Day 42-43- The Rhode Trip! (Part 2)

We woke up on Wednesday morning at a later time (8:30am is indeed late), and we woke up to breakfast and drama practice at the Beaver Home. It was a lighter day today, the drive to Rochester, NY is only 2.5 hours, so we were in no hurry. On the schedule it said we would have “Team Rec”. I didnt know what it meant, but I was down for it. We hit the road at noon, and headed north. Only, we kept heading north, past the Rochester sign… I kept reading the signs and noticed one common sign: Niagara Falls. Our Team Leaders gave in, and finally told us we would be having our Team Rec at the NIAGARA FALLS!! We arrived at around 3pm, and it was GORGEOUS!! Oh, the mist was beyond refreshing, and the views were incredible, both down at the bottom of the falls and Canada on the other side. We had lunch on a grass area, then got to explore for a little while. I got my first collectible keychain of the year, and so ready to collect more. . . We finally arrived at our host home in Rochester, NY. Their names were David and Sharon, and they were an older couple who have been around NET for years, but havent hosted since 2012. They were super sweet, and had such a kind heart for us. We got to play Super Scrabble with them, where Moriah and I came in 2nd behind Sharon... by 200 points. Still impressed by our performance though! Their house was extremely small, but was really cozy, so it made the night really enjoyable. . . We woke up butt-early for our final leg, and left the house around 7:30am to try and get to Rhode Island. Not much happened on the drive, but we arrived in Rhode Island! It reminded me of home: lots of beautiful trees and depressing, dark clouds. We arrived at Immaculate Conception Church in Cranston, RI around 6:00pm, where we were taken home by our host families. Jakob, Evan, and I were in a host home with Vincent and Donna Vacca, longtime Immaculate parishioners who responded to a bulletin announcement to take us in. We entered their beautiful home, where dinner was just about ready for us. They didnt know what NET was, so once we explained it to them, they were impressed by our courage to do missionary work straight out of high school. Then came dinner: a true Italian experience. They served spaghetti, garlic bread, chicken cutlet, salad, and drinks galore at a beautifully set table and jazz music in the background. And they do Italian food right in Rhode Island, which does make sense I guess. Conversation was super insightful and so much fun, but it did end rather quickly, about 9:00pm. This did allow me to call family members though, so I was grateful for it. So excited for what else the Vacca’s and Rhode Island have to offer!!