Going to Church

We had been told that there was an International Church meeting in Qingdao so one of the first things we did was connect with other Christians in the city. One of the members of the church was kind enough to meet us at an easy to find supermarket and walk us to the meeting. In fact, I needed to call him and lacking a cell phone, asked the first foreigners I saw walk by if I could use theirs. Turns out it was the coach and a team member from the Argentina Olympic sailing team. They were kind enough to oblige us the use of their phone and I was able to call our new friend.

Going to church is a little more difficult for us here. Tammy and I are technically in Huangdao, which is across the bay from Qingdao. Huangdao has far less "foreigners" so we have to travel to Qingdao to attend the International Church. (The interesting nature of the country dictates that only foreign passport holders may attend the International Church). After a couple weeks now, we're starting to get the hang of it.

So Sunday morning goes like this:
1) Eat a big breakfast because it will be a while before you eat again
2) Go to the bathroom because you don't want to have to use a public restroom between home and destination (TRUST ME ON THIS!!)
3) Walk out to the street and hail a cab to take us to the ferry terminal
4) Arrive at ferry terminal and realize you just missed the boat that you see pulling away from the dock and will have to wait 30+ minutes until the next one
5) You wait in line as the crowd for the next ferry begins to press in all around you with very lttle respect for the the foreign concept of a "line" or "queue". As the hot humid August sun beats down on you and sweat begins to pore through your shirt, you have to decide what Ipod tune is going to put you in a better mood, Hosanna's worship song "Holy Ground" or Ted Nugent's "Free for All"
6) Enjoy a relaxing 45 minute ferry ride across the bay as the cool ocean breeze cools both body and temper.
7) Disembark and grab a cab for a nail biting 25 minute ride across town as you narrowly miss pedestrians, vendors, and other cars. Think Disney's "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" without the safety rail or the assurance of reaching the end in one piece
8) Arrive at church, worship with the Saints, and feel the presence of God. Easy!