indonesian inclinations

Hello all,
Many of you know, and that is the reason you are reading this blog, is that i am heading off to indonesia for the month of july. i am going with CRWRC (christian reformed world relief committee). as an NGO they have been there since the beginning, but construction on new homes and sustainable projects are now underway. they are sending small teams to assist the local indonesians with rebuilding their homes, but a large purpose of the trip is to offer encouragement, hope, and confidence to those whose lives were devastated by the tsunami. and for us north americans to learn about the indonesian culture, expand our worlds, and then be more involved in justice and development upon our return home.
my personal goals for this trip are to learn about the indonesian people in the area, listen to their stories (apparently they are more than willing to talk about their losses and experiences), learn about the muslim culture, and hopefully learn a little construction on the way!
my long-term goals include working as a medical missionary full-time in a developing country. i am working on a longer term placement (at least one year) but in the mean time, God has placed a couple of opportunities in my lap. i want to get as much experience as i can doing as many different things as i can. i am eager to learn about disaster relief and what rebuilding a community looks like.
i might appear pretty laid back and easy going about my travels, but sometimes i am so excited i feel like i am going to burst or i need to run a few laps!
i look forward to sharing experiences (if i have internet access where i am going), and i would love to hear back from you as well!
shalom alida

new york city, here i am!

I went to New York City for a week in May with my friend Amy. We walked about 10 hours a day, just trying to soak in all that is New York. I had just bought some bug-eyed sunglasses in Chinatown, and struck a pose on the Brooklyn Bridge.