We're here...

I gotta make this quick. We landed in Moldova around 5:30 AM, EST.  It was 12:30 pm local time.  The flight from DC to Munich was the longest flight I'd ever been on... 7.5 hrs!  The plane was totally huge as well!  We were smushed in the middle of course...
It really felt like we were transported back into time.  The landscapes are beautiful, rolling hills, with lots of patches of farm land (and real shepherds on the sides of the roads).  The alphabet is different here, so you really can't read anything.

We were picked up by Mark (one of the founders of Help the Children) and our driver Serge.  It was about an hour 1/2 to Transnistria. Going thru the boarder was fine... I was a bit nervous.  We got to our house and dropped our stuff off.  The house has a pretty garden in front, w/ a green gate (allt he houses have gates) We're staying in a bunk room - the showers & toilets are small, but everything is real nice.  We then walked around the area and stopped in a market.  It's just so so much different... the food is different, but some things are similar.

We had a home cooked meal which was delish!  Meat loaf type things (smaller) rice, fresh cucumber & tomato salad, bread... we had a quick planning meeting to nail out the details for tomorrow.  We're going to the orphanage to do games & crafts with the kids & meet the director.  We'll do that for the next 3 days.  We're at an English club right now, meeting some local 'youth' who attend these free english classes - I hopped on the internet real quick to post an update.

Thank you for the prayers - already having a blast, despite being insanely tired!  More later...