Day 12

India Time: 10:34 PM (July 6, 2013)

CST: 11:54 AM (July 6, 2013)

What a spectacular day!  We made our way out early this morning (8:00) to see the sights.  Our first stop was the Undavalli Caves.  These caves took hundreds of years to carve out, courtesy of the Buddhist monks.  Just the thought of the lifetimes spent chiseling is enough to be impressive.  From there, we headed to Dhyana Buddha project, a 125 foot tall Buddha in Guntur.  The project is currently on hold (so there is scaffolding all around the statue) as a joint project of the government and Dalai Lama.  As Pastor Jyothi says, "This is India!"

The drive was spectacular.  Lots of villages and some great country side as well.  Our visits took us near the Hindu Kush mountains as well as the Krishna river, both lending themselves to beautiful landscapes.  Lots of banana farms and goat herds as we made our way to see the sights.  Among the more entertaining things we saw was a "Thank you for visiting" sign at a village that read "Than Q!"

Probably the best stop of the day involved our visit to Pastor Jyothi's sister.  We were warmly welcomed to her house as she hugged all of us, so excited that we were there.  We met her sons, as well as her new daughter in law (who's name also happens to be Rebekah!).  The new groom was very excited to introduce her to us, and I didn't mean to embarrass her when I said that she was very beautiful.  We took lots of pictures and prayed for those we met.  They were very happy to meet us, and it was definitely the highlight of our morning.  They kept saying they were so glad we were there, but we were truly the ones who were blessed by the visit.  

Pastor Jyothi treated us to KFC for lunch--A little heavier than we've been used to, but it was fun to see KFC in another country.  It's rice instead of potatoes, and the chicken has just a hair more spice to it than at home (not much though).  Pastor Jyothi probably gave half his meal to Brother Nathan encouraging him to eat after a busy morning!

We were off a little earlier tonight with a slightly longer (albeit less bumpy) ride to the Dandamudi village.  Before we even got out of the car the kids were waving and very excited to see us.  They were all saying hi multiple times as we walked up.  That energy carried over into our program and Pastor Jyothi played off it well, making sure they yelled answers extra loud.  One time while the children were repeating and answering, Pastor Jyothi said, "Very Good!" as he usually does after a correct answer and the kids repeated it.  I laughed and half of them mimicked my laugh as well!  

They were extremely excited to receive their gifts, and while this can make it a little difficult to get things handed out, it is so refreshing to see kids being kids.  These children take nothing for granted and are so grateful to receive even the smallest thing from us.  While it may look like chaos, it's wonderful to be among children so eager.  Pastor Jyothi apologized for them as we handed out gifts, and he really had no need.  They're just kids.  :-)

I'm not sure if anyone in our group wants to part ways with Brother Jyothi and the gang tomorrow.  I know Brother Nathan and I sure don't.  They have been so good to us, so concerned about our well being and making sure we have a good time.  (Not to mention understand India, and are able to communicate!)  I have no doubt that the saddest part of our time in India will be parting ways at the Tenali train station tomorrow.

~Becky Haddad