Fliss's North Korean adventure and the richness of life

Hi you wonderful people

I do hope this blog finds many of you amazing people rejoicing in life and enjoying so many wow moments, sunlit days, wonderful company and all the things which make life so rich and worthy of celebration.

As many of you know, I went to North Korea in August which seems wacky but I absolutely knew it was right. In the last 7 weeks of school North Korea kept "popping up"

from being in a bookshop in St Albans and a book" Nothing to Envy" almost jumping out at me, seeing it in the Guardian ( which I never buy it is too cynical) hearing the author on the news, talking to a BBC journalist about it in London when I had really gone to hear someone talk about Burma and then one day coming back from school late and feeling exhausted I felt I was to get off the train in Ricky. Feeling pretty annoyed I obeyed that inner prompting and would you believe that someone sat next to me from Korea! The day after school finished I was having a quiet time when I felt God say I would be in North Korea the following month. At first I thought Lord that CANNOT be You but I just knew it was and of course the rest is history. The Saturday after I got back I knew I had to pop over road at that moment to get bagels. I got in step with a mum and two girls and guess what they were from South Korea,were Christians and had thought of coming to my church. Awesome and so exciting when I said you know this time last week I was in Pyongyang !!

I was told to fly to Shenyang so I sorted it all and then got a flight to Shenyang as I was told to pick up the visa from there. The authorities then changed this and Air China would not let me change the ticket, so I thought there must be a reason why I am meant to go hundreds of miles out of my way.Sure enough in the airport I had THE MOST remarkable conversation with an Italian and we ended up praying together. I thought wow hundreds of miles out of my way for one person but worth it. Feel sure we will do lunch in London sometime as she lives in London with her guy and works for a well known company. How amazing. The one person is always key in His agenda. Wonderful. It is great He is into the individual. Awesome.

After 30 hours travelling and 3 flights there I was having a glass of wine, hair washed, showered and looking amazingly human and

I opened the China Daily to see DANDONG under flood water, the North Korean border shut and 90,000 evacuated!! Ah!! This was taken Sunday and today was Monday. Slightly scary but I just took another gulp of

wine, thought hold on a minute Lord you told me I was going to North Korea and I have no doubt it was YOU. I texted loads of friends and said please pray. Sure enough I took the coach the next day to Dandong and all was well. You can see it if you google it! I could see North Korea from my hotel window which was awesome. Totally unreal.

I met the rest of the group in Dandong and I have to say they were brilliant.

There were 8 guys and two females. Three of the guys were in their 20's and worked in Shanghai and one went to the local grammar school to me, one was an Aussie and one American, 3 were in their 40's and lived in China with their families and the other female worked in Seoul. The combination worked amazingly and they were great. Jimmy Carter was in NK too of course and thought we might see him.

So what is North Korea like? I cannot write too much so those of you who are interested will have to wait till we have lunch together but I can honestly say I loved it, it is beautiful and I know I am going back. It is far more mountainous and fertile than I would have expected. Unfortunately we could not take photos on the 5 hour train journey from Dandong to Pyongyang which was a great shame as I missed so many wow photo opportunities. We had to wait 3 hours at the station whilst paper work was processed too and our bags were searched.

It was a very tiring trip as we left early, travelled a lot, went to the DMZ zone where I had my photo taken with one of the army guys (enclosed here) and that was slightly unreal. Do not know if he spoke English but I did say "thanks for your patience". He is also on Sue Lloyd Roberts report the journalist I met in London. We also went to see the presents given by world leaders and saw lots of other things. The Mass Games has got to be the most stunning visual spectacle I have ever seen with 100,000 people in it. Do google it and see it. The Metro is fascinating. Unfortunately I did not take a single good picture in North Korea the best ones I have are in Beijing which I expected not to like but did and the sun was amazing in the evening.

Coming out of Beijing Station I had not a clue which direction the hotel was as no map or number and the taxi guys were incredibly rude and unhelpful. Many people in Beijing do not speak English and at the airport I asked ten people before I found one! I do not usually think that everyone should be expected it and MORE English books as I had nothing to read!!Thankfully a young couple came to my rescue and I found the hotel which was a bargain at £17 a night, spotless and only a half hour walk from T Square and the Forbidden City. I met several people in Beijing, had wow tea in cake in the Grand Hotel in Beijing ( and had a snoop round others and got into conversations. I figured that 8 hours on a train from Pyongyang, a one hour stop over in Dandong followed by a 14 hour train journey

to Beijing I needed some decent tea and cake. I was in T Square on my niece's birthday and got into a conversation with a teacher who wanted to do coffee and cake with me but after an hour I knew I was meant to skip off somewhere else and have divine appointments which I did and met some lovely people and had many wow moments with classy places, sunlight on buildings etc. I will put on but at the moment it will not let me add. As I had no mobile in NK I only got the GCSE results on the train and thankfully my colleague and I were rejoicing at 55 A* out of 55 so great and thanks to all those who prayed for them all as well as all students at school.

It has been a shock being back as I have Thursdays off this year which is a complete pain. I know I should not be ungrateful but my social life over the last 25 years has revolved around Fridays so I am really annoyed and it is impossible after October to go to Burma early but I am actually going to Burma on 21st October as I booked it months ago and had no idea about NK trip. YES I know 3 trips in a year is excessive.

Nevertheless today I was in wonderful St Albans, bumped into 2 ex- students and had lunch with an ex -colleague who I have known for 25 years and love to bits. Val thanks you complete gem. We always find so much to talk about. AMAZINGLY Crabtree and Evelyn had the launch of IRIS in purple and green and the manager let me take photos and even took one of me for the shop. ( see below) What fun!! With offers on lunch too we did very well. The weather was glorious too and I also popped into the Cathedral which always has the wow factor for me, read the prayers and admired that wonderful window and the figure of Christ. Also took several photos of the sky and the greenery as that was great.

Last week I was in ST Albans again with another friend and realised that the book I was reading " Mountain Rain" whilst waiting for her, was about James Fraser who worked in Burma and China and I just read the bit where it says he lived in St Albans. Wow how amazing that kind of stuff is.

So many friends have been taken ill this summer and that has been very difficult and may they all be given strength in every way. Also still ongoing abuse from neighbours which

wears me out and it has gone on for 15 years but He knows. The MP, police and council all involved and MP asked if would go up to London to discuss which I said yes if decent coffee and cake. We shall see. I still want to meet Baroness Cox this year so time will tell on that too. I want to meet everyone I am meant to meet on trains, planes, places etc. I love divine appointments and they excite me.

You will remember from the last posting that I met an author and it was one of those extraordinary days. WELL she has agreed to meet for lunch again! How amazing and NO I am not paying her. How great. I feel sure it will be equally as amazing as last time. Mind you I had thought I would meet the author of a book in Beijing and asked her if lunch appealed but she was in Western China so it was not to be. I think I may have said about someone I met in St Albans at a bookshop and I will be interested to see if this friendship develops. Time will tell.

The day I came back from North Korea I found SACRED HILL on offer at Sainsburys. I have rarely seen that on offer so that was great. My hairdresser serves wine and coffee in a

cafetaire with biscuits. I was so busy thinking about other stuff that I did not realise how short my hair was, but I had told him I could not have it done until 2nd Nov so probably served me right. I have had loads of comments from both staff and students at school but not quite me.

I still want to put more theatre stuff into my life. I did take 57 to Les Miserables in June which was great even though I have seen it over 30 times. I rejoice in all the amazing opportunities I have been given in life, the wonderful people who have blessed my life more than words can ever say, so many great colleagues at school who I love to bits and of course a God who loves me unconditionally with all my wackiness, strengths and failings. How blessed and fortunate I am.

So much love and thanks you all you wonderful people for lunches, coffees and cake. Long may it last. I am having trouble with photo uploading. It only lets me do one and then freezes. Any suggestions? I saw a wonderful feel good film last week so will give details next time. What a month I am exhausted and the calender looks crazily busy which I do not like as life is not just about madly dashing here and there but quality time with wonderful people but also times of quiet, solitude and reflection.

Flissxx