Please enjoy, and feel free to leave your comments! :)
~Barbie~
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Kelly gave Don, Jackie, and me a ride to SFO to catch our flight to Mexico City. It's a direct flight so that's nice! At SFO we met up with Dave and Mona, who just yesterday got back from Europe! Jeff had flown to Houston to see family and then to Puebla from there so we'll meet him when we get there. Once we arrived in Mexico City and got through customs, we boarded the Estrella Roja bus and rode about 3 hours to Puebla. We were given a snack and a drink and got to watch a movie on the way.
Priscilla, her brother Ullyses, and two of their friends along with Jeffrey came to pick us up at the bus station. They took us to the church to let us drop off our bags at the dorms, and then took us to eat at Vips, one of the chain restaurants, around 10pm. That night we stayed in the church's dorm rooms which are all around a common open-air courtyard. Each room has 2 or more bunk beds and a bathroom. You have to turn on your water heater outside your room in order to get hot water for a shower. Mine didn't work and when we investigated we found that it runs on two D batteries and both were dead. haha. Something to get used to-- you cannot put toilet paper in the toilets in Mexico. There is a garbage can next to the toilet for disposal, and you should usually bring a roll of TP with you, as there often isn't any in the stalls. I really liked my room and the French doors which I left open in order to get some fresh air, but I didn't sleep well.
Monday, May 17, 2010
We were up and walking to desayuno (breakfast) at Vips at 8:30am. I was stuffy from the plane ride so stopped at the pharmacy for some decongestant...the clerks didn't speak English, and I didn't know how to say decongestant in Spanish. But eventually I got what I wanted. haha.
After breakfast, we packed overnight bags, loaded the van, and drove about 3 hours through the mountains, past volcanos, villages, and fields of crops, and finally arrived in Veracruz, on the east coast of Mexico. It was very hot and humid. We met the pastor of the church and all sat down for a delicious lunch he had prepared for us. After this, we went way into the country to a small village called Huiscolocla, where the people currently have a one-room church which is a very small room. The locals all came out to greet us, and we gathered in the church room for a service (yes it's Monday, but whenever the pastor comes, you have service).
Priscila translated the sermon for us. It was simple but really meaningful. He talked about how sometimes we want God to give us a sign and we expect something big, but we should look at the small things (like a hug, or kind word) as God's messages to us. We sang Amazing Grace and He Lives, in Spanish. I was amazed at how loud the singing was! It wasn't really in tune, but no one cared, they just sang.
We went here to check it out, as the people had asked to have us come build them a church. They showed us the land it is to be built on, and showed us blueprints of what it will look like. This may be the Young Adults next mission trip if we can get together and go in early January.
After this, we gathered and piled into the van and the back of someone's pickup and drove out to the corn fields where we all got busy picking corn. It started pouring rain but that didn't stop us. I rode in the back of the truck on the way to the next field to pick watermelons, mangos, and papayas. I also saw banana and coconut trees, and a few others but I don't know their names in English.
At the church/house, we saw turkeys, chickens, and a cute puppy. The bathrooms were like outhouses but with toilets-- after you go, you come out and get a bucket of water and then pour it into the toilet to "flush" it. Then you use a bowl to scoop water out of the well, set it on the washboard stone, take some loose powder soap and wash your hands and rinse with that bowl of water. The kitchen was also outdoors since it is too hot to cook inside.
After we had done all the fruit and vegetable picking, we came back and the women who had stayed at prepared supper for us. We ate with them, outside, in the dark at one long table. We had Mexican spaghetti, tortillas, two kinds of fresh cheese, black beans (soooo good), and taquitos. We drank hibiscus flower water.
With happy and full bellies, we said adios and drove back to Veracruz where we stayed in a hotel. Priscila, Evalin, and I stayed in one room together. I got to watch Criminal Minds (my favorite show) in Spanish!
I was worn out, but again didn't sleep well. (This will be a trend).
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
The hotel's continental breakfast consisted of a waffle and a cup of coffee. The walk to the beach was very short, and while there we just relaxed and enjoyed the Gulf. We later walked to the Zocolo to have some barbeque (barbacoa) for lunch. It was excellent! The pastor then took us to this old fort/prison, similar to Alcatraz here since it's no longer in use and is on an island. It was also for the worst of the worst. The walls here and the ground were stone made from coral.
After we toured that, we went to Boca de Rio which is the more touristy area of Veracruz. We saw a WWII ship there and played with the pastor's son under these giant shade umbrellas by the river. We cooled off with some smoothie-sherbet type dessert snack. I had the tropicolada flavor (pineapple/coconut/banana).
We said adios to the pastor and his son and headed back to Puebla, in heavy rain and fog. Finally we made it, had dinner, and then went back to the church to sleep.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
This morning we gathered for breakfast at Vips, and then split up. Jackie went to the church to use their computer, Jeff went to a museum, Don went to the dorms to rest, and Mona, Dave, and I went to the zocolo to do some shopping at the outdoor market. They had so many beautiful things and most were quite inexpensive. When we were done, we went back to the dorms, cleaned up, and piled into the van to head to San Matias.
We were welcomed very warmly by many people in San Matias, and right away had a church service. Afterwards, we shook hands with pretty much everyone (seems to be the custom here) and the women kissed our cheeks (another custom, especially for women). The women prepared lunch for us and served us in a small dining room: vegetable soup, chicken with sauce/salsa, tortillas and beans, and then ice cream. We got busy working soon after lunch, but because so many men and boys wanted to help paint, Jackie, Don, Mona, Priscila and I counted and packaged vitamins and other medications, instead. I played outside with 3 cute little 5-year old boys who showed me and Mona several birds nests in the eaves around the church, and pointed out a dead bird too. They loved me taking pictures and wanted to see each one on the screen after I took it. They wanted their photos taken so they kept posing, and then running over to see the outcome.
When the sun started to go down, we took a little walk around the town. The people here grow tomatoes, and flowers, especially roses, for a living. There aren't really any stores, just a couple of small markets for local foods and essentials, as well as an old arcade, video store, and a paper store. In one of the markets we watched people making masa for tamales.
Dogs roam the streets in packs, but are friendly, though skiddish of people. The gas man drives around and blasts some sort of alarm to let people know he's there, the shuttle bus rings a siren like a car alarm while driving through the streets to let people know it's there, and pickup trucks with speakers strapped to the back drive around blasting music and vote for so-and-so ads. It is not unusual to see people using the old horse pulled wooden plows in the fields, or riding or leading a horse or donkey pulled wooden cart or wagon.
We watched a funeral procession walk down the road, casket in the back of a pick-up with family and friends walking behind it holding umbrellas and singing. Very New Orleans-esque.
Our supper was really yummy-- sandwiches of ham and cheddar and oaxacala cheese on croissants, and I had "cafe blanca" or white coffee which is hot lactose-free milk with instant coffee mixed in. We sat around the table with the pastor, his wife and another woman and just talked and laughed a lot. It is getting easier to speak and understand Spanish and we were able to joke and have fun easily.
I was taken to the home of Yolanda and Samuel, and later Jackie and Don joined us. This is the home we are staying at. I have my own room and toilet for now (until the doctor arrives) and the toilet is the bucket of water to flush kind. The room has cement walls and floors, some cockfighting photos on the wall, and a photo of Sam at age 18 when he was in the Army. All night I heard dogs howling and barking, and then at 4:30am, ALL of the roosters in town started crowing. I mean, ALL of them. That woke up the dogs, who started barking again. Needless to say, again I didn't sleep much. (But don't worry, I was enjoying every minute of this trip...sleep problems were probably just because of getting used to a different place to sleep).
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Sam walked us to the church for morning service and then we had breakfast. We got to work painting a second coat on the walls, and later the guys made holes in the concrete for columns to go in. We set up the pharmacy and clinic and waited for the doctor to arrive and start seeing patients. We set up a bench with toys and candies for the children to take after they saw the doctor, and outside in the triage and waiting area, I set out some coloring pages and crayons for the kids.
After lunch, I set up a room for our VBS class which Jackie had prepared. The lesson was about Jonah and the Big Fish. The craft required some taping, and since we only had one roll of tape, the kids crowded around me when they were finished cutting and coloring, and waited their turn to get their tape. While they did, they wanted to know their names in English. After all the kids were done and most left, some of them stayed with me, helped clean up, and then we sat around talking in Spanish and English. It was challenging but fun!
That afternoon, we were taken to see the fields of roses that the people grow and sell. We came back to a dinner of tostadas, talking and laughing, and then left to go to our "homes."
Friday, May 21, 2010
My lack of sleep caught up to me today after breakfast, because I felt completely out of steam....but that's nothing that some Coca Light and cafe blanca can't fix!
Since Priscila and Ully weren't here yet, I got to play translator for triage, which basically meant asking patients their name, age, and whether or not they had diabetes. There were a lot of kids again, but we weren't doing a VBS class today, so we brought out the small tables and chairs and the coloring pages and crayons again. An older lady named Magdelena told me (in Spanish) that the children here don't have coloring books and crayons. She was very grateful for the chance they were getting to color. I've decided that next time I'm bringing a suitcase full of coloring books and crayons! (Feel free to donate to the cause!)
The children practiced the English that they'd learned the day before, by saying "hello Barbie" and "thank you" and "good morning" while running around playing. A few of them took my Spanish-English vocab cheat sheets and tried learning a few new words or phrases.
After we closed up the clinic, we drove to the Methodist nursing home for older folks who have no family left to take care of them. We brought them lap blankets that people at our church back home (Wesley UMC) in San Jose, CA had made for them. The facility was really nice, and the two caretakers were very kind. They gathered the tenants in the main sitting room and Priscila introduced us. Then we sang (in Spanish, of course) some well-known hymns that the people knew by heart. One feisty little lady wanted to dance the La Cucaracha with Jeffrey who happily obliged. We then brought them to their dining room tables and served their light supper and sat with them while they ate. I sat with two women, one who didn't talk, and the other, Dona Irene who said she was 86 and who hid her sandwich and cake under her blanket so that she could have a midnight snack! She reminded me a lot of my Grammy.
We left and went to an open field with a great view of the volcano to take group photos. We went back to the church and while waiting for supper to be ready, Antonio came by to chat. Jeffrey introduced himself and we both suggested he come by tomorrow and help with the cement mixing. After supper we went back to our "homes," packed up, and gave our families thank-you gifts.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Last Day in San Matias
The Benadryl I took last night helped me get 3-4 straight hours of sleep! Yay! (Don't get me wrong, I've totally enjoyed my time in Mexico, I'm just having trouble sleeping in new places each night).
In the morning we loaded our bags into Sam's truck and drove to the church for our last morning of work. But first a few of us climbed up into the bell tower to the roof of the church to watch and photograph the volcano which was spewing a lot of smoke this morning. It was a beautiful sight to see!
We started with breakfast and then work since today the worship service would be at the end. While starting the second VBS class, I was called to come out because my ride to go see the cemetery was waiting. My "ride" was a wooden flatbed wagon/cart being pulled by two bulls! Jeff, Dave, Luis, and two of the women (Ana, and ??) came too. The ride was pretty long and we went past rose, gladiola, artichoke, and onion fields. The cemetery was very old and beautiful, set in the trees with the mountains and volcano in the background. We walked around a bit and Luis showed me his grandparents' graves.
When we got back, VBS was over and only a handful of little kids were still in the classroom playing with their Play-Doh that Jackie and Don had brought for them. It was another thing that the children didn't have access to normally. I took their photos and we talked and played until time to clean up and go to the service. I know I will miss those kids so much!
The service was very nice and the church was filled. They had us come to the front to say goodbye and give us some pottery as thank-you gifts. They had homemade ice cream outside waiting for us and we all enjoyed that while we finished up work, packing up, and saying goodbye. Antonio had come back and went to help the other workers with mixing the cement, and then helped pack our van. He gave me a parting gift- a bag of fresh lychees.
We loaded up, waved and said adios to San Matias and headed to Pansacola for lunch and for the rest of the group to see the progress the church there has made since last year's trip when they worked there. We left Linda, Jeff, and Evalin there to go back to Puebla airport, and the rest of us went to Puebla to the bus station and were on our way to Mexico City airport. We checked into the Hilton Hotel which is inside the airport, since we had an early flight the next morning. Don and Mona were not feeling well so they stayed in their rooms and the rest of us went to dinner at one of the restaurants in the airport. Diana and I were sharing a room so after dinner we went back, repacked bags, and (I) finally got to sleep for 3 hours in a lovely big soft cooshy Hilton bed. Ahh!
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Jackie, Don, Mona, Dave, and I met up at 5:30am (Diana was taking a later flight), and dropped our bags off at customs/immigration, and then had breakfast at the lounge before heading to our gate. Unfortunately for me, this was when I began to feel really sick to my stomach, and I barely made it to the plane. They were calling my name over the PA as I was running to get there, and I was the last one to board the plane. I slept off and on for most of the flight, and we landed in SFO at 9:30am. Kelly was there to pick us up and take us to church where my mom was meeting me, and since we made it there right before the 11am service, I sat through most of it before having to leave.
Despite the bug that hitchhiked in my stomach and hasn't quite decided to go home..... I truly enjoyed this trip to Mexico. I really loved meeting and interacting with all the people. These people were such fun-loving, kind, service-oriented, hard-working, grateful ,and gracious people who welcomed us with open arms. The children were some of the most respectful, inquisitive, eager to learn, help, and share the love of God they had in them. Their precious little faces just radiated joy that only God can give. I will miss them, and I can't wait to go back and see them all again.
Be sure to look at the pictures on Picasa: http://picasaweb.google.com/YoungBlueEyes/MexicoMissionTrip?feat=directlink
