Bologna, Italy.

              This blog is by Dan the Man. We stayed in Bologna for our first week of our time in Italy. It had been almost three years since the last time we were in Italy. My first impression of Italy was how very little they eat for breakfast (usually only bread and coffee/tea), then a medium-sized lunch, and then stuff themselves for dinner. One of our Italian-American friends took us for breakfast one morning. I had IHOP, or Cracker Barrel in mind. Well, it wasn't quite that. It was still super tasty. They make pretty amazing pastries. But we loved going into the city and seeing really old towers and buildings and such. There are a lot of towers that were built in the 13th century. There were at one time 180 towers! Now there are just 16 towers, but it still looks cool.

This is Bologna in the middle ages.

This is a pic from the top of the tallest tower in Bologna.

The stairs are the original stairs! And we were all amazingly amazed.  They were made in the 13th century! I was scared to walk all the way up with nothing but the same stairs under me! But we survived.

The tower we climbed is the one on the right. The one on the left is leaning to the right a lot. It is hard to tell from this angle, but 'tis. The foundation was not laid on solid ground because the building of these two towers was a race, and they weren't careful.

We loved our time and trips into Bologna, and are so thankful for all the people who invited us over, or talked to us, or played with us!

Playin Some Ball in Italy

By: Caleb

We spent a week in Bologna, Italy and right next to where we were staying there was a refugee center. Every day we went to the basketball court and played basketball and soccer. It was amazing because the Greens and the refugees differed in so many ways, but we all played soccer the same. We made friends from Gambia, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Senegal and many other African countries. One of the girls from dad's class plays pro basketball in Italy, and on our last day there she came out and played with us.

Daniel gave me a sweet cross that I tried to head in.

This is right before a great pass by Tori.

Daniel bringing the house down on a fast break.

May the best man win...

Our friend Rae Lin who plays professional ball in Italy...and mom photo bombing.

Bonjourno Bologna!

Greetings.  Brad here.  We are loving our time in Italy.  Our trip here has centered around three main cities--Bologna, Padova, and Rome.  What a treat.  We landed in Rome on March 18th, and spent the night. We then took a train to Bologna on March 19.  I taught a course in Bologna March 20-24, preached on March 26, then headed on to Padova on March 27.
In Bologna, I taught a course at the church Nuova Vita.    This church has an internship program, and I spent five days with super folks, working through the question of the relationship of faith to works, obedience, and faithfulness.  It was a real treat.

We arrived in Rome, after flying from Sydney, Australia.  Now THAT is a long flight.  Finding our accommodations was quite interesting.  We went to the address given to us, and actually the address did not seem to be there.  So, I saw this lady where our address should have been.  I approached her to ask for help, and began to do so.  She looks at me, pulls out a piece of paper, and while pointing at a name on the piece of paper, asks me if I am "Bradley Green"!  I am not kidding.  The name on the paper was my name, and she was there to meet us.  Anyway, she then proceeded to walk us, at night, in Rome, to our accommodation.  It ended up being fine, but it was a tad surreal.  On the way, we ordered pizza, had a quick dinner, and promptly fell asleep.  The next day we took the train to Bologna.

I love the little bitty Italian espresso cups.  Our first full day in Italy, I enjoyed a coffee in our mysterious Rome accommodation.  Wonderful.  

Besides teaching in Bologna, we took time to see this beautiful city. Here we are about to climb the 498 steps of Asinelli Tower, the larger of the two towers seen.

 Here we are atop Asinelli Tower, which is one of several around the city.  Beautiful view!

Our super host and friend, Mark Brucato, one of the pastors at Nuova Vita.  Thanks for a great time in Bologna, Mark!

A great picture of Victoria and Dianne, in a piazza in Bologna.

Teaching in Bologna with the interns was an absolute blessing.

While in Bologna we went one Saturday with our friends Ilaria and Emmanuelle to Ravenna, about a 45 minute train ride from Bologna.  In Ravenna, which was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 402 until that empire collapsed in 476,  we visited a number of churches with beautiful 6th century mosaics.  It is also the city, we discovered with great delight once we arrived there, where Dante lived the last years of his life.  Here we are at Dante's tomb (and Daniel happened to be wearing his Dante t-shirt that day.)

Dante's tomb.

It was a blessing to spend the day with Emmanuelle and Ilaria, two of the interns at Nuova Vita.  They are a vibrant Christian couple, excited to serve the Lord in Italy.  I am excited to see what the Lord does in and through them over time.

Toward the end of our time in Bologna, we spent a wonderful afternoon with the Brucatos.  After church and a delicious lunch at a local Italian place, we walked a short distance to a basilica--the Sanctuary of Madonna of Saint Luke.  A great day.  We are very thankful for the ministry of Nuova Vita, the internship program, and for the super people we met while there.  Thank you for allowing us to be with you all!

Teaching in Australia

Hi! Brad here. We as a family had a super time in Australia.  I had the opportunity to teach or speak at four different theological colleges:

• Brisbane School of Theology (Brisbane)
• Reformed Theological College (Geelong/Melbourne)
• Sydney Missionary and Bible College (Sydney)
• Christ College (Sydney)

I enjoyed the time at all four places.

Here are some fun pictures from our adventures in these places:

The folks at Brisbane School of Theology were super.  Pictured here are Graeme Goldsworthy (one of my heroes--front row, light blue polo), and Richard Gibson (friend whom I had met at ETS, and the principal at Brisbane School of Theology).  Super folks.

At Brisbane School of Theology, I taught a course related to my book, Covenant and Commandment.  The students were a delight.

At Reformed Theological College in Geelong, I had the opportunity to give some evening lectures.  Great to see laypersons in the community want to come out for the talks!

I loved the time and students at Sydney Mission and Bible College.  Our friend Malcolm Gill, whom we originally met at Tyndale House in Cambridge, was a great host.  Thanks Malcolm!

And we did more than teach.  One night Malcolm took us out and about in Sydney.  What a great city.  Here is Malcolm and his daughter, Annabel.

While out with Malcolm and Annabel we saw this giant anchor, which was all that was left of a great ship that sank in the 1800s during a storm just off the coast of Sydney.  My!

And greetings to my friends at Christ College:  Ian Smith, Murray Smith, and the students were super. (We lived at Sydney Missionary and Bible College the week I taught at Christ College--so none of my wonderful family were around to take pictures there.)  But great folks at Christ College!

The Blog of Blogs: Australia Edition (so grab a cuppa--as they say-- and hang on)

Dianne here...

G'day mates.  We loved Australia--the people, the food, the wide open spaces, the wildlife, the scenery, the way it felt like home, and the mailboxes. 

We'll start there.  

Australia wins for most original mailboxes.  Apparently there is no standard size nor shape, so the mailboxes brim with personality:

My personal favorite. :)

Next up, wildlife, both real and sign-post style:

And, sure enough...

This cute little guy is an echidna.  Who knew?

These wallabies are similar to, but smaller than, kangaroos.

THESE are kangaroos. :)

There were so many cockatoos in this tree, that we
 thought on first glance that the tree was in bloom, 
and these were it's white flowers!

We also saw loads of wombats, these adorable little creatures, although we did not take this picture, as all the wombats we saw were...um, dead on the side of the road (presumably from being hit by cars), so I decided to post this pic of a pre-hit wombat.

On to Food and Friends:

This tropical fruit is a lychee.  My first. And, for those who are wondering, it is the sole member of the genus Litchi in the soapberry family.  Mmmm...

The next two pictures on the right are of the Lush family.  They live on the campus of Brisbane School of Theology (BST), where Brad taught, so we saw them every day, and loved every single minute we got to spend with them.  So many of the adventures we had in Brisbane were with these guys.  How we love them!!

In Sydney, the Gill family loved us to no end.  They are friends whom we met in Cambridge, and they are one of  the main reasons Australia felt like home.  It was lovely to already know them, get to spend time with them, and hear all that the Lord is doing--both in them, and in Sydney. :)

Malcom and Tamara Gill and her to-die-for pavlova.  Just LOOK at that dessert!!  She is one amazing woman!

CHURROS!!

Next up, scenery and skylines:

View of Brisbane from BST

Along Great Ocean Road

Spectacular View from "The Gap" in Sydney

Remember the movie The Man from Snowy River (that was filmed in Australia)?!?!

Well, THIS is Snowy River!!!! :)

Up next, the GAMES we played in Australia:

Ping pong--we played lots of it!!

One of my favorite pictures.  I still laugh every time I see it. 
They are looking at the ball that just whizzed past them as they
 both watched it go by... 

Cricket:

Whether in Geelong with friends at Reformed Theological College...

...or with friends in the backyard at BST...

...the kids have played, and we have watched, a lot of cricket... :)

Cards and Seven Wonders:

In this little cabin in a wood...

...we stayed and played lots of cards, as there was no television...no internet...and it rained BUCKETS (see figure 1 below) most of the three days we were there.

Figure 1.  So much rain that it was a sheer sheet of water on each window.

We fell in love with the Chong family while in Sydney.  They were our neighbors at Sydney Missionary and Bible College, and with 3 adorable kids, plus being native New Zealanders (where we had just been), we hit it off right away.  It was in their home that Tori started humming songs from the Romans cd, on which our niece Kelsie sings the lead female vocal, and Cheryl (the mom) said, "Oh, we have that cd."  Wait...WHAT?!?!?!?!  Way over in New Zealand, they had heard about it and ordered it, so we started listening to it as we played Seven Wonders.  So fun (and so proud of Kelsie!! :)

And, speaking of the Chong's adorable kiddos: 

Frisbee (note the cricket game in the background):

Bowties:

These guys were so much fun!   They both wore their bow ties just for Brad on the last day of his class.  Alan Stanley, on the right, and his family made us feel so welcome!  They let us use their car for the entire week, plus checked in on us every day--
so kind!!  All these guys at BST were a complete joy to get to know!! :)

Other Random Australian Memories:

Watching an airshow with a stunt pilot at Manly Beach...

Love this picture of my boy. 
 (Taken on ferry crossing Sydney Harbor.)

That little cabin? Had creek behind.  With LEACHES!!! LOTS of them. 

Love this picture of my boy. 
 (Taken after seeing our first kangaroo in the wild.)

Same little cabin, in the brief interlude between torrential downpours. 

Sometimes...just sometimes...I don't WANT to smile...  

...unless I'm with this guy... ;)

Oh my word.  This guy, Mark, was the chef at Reformed Theological College in Geelong.
His culinary creations were A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.

The Lush family is kinda like the Von Trapp Family--all very musical
 and willing to share their gifts.  Here Jonny is on guitar and oldest
daughter Isabella is on cello in their worship band at church.

Tori's Hair Salon is now open.  She's had plenty
of on-the-job training this year. :)

Sydney's Opera House, from the ferry

Sydney's Opera House, not from the ferry ;)

Farewell, mates.