SO what did we actually do? On the first day we did a scavenger hunt type situation once again. Which was lovely, it was slightly less programmed at set up then the last one, we just went around the rough and rich part of Vancouver. Answered a few questions, we had to share our lunch with someone as well. It just so happens that the poorest and the richest parts of town are right beside each other. Thus making for an interesting day for sure. I was paired up with two other people and we roamed the streets, we were asked to not bring any valuables, like wallets or other such things. One of our later “challenges” was to find dinner for free. We were suggested to go to a soup kitchen, and feel what it’s like to not be able to eat that night. My group decided that we didn’t want to go to a soup kitchen, to take a meal from someone else who could use it more. We sat in McD’s after asking tons of restaurants if they had any extra food they didn’t need or could give to us for some work in return. It didn’t work exactly, so we asked the manager at McDonald’s she told us that we should go to the protest down at the Vancouver Art Gallery (affectionately nicknames the Vag. Cute…) They were handing out food for the protesters there, there is a tent city set up with like tons of hippies. They had prepared soup and bread, thankfully we asked them if we could have some soup and they said if we could do something in return. We gladly washed their dishes and swept their floors, and had some super spicy soup! It was a really interesting way to eat dinner for sure. It was also beyond humbling to have no money and no way of feeding ourselves that night. Feeling completely helpless really opened up our eyes. Millions of people feel that every day, and we never knew what that felt like until now.
The next day I went onto the streets with a few people and offered free prayer! We stood on a street corner all day ( we switched shifts) holding up a sign saying “FREE PRAYER”. It was really interesting, we got some happy people willing to pray with us, for their families, for the world. We also had some unhappy people, scoffing us, swearing, not pleased with us being there. Overall, great day. Then the next day we did a temple visit day, we went to three temples, Muslim, Sikh and a Buddhist temple. We had to be very conservative, I mean VERY. All the girls wore long skirts to the floor, a collared shirt, and a scarf on our heads. It was….informative for sure. We need to educate ourselves in all other faiths and religions to get a good grasp on our own. And we did, I find however that Christianity seems to be the most simple and less traditional of all the faiths. There are so many traditions and customs, to remember. It’s all so complicated, and I was quite overwhelmed by each temple. By the end of the day I was SO looking forward to taking that dang skirt off, I mean I love dressing up….but long skirts make my body unhappy.
The last day we got the choice to go to Union Gospel Mission (Soup Kitchen) or to do Impact Vancouver, which is just like doing anything to impact the city in a good way. I chose to go to UGM, and I had a great day handing out food and talking with people. Julie got proposed to by a lovely man from Sudan (haha), and we met the cutest baby named Dylan! Next, we made our way out to the paradise of Twin Creeks Retreat Center, where you find gourmet food, amazing people, and the most beautiful facilities that I’ve ever seen. From staying in sketchy hotels, that little bugs crawl out of your suitcase or off of your toothbrush to a beautiful, huge, chalet near Abbotsford. They have tons of movies, and stunning rooms, we are spent a couple days here, pretty much doing nothing. Just relaxing and taking some time off from all the hussle and bussle. It’s almost like heaven here, I love it.  |
| We Got Some Really Great Soup One Night. It's called Pho! |
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