Anafora

Last month my school sent us on a staff retreat to a beautiful farm called Anafora. It is a Coptic Orthodox retreat center, run by Bishop Thomas, and his amazing staff. Everytime I go there I come away feeling relaxed and refreshed. It's an wonderful place. Here are some shots of it.




This is a view from the front balcony of the second floor of the main building.



This is the room where we met for morning and evening services. In the evening all the candles were lit. It was lovely.




These are the rooms where we stayed. I don't have photos from inside, but I wish I did. They were so nice! Very simple, but lovely.





Beautiful Palms!








This is the entrance to the church at night. The whole thing is lit only by candles. We attended a service there. All left there shoes at the door out of reverence, and entered in quiet. The service was very simple, Scripture readings, hymns, and prayers in Coptic, Arabic, and English.




This is the inside of the church at night in the candle light.