Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Semper Gumby
Well, what a week it has been. After arriving on Tuesday, I have settled in and really gotten used to the morning schedule and even the insanity of morning workouts. My favorite times at camp are around 7:30-8 (I've become a morning person...amazing) and 7-11. The wind is so strong and it cools off so that everything feels so pleasant and relaxing. Our schedule, as far as I can tell, will be something like this......
Monday....I have no idea.
Tuesday...English class for kids of the village
Wednesday....Guanajuato time! Guanajuato all day until the English "club" with college aged students at 6
Thursday......English class for kids of the village
Friday....free day and laundry
Saturday.....youth group
Sunday.......church with the group in the morning and then free time
So far, we have actually faced a lot of opposition from some people in the village and in the cities. While walking back from the village one day, a little boy yelled out, "HEY! Gringos! F*** you!"
We were all a little surprised and didn't exactly know how to react to that so we just ignored it.
Yesterday, while on a packed bus to Leon, an old man over heard our conversations in English and yelled at us to stop speaking f***ing English and that we were all crazy and a lot of other things that I tried to block out of my mind. While this was alarming, it was also rather humorous for us and for the Mexicans on the bus. The man just really, really hated English, apparently. When he was about to get off, David, one of the guys who works with us at the camp, said, "HASTA LUEGO!". At least it was in Spanish...
Although we don't have a car, transportation hasn't been an issue. A bus drives right by the front of the camp every 20 to 45 minutes from around 6:20 AM to 9:45 PM. However, catching the bus DOES prove to be difficult at times. Yesterday, we had to walk for a mile and a half before we encountered the right bus and then had to sprint across the road to flag it down. At night, if we catch the 9:45 bus out of GTO, we end up having to walk for several miles in the dark to reach the camp. While the dark is overwhelming sometimes, the sky is amazing. We see shooting stars every night that we walk.
I know that this post is getting long but I wanted to make sure that I let you all know some of the harder aspects of living here as well as some of the great aspects.
On Wednesday, we met with a group of college aged students to form a "club" of people who want to speak English. This time was so fun for me and for the rest of the girls as we made friends and were able to just relax with people our age. We made plans with some of the students to go see the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie some time next week and have plans to get coffee and play some games. I'm so excited to see how these relationships develop and how God uses them for his kingdom!
My time in Guanajuato has been so great! Though there are some harder aspects to life here, they are far outweighed by God's blessings and his provision. May God bless you and keep you! You will hear from me soon.
Monday....I have no idea.
Tuesday...English class for kids of the village
Wednesday....Guanajuato time! Guanajuato all day until the English "club" with college aged students at 6
Thursday......English class for kids of the village
Friday....free day and laundry
Saturday.....youth group
Sunday.......church with the group in the morning and then free time
So far, we have actually faced a lot of opposition from some people in the village and in the cities. While walking back from the village one day, a little boy yelled out, "HEY! Gringos! F*** you!"
We were all a little surprised and didn't exactly know how to react to that so we just ignored it.
Yesterday, while on a packed bus to Leon, an old man over heard our conversations in English and yelled at us to stop speaking f***ing English and that we were all crazy and a lot of other things that I tried to block out of my mind. While this was alarming, it was also rather humorous for us and for the Mexicans on the bus. The man just really, really hated English, apparently. When he was about to get off, David, one of the guys who works with us at the camp, said, "HASTA LUEGO!". At least it was in Spanish...
Although we don't have a car, transportation hasn't been an issue. A bus drives right by the front of the camp every 20 to 45 minutes from around 6:20 AM to 9:45 PM. However, catching the bus DOES prove to be difficult at times. Yesterday, we had to walk for a mile and a half before we encountered the right bus and then had to sprint across the road to flag it down. At night, if we catch the 9:45 bus out of GTO, we end up having to walk for several miles in the dark to reach the camp. While the dark is overwhelming sometimes, the sky is amazing. We see shooting stars every night that we walk.
I know that this post is getting long but I wanted to make sure that I let you all know some of the harder aspects of living here as well as some of the great aspects.
On Wednesday, we met with a group of college aged students to form a "club" of people who want to speak English. This time was so fun for me and for the rest of the girls as we made friends and were able to just relax with people our age. We made plans with some of the students to go see the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie some time next week and have plans to get coffee and play some games. I'm so excited to see how these relationships develop and how God uses them for his kingdom!
My time in Guanajuato has been so great! Though there are some harder aspects to life here, they are far outweighed by God's blessings and his provision. May God bless you and keep you! You will hear from me soon.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Vivo en la casita verde
Hello, all! I'm HERE! By here, I mean the small village of El Tejeban outside of Guanajuato, MX. We arrived yesterday in the tiny, tiny airport of Guanajuato, Leon, and several other cities. After locating our bags, Elisa and I cautiously walked out to meet an MTW staff member, David. This was strange for us because we didn't know anything about David and had no idea if he was a gringo or a Mexican. Thankfully, we met up with no problems. I think I stuck out enough for him to realize that I'm not from around here. After gathering our things and taking a minute to send messages to home, we began our 30 minute walk (with all the luggage) over the highway, down the road, etc. to the bus station. All THREE of our bus rides were standing room only and there was absolutely no room for our luggage. I was immediately amazed at the willingness of the bus passengers to help us get all of our stuff on. It may have been because they had places to be and didn't want to be delayed. Nonetheless, the assistance was appreciated. Being on the bus here is an incredible experience. Such a smattering of people all crammed into a bus. The contrast is sometimes amazing. One seat on the bus may have a farmer with buckets filled with produce and the other seat may be filled with a business man. I love it!
When our bus arrived at the camp, the first thing I saw was a little girl, Lupita, who had come to the camp for the ESL classes. As soon as she spotted me, she yelled,"YEEEY! GRINGAAA!!!" and then rushed over to hug me. THAT is exactly what I needed after such a long day. Once our bags were put away, we came out to the gate to talk with the remaining kids who didn't want to go home from the ESL class. We played various clapping games with them and just spent some time loving them. While we were out on the road, a herd of cows came by, several buses passed, and many cars and trucks drove by on their way to the village (Tejeban) which is about a 20 minute walk from our camp.
Our first evening at the camp was pretty relaxed. We fixed dinner and chatted with our team for the rest of the night. I thank God for the amazing team that he has given me. We all love the same things and laughed so much last night. There are already plans in the making for lunch time viewings of The Office and a Harry Potter marathon in preparation for the final movie in July. (We will all be going to see the final movie in a nice theater)
I'll post more later! Thanks for praying!
When our bus arrived at the camp, the first thing I saw was a little girl, Lupita, who had come to the camp for the ESL classes. As soon as she spotted me, she yelled,"YEEEY! GRINGAAA!!!" and then rushed over to hug me. THAT is exactly what I needed after such a long day. Once our bags were put away, we came out to the gate to talk with the remaining kids who didn't want to go home from the ESL class. We played various clapping games with them and just spent some time loving them. While we were out on the road, a herd of cows came by, several buses passed, and many cars and trucks drove by on their way to the village (Tejeban) which is about a 20 minute walk from our camp.
Our first evening at the camp was pretty relaxed. We fixed dinner and chatted with our team for the rest of the night. I thank God for the amazing team that he has given me. We all love the same things and laughed so much last night. There are already plans in the making for lunch time viewings of The Office and a Harry Potter marathon in preparation for the final movie in July. (We will all be going to see the final movie in a nice theater)
I'll post more later! Thanks for praying!
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