Paris or Rome

Today on a long train ride between Paris and Brussels I listened to Michael Buble's song 'home'. (For any travellers, big mistake!) There was nowhere to cry privately except while looking out the window at dismal gray tracks whizzing by and the reflection of my fellow passengers. For the first time in my life (and probably not the last) I had this feeling that I didn't care how many other great wonders of the world I saw, all the statues seemed the same, all the great big buildings were just great big buildings, Paris and Rome and Brussels and London were just one great big foreign city where I didn't know anyone and I walked down streets feeling small and alone. I wanted home.
Not home as in the little blue house in Burnaby, but home as in people- my family, the church, other christians, those loving times we spend together laughing and talking and eating and sharing. I've found home all over the world- in a park in Rome I met a catholic priest that spoke words of comfort and truth- in a village in Uganda I shared dried ants squatting by a coal fire with another christian girl- in Marseille I lay on a beach with another girl after a game, laughing until we cried.
And home as in purpose. I felt at home in the chemistry lab in Langley, struggling to make experiments work, because I knew God's hand was behind it all and I knew he wanted me to do it. It becomes less clear cut when I am wandering around the Louvre Museum trying to take in 6000 fantastic paintings. Is there a purpose behind this?
This morning in a grungy youth hostel I ate breakfast with my sister and another girl we met, and I talked to her about Jesus. I felt alive! I felt home.
So I don't know what will happen in the next week or two. I am expecting adventures. We've had some exciting and not-so-exciting ones in the last week. For example, I was told by one slimy old man that he was sure I had spanish blood in my veins (just before he tried to grope me). And then a group of policemen were sure I had Italian blood in my veins and tried all their best Italian pick-up lines on me. The funniest ones were this morning in a grocery store, two young guys who worked there tried their entire vocabulary of English on me (I love you! Would you like one of us for a boyfriend? What's your phone number? etc). And I was just trying to buy yogurt.
I have also officially eaten one of the best desserts in the world: Belgian waffels. And praise God, there were no bedbugs in the place we stayed last night. I am pretty cool with all sorts of creepy-crawlies, but I have to say that bedbugs keep me from sleeping.
lots and lots of love to you all.
P.S.- If anyone wants PARTICULAR presents let me know. Otherwise you're all getting Eiffel Tower keychains.