Going to the temple had been our dream since we arrived in Bulgaria. President Bennett readily agreed and told us to go with the group of members going in the Fall. It turned out that all four Sr. Couples went and we had a wonderful time. We left Sofia on Sunday morning at 9 a.m. and arrived at the temple 26 hours later. Sleep was the only real issue and some of us did not get any. Monday, the temple was closed so we walked through beautiful "Old Town" Freiberg. Tuesday through Friday we spent in the temple doing ordinance work and witnessed a wonderful young couple's sealing. Tuesday evening, the 4 Sr. Couples cooked dinner for the Bulgarian group, which consisted of 28 of us, and Thursday night the Bulgarians returned the favor and cooked for all. Because of the size of our group and other groups who were also attending the temple, housing at the temple complex was limited. In order to accommodate all of us, the couples were separated, even the newly wed couple, into various rooms; the men to one set of rooms and the women to others. Great experience to get to know the faithful Bulgarians as we shared rooms with each other. It was also a time to renew acquaintances with our good friends, Neil and Rosemarie Spencer, from Anchorage, Alaska. Neil served as Bishop of our ward, and John was one of his counselors. They are working in the temple as missionaries, and they just radiated with love and happiness. They are doing such a great job as missionaries. They treated us to dinner one evening, and drove us around the area of Freiberg, it was so good to be with them and to reminisce old times.
Germany has the most picturesque countrysides and hamlets of all the countries we travelled through. We drove through 6 countries to get to the temple including Bulgaria.
Old Town Freiberg has typical 16th to 19th century architecture. This is in one of their squares in old town. 
They were celebrating the opening of a mineral museum claiming to have the largest display of minerals in the world. We were pleasantly surprised to see this parade go by as we ate lunch in one of the restaurants in Old Town
Elder and Sister Mace, Elder and Sister Jorgenson, Elder and Sister Andersen, and Elder and Sister Jewell. Four lucky Sr. Couples posing in front of the temple. Notice how handsome the Andersen's are. 
The spire of the temple at 8:00 a.m. just before we embarked on our 24 hour trip back to Bulgaria, and another 24 hours without sleep
4 comments:
What a great trip for you!!! I am glad you got to see the Spencers and spend time with them.
I too am glad that you were able to go to the temple. The city you were in (or town, whichever is the correct term for it) was beautiful. I can't help but wonder if there is any significance or symbolism in what the men who were marching in the parade were wearing. Do you know? Anyway, even though you had to go without sleep on your trip over and back, it sounds like it was worth it.
What a wonderful and memorable trip! Who needs sleep when you can have such great experiences! HA! Love your blog. Thanks for sharing with the rest of us!
It's funny how your emotions plays tricks on you. I couldn't wait to get home because I missed the kids so bad & now when I read the blogs of our missionary friends, I am a bit jealous of them to be doing what they are doing. I miss the field. I'm so glad that you got to attend the temple in your mission. Our Pres. wouldn't allow it. Good for you.
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