Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
College is super exhausting at this point of the semester, so why not take a break and get out of town for the weekend? I'm always down for a new adventure as long as I have enough cash and an excuse to write another blog post!
This past weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to travel with my friends and other Malone University students to Pittsburgh for the Jubilee Conference, a gathering of college students not only coming to praise God but also learn how to worship Him. One can assume that being a Christian means to work in the ministry and never sin, but that is not always true. One of the speakers, Anthony Bradley, gave an inspiring speech on how you can be a Christian and pursue any dream possible, not just in the ministry. Not only did the conference open my eyes to diversity in the church but also allowed me to understand more that I can do all things through Christ and I don't have to be a perfect Christian to do so.
Besides the conference, the best part about the weekend trip was getting to hang out with my friends and explore the city. I have never been to Pittsburgh before, so this was a great new experience for me! I honestly believe that the main reason why Jubilee is so amazing is that it's God's opportunity for you to spend time with people you love and redefine friendship in many ways.
We stayed in a very fancy hotel called the Westin, which is not a far walk from Market Square and one of the bridges. There was a pizza place a few blocks down the road, so we got some on late at night on Friday. A great way to celebrate the weekend!
The next day was warm and sixty degrees, which felt like summer! We got to wear shorts, which was good since we were going to be walking a lot. A few of my friends and I first stopped at Market District where we stopped at Nicholas Coffee Co. and got some iced coffee. Then we walked around, took some fun pictures and selfies like normal tourists.
Market Square
The various flavors of coffee beans inside of Nicholas Coffee Co.
Watching people ice-skating!
One of my favorite parts about touring Pittsburgh was over at one of the river sidelines. It was a perfect sunny day, which made it totally acceptable to sit on the edge of the river. It felt really surreal and it was just a delightful and beautiful experience. Thankfully, none of us fell in the river!
Later that Saturday, before another conference, me and some girlfriends went out to get milkshakes for dinner. Rebellious AND delicious, you know what I mean?
We went to this cute ice cream shop blocks away from the convention center/hotel called the Milkshake Factory where you can get milkshakes, sundaes, smoothies, and little chocolate goodies. I got a cookie dough milkshake and it was so freaking delicious!
We actually ended up getting lost on the way back to go to the conference, which kind of made it more adventurous yet frustrating when traveling in an unfamiliar city. But thankfully, we had Google Maps to lead us the right way. Plus, our milkshakes made it less frustrating!
The next morning we attended one more conference before our trip back to North Canton. The last worship was the best one yet, a great way to celebrate an amazing weekend. Jubilee really has made a big impact on my faith. Not that I wasn't as faithful before, but I definitely believe it boosted my confidence within myself, I enjoyed the bittersweet moments with my friends, I had a great adventure in a new city, and I learned more about the troubles of our world and how we can use faith in Jesus as a way to make it a kinder and better place. I'm so blessed and filled with joy that I was able to attend such a weekend getaway, and I already can't wait for Jubilee 2018!
