The Arrival of Autumn...

Enjoying a fire and barbecue

The weather has definitely turned here now and is getting colder, greyer and wetter. Despite this, the last two weeks have been busy both with work and rest. Last week was the equivalent of half term here in Slovenia and so many of my normal meetings were cancelled. We also had two national holidays, Reformation Day and All Hallows. Last year I was a lot more involved in seeing how they were celebrated so if you'd like to know more, read my blog posts from that time. One fun fact I learnt though, Reformation Day is a national holiday in only 3 countries in the world, obviously Slovenia and Germany. If anyone can tell me the 3rd one (without resorting to Google) they can pat themselves on the back for a job well done. Answers on a postcard please.

Lake Cerknica

I didn't quite have the week off but I was able to spend a bit of time celebrating my birthday (which apparently is being spread over several weeks) with my flatmates and friends. The above photo was taken (with no filter) by the side of a river where we had a fire and barbecue which was great fun. We also travelled to Cerknica to visit my flatmate's mum. Cerknica is home to an amazing natural feature, a disappearing lake. The whole region is riddled with underground caves and so the lake only appears when the caves are full of water. It is the largest disappearing lake in Europe and if it were full it would be the largest lake in Slovenia. Anyway, the day we went was quite atmospheric and the lake was reasonably full compared to the last time I went when it was little more than a swamp!

This last week has definitely got back to normal and has been nicely full of meetings with different people. As much as I like having rest and time off, I do also like having purpose and work to do.

For those who are interested in the continuing saga of my thumb, the latest doctor I saw is pretty certain he knows the cause and it may well require surgery or a procedure of some sort. I have a test to confirm the diagnosis next week. I'll try and keep people updated as I learn in more certainty what's going on. Please continue to pray for this issue as I really don't want it to detract from my work here. I am grateful, however, for the speed in which I've gained a diagnosis and for the doctors here. If I do need surgery, I will have it here rather than returning to the UK. Nothing is certain yet and so I keep trusting in God because I know that he hold the future in his hands!