a city is better explored with gelato in one hand after a full belly. 

note: we walked vienna on the two hottest days in june 2017. we were visiting friends who gave us the grandest tour. when we put the fork down, we were walking a few blocks to pick up the spoon. 

here is day one itinerary:

take the train from the airport to the city center. super clean and easy. 

lunch at figlmuller. known for amazing schnitzel. eat downstairs in the cellar. 

gelato at castelletto. no sampling allowed. go with your gut. i'm certain you won't be disappointed. 

demel for melange coffee and apple strudel. melange is the german word for the viennese blend. similar to a cappuccino. the desserts were on display. it's an art here. and you are expected to sit and enjoy. it's a good thing. we had literally finished up our gelato outside this place to throw away the remnants and step into this dessert place. 

you keep eating, but allow me to pause and say we need more "sweet" places to meet up at rather than happy hour and meal time. places to sit down with chandeliers overhead and talk long over coffee and sweets without being rushed.

i’ve been on mission trips before. where you buy specific things needed to make the journey most comfortable and pack the items that you are okay parting with if they get too dirty or become too smelly to bring home.

i’ve arrived by bus, van, plane, rickshaw, and train. i’ve set out to see lives changed, encourage the local believers, and make a difference. i’ve raised support to get me there and bring me back. i’ve even carted our kids on these mission trips. 

but what i’ve discovered is that a partnership is better than a mission trip.

the word mission is a latin word ‘mittere’ meaning “send.” it denotes the sending of the Holy Spirit into the world. 

this is our mission — to take the Good News to the world. i’m just not sure one can do it on a trip!

what we can do is partner with those in their called places who are living out the mission of Christ. 

"a period of time when college or university teachers are allowed to stop their usual work in order to study or travel, usually while continuing to be paid." - cambridge dictionary

a mentor of ours added that the purpose is for growth and learning, while also relaxing and taking time away from the normal. our church gifted us with 4 weeks after our 7 years as pastor of epic. ben decided to take two this year and two the next. it would take place in london, england -- another global city. initially we thought the highlight would be the hillsong conference, but so much more got added to the schedule. and everything that was planned and unplanned has carved into our very lives and we have seen already it's affect on our marriage and anticipate it affecting our family, our church, our city, and this generation. 

i don't know many sabbatical stories. but i can sure tell you ours. 

with every travel guide i post, i am obliged to share this disclaimer. i married adventure and we have a peculiar way we get around. it works well for us, and we think if you try it, you’ll like it. but pick and choose from our guides. we’re always happy to know we helped you enjoy your adventures all the more. this was our second trip to london, so some places i mention were explored on trip one. we haven’t grown tired of london yet. here are our favorites of london in no particular order:

we've called san francisco home for 7 years now.

our daughter has been in our forever family for 2 years.

we're entering the teenage years and realizing we've got just a handful of summers left before high school graduation.

so we spent the month of june away from "normalville" (as i have coined our san francisco life) and reappeared in july feeling refreshed and renewed.

that's a lot of "re" happening, but so it goes when we take a break from the normal.

we might travel differently (backpacking, tour groups, overpacking, adventurous or staying close by) but we can all agree when we travel God gives us His world to enjoy!

i've been privileged to travel and see amazing places and so have others - to places i've been, to places i've yet to go. but coming all the way here opened my eyes to see that our stories, our truly best stories come from within. whether you've never left the farm or you've moved so much you've lost count, whether you've seen too much or seen too little, you'e seen enough to tell your story. so here, i'm telling my story. what i've seen when in...

when in ireland...