Oh. My. Goodness! What a wonderful stay in Savannah!

Alyssa Hostetler
2012 Bicycle Adventurer

After starting the week off with 2 easy ride days (at least they were easy in comparison to the 3 days of 90+ miles which we finished last week with) we pulled into Savannah early yesterday afternoon where we were welcomed with open arms to our newest home, First Presbyterian Church of Savannah. Despite their bustling activities, everyone made room for us to sleep, arranged shower accommodations, and provided us with some fabulous meals! We even had a local tv station, WTOC, waiting for us as we pulled up to the church!

We spent the afternoon relaxing and after our wonderful dinner provided by our new friends at First Presbyterian, we were joined by two past riders, Michael Tiemeyer and Krystal Goodwin! Though only a few of the current riders had met them before, once you are a part of the FCBA family, you’re always a part of the FCBA family and everyone quickly fell in love with them. They took us for an incredible night on the town with a walking tour through beautiful parks, historic houses, awesome little shops including the best ice cream we’ve had on this entire trip, then down to the river for a beautiful view and some live music. When we finally got back to the church just after 10pm, we had walked nearly 6 miles and spent almost 4 hours doing it! What an awesome evening! (Though we sorely missed Maranda who we made stay back at the church to nurse her spider-induced cankle).

This morning we all slept in; I was surprised to find out that after the routine 5:30am breakfasts, I couldn’t get myself to sleep any later than 7:30. And I was one of the last ones to get up! A few people headed off to the WTOC television station to continue to spread the word of The Fuller Center. After a relaxing morning, Michael and Krystal took a few people to Tybee Island for the afternoon and nearly everyone else headed back into town to enjoy what this beautiful city has to offer. It’s amazing how much easier it is to appreciate the culture around us when we are all awake enough to really soak it in!

This evening, the church cooked us another incredible meal and this time we were fortunate to share it with the members of this congregation! We always enjoy getting to know the people from the communities who welcome us so warmly. And because this church has generously supported The Fuller Center’s work in Haiti, Ryan Iafigliola led a riveting presentation on the work projects we have going on and the incredible impact they are helping us to create.

Tomorrow we get back on the bikes for 80+ miles down to St. Simon’s Island and after such an incredible stay here in Savannah, I think we’re all refreshed and ready to go! (At least as ready as you can be at 5:15 in the morning)

Thanks again to everyone who made our stay here such an incredible experience!!
 

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