Happy Birthday America !!

Dear Family and Friends,

I missed a day yesterday due to church here, and our first AECOM company picnic. Hopefully, today I will write to you twice. May I first say how very proud I am to be an American, and enjoy the freedoms that God has given us in our country, freedom of religion, freedom of speech and all of the other precious freedoms that I have probably taken for granted over my lifetime. Never again, not after living in this country of Libya. I have always been very patriotic, but this year feels very different. May God bless America, and all of you today as you celebrate with your families and friends. We are with you in spirit. We love you !! Lynn and Rick

Tripoli Craziness

Hey to everyone,

Tonight is wild and crazy time in Libya, we've just watched a gorgeous sunset on the roof of the Arkno, and we could hear cars drag racing down Gargaresh street !! I guess everyone is extremely happy that it's Thursday night, and their weekend is beginning. The sunset here is spectacular, unbelievable colors, and the sun slowly sinking, then poof, it's gone. I think the sky gets better and better after the sun goes down into the Mediterranean Sea, then the show really begins !! Rick took a video tonight, and will have to edit it before we can share it. Sorry, we really are beginners with the video on our new camera.

Rick just finished his first full week of work here in Libya, and it was fun for me to see him so excited about work again. I am thankful that God gave him a job that is challenging, and rewarding. He is working with men and women from so many different countries, Egypt, Syria, China, Korea, Russia, England, Australia, Brazil, and Portugal, to name a few. What an incredible opportunity !! It is fun to exchange stories of home with the men and women who live here at the Arkno with us, all have family and friends that they love and miss, just like us.

Tomorrow, we will attend church for the first time here, at 10:30 on Friday morning. Different, huh? I'm sure God doesn't mind that we will be gathering on Friday instead of Sunday. He listens to us every day anyway.

Love you all, and have a happy 4th of July, and a safe one too. Lynn

Home at the Arkno today

Thanks for the sweet comments about the video, we will film more, the next may be of the purple martins at sunset. You will be amazed. Today, things are quiet before the "storm" of Thursday nights in Tripoli. The activity level is unreal, horns honking, so many people out on the streets, young "boys" doing their wild donuts in the parking lots. What a crazy night Thursday is !

In contrast, Friday mornings are still and quiet, everyone is resting and awaiting their visit to the mosque. I want to also make a video with the sounds of the "calls to prayer" that we hear 4 times every day. The one at dawn never wakes us up, thanks to our great air conditioner. The loud speakers remind the Libyan people to "look to God, and to pray" , at least that's what Ahmed, one of the young drivers told me. I said to him, but you are driving a car, and he replied, "I still pray."

Great reminder to all of us, look to God and pray as you go about your day because He cares for you !! More on my evening blog... love to all, Lynn

VISIT TO THE ARKNO

Welcome to our home, the Arkno. We hope to get an apartment in the future but for now we want to share our accomodations with you. Sorry, this is so corny, but I was under some "pressure" from the film director ! Please don't judge too harshly, it was very impromptu, and unprofessional.

To all of my fellow bird lovers, every evening at around sunset, flocks of birds swoop all over around our balcony living room, I assume they are relatives of the purple martins we have in Texas, who are definitely our friends because they eat so many mosquitoes. It is wonderful to watch them, especially with the sunset behind over the Med. I almost bought a bird at the market the other day to keep me company during the day. The one I like is bright green with orange and yellow on it, like a miniature parrot. With my luck, I'd bring it back and it would be one of those birds who don't like people, kind of like our neighbor, JD.

Another local market today, more like an indoor mall, nice and air conditioned. I went with a new friend, Shirley, to buy a coffee she likes, and a Cinnabon. Yes, just like the yummy ones at the mall, that have a million calories. Everyone loves sweets. I must say the Libyan candy is delicious, today I found these white, divinity looking rectangles with pistachios in them, yum!! And they were four for a dinar...perfect !! I am definitely going to stay away from those.

Tonight we actually ate a cheeseburger and fries at a local restaurant which has outdoor seating and a great view of the Med. We saw jet skies, people swimming, and young boys doing donuts in the parking lot next door. Sounds like an evening on the lake in Austin doesn't it?

For today, I will say, more later my sweet friends and family, may God bless all of you while we are apart, we love you, lynn

Tuesday News

Hello, it's Tuesday night at 9:50 and I'm just now sending my blog. Rick and I actually filmed a short video of our new "home", the Arkno, so all of you could see our room and balcony living room, plus the downstairs dining room and living area. It will take awhile to download so we'll have to wait for the Internet traffic to die down before we can share it, but soon, I promise. Good news today, they are installing a brand new dish for the Internet which will give us much faster, better service, and we get a much larger refrigerator and a microwave, a very big deal when you have no kitchen. Rick's new company, AECOM, is really trying to keep their employees happy, and improvements are made all of the time. One day we'll get a call saying our apt. is available, and we will move. But for now, we're fine at the Arkno, and excited that another married couple will be moving in soon. And, she is not going to be working !! Maybe, I'll have a buddy to go shopping with.

Today, I experienced the Gorgi Market, very local shopping area filled with moms and kids. All sorts of things for sale, clothes, purses, scarves, linens, etc. Everything is so reasonably priced, the ladies I was with both bought a set of sheets, queen sized, for 27 dinar. I love going to the grocery store, which amazes me because I don't love it at home! It's such a challenge to figure out what is in the packages. Some are obvious, a lot aren't. Rick already has a favorite cookie, Croustina, "crispy wafers filled with milk cream", funny description. Today at the local market, Al Aruba, I saw a gummy Bart Simpson head on a stick, kids love him here too. Also, Spider Man, and Hello Kitty candy. Kids are kids on whatever continent, some wave at me, some stare, but all are cute. The very old men in their long robes, some with scarves on their heads and missing teeth are cute too. Well, more later, JD, our junkyard dog is quiet tonight. God is good !! Love to all and we miss you, Lynn

Monday Thoughts, and finally, Leptis Magna

Hello Family and Friends,

We are having some real issues with the blog at night, I'm thinking it's because so many new residents have moved into the Arkno with us; we've got some competition for the Internet!! So, I thought I would try to send the photos of Leptis Magna today during the day when all are at work, except of course, for me. I'm so used to being SO busy, teaching, outings with family and friends, and housework too. All of this has changed for me. My room is cleaned every day but Friday and Saturday, laundry is sent out and comes back ready to put away, and meals are prepared for me, breakfast and dinner. What's a girl to do?

Today, my routine in the morning, work out, Bible, journal, then REST. God must have decided that I need to rest for a while. And so I rest, and read, write and rest some more. Many of you will be thinking, sounds good! However, for me, it is just something I need to work on. I'm not a very good "rester", I love being busy!! I know that I will look back on these first days in Libya, and wish for some of this quiet, so I'm trying to keep that in mind.

Now for some reflections on Libya: there is real beauty in the five calls for prayer each day, prayer and time with God is prioritized, I like that ! Libyans are so friendly, what makes them this way? I know that they open their hearts in a way I've never seen before, completely enjoying others in a way that is charming, I like how proud Libyans are of their families, the people here serve with a joyful spirit, not grudgingly or expecting anything in return. When Rick and I commented on this hospitality, one of our new friends, Shamir, said, "I hope you always find my country this way!" Their cappacinno(sp?) is wonderful,tastes like chocolate, and only cost $0.75 a cup. Awesome!

Oddities: I've only seen one dog and one cat since I've been here, where are they? Women "swim" in their full dress, long skirts, head covering everything, how do they keep from drowning? No alcohol, but so much smoking...

I do really want to write a book, but I need a focus, a title. Anyone with an idea, let me know.

I love you all, and I miss you so much, Lynn

Workout Views and the Arkno

Hi everyone,

Wanted to share pictures of our Libyan "home" for now, the Arkno. I was spelling it with an "he" at the end because that is what showed up on our internet name, but on the gate t

onight I saw this new spelling, and so it will be from now until we leave. OK, new routine for Lynn. I was sad at the thought that my buddy Rick was going off to work this morning, and I was facing an unknown sort of day, so I decided to fight the sadness back and get up with him, have breakfast, and go to the 5th floor roof, fast becoming one of my favorite spots, and actually "work out" on the stationary bike, then got on the treadmill, read out in the sun for a while and wrote in my journal. What a beautiful view of the Med from the window right in front of the bike, breathtaking !! So, my sadness and homesickness faded and I thanked God for His blessings in my life, especially for all of you and the prayers that have been said, and are being said, for Rick and

me. I can feel them !! God blessed me with two new friends, Ellen and Eleanor, both Texans, one from Houston, the other from Ft. Worth. They invited me to Guesthouse 2 where they live to sit by the pool and talk. It was awesome to be with other nonworking ladies. Ellen has been in

Tripoli for a year, Eleanor for only two month. I enjoyed it so much, particularly since it was so unexpected. I will go shopping with them on Wednesday. So for today, I feel very thankful. Enjoy the pictures and keep those emails and Skype calls coming. My love to each of you, our sweet, precious friends and family, Lynn