picture 1 - The Zuiderzee Museum in Enkhuizen, Holland was a very hands-on experience.
Picture 2 - Our back sides were a little sore for a couple days after riding for miles at the De Hoge Veluwe National Park in Holland.
Picture 3 - Although it was somewhat crowded with tourists, Brugge, Belgium was a very enjoyable place to visit.
Picture 4 - The kids' waffles were topped with strawberries and cream, Christy's with powdered sugar and mine was checkered with dark chocolate. Yummy!
Picture 5 - Click on this one to see the observation deck more closely. It's the lower level of windows on the funnel-shaped part of the tower. Yikes!

Chocolate Capital of the World?

Belgium is arguably the chocolate capital of the world. I'd like to be the judge of that competition. It is from Waterloo, Belgium that I write this post. Not far from where we're staying is the site of the famous Battle of Waterloo of 1815 where Napolean and his French Empire fell. But alas, that is enough history for now. I had to look that up on the internet.

Yesterday was our one big day in Paris, and what a long, tiring day it was! We started out with a plan to reach the top of the Eiffel Tower. We decided the best way to experience it would be to climb it, one step at a time. Actually, you're only allowed to climb to the 2nd platform, roughly half-way to the top, but even that was nearly 700 steps. We could definitely feel a burn in our thighs by the time we reached our destination, but it wasn't as tough as the climb up the mountain in Switzerland. We enjoyed the spectacular view of the city on all sides from the 2nd level, but we were anxious to make it to the top. Unfortunately, it was not to be. It just so happened that there were some problems with the elevators going to the top that prevented us from fulfilling that dream. We could have waited, but who knew how long that would be, so we reluctantly headed back down the 700 or so steps to the bottom. We all agreed that the Eiffel Tower is definitely more spectacular at night.

From the Eiffel Tower, we walked (and walked) to a nearby Metro station and found our way to another station near Notre Dame. Inside this beautiful Gothic cathedral were hundreds of people snapping pictures and gawking at the spectacular stained-glass. After a little walk around, we sat down for a few minutes to listen to the soothing tones of a choir singing from some unseen place above. It was nice.

Next was the Louvre, home of Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa. We were pretty well pooped by then, so we didn't even try to look through the whole museum. We casually strolled through the areas on the way to the famous painting, not stopping for too long anywhere. We knew we had arrived when we saw the throngs of people crowding in to see something. We could see the famous piece of art without waiting in line to get "up close," so we just stood along the sidelines for a few minutes to appreciate its beauty.

There was 1 more thing Christy wanted to see before we left, Napolean's apartment. To get there, we had to return to the central hub underneath the glass pyramid and enter a different section of the massive museum. With the help of a very friendly French woman working at the museum (Isn't there a name for someone who works at a museum?), we found them and stood in awe at the opulence of his former surroundings.

By then, it was after 6pm and we were all exhausted, so after stopping for a refreshing drink, we boarded a Metro train and returned to our hotel on the outskirts of Paris where we stayed the rest of the evening, still a little disappointed for not getting to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Next time. The kids choreographed and rehearsed a martial arts show (Where do they get all their energy?) while I organized pictures from our trip and Christy watched news in English.

With 8 days of our trip behind us, we were desperate to do laundry, so we packed up and headed toward Waterloo, Belgium on the outskirts of Brussels where we're staying at Christy's sister's husband's parents' house. We figured on doing laundry there, but when we arrived, we discovered that this wouldn't be possible, so we found a local laundromat and got it done in a couple hours since we could do it all at once. We managed to eat lunch at a Belgian fast food joint called Quick while our clothes were going through the wash cycle. After we finished up at the laundromat, we did a little grocery shopping to cut down on the cost of food for the next several days. We ended our spree with 1 fresh, warm, Belgian waffle. We got the last one at the stand just before they closed for business. That's why we only got 1.

Now, the kids are whispering in bed, Christy is down for the count with a headache and I'm enjoying the heavenly bliss of a quiet house. Tomorrow, we plan to drive to somewhere just north of Amsterdam, Holland where there is an open air living history museum. Should be fun. Hope it doesn't rain.

Patrick

Picture 1 - Must I explain this one?
Picture 2 - Most of you probably recognize this as the Louvre Museum.

City of Lights

Just a quick note to let everyone know we received the document we needed to prove our medical coverage in Russia and successfully obtained our new Russian visas. So, we can live in Russian another year. I'm now sitting in a hotel room in a suburb of Paris with a view from the window of the top third of the Eiffel Tower in the distance.

We arrived in Paris yesterday around 6pm after a 4-and-a-half-hour drive, checked into our hotel, rested a little and then headed to the Metro to see the Eiffel Tower all lit up at night. Much of the Metro, we discovered, is several stories above ground and as we got nearer and nearer to the Eiffel Tower, we could catch glimpses of it from the train. Ethan and Megan were silly with excitement which was fun to watch. We arrived shortly before 9pm, which we discovered was perfect timing because at 9pm, they turn on hundreds of flashing lights all over the tower. It was pretty spectacular. Without the flashing lights, the base is bathed in green lighting and the top in white. We can't wait to go back today to go to the top!

Taking the advice of the lady working at our hotel reception desk, we crossed the street in front of the tower and walked along the Seine River toward the place where Lady Di was tragically killed, but along the way we stopped for some delicious cheese crepes. Next time, we'll try the chocolate and banana crepes. We found Lady Di's memorial and continued north toward the Arc de Triomphe and then strolled a little ways down the Champs Elysees. Even though it was after 10pm now, the streets and sidewalks were crowded with cars and people, but not so much that it wasn't enjoyable.

As soon as we found a Metro station, we returned to our hotel and retired to bed to get rested up for what promises to be a big day of site seeing with lots and lots of walking. It's a relief to me to be taking the Metro instead of driving. French streets seem to me like a plate of spaghetti. It's just about useless to use a map because it's difficult to discern from it which way the one-way streets go. And that was just Strasbourg, not Paris.

I want to thank you all once again for your endless prayers for us. It's wonderful to be able to leave the the worry of getting new visas behind us. Now, we can concentrate on enjoying ourselves and getting the rest we need. Keep coming back to the blog and look for us on Skype (pcneifert) if you'd like. We should have internet access for the remainder of our trip.

Au revoir,

Patrick

Picture 1 - I don't think this picture needs any explanation. Sorry for the blur, but I don't have a tripod and do have wiggly kids.
Picture 2 - Megan quickly faded on our Metro ride back to our hotel.

Bon Jour!

Greetings from Strasbourg, France. Yes, we have survived our trip so far without any major changes in our itinerary. Before I get into our personal experiences, though, I want to tell you about this morning's visit to the Russian consulate. We had a bit of difficulty finding the consulate by car from our hotel, so we arrived later than planned, but still just before they opened at 9. Fortunately, there were only 4 people in front of me. Christy and the kids hung out at a very large, nearby park while I went in to the consulate. I only had to wait 15 minutes or so before getting in. I filled out all the forms and presented them to the official. He said all our documents were in order except for a paper proving we had medical coverage in Russia. I showed him our medical cards, but he could not accept them because they only showed the date our coverage began. So, we are now back in our hotel room, waiting until our medical insurance company's offices in Indianapolis open so I can call them and get the information we need faxed or emailed to us here in our hotel. I hope that won't be too difficult. We shall see. With this information in hand, I'll have to return to the consulate in the morning to get our visas before we can continue on our way. Please pray that I will be able to do everything without any further problems or delays. Thank you!

Now, for the fun stuff:

Our first full day in Europe was also the longest travel day of our entire 2-week adventure, so we were up and away by a little after 8 am. Our first stop of the day was Neuschwanstein Castle. Let me just say, "Amazing!" We decided to walk up to the castle instead of taking the horse-drawn carriage or even the bus. It was only a half-hour trek up to the castle gates. We met a large group of American soldiers heading toward Kosovo on our way up. The tour of the castle was, here's that word again, "Amazing!" I have to say, though, that I enjoyed the view out the windows more than the decor of the interior. After the short tour of the inside, we walked a little farther to take in the view you see in the photo. It was spectacular, to say the least. What a great experience we had visiting this site.

We continued on our way toward YWAM's Einigen, Switzerland base with a short stop in Liechtenstein just to say we've been there. Thanks to our rental car's navigation system, affectionately knows to us as "Jane," we found our way easily. I must say that Switzerland is easily the most beautiful country I have ever been to, but probably the most expensive too. Everywhere we looked was drop-jaw gorgeous scenery. Finally, our almost 20-year dream of visiting Switzerland is fulfilled.

While in Switzerland, we visited the St. Beatus caves where an Irish missionary used to live. There are over 14 km of passageways inside the mountain as well as powerful, gushing streams of water as well. We also hiked half way up a mountain to enjoy some more spectacular views of distant, snow-covered peaks. We opted to coast back down the mountain on scooters which were much easier on our tired bodies. The kids especially enjoyed this experience.

Yesterday, we left Switzerland to head toward Strasbourg, France where we are now. On the way, we stopped to visit our friends, Michael and Delynn, in Weil am Rhein, Germany. They just started teaching at an international school there last month. It was great to be able to visit them in their home and to walk around their town a little and to even see the school where they work. The few hours with them will be a major highlight of our trip when it's all said and done, I'm sure.

The rest of the way to Strasbourg should have taken us only about an hour and a half on the freeway, but we decided to get off the beaten path and drive through the Route des Vins, the Wine Route. Though it was a little tricky to find, it was worth it. The little villages along the way were so quaint and seemingly buried in brightly colored flowers. The vineyards on the hills were warmly bathed in sunlight. By the time we checked into our hotel and ate dinner at a nearby Pizza Hut, we were ready to call it a day. Christy and the kids went to bed with notions of sleeping in while I got up early to go to the Russian consulate, but as I was getting ready for bed, I realized we had forgotten to get pictures taken for our visas. With that little disappointment, we went to bed.

We woke early this morning to begin our search for an automated photo booth to get our pictures taken for our visas. In our search for our hotel the night before, we found the central train station and decided that would be an appropriate place for a photo booth. Bingo! We found one almost immediately. Getting coins for the machine was a much more difficult task, but a nice young lady helped me and soon, we all had pictures in hand. The rest, you already know from the beginning of this posting, so there you have it, our trip thus far.

Thank you for your continued prayers for us while away from home and for our successful renewal of our Russian visas. I'll try to let you know how tomorrow's visit to the consulate goes as soon as I get another chance.

Patrick

Picture 1 - Russian consulate in Strasbourg, France
Picture 2 - Neuschwanstein Castle in the background
Picture 3 - Breaktime while scooting down the mountain in Switzerland
Picture 4 - One of many chair sculptures in Weil am Rhein, Germany
Picture 5 - Dambach, France along the famous Route des Vins in eastern France

Visa Renewal Trip, Part 2

Well, here we go with the 2nd half of our trip:

Thursday, September 20--drive to Brussels, Belgium

We may decide to do a little more site seeing in Paris in the morning before heading toward Brussels because it's a relatively short drive. In Brussels, we will be staying at the home of the parents of Christy's sister's husband. Did you follow that? They will be away for a few of the days while we are there, so they graciously opened their home to us while we are there. We will make this our base for the rest of our trip. We'll probably just wander around the city a little that afternoon and not do anything major.

Friday, September 21--day trip to Zuiderzee Museum in Enkhuizen, Holland

There is a wonderful living history museum in Enkhuizen, Holland that we plan to go to. There, we will experience what it was like to live in Holland long ago with all our senses. The kids may get a chance to make a boat out of clogs. It promises to be a memorable experience for us all.

Saturday, September 22--day trip to De Hoge Veluwe National Park surrounding Otterlo, Holland

This is a place the kids are very excited about. While in the park, you can ride around on one of 1700 white bicycles at no extra charge. When you want to stop, you just park your bike in a designated area, and when you want to ride again, you just pick up another one. There are over 40 kilometers of bike trails throughout the park. There is also an underground museum that gives insight into everything that lives and has lived below the surface of the Earth. The exhibition takes you deeper and deeper into the ground, until you finally end up at the center of the Earth. Sounds pretty cool to me.

Sunday, September 23--day trip to Brugge, Belgium

"Known as the Venice of the North, Brugge is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. Walking along the maze of winding cobbled alleys and romantic canals, you imagine yourself to be in medieval times." At least that's what the tourist board of Brugge says. We've been told by those we know who have been there that it is a great place to visit. We hope they are right.

Monday, September 24--a day in Brussels

Brussels is the capital of Belgium and the administrative center of the European Union. We intend to spend this day, if it is at all possible, with our hosts since they will know what is worth seeing.

Tuesday, September 25--day trip to Luxembourg

We're not yet sure what we will do in Luxembourg. There is an American military cemetery that I would like to visit where over 5000 American soldiers who perished in the Battle of the Bulge are buried, but I might be the only one in my family interested in that, so we'll see.

Wednesday, September 26--drive to Dusseldorf, Germany

The only reason we're going to Dusseldorf is because it is from this city that we will return to Russia. On the way, we plan to stop in Cologne, Germany. By this time, however, we may be tired of site seeing or just plain tired and decide to just get to our hotel in Dusseldorf and crash. Who knows?

Thursday, September 27--return to Moscow, Russia

The activities of this day are pretty self-explanatory.

Thanks for your prayers during our travels. We'll try to publish a few post while we're on our trip, especially to let everyone know about our experience at the Russian consulate.

Patrick

Visa Renewal Trip, Part 1

It's that time of year again when we must leave Russia to apply for new visas. As usual, we will add some family vacation time to this trip. If you would like to follow our activities and whereabouts, see the following schedule (be sure to click on the many links if you'd like to see more information about the places we plan to visit):

Wednesday, September 12--fly to Munich, Germany

We have decided not to spend any significant time here, but we will stay over one night because of our 10:25pm flight arrival. Someday, I'd like to return to visit the BMW museum.

Thursday, September 13--drive to one of YWAM's bases in Switzerland

This will be our longest driving day, but we will split the 7-hour trip into 3 segments to make it more relaxing and to see several key sites along the way. The 1st segment will take us to Neuschwanstein Castle in southern Germany near the Austrian border. The Disneyland castle was modeled after this magnificent structure.

The 2nd segment will end in Vaduz, the capital of the principality of Liechtenstein. Vaduz Castle, the most prominent landmark of the town, is the residence of the Reigning Prince. This tiny country is home to only 35,000 people.

Our final destination for the day is YWAM's Einigen, Switzerland base. We plan to stay here for 3 nights, enjoying the breath-taking views of the Alps and of nearby Lakes Thun, Brienzer, Lungerer, Sarner, Alpnacher and Vierwaldstatter. It has been my dream of nearly 20 years to visit Switzerland, and now, it is finally coming to pass. I'm grateful for this opportunity.

Sunday, September 16--drive to Strasbourg, France

We hope to join YWAM's staff for a Sunday morning worship service before heading north toward France. We have 1 stop scheduled along the way in Weil am Rhein, Germany where we plan to meet our friends, Michael & Delynn Walz who recently moved there from Vancouver, Washington to teach at Rhein International Academy.

After lunch and delightful (I'm sure) conversation with the Walzes, we'll continue our journey toward Strasbourg, France. We hope to avoid the major highways in order to take in the beautiful French countryside along the well-known Route des Vins.

Monday, September 17--apply for visas

Unfortunately, most of my time in Strasbourg, France will be spent at the Russian consulate applying for our new visas while Christy and the kids enjoy the sites. We would like to ask you to join us in praying that God's will be done in our attempt to obtain new visas. We want more than anything to follow God's plan for our life as we seek to continue our work in Russia.

Tuesday, September 18--drive to Paris, France

Providing there are no complications in obtaining our visas, we'll head to Paris for a couple days to enjoy the City of Lights. In the limited amount of time we have, we plan to, of course, visit the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame. Other than that, we'll just have to see what happens.

That covers our plans for the first half of the trip. I'll tell you about the 2nd half in another article, so watch for it soon.

Patrick

Lights . . . Camera . . . Action!!

If you've always wanted to see what Elektrostal looks like and to see some of the things that we do here, then today is your lucky day. I have created a short video for you to enjoy. Feel free to share this site with others, show the video in your church services, Sunday School classes, small groups etc. Use it as you wish and, please, let me know what you think. Just click on the link below.

http://web.mac.com/pneifert/iWeb/Site/Video.html

Patrick

P.S. If you don't have the latest version of Quicktime, click on the following link to download it:

http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/

Hula Hoopster

Yesterday afternoon, we went for a leisurely stroll around our neighborhood to enjoy the beautiful weather here while we still can. On our walk, we passed a toy store. In that toy store, we found a cheap, plastic hula hoop that we purchased. When we got home, Ethan went to town with it straight away. He's actually quite good at it. A few years ago, he won 4th place in a contest at a 4th of July celebration in Commerce City, Colorado. His time record is 20 minutes non-stop. I can't even do it for 5 seconds. Anyway, I thought you might enjoy seeing him in action.

Patrick

Moving Out

During the last several days of August, I spent several hours each day helping Natasha move desks, boxes, supplies etc. out of her school and to her apartment and garage for storage. She had to have everything out by September 1. It was a huge job, and I'm glad I was able to use our team's van to help out.

I want to ask for your prayers for Natasha because she's in a difficult situation with the city over the fence around the school property. Ever since she found out that she would not be able to use the building for her school this year, she has been trying to sell some of the things she purchased for the school over the years of it's operation. One of the big things is the fence she put around the property a few years ago. She found a buyer, a neighbor of the school, but then the city started pressuring her about it. They think she should just give them the fence at no charge because they claim to have given her such a great discount on the rent of the building over the years that it more than justifies this. This was not stated in any agreement up front when the contract was signed, of course, because the fence hadn't even been erected. Since the city stepped in, the neighbors who agreed to buy the fence backed out of the deal.

The last I heard from Natasha is that she will advertise it in a nearby city to minimize the possibility of further political entanglement. I hate to see her in this kind of situation because she has poured her heart and soul and personal finances into this school over the years, accumulating not a little debt to keep it running through her cancer treatments and through the decline in attendance due to unjust rumors spread by one of her former employees.

Yet, through all of this, I can still see a light shining in her eyes, a hope that there is something better on the horizon, a determination to not give up. Maybe that is because she was recently engaged to a man from England, but it might be because of Christ living in her. Honestly, I'm not sure what it is, but it's there. She will continue teaching her evening school students this year and will be busy 6 evenings every week doing this. I have volunteered to help her again this year and will be teaching 2 evenings each week beginning after our upcoming visa trip. So, I ask that you pray for her and her future which is a little bit up in the air. Thanks!

Patrick

Picture - This is a picture of the classroom where I taught most of my classes last year. Here, it is filled with many of the things Natasha has accumulated over the years for her school.