Kauai - Waimea Canyon

October 24

Waimea Canyon

We got up fairly early this morning. The bed is really, really comfortable. It's just the right amount of not-too-soft and not-too-hard for me. I woke up feeling rested and relaxed, which is a great way to start the day.

After a quick breakfast of yogurt with cereal (sort of like a yogurt parfait), we headed down Highway 50 (Kaumualii Highway) to Waimea Canyon. It was a little cloudy, so the pictures might not do justice to the natural beauty [And they don't, but they'll have to do]. There are a number of lookout points, all of which we visited. Waimea Canyon is the Grand Canyon of Kauai, and it really does look a lot like the one in Arizona...except, of course, on a smaller scale. The dirt is really red, which must make for fantastic pics in the late afternoon with the right light and no clouds.

Waimea Canyon
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

We took our time, enjoying the gorgeous vistas from this direction and that direction, stopping at every turn in the road to take in the splendor.

Waimea Canyon
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

You cannot drive all the way around this island, and you cannot drive to the coast through the Canyon. But do go to the end of Kokee Road (Highway 550)! Wow! The view that you get of Lost Tribe Valley and the Na'Pali Coast is absolutely stupendous. So rugged. So...raw. And from that high up (4 – 5,000 feet), just breathtaking.

The end of the road. What a view!
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

It's surprisingly cool up at that elevation, but still quite comfortable and refreshing. Especially if you get sprinkled on, which we did. But it wasn't in the least unpleasant. Not a bad idea to bring your insect repellant, if you plan to hike at all. We took a path to go just a little farther. It was slippery in spots, and a big rough. You would want to be wearing your Keens rather than your flip flops, for sure. There are places to camp in the back country and all that, if you're a real outdoorsperson.

It happened to be hunting season in the area, and I heard that you can only bow hunt, which isn't surprising. However, good luck getting your animal up and over those steep ridges. Or down them, for that matter. You would have to hoof it...presumably with a mule? Anyway, we did see a few mountain goats on a far ridge, which made my husband happy. In fact, it lit him up. He is an avid hunter, so even the thought of it sends him over the moon. Those of you who are avid hunters will no doubt understand. The rest of you will be horrified. Ah, well.

From our vantage point, we could see the catamarans way-y-y-y down there, taking folks on a snorkel trip. It's one of the few ways to see the Na'Pali Coast. It looks amazing, and I think we're going to do that.

I'm concerned that one week won't be enough to see/do all we want to see/do. We'll have to come back to do the North Shore, perhaps?

On the way back to Waimea (the town) from Waimea Canyon, you drive along a high ridge that offers expansive views on both sides. Don't think about it too much. Just enjoy it. You probably won't hit the guardrail and go over.

At this point in the drive, we experienced a tropical-style torrential downpour. As I said, it rains a lot up there. It's one of the wettest places on earth. Well, that's what the sign says.

And it was drizzling at the time...
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

We had lunch at a place called Shrimp Station in Waimea. A walk-up joint with picnic tables out front. Karen had coconut shrimp, Bob had Thai shrimp, Harry had a shrimp burger, and I had Cajun shrimp. And a guava juice. I must say, the food was very tasty. Everyone enjoyed it, and...do you sense a theme? Yep. Nothing but shrimp on the menu. If you don't want shrimp, you'll have to find another place to eat. But if you do want shrimp, you'll probably like this place.

We walked around a bit, looking around the small shops and getting a feel for the place. Then we got a “shave ice” treat (snow cone) with tropical flavors and walked to the pier area to enjoy those. Waimea looks a little sad and neglected, but the people we met were so nice.

We started our drive back to Poipu, and Karen and I toured Kauai Coffee Company in Hanapepe while the guys went to check out something or other. There are lots of coffee...farms? Plantations? in that part of the island, coffee having supplanted sugar cane as the main cash crop. It seems that the cost of labor has put the sugar cane business out of business, which leads me to wonder where they get the sugar cane for making the rum. But that's a whole other story, I'm sure. It also helps me to understand that this part of the island is economically depressed, folks having lost their jobs when the sugar cane went to wherever it went. And the coffee is done mostly with machines. So, there you go.

Coffee growing at Kauai Coffee Company
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

Anyway, we saw the...bushes? Trees? up close and personal. It was interesting to see the original machinery used and to read about the process of harvesting and sorting and drying and roasting. And tasting! Lots of different brews available for tasting.

The bougainvillea grows spectacularly here, by the way, whether wild or planted. Mass profusions of bright blossoms.

Bougainvillea
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

On the way back to the condo, we stopped at Poipu Beach to check it out. There were so many people in the water! The waves are a little high today, and the boogie boarders were being tossed all over each other. It's hard to imagine how nobody got hurt!

We went to the pool to hang out, made pina coladas, watched a magnificent sunset, and cooked breakfast for dinner. Why not?  

Kauai - Getting There

Kauai

October 23 – 30

As always, here's my actual, practically unedited travel diary...the good, the bad, the ugly. The wrong impressions. The bad attitudes. The names haven't even been changed to protect the innocent...or guilty, whichever. Live, laugh, love. Join me [and my husband, his brother, and his brother's wife] on my Adventure in Kauai, Hawaii!

Day 1 – Hello, Poipu

I got up at 4 this...morning? (I know – Why not just stay up, right?), Harry and I left the house at 5 a.m., and we made it to our son's house [He was driving us to the airport] at...5:30 a.m. Oops. Not supposed to arrive until 6. What do you do? Do you sit outside in the car in the dark and wait until the appointed hour? Do you ring the doorbell anyway? Do you hesitantly knock on the door very lightly so as not to wake anyone? As my knuckle approached the door, it opened as if by magic. Everybody inside was still up for pre-Halloween “fright night” movie marathon. There was a party going on!

Bob and Karen arrived, we loaded our luggage and ourselves into their spiffy and spacious 4-door pickup truck, and Zack dropped us off at the airport in San Jose in plenty of time for our flight. In fact, we were 2 ½ hours early, since there was no traffic and Zack knew exactly how to get to where we needed to be. Thank you, Zack!

Going through TSA was all kinds of fun, with Harry misplacing his ticket and driver's license twice. Not wanting to set off any alarms, I carefully took off every single thing that had even the smallest bit of metal on it and submitted myself to the scan. Fat lot of good that did me. BEEP! DING! Note to self: Take off ALL jewelry, even coral bracelets and shell necklaces held together with fishing line! So, not only did I have to go through the full-body scan, but I also got the exhilarating and infamous personal pat-down. I forgot to moan. But it was over quickly enough, and now, just two hours later (having had some Starbucks and a terribly expensive but delicious yogurt), here we are on Hawaiian Airlines Flight 043 to Honolulu!

I'm so excited! I've never been to Hawaii at all before, and I'm so looking forward to seeing Kauai, “The Garden Isle.” I've heard it's the most beautiful of the Hawaiian islands, the most unspoiled one, the least developed one, the quietest one. I've been told there isn't much to do in Kauai and that it's a good place to rest and enjoy nature. I'm totally ready for that, and I'm going to do my best to not compare it to Rarotonga [I'll post my trip to Raro soon].

As we boarded the flight, there was island music playing to set the mood – and it did. I felt myself relaxing before I even reached my seat. The flight attendants all have silk flowers in their hair. Well, all the women, anyway!

Remember when earphones were free on the airlines? And maybe they still are on some airlines, but not on this one. $5. And you can rent a DVD player. $15. Karen told me that they charge you to use your own headphones, even! How can they do that? Weird. But I guess they need to make up for the “cheap” airfares somehow...cough, cough...ahem.

[flash forward] So, here we are in our very comfy condo [Poipu Makai], having just had a Kauai [pineapple teriyaki] burger at a place called Bubba's [3 locations on Kauai: Koloa, Hanalei, and Kapa'a. Slogans: “We relish your buns.” “We cheat tourists, drunks, and attorneys.”] in historic Koloa Town just outside Poipu. Either it was really good, or I was really hungry. Or both. We met an older gentleman there, Jack, who is a refugee from Ojai, California. He bussed our table and told us tales of his adventures. Not very tall ones, but interesting just the same.

Okay, backtrack! Our flight from San Jose was delayed because of some paperwork issue, but we made it to Honolulu in plenty of time for our connecting flight. Hawaiian Airlines is very proud of it's #1 “on time” status.

When landing in Honolulu, we saw how very close Pearl Harbor is to the airport. Bob said that if he'd known, he would have arranged for a layover so we could visit the memorial. Note to self for next time!

People describe Honolulu as being basically like Los Angeles. Congested, spread out, people in a hurry everywhere. But it looks beautiful from the air, and it's a thrill to see Diamond Head and Waikiki. Miles and miles of beach. Palm trees all in a row. Inviting. A lot like LA, actually!

The food on the flight (at least there WAS some) was a ham and cheese sandwich with an orange cupcake. Not impressive, but way better than nothing. And it was included, though, of course, you could “upgrade” to a better meal. I didn't. I snoozed quite a bit on the flight, having already seen the movie, “Green Lantern.” [http://chrissiesconfessional.blogspot.com/2011/06/green-lantern-movie-review.html]

We landed in Lihue [heard this pronounced a number of ways: Lee'hway, Li'hoo-ay', and the most popular Li-hoo'ee], Kauai, on time. Getting the rental car took FOREVER. It is so frustrating to have a reservation for a particular make and model, then be told that it isn't available, but the rental company...in this case, Budget...will be happy to upgrade you to a much more comfortable and roomy vehicle for only half again what you had...budgeted! Grrr!

But, while Karen and I were waiting outside and enjoying the fresh air and flowers and chickens, we met a nice Army National Guard family that was headed to a vacation rental just for military/retired military personnel. It has a private beach and everything. It's at a missile base over by the Na Pali Coast on the other end of the island.

The first one. They're everywhere.
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

Anyhow, we got the car and found our way to the condo in spite of the driving instructions we'd been given. Our unit was at the far end, and the door was in a very dark entryway. The buttons on the lock box combination were difficult to make out anyway, but especially so under the circumstances. We tried and tried to open it so we could get the key out, but to no avail. So frustrating! We could not open the blasted thing. Bob tried. I tried. Grrrr. Seriously?! The young man next door (May his name be a blessing, whatever it is) came over to see if there was anything he could do to give the old folks a hand (smirk), and, lo! He was able to open it on the VERY FIRST TRY! Really?! How does that happen? Sheesh.

The front room faces full west, and the blinds were open so the first thing you saw was the fabulous view, so it was H-O-T inside. We closed what needed to be closed and opened what needed to be opened, and it actually feels quite cool tonight – happily.

Plenty of sunlight filters in.
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

The view from the patio is stupendous, with waves crashing on the lava rock boulders and cliffs below. I'm listening to the waves as I write this. Fabulous!

The vegetation here is very different than I expected (so far – but how much of the island have I seen? Seriously). The palm trees seem pretty much planted on purpose as opposed to native and natural. There is plumeria – and hibiscus – birds of paradise – all that. All beautiful.

I've been told that the air in Kauai smells perfumed. So far, I wouldn't say it smells perfumed, exactly. But it does smell fresh, clean, and sweet.

Again, Poipu is not the whole island! Perhaps tomorrow I'll be overwhelmed by the perfume of the flowers. If the weather cooperates, we might take a drive up Waimea Canyon (the Grand Canyon of Kauai). Or we might go for a snorkel. Or whatever we feel like doing. We're on vacation!

We picked up some breakfast groceries, juice, bread, and so on in Koloa. Prices were high, but not completely outrageous. There's a large refrigerator and a standard-sized stove and a microwave and a coffee maker and a toaster. We're good to go.

Perfectly adequate kitchen!
Photo by Chris. All rights reserved.

Aloha!

Oaxaca, Mexico - Leaving is Hard

Sunday, November 16 – 10:40 p.m.

Totally off topic, but a fun factoid: I'm told that if your house is in course of construction here, you don't have to pay taxes on it. So, there are a lot of houses with rebar sticking out of the top in preparation for “adding another floor.” Or whatever. Makes you chuckle, no?

We are all packed up and ready to go in the morning. It was cold today as our hosts Tom and

Wendy and Ronny and Susie took us touristing to thank us for our hard work. I hope to get a

chance to write all about it on the plane, but must get to bed now.

Monday, November 17 – 3 p.m.

We're on the plane in Mexico City, bound for Los Cabos and Sacramento. The air quality in

Mexico City leaves a lot to be desired. The beautiful, snow-capped peaks aren't even visible

from the ground...and they aren't that far away! The city is covered with a thick brown blanket of smog. In the daylight, it's incredible how expansive the city is. It is huge, and it's surrounded by mountains. I guess there is nowhere for the air pollution to go. [Perhaps it is only like this at certain times of the year. That's my hope, anyway.]

So, yesterday, we got to see the Oaxaca that the tourists see when they come. Mitla is a lovely village in the mountains with ruins right in the middle and tons of vendors selling their wares (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitla). Little shops and boutiques, very clean, very picturesque, very tourist-friendly, with nice little hotels and things. Quaint would be the word.

Mitla
Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

The weather was beautiful, though blustery and cold. By “cold,” I mean a light sweater would be nice, or a long-sleeved shirt. On the drive up to Mitla, there are lots of places where Mezcal (or Mescal), tequila's cousin, is made, and it looked WAY more prosperous than the villages we've been in, I'll tell you what. It was sort of like driving through the Sonoma Valley wine country, but with a high desert landscape and more modest construction. The countryside is rugged and beautiful and romantic, just like in the movies. I half expected to see desperados riding over the hills with pistols firing and bandoliers flying and sombreros flopping. Or at least Clint Eastwood. Or maybe Antonio Banderas. Okay. Don't get me started.

We then went to “old town” Oaxaca to go to the indoor market there. That particular area looks very European/Spanish colonial. We went to the plaza, where there is a huge and impressive Catholic church. There was a festival going on, with lots more of those French tourists. Sidewalk restaurants and cafes, expensive shops, nice hotels. Dancers on the plaza in traditional garb, dancing to...mariachi music! Special for the tourists!

Yum!
Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

We had a delicious dinner at one of the restaurants and made a few last-minute purchases. For some of us, those purchases had to do with staying warm. I have a quite beautiful and soft alpaca wrap that I got that night from a street vendor. Well, they said it was alpaca, and maybe it is. Or maybe it isn't. I love it anyway.

We remarked that this is the Oaxaca that you see on travel-logs. It really is very lovely, charming, romantic, and all that.

If you visited Oaxaca, you would be picked up at the airport, whisked to your hotel, encouraged to wander about the plaza with the lovely architecture and the majestic church. You might go on excursions to Mitla and Monte Alban, and maybe you would spend a couple of days at Puerto Angel (the beach on the other side of the mountain range). You would have a wonderful time.

Leaving, maybe you would spot a not-so-great neighborhood with lots of graffiti (because when you landed it was night-time, but now it's mid-day), and you would say to yourself that every city has places like that...tsk, tsk. But you could overlook that; because, all in all, Oaxaca would make a good impression on you. You'd love to come back someday and see more. You'd be getting your pictures ready to show your friends so they could drool. And who could blame you?

But you wouldn't have seen the Oaxaca our team saw. Nope. Not even if you were that very nice suntanned couple from New Zealand that I met at the airport today on their way to Mexico City for the third leg of their fabulous vacation.

And so the mission to Oaxaca was over, and we all made our way back to our homes and “real” lives. But the experience stays with you, and you are a different person when you leave than you were when you arrived. It's all about perspective. With great appreciation, I thank all of you who were on the team. It was a superb team. Tom and Wendy Hogan, thank you for your hard work in facilitating transportation, arranging meals, and all the different logistical nightmares that came up. You were up to the task each time. What a blessing you are! And to the people of my church, The Gateway, thank you for your support and encouragement and prayers. I couldn't have gone to Oaxaca without you!

Leaving Oaxaca.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Oaxaca, Mexico - Days 8 & 9, Luis Palau Festival!

I had hoped to be able to minister hope and healing at the Luis Palau festival. Would it happen? The adventure continues:

Saturday, November 15 – 8:55 a.m.

I didn't get a chance to journal on Friday! The Palau festival was quite an experience. Big inflatable jumpy things for the kids, face painting, clowns, and so on. Very huge sports field area. The medical tents were set up to the right of the stage (dentistry, optometry, general practice, ear-nose-throat, osteo). It was very well organized. Folks could be seen and get their meds at the pharmacy or their glasses or whatever right there on the spot, no charge. How big a blessing is that? [Our docs and nurses and pharmacy folks were very busy both Friday and Saturday. It is so wonderful of them to give of themselves in this way!]

The waiting area.
Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Medical teams at work.
Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

I had been tagged to cut hair with Renee yesterday, and I got there 2 hours later than she did, because our driver needed to go check out a wheelchair for a CP patient in “old” town – very pretty and touristy with actual street signs on the corner buildings and everything. The building colors are very bright here...lapis and teal and coral and goldenrod and rust and so forth.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Anyway, we arrived at the festival grounds, and I found Renee. There we were, parked in the middle of about 50 professional hairdressers! Yikes. ROFL! Business was understandably a little slow for us, though Renee gives great haircuts. I did a trim on a woman with curly hair, and I must say she looked great...and she loved it, which is way more important than me thinking she looked great. With Renee's okay, I decided to join Glen (from Vancouver) on a prayer walk. He is a rabid prayer warrior.

Next thing you know, we're chatting with a young lady who is working at a library booth, and Glen asked her if she knew Jesus. Just like that. She said, "Not yet." Not yet. What an "open door" answer! So he asked her if she'd like to. And she said yes! We prayed with her, and she was positively beaming. Later in the day, she was still beaming and gave us big hugs, and her friend took her picture with us. In the evening, Glen ran into Sol again, and she had brought a friend with her. And he introduced her to Jesus, too. Just like that. Way to go, Glen!

6:25 p.m.

Richard's group (Mike and Bill and Annie) came back from the remote villages, and Suzie asked them to come dance at the medical tent today, and they did. A crowd gathered, as you can imagine, to see the Indians from Los Estados Unidos.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Their regalia was a huge hit, and Mike played a beautiful prayer on the flute. 

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Bill gave his moving testimony.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Richard spoke to the people about how Jesus was a tribal man, had dark hair and dark eyes, and came to save all peoples from all tribes.The Creator has created all the different peoples for a purpose, that the local indigenous peoples are the keepers of the land, and they should no longer be ashamed of their culture and the color of their skin, but they should embrace it as their identity. The Europeans came and brought religion (Christianity) to the people, but they didn't realize that it was wrong to rob them of their identity. We all know better now, don't we? Please? Jesus, the savior of all mankind, came to redeem all peoples and cultures – not to make them European...

The amazing Richard Twiss.
Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

The looks on the faces of the people as Richard spoke were indescribable, as though a light had gone on in their spirits as tears shone in their eyes. It was hugely impactful and touched my heart greatly. I feel as though there is a great chasm between them and me that can only be bridged through reconciliation.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.
(The photographer in the picture is the immensely talented Carl LaCasse.)

On the way home to the YWAM base, Esau (YWAM director in Oaxaca) pulled over and stopped the van. He had heard Richard's message, and he wanted to talk to him about it. Esau said that everything Richard had said was very true for Oaxaca. He said the indigenous people are ashamed of their identity and suffer greatly at the hands of the established church, even still. Their culture, dance, and so on are considered sinful and are repressed. [That breaks my heart.]

Esau invited Richard to come back to bring his message to the villages. He said he would personally escort Richard. Esau's voice was so full of emotion at what he desires to bring to his people. I teared up. It was a God moment.

But back to the Palau festival. We were given permission to set up a “free prayer” area in our medical tent today! Amazing! Glen ministered to the men, and I prayed for the ladies, mostly. Just like home. We put up a little sign, and an astounding thing happened. People started lining up for prayer! It was one after another for hours and hours. Some came for prayer for healing for themselves and/or their children, some came for encouragement, some came for deliverance/freedom from curses or addictions. I used my (very) limited Spanish to tell them who I was, where I came from to pray for them, that I speak very little Spanish but understand a bit more, and that I would be praying in English. They were all okay with that and seemed appreciative of my hobbled efforts to communicate with them.

But here's the really cool part: The Holy Spirit helped me to really understand what they were saying, just enough to be able to pray for them. Both the ladies with pain in their backs and necks reported immediate improvement, as did those with arthritis and so forth. Woohoo! Talk about encouraging! There were so many people, it's hard to chronicle them, but they were almost universally visibly moved by the Holy Spirit, and I believe they felt loved and cared for. Praise God! That is what I came for. He made a way for me to minister help, hope, and healing to the people, even though I am not anywhere near coming close to approaching the hope of being fluent in their language. [Note: My eyes are tearing up even now as I remember this amazing moment in time!] And, actually, a few of the people I prayed with spoke broken Spanish themselves, being indigenous from the villages.

Flashback to last night (Friday) at the festival: Richard's group opened in prayer (We missed that part because of the traffic...bummer...). There was music by several Christian artists who are very popular in the area. Interesting thing, though, I haven't heard any mariachi music down here. It's all been conga-based. Obviously, since I love drums, I've enjoyed it very much!

Luis Palau spoke for about 45 minutes. There were thousands of people on the soccer field. The organizers were expecting 100,000 people to attend the festival, and I'm sure at least half that many attended just last night (with the largest crowd expected Saturday night). After Palau spoke, he invited the crowd to join him in a brief prayer. There were Palau workers interspersed throughout the crowd, wearing bright orange “amigo” vests. So, if you had prayed the prayer for salvation, or if you wanted prayer for something else, you would find the nearest “amigo.” Way more intimate and less showy than a huge altar call. I liked it.

The music started up again after we left, and we could hear it all the way over at YWAM. Right now (Saturday evening) I can hear the music as I sit here writing, so that means they have started up for tonight. Our contribution to the festival is over.

I felt good today and had lots of energy and feel as though it's been a good day. A beautiful day. A Kingdom day. Woohoo! Dios es amor. And I'm hungry. I only had time for a slice of fresh pineapple at lunch today, because people were waiting for prayer. I'm feeling really blessed. Silly me. I thought I was coming here to bless others.

Oaxaca, Mexico - Day 7, Monte Alban

Tom and Wendy Hogan arranged a variety of experiences for our group, including an opportunity to see some beautiful parts of the region. The adventure continues with Day 7:

Thursday, November 3 – 3:10 p.m.

Today, we visited the ruins at Monte Alban (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monte_Albán), perched high on a mountaintop and overlooking Oaxaca, one of the earliest cities in Mezoamerica. Please do check out the link. You'll want to go see it for yourself. It is amazing. Like “Apocalypto.” Breathtaking. There was such a presence to the place, such a sense of history and former greatness. Such wonderful food for the imagination. Huge, huge area of ruins, only 15% of which has been excavated. Want to go on a dig? I took some pictures, but even the panoramic ones don't come close to portraying the expanse of the place. 

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

The vendors outside the gates were relentless as only the vendors in this part of the world can be, and I'm sure I overpaid for the few trinkets I purchased, but I'm happy to help the local economy (That's how I choose to look at it...). Even turning my pockets inside out to show I had no dollars left didn't deter them!

When we got back to headquarters, I put my feet up. Although I am feeling much better (praise God!), my ankles are still very swollen. I feel old and in the way. But I am not! The doc is up and about today, though he looks pretty weak. Others are experiencing head cold symptoms. I wonder if that might not be from all the dust...both from pouring pisos and from breathing the regular air. It was very, very hazy this morning; however, the breeze has picked up, and that has cleared the air somewhat. There are a few clouds in the sky.

I've been thinking a lot about the culture of honor. The arrogance of Norte Americanos can be astounding, including some of us, perhaps even me. But I hope not. I don't want people to flinch at my questions or comments (as our guide did at some of the insensitive questions posed to him today). Relationship is everything. If you come here (or anywhere) with an “agenda,” you are malodorous. All that to say, yes, we missionaries come with a wonderful message of forgiveness and freedom and reconciliation. But we would benefit from learning about other cultures, too, in order to understand the people we are coming to see...their religion, economy, history, social systems, language, etc...before coming to them and (in their eyes, anyway) trying to change that. Who could blame folks for thinking we are trying to superimpose our culture over theirs?

I think it's wonderful that so much evangelism is done in the context of culture now, that Native Americans can drum and dance their prayers, for instance, without condemnation from other believers who don't “get it.” Well, enough of that soapbox. It's good to honor others. We can't expect them to want to have anything to do with us if we don't.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

We drove past some tourist resorts on the way up the mountain to Monte Alban, with fabulous panoramic views of the valley. That is most certainly a different view of what Oaxaca is like than you would get in the villages! There were lots of French tourists at Monte Alban, by the way. I thought that was interesting. Bet they didn't know I could understand their snide remarks...heh heh... And people think Americans are rude.

More local flavor: The tortilla truck just went by. It's a car, actually. Anyway, it has a blaring loudspeaker that lauds the quality of the product (Tortillas! Calientitas!) as it slowly progresses up the street. The woman across the street comes out in the morning with her tortilla towel to buy her morning tortillas. Makes me smile. It's a heartwarming sight and reminds me of my grandmother, for some reason.

There's a church service next door at 6 each morning. The singing wakes us up, just in case we have learned to sleep through the roosters. We get up at 6 or 6:30, which is a good time to get up when you've got a large group of folks needing to be ready to leave by 8 a.m. Okay, 8:30. Well, will we be loading up around 9? We'll try to be there around 10 for sure. And we arrive at 11:30. That's close enough, eh? I hope this makes you chuckle, or at least smile knowingly. I like it here. The people are wonderful, and the brothers and sisters in Christ with whom we have worked are incredible. Such beautiful hearts.

Tomorrow, the Palau festival begins!

Oaxaca, Mexico - Day 6, Clinic at the Dump

What an adventure! Pouring floors one day, medical clinic the next. We continue with...

Day 6

Wednesday, November 12 – 5:40 p.m.

We went out to the dump to set up a one-day, walk-up medical clinic. The folks were already eagerly waiting when we got there. We had a waiting area where the kids could color, get their faces painted, etc. They loved it. There were three exam rooms set up, and even free haircuts (compliments of Renee from Reno...she's an amazing human dynamo!).

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Unfortunately, I got to feeling so poorly that I had to lie down. Well, actually, one of the nurses insisted that I stop my assigned task, lie down, and put my feet up. I protested, but not very energetically. No, it wasn't the food or water (well, maybe just not enough water)! My ankles ballooned up, and I had a fever. The medicos started me on some wicked antibiotics and tylenol, and I was quickly on the road to recovery. Yes!

The kids were so cute with their balloon “hats” and “swords” and so on. Many people received prayer, and some made decisions to follow Christ. So awesome!

Photo by Chris. All Rights reserved

It's a great frustration to me that my Spanish is so limited. Note to self: Learn some more Spanish! The folks find my efforts amusing (hey, anything for a laugh, and happy to provide it...), and I find that I am beginning to understand better than I thought I would be able to, which is a wonderful and miraculous thing.

We stopped at the mall (I know. That sounds so normal, doesn't it?) to pick up some more supplies on the way home, so I grabbed a coconut ice cream bar...yum! Delicious and refreshing, with the added benefit of being creamy and...coconutty. Come on. Those are so, so good. [I understand that some folks don't like coconut at all. Go figure!]

I'm supposed to do tear-down after dinner tonight (clear and wash tables, scrape dishes, sweep/mop the dining room and kitchen, take out the trash, etc.). I hope I can do it, as I feel as though the illness let the team down today. There's a separate team that does dishes (wash in detergent and bleach, rinse off suds, rinse in bleach water, dry, put away) and a team that does set-up (set the table for the next meal). This, I know how to do! We're all encouraged to take turns, and there's a sign-up sheet on the wall in the dining room. There's a small amount of grumbling about the chores, but I find that they help with our bonding as teammates. I don't mind pitching in. It actually helps me to feel more useful.

Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

One of the docs is on IV antibiotics, very ill. I hope he will get well soon!

By the way, Lolita (You'll remember that she's our chef) outdid herself tonight. We had an authentic Oaxacan feast with “tlayudas,” these giant tortillas filled with cheese and onions and black beans, then folded over and toasted over coals. Really good, and with the traditional Christmas drink, “ponche,” which is like hot apple cider but with lots of different fruits. It's very yummy. There were also half-moon shaped pies with chorizo and some with cheese. And barbecued flank steak to put in the clayudas. I don't think anybody will need a midnight snack!

And, yeah! I was able to do my assigned tear-down work, no problem. Woohoo! Tomorrow's going to be a fun day.

Next: Monte Alban

Oaxaca, Mexico - Day 5, Pisos and Tostadas

It's “missions month” in a lot of churches, so I'm recapping my mission to Oaxaca, Mexico. An amazing experience! The adventure continues with...

Day 5 -

Tuesday, November 11 – 11:35 p.m. (What am I doing up so late?!)

Woohoo! We finished all the pisos today! The work went so smoothly, well organized. And I'll tell you what: Pastor Marcelino and his guys work hard and fast. I don't know how they can lift those 5-gallon buckets of water and sand and gravel up onto their shoulders to dump in the mixer all day long. Amazing.

Working hard!
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And having fun!
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The folks we encountered today at the village were very open and friendly. We're getting more comfortable with them, they're getting more comfortable with us. One of the families even went to the store to get some purified water to make Tang for all of us (around 30 people). They bought disposable plastic glasses and everything. I'm sure that was difficult for them to afford. Then, when we were finished with the work and were resting a bit at the church site, here they came with home-made tostadas for us! I was very moved by that. Such generosity and hospitality! They could have eaten for a week on what they fed us, I'm sure.

Fresh tostadas. They were delicious!
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Mindful of the cultural need to accept what's offered (per last night's talk), we partook of everything -- fresh cabbage, ungloved hands, and all (Had it been treated for bacteria? At the YWAM base and at the restaurants, everything fresh is treated for bacteria. But, in the villages, not so much. We understood that we were taking a risk, but we went with it). The tostadas were very delicious. [None of us who chose to honor this sacrificial gift became ill from it. There was one person who didn't partake. That person became ill. Isn't that interesting? Do bring your hand sanitizer, though. You don't want to spread anything you might have brought with you to the rest of the team.]

We did coloring, face painting, fingernails, balloons, etc., with the kids at the village in the

afternoon today. They had a great time, and their parents also came. It was a festival atmosphere.

Crayons. An amazing treat for these kids! Bring some with you.
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So beautiful, and just as precious.
Photo by Chris. All Rights Reserved.

Later in the evening, back at YWAM, we packaged and labeled medications for the medical clinic tomorrow at the dump site.

Note: There is no way I could drive down here – they are crazy! Never mind the lanes; split the difference! Cut everybody off, pass on the right...reminds me of our days in Puerto Rico. I love it. Seriously. I'm beginning to love Oaxaca. The weather is perfect, but it's very dusty. If you have respiratory issues, that and the altitude are things to consider. Just sayin'. Forewarned is forearmed, right?

Next up: Medical clinic at the dump.