Lia just returned from the most amazing 2.5 weeks of her life! She arrived back home yesterday afternoon after two grueling days of travelling. Needless to say, she was so relieved to be home and to sleep in her bed (which she said is what she missed the most). Lia met up with her HXP group on June 26th at the JFK airport in NYC and then flew to Nairobi, Kenya (on the same flight as Riley who was going on a trip to Zimbabwe) and then on to Johannesburg, South Africa. She then spent two days in South Africa, staying in a lodge in the small town of Hazyview in the Kruger National Park. Her group left very early the next morning to go on a safari where they saw many kinds of animals, including lions, zebras, giraffes, and elephants. It was an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience that Lia will never forget! Later that day, they went kayaking on a river and saw a snake show that evening back at the lodge.
The next day, they travelled for 8 hours, taking a bus ride to Mozambique with a long stop at the border between the two countries where they changed busses and drivers. After driving to the town of Matola, the group set up home base at a private house where they lived for the next twelve days. During this time, they worked Monday through Friday at a school in this town, helping to build two classrooms on a pre-existing school for children who are currently attending class outside in the school yard. In the evenings, Lia and her group would do various activities with church members from a local ward, such as participating in dance lessons and attending Family Home Evening groups. On Sundays, they would attend church at this ward and go on splits with the missionaries. They also enjoyed a few evenings shopping and eating out in Matola. Lia’s group leaders also threw an epic Fourth of July party in the church parking lot. They had music, sparklers, bandanas, glow sticks and played basketball and had a water balloon fight! During the one weekend that they were in Mozambique, they drove to the beach town of Ponta Do Ouro and went down a giant, water slide in the jungle and took a boat ride out into the Indian Ocean where they got to jump in the water and go swimming. Lia also attended morning and evening devotionals at her house each day led by her two young adult leaders, Sophie and Logan. Every teenager was put on a “squad” during the trip, and Lia was part of the devotional squad. As a result, she was able to share a few devotionals as well as assign them to other people.
Their group left Motola early Friday morning, July 12th, and flew to Nairobi and then on to NYC. After saying her goodbyes to the group in NYC, Lia then flew on to Seattle where she landed at 3 pm on July 13th. She ended up being on both the flights to NYC and to Seattle with Riley. Lia absolutely loved this entire experience! She adored her trip leaders and made great friends with several of the other teenagers such as Liberty, Gabby, Jailee, and Cayson. She also loved spending time with Lacey. Overall, her testimony grew immensely and so did her love of the people of Mozambique. This was a life-changing experience, and I will forever be grateful that Lia was given the chance to have this opportunity. Here are a few pictures from Lia's adventures in Africa...
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