What I've Learned Thus Far

In America, church is usually a word that corresponds to small old buildings consisting of very few members. In Lithuania, however, there are so many churches that are so old, beautiful, and majestic, it is hard to fathom how they were even built by human hands. Today our study abroad group went to a Catholic Church service at a 400 year old church.

The entry into the old stone wall surrounding the church building also started the entry back into time. As we went further into the church's courtyard we saw beggars at the doors of the church and throughout the courtyard; I counted about three or four. Just before entering the Church, I heard the sound of the hymn Shout to The Lord being sung in Lithuanian accompanied by a piano. As I waked in the church the sound of the hymn being sung in Lithuanian fully engulfed me. I felt the ubiquitous presence of the music everywhere in the sanctuary, from the altar area in the front made of its white and blue marble pillars and statues of Jesus spanning fifty feet high, to the back of the sanctuary where the full beauty of the grandeur of the place could be perceived. These effects together produced an instant chill throughout my whole body. The beauty of the church was amazing. The sixty foot arched white ceilings came down to meet the floor as large, square, pillars. The altar was very beautiful and included a large crucifix at the center. Unfortunately in the sanctuary packed with about 500 people, the only seats left were right behind one of these large pillars. So I was unable to see the front of the sanctuary without the aid of the tv on the wall, or understand anymore than three words the entire service due to the language barrier.

My orientation portion of the trip has ended. So I am going to briefly talk about what I have learned in this short time here in Lithuania thus far ( not ranked in order of importance )....

1. Lithuanians are very proud of their independence, especially since it has taken hundreds of years to remain independent for even 26 years.

2. Lithuanians are sometimes offended when people speak Russian to them due to their history with Russian occupation.

3. I know some Lithuanian! Here is what I've got so far....

Ačiū- pronounced achu (like you're sneezing)- thank you

Taip-yes

Ne-no

Labas rytas-good morning

Laba diena- good day

Labas vakaras- good evening

Atsiprašau- excuse me

And I can count to 10 with butchered pronunciation! Haha

4. People generally do like Americans. I thought many people wanted nothing to do with Americans and did not like them. The exception to this may come in situations where tourists do stupid things...

5. I need to learn to have more confidence in myself in certain situations that require responsibility and some knowledge of how to handle the situation. For example, when my flight was delayed and when my baggage was lost, I was perfectly able to handle it on my own, but I just needed to have the confidence in myself.

Those are at least the 5 biggest things I have learned thus far. I am learning how to handle myself in more stressful situations and also learning about many different countries and the beliefs and cultures of people who live in them. I hope this trend continues!