Sunday 4-29-07
I arrived in Antigua Guatemala yesterday afternoon. We (Teri, her husband, and I) left the orphanage around 6am , caught a bus in San Salvador at 7am and arrived in the capitol of Guatemala, Guatemala City, around noon. At the El Salvador/Guatemala border, they checked everyone's passport. Once in Guat. City, we caught another shuttle for the hour trip to Antigua, Guatemala. What I dared not announce was how dangerous this route has been. On and off for years, there has been a number of hijackings and murders just after going past the Guat. border. This area is desolate and rugged. Don Benner says recently there's been an increase of activity, 2 deaths just last week on this one particular stretch of road. Teri Benner said she would not take this route via car, no matter who or how many were with her due to the danger. However, no bus has yet to be bothered. This is probably due to the number of people on the bus who could overthrow the bad guys I guess. As we journed on that one particular section, it was easy to see how this sort of things could happen...away from everything. Recently 3 congressmen and their driver were kidnapped, taken away from the road, shot, then set afire with their car. This was pinned on 2 police officers who were ordered to do this, and thus put in jail. The officers were found shot dead in jail a couple of days later, presumably to keep them quit. By the way, the good guys do not wear white around here, and the police are not necessarily the good guys. So, it is with much relief and thanks to God that we arrived safely. I totally trust the Benners. Teri says she would feel quite safe to do this route alone on a bus. I'll be doing it alone in about 8 weeks.
Oh, I should tell you about this bus. This was no typical "chicken bus" as is often seen everywhere in Latin America. It was great! Better than almost any flight I've ever taken. It was a very modern bus, double decker, 100 passengers, nice comfortable seats that were real recliners, and several TV sets hanging from the ceiling like a plane. The cost was $30 one way. I felt bad for the guy beside me since I was coughing (like bronchitis) and blowing my nose almost constantly.
Antigua is situated between small mountains. Nearly all the buildings in town are made of cement (but not cement blocks) and painted wonderful blues, earthy yellows and oranges, moderate pink, green, etc. The roads are all cobblestone. The architecture is old, classic and beautiful. The center of town has a park a little less than a the size of a city block. It's the center of life and is bordered by The Cathedral and The Courthouse. All the roads off of it are filled with small shops. There are shops that sell traditional Latin crafts and textiles, coffee, etc. Coffee shops, bars, and little cafes abound. There also also several museums, and hotels (both large and small). You can find a number of Americans here because it's such a pleasant place to visit, plus it has more than 8 language schools, mine having the best reputation. I'm currently sitting in an Internet cafe. People mill around all the time and are found just sitting and enjoying the park. Last night a fabulous formal youth orchestra performed outdoors in front of the magnificent cathedral and near full moon. We, along with 100s of others, enjoyed the time just to sit in the park and enjoy the evening. Teri said how nice it was to feel so comfortable (no fear) sitting out doors, relaxing and watching people go by. She said going outside after dark in El Salvador was very unsafe.
I'm staying in the home of a lawyer that is near the edge of town, about a 10-12 min walk from the park, and about 5 min from school. I interact mostly with the lawyer's wife, Elizabeth, and she's very nice. They don't really have room for me right now but I think may have agreed to keep me as a favor to one of my newly made friends. (This way we knew I was in a good home.) I'm staying in their adolescent son's room. But in 5 days I will move to the 3rd floor where there are 4 rooms for students. We each will have our own room and share a bathroom. My current room is tiny and has almost no circulation and nowhere to put my stuff since the sons stuff fills the closets and dressers. But it is only temporary. If you know me well, then you know that I HATE living out of a suitcase. Even when I go away for just a 2 day retreat, I unpack my bag. So, this is almost (but not exactly) humorous as I've had to live out of a suitcase since I arrived on Tues and will continue to do so for another 5 days. If you remember from my last blog, you know that I will be returning to the orphanage in 8 weeks (the school doesn't have room for me during wk 9-11 of instruction.) So, I'll pack up everything again and live who knows where at the orphanage. (The apartment I used before will be occupied by a new missionary in July.) Then I'll pack up again and move back to Antigua for 4 more weeks, then pack again and go back to the orphanage. I so much look forward to the time when I'll be settled at the orphanage, and can really unpack, "hang my hat", and put up my photos (which go everywhere with me.)
Teri and her husband Osvaldo (a really great guy) made sure I had everything I would need. He, being a native, could negotiate to get the best exchange rate of money for me. They use a Quetzal (Q), and one American $ is equal to about 7.5 Q. We enjoyed checking out Antigua together and they helped me get a feel for things. They took me to a nice restaurant for dinner. They left to return to El Sal. aruond noon today. So, here I am. Kind of all alone for the first time and it feels indescribable. In so many ways, this past week has felt eternally long and kind of like a dream, very surreal. I'll be glad to develop a routine soon. The food is provided as part of my fees for school except on Sundays. So today I've had the chance to look into some of the local cafes. Tomorrow at 8am I'll take entrance exams at the school, meet with admin, etc. I would start Tues except is is Labor Day here, so I'll have another day to look around and start classes on Wed.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
God's provisions for today
Friday 4-27-06
Today we returned to the lawyer's office and picked up the 12 documents that he had notarized (must be done by an El Sal. lawyer) and other official documents (totaling $75) and went to immigration. After waiting in numerous lines, being photographed and fingerprinted, the process for residency was completed! This is HUGE provision from God. Teri said that she has never taken anyone through the residency process where the official did not send her back to the lawyer or doctor, or somewhere else to get some other document. Teri said the lady today was looking and looking for something to be out of place, but couldn't find one thing wrong. She said that if even one letter of my full name or one number on all those multiple documents were not exactly right, then she would send up away to start all over. But thanks to God all was in perfect order and my temporary residency card will be ready on Wed and my permanent residency card ready in about 1.5 months. (Remember, this is not citizenship...just residence which is mandatory for staying more than 6 months.)
Tonight I packed my suitcases to go to language school for about 3 months. I've got about 4 suitcases worth of stuff here becaue I bought 1 left one suitcase full of stuff when I was here in Dec., then a team from N.Y was nice enough to bring stuff for me, and I bought 2 70lb suitcases with me. I will leave 2 suitcases here. As I was packing, the electricity went out,leaving only the glow of my computer to fill the room. You should try to pack by candlellight! I loaned my flashlight to someone to help get the kids from one part of the campus to another. As I packed, all I could think of was how miserably hot it would be to sleep. I haven't been feeling well, and haven't been able to sleep weel due to coughing and stuff sinuses. I still have a fever...making it even worse. My ceiling fan won't run w/o a fan. Two of my 3 windows (2 in the bathroom) don't have screens, and my "screen door" is only partially covereed in screen. The option of opening the windows/door and covering myself in sticky "Off" bug spray(hoping it worked) just wasn't appealing. I can't tell you how happy I was when the electricity came back on just before 11pm!
Today we returned to the lawyer's office and picked up the 12 documents that he had notarized (must be done by an El Sal. lawyer) and other official documents (totaling $75) and went to immigration. After waiting in numerous lines, being photographed and fingerprinted, the process for residency was completed! This is HUGE provision from God. Teri said that she has never taken anyone through the residency process where the official did not send her back to the lawyer or doctor, or somewhere else to get some other document. Teri said the lady today was looking and looking for something to be out of place, but couldn't find one thing wrong. She said that if even one letter of my full name or one number on all those multiple documents were not exactly right, then she would send up away to start all over. But thanks to God all was in perfect order and my temporary residency card will be ready on Wed and my permanent residency card ready in about 1.5 months. (Remember, this is not citizenship...just residence which is mandatory for staying more than 6 months.)
Tonight I packed my suitcases to go to language school for about 3 months. I've got about 4 suitcases worth of stuff here becaue I bought 1 left one suitcase full of stuff when I was here in Dec., then a team from N.Y was nice enough to bring stuff for me, and I bought 2 70lb suitcases with me. I will leave 2 suitcases here. As I was packing, the electricity went out,leaving only the glow of my computer to fill the room. You should try to pack by candlellight! I loaned my flashlight to someone to help get the kids from one part of the campus to another. As I packed, all I could think of was how miserably hot it would be to sleep. I haven't been feeling well, and haven't been able to sleep weel due to coughing and stuff sinuses. I still have a fever...making it even worse. My ceiling fan won't run w/o a fan. Two of my 3 windows (2 in the bathroom) don't have screens, and my "screen door" is only partially covereed in screen. The option of opening the windows/door and covering myself in sticky "Off" bug spray(hoping it worked) just wasn't appealing. I can't tell you how happy I was when the electricity came back on just before 11pm!
My new sounds
Thursday 4/26/07
Around 5:30am the sound Rubbermaid trashcans being drug along the concrete sidewalk literally outside my bedroom window. My room sits 1/2 underground, and my one and only bedroom window opens directly onto the main sidewalk used by everyone all the time. The sound and dust of sweeping are next. Theses are some of the chores that must be completed before breakfast at 6am and school at 7am. The sound of children chattering as they come and go, and a house mother (Hermana) calling after them for one thing or another. About 10 paces from my apartment door is a nice swimming pool (thanks to the Ex-President of El Salvador who used to own this place before he was exiled). It's cleaned daily but I've yet to smell chlorine. Just recently they've started "swim classes"- yet based on the number of squeals I hear, and number of boys tossing in unsuspecting girls, I'd say this is only loosely a "class". After school is hear girls (and some boys) jumping rope, and singing a cute accompanying jingle. No way am I going to break my who knows what trying to do this! I'll just take my turn at turning the rope, thank you! Later in the evening, I paused before I entered the "Griffin" girl's house- for ages 4-7. I hear they are in devotions, so do not enter. But the boys in the "Griffin" house see me nearby and asked me to join them. The Hermana was using a flip chart like I remember from childhood Sunday School. It had a pic of Jesus calming the sea on the front for the children to see and the story and related questions on the back for the adult to use. These boys are my favorite, and they really enjoy the devotion time. They sing their songs with all their heart and to the top of their precious lungs. They answer the questions to the Bible story with such energy, and then they nearly tackle me with night night hugs. This make my world feel right, and nearly eases my broken heart from leaving my own precious nephews and niece.
Today is also Secretary's Day here and it's a pretty big deal since a high percentage of all working women are Secretaries. I was invited to join the Secretaries (two) from the orphanage and 4 from the huge Christian book distribution center for lunch at Bennigans! In San Salvador, the capitol, you can find almost anything...even a Bennigans! It was in a modern outdoor mall similar to the one near my house. It just seems so nuts for their to be such extreme contrast...the one part of the city which is so modern and obviously has money...and then all else to be so obviously poor.
Around 5:30am the sound Rubbermaid trashcans being drug along the concrete sidewalk literally outside my bedroom window. My room sits 1/2 underground, and my one and only bedroom window opens directly onto the main sidewalk used by everyone all the time. The sound and dust of sweeping are next. Theses are some of the chores that must be completed before breakfast at 6am and school at 7am. The sound of children chattering as they come and go, and a house mother (Hermana) calling after them for one thing or another. About 10 paces from my apartment door is a nice swimming pool (thanks to the Ex-President of El Salvador who used to own this place before he was exiled). It's cleaned daily but I've yet to smell chlorine. Just recently they've started "swim classes"- yet based on the number of squeals I hear, and number of boys tossing in unsuspecting girls, I'd say this is only loosely a "class". After school is hear girls (and some boys) jumping rope, and singing a cute accompanying jingle. No way am I going to break my who knows what trying to do this! I'll just take my turn at turning the rope, thank you! Later in the evening, I paused before I entered the "Griffin" girl's house- for ages 4-7. I hear they are in devotions, so do not enter. But the boys in the "Griffin" house see me nearby and asked me to join them. The Hermana was using a flip chart like I remember from childhood Sunday School. It had a pic of Jesus calming the sea on the front for the children to see and the story and related questions on the back for the adult to use. These boys are my favorite, and they really enjoy the devotion time. They sing their songs with all their heart and to the top of their precious lungs. They answer the questions to the Bible story with such energy, and then they nearly tackle me with night night hugs. This make my world feel right, and nearly eases my broken heart from leaving my own precious nephews and niece.
Today is also Secretary's Day here and it's a pretty big deal since a high percentage of all working women are Secretaries. I was invited to join the Secretaries (two) from the orphanage and 4 from the huge Christian book distribution center for lunch at Bennigans! In San Salvador, the capitol, you can find almost anything...even a Bennigans! It was in a modern outdoor mall similar to the one near my house. It just seems so nuts for their to be such extreme contrast...the one part of the city which is so modern and obviously has money...and then all else to be so obviously poor.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
High Emotions
4-24-07 Pastor Fred nailed it on the head...I was feeling nearly every emotion I could imagine- magnified x100. In some ways I wanted to stay in Richmond where I loved my life, my family/friends. But I knew beyond a doubt in my heart that joining HIS (Harvesting in Spanish) in El Salvador was right. As someone once said, you have to let go of what's in your hand in order to reach out for something else. So I left my life in Richmond, Virginia to trade it for whatever the Lord has in store for me in El Salvador. Many tears were shed. It was scarey to let go, but it was right. The Lord provided for perfect travel connections, and everything went extremely well at customs and immigration. I was granted a 90 day visa which will hopefully allow time for me to obtain residency (which is NOT the same thing as citizenship!)
Britney and Bobby, a young couple who just arrived here as missionaries in January had my apartment ready for me: bed made, towels in the bathroom, water in the frig, Ramen noodles on the counter, and the fresh smell of a recent fumigation :) I was welcomed warmly by the kids and everyone else.
Britney and Bobby, a young couple who just arrived here as missionaries in January had my apartment ready for me: bed made, towels in the bathroom, water in the frig, Ramen noodles on the counter, and the fresh smell of a recent fumigation :) I was welcomed warmly by the kids and everyone else.
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