Say hello to my beautiful Croatian friends..

One thing I have been wanting to attempt to express to my friends and family at home, is the beautiful heart of the people of Croatia. Since arriving I have been taken back by the value people place on community and friendships, and their hospitality and willingness to bend over backwards to serve myself and my team.
When we first arrived in Croatia we were greeted by a student, Dario who picked us up at the bus station with our car, packed all of our luggage in the car, and then made multiple trips from the bus station to our apartment to help us get all our luggage in. Without him, we each would have had to carry our 5 bags, each weighing 50 or more pounds multiple block home.. If that weren't enough, he felt the need to treat our entire team out to lunch on him.
Zoran, the crazy man I wrote about above is one of the students who I have seen serve my team in so many ways, and he never does so in hopes for self recognition, which I admire and I think am learning a lot about. I joked above about how much he helped me with my computer, which seems like a small task, but without that help I would have been lost.
Two other students who have made similar impacts on myself and my team are actually sisters, Doda and Ines. Doda is a student our team developed a deep friendship with last year. She is so full of energy and life. She reminds me of friends from home.. Her sister Ines is amazing. She is like my Croatian little sister, she makes me laugh and she teaches me Croatian. She refuses to call my by my name, and refers to me only as Blondie, which I love.. I now have a nick name for her, Zvrki, it translates something
like a top that spins on a table, somewhat out of control ;)
Doda invited our team and Zoran to spend the weekend with her and her family in Novi Vinodolski and it was such a huge blessing to be invited home with a student and to have the opportunity to live with them.. Although our team wasn't able to communicate much with her parents (they don't speak English, and I'll speak for myself, I speak poor, if any Croatian) their joy and sincere love for our team were clearly expressed in the ways they welcomed our team into their home..
I think I am going to learn so much about true community here and I am just so excited to see the ways that God is going to use the deep relationships students have for one another for His purpose..