So far being here in Innsbruck has been full of new and exciting things. Nearly every day we are in some kind of new situation generally where we are understanding little of the conversation going on around us. Some days it seems like we are understanding more and more of what people are saying and then there are others that we feel like we don't understand anything. We start our German classes on Feb. 11th. So we are working on German ourselves for now which is helping but we still cannot communicate a lot. Be praying that God continues to give us a desire to learn the language and that it will come quickly!
Our first full day in Innsbruck we took a bus to Rum (which is a small village right outside Innsbruck where our team leader lives). This was are first time on a bus and it was just the two of us. We were told which bus to get on and what our stop was. We were also told there would be a screen saying the next stop and when you see your stop you have to push the red button otherwise the bus will not stop...seems easy enough. First we got on the wrong bus but the bus driver corrected us and showed us where to go....then we couldn't open the door so the bus driver did it for us :) This bus driver didn't speak any English but after some confusion we had a ticket in hand and were on the bus. Quickly we noticed there was no screen that said the next stop. They were announcing the stops over the speaker but quickly it got too loud that we couldn't even hear it. So we had no idea what to do and it was dark. After we were on the bus for a while, we noticed we had left Innsbruck and were now entering another town. The bus came to a stop and I saw a sign on it saying Rum! Thank goodness others needed to get off there as well and had already pressed the red button. Praise God! Since then we have been on the bus many more times and it has gone much smoother (they all have had the screen saying the bus stops which helps)
We have been blessed many different ways since we have been here, from the apartment we live in to the next apartment we will be at, as well as bikes we can use for free (for now), never getting lost (although we might not have been sure of the way to go). We have an awesome team that has been helping us out along the way but also encouraging us to branch out and get out of our comfort zone which has been very beneficial to us learning the city as well as the culture.
We went to church for the first time here this week. The church we are attending is probably about 40 people and is German speaking. This week our team leader Dave was the one who preached so he gave us a copy of his notes in English and then his wife Cathrin translated the rest for us. Some of the worship songs were the English song but then the words translated into German so there was at least one thing that we familiar :)
Every day we have been helping out at the Lighthouse mostly with the Lernhilfe (assisted learning) this has been a challenge as well as a blessing. We mostly work with middle school age kids (who generally speak little English). So mostly we help with English homework or play games with students that don't have homework. Many are not believers so be praying for opportunities that God presents.
There will be many more stories and pictures to come!
(the view from our living room window)
