Sorry to all for the delay, we are having intermitant internet problems here in Otovalo. We will try to keep the blogs coming but do not want to take away from the goal of the mission trip, so we had to side line working on this problem for a while. Thanks for your patients in this matter. Things are going well today and we are getting a lot accomplished.
Mitch Chaddock
Monday, August 3, 2009
8-2-09
Today we spent some time doing devotions before heading up to the village. For both of us bloggers, it is the highlight of our morning. We broke our fast on some splendid rolls, oatmeal, hot chocolate, and waffles. We vamoosed up the hill to the village of San Luis de Pegulca. The people had set out some arches with beautiful flowers. This is one of their ways of saying “bienvenidos” or welcome. The worship service lasted for about four hours, in which we received some honorary gifts for Lewis. Abraham and our praise team led us in worship in Spanish with a Quechua translator. Some of the indigenous folk performed traditional dances and sang some songs for us. The children in the village warmed up to the group pretty quickly and stuck with us for the rest of the afternoon. Soccer and equi-volley (Ecuadorian volleyball) were the main attractions. Some of us went into the community house to take pictures of our lunch… while it was still alive. They served us some cuy (guinea pig), potatoes, corn, peas, and some scrumptious (so Matt says) cheese. It was interesting to see the newcomer’s reactions as they tried the cuy for the first time. Hannah was touched because of her pet guinea pigs. We personally love the cuy, and several pieces. A neighboring village that attended the church service invited some of us to see the place where they are hoping to build a church. The truck ride over was interesting with Andrew and AJ poised to go flying over the windshield at any moment. The view of Imbabura was astounding. Those who stayed behind bonded with the kids a little bit more by means of soccer, pato pato ganzo (duck duck goose) and spinning them round. We hiked back to the house and here we are as we type.
Matt and Sarah Bloggers
Matt and Sarah Bloggers
8-1-09
Sorry for the wait Ladies and Gents,
Yesterday we woke up bright and early thanks to a rooster and car horns…SCORE! The devotionals were about the names of God, and reminded us of how awesome God truly is. Looking out at the mountains surrounding Quito exemplified the truth of Psalm 8. After our debriefing about the culture of Ecuador, we left to see the sights of Quito. Our first stop was the statue of the Virgin Mary. From this spot, we could see the panorama of the capital city. We then traveled to a mall with a grungy exterior but quite nifty interior, where we ate lunch in the food court. We left from there to head to Otavalo and found creative ways to amuse ourselves on the bus ride over. This included hanging our heads out the windows, playing cards, and an intense game of “I Spy.” As always, the scenery in Ecuador was stupendous. Upon our arrival at the house, the returnees became reacquainted with the people, animals, and surroundings, while the newbies experienced the sights and sounds of Otavalo. After settling in, we jugared some fútbol and enjoyed some scrumptious pollo (chicken for you Gringos). P.S. It is okay to say Gringo in Ecuador. After devouring the meal, we gathered to worship the Lord, by singing and reading the Word. This was asombroso. It is a blessing to be able to gather to worship our King every night here, instead of once or twice a week. We broke off into small groups, then grabbed some sack time.
Yesterday we woke up bright and early thanks to a rooster and car horns…SCORE! The devotionals were about the names of God, and reminded us of how awesome God truly is. Looking out at the mountains surrounding Quito exemplified the truth of Psalm 8. After our debriefing about the culture of Ecuador, we left to see the sights of Quito. Our first stop was the statue of the Virgin Mary. From this spot, we could see the panorama of the capital city. We then traveled to a mall with a grungy exterior but quite nifty interior, where we ate lunch in the food court. We left from there to head to Otavalo and found creative ways to amuse ourselves on the bus ride over. This included hanging our heads out the windows, playing cards, and an intense game of “I Spy.” As always, the scenery in Ecuador was stupendous. Upon our arrival at the house, the returnees became reacquainted with the people, animals, and surroundings, while the newbies experienced the sights and sounds of Otavalo. After settling in, we jugared some fútbol and enjoyed some scrumptious pollo (chicken for you Gringos). P.S. It is okay to say Gringo in Ecuador. After devouring the meal, we gathered to worship the Lord, by singing and reading the Word. This was asombroso. It is a blessing to be able to gather to worship our King every night here, instead of once or twice a week. We broke off into small groups, then grabbed some sack time.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Hello from Ecuador to all you chaps and chappesses.
Thanks for your prayers that you have lifted to God on our behalf and for the support that you have given us. Our first day dawned bright and early for us, but we made it with time to spare thanks to the drivers. Actually we had about two hours in which we hung out and had some intense games of Uno. The flight to Miami was delayed around an hour and a half, which wasn’t a huge problem. The weather was fantastic, even though there was mild turbulence. The team members had a grand ole time on the way down, and some of us made new friends *cough cough Kelli and Lucy*. Once we arrived at the Miami airport, we hustled to the gate to get there right in time for boarding. The flight from Miami to Quito was long, but we enjoyed it. Unfortunately we were spread out all over the plane, but some of us finagled our way into a group of seats. The others chit-chatted with their neighbors. The view of Quito as the plane descended was beautiful, and God’s handiwork was evident in the mountains. When we disembarked from our voyage and stepped foot on Ecuador soil, probably everyone was leaping inside with exuberant joy. We were met by a MTW missionary, named Mike, and his wife. They drove us to a hostel where we unloaded the luggage. After we had all of it inside, the MTW missionaries gave us a quick briefing as to what we would do these two weeks. Then we munched a little bit on some snack foods. This was followed by a jam session in which we rocked to guitars, djembes, bongos, harmonica, shaker, and voices. All in all, we had a sweet day.
Buenos noches.
Thanks for your prayers that you have lifted to God on our behalf and for the support that you have given us. Our first day dawned bright and early for us, but we made it with time to spare thanks to the drivers. Actually we had about two hours in which we hung out and had some intense games of Uno. The flight to Miami was delayed around an hour and a half, which wasn’t a huge problem. The weather was fantastic, even though there was mild turbulence. The team members had a grand ole time on the way down, and some of us made new friends *cough cough Kelli and Lucy*. Once we arrived at the Miami airport, we hustled to the gate to get there right in time for boarding. The flight from Miami to Quito was long, but we enjoyed it. Unfortunately we were spread out all over the plane, but some of us finagled our way into a group of seats. The others chit-chatted with their neighbors. The view of Quito as the plane descended was beautiful, and God’s handiwork was evident in the mountains. When we disembarked from our voyage and stepped foot on Ecuador soil, probably everyone was leaping inside with exuberant joy. We were met by a MTW missionary, named Mike, and his wife. They drove us to a hostel where we unloaded the luggage. After we had all of it inside, the MTW missionaries gave us a quick briefing as to what we would do these two weeks. Then we munched a little bit on some snack foods. This was followed by a jam session in which we rocked to guitars, djembes, bongos, harmonica, shaker, and voices. All in all, we had a sweet day.
Buenos noches.
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