Hello from Urubamba!
I apologize for the long break in communication! For some reason we were having problems connecting to the Internet when accessing the blog site, and we literally have had almost no time to post an update because of how busy we've been! But we are back in business and ready to share just a little bit of what's been going on since Friday.
First of all, we made it safely here, and after labding in Cusco we immediately began to feel the effects of landing at an airport that is 10,000 feet high - namely a little bit of dizziness and shortness of breath. Friday was spent acclamating to the altitude and getting settled in to our hostal in Urubamba. The next day we walked to a nearby hotel for breakfast before bussing to the boys home. There we were met with enthusiastic hugs and smiles as boys tried to point out who they remembered from last year, and we tried to figure out how to pronounce all of the 26 names of the boys there. We quickly formed a basic plan for the week and went immediately to work making adobe bricks. Unlike other homes, at Urubamba the boys and house parents take part in the work, meaning we had a team of about 40+ people stomping mud, shoveling into wheelbarrows, and packing it into molds. In the first two hours we cranked out 180 bricks, and after a few work sessions we have made over 775+, which will go towards the chicken farm they hope to construct here this year.
For logistic reasons we decided not to do VBS here and rather spend that time really getting to know the boys and family. VBS will still happen at the next home though. One of the highlights on Monday was getting to bless the boys, staff, and Andazabal family by taking the entire home to Cusco for dinner and the first movie all but two boys had ever gotten to see in a theatre!
Yesterday we had the chance to hike nearby on a portion of the Incan trail, and had a blast convincing all the boys and Hector, the house father, to jump into what may have been the coldest waterfall we've ever experienced!
Today was a little interesting - there is a strike going on involving the locals protesting the power company, which has raised the electric prices by 300% multiple times in the last year. This means they have blocked all roads into the city for the remaining 24 hours of the 48 hour strike. Due to the peaceful nature of the strike, we decided to make the two hour walk to the boys home today since our bus was unable to approach town. There at the home we found a surprise waiting for us in the form of a postponed Peruvian Independence Day celebration that they wanted to celebrate with us! It involved food from the three different regions of the country as well as decorations, dance demonstrations, and recited explanations of cultural lessons from the boys (in full traditional attire). It was a really fun and special time with everyone and we felt spoiled to have so much preparation made on our account. Afterward we made our hike back to town where we encountered a caravan of police leaving the valley and many smiling Peruvians walking the vehicle-free streets. We are planning to make the same trek back to the home tomorrow for our last day with the boys here, and will be leaving town Friday morning for our flight back to Lima and bus ride to Kusi.
Please pray for continued health - we've had five or six people get sick for about a day each, but are all in good spirits and being well taken care of. Also please pray for the father of my wife and two sisters in law who are here, as their dad, Steve Jankowski just had a quintuple bypass surgery this morning. He is doing well but we are all praying for him and would appreciate your prayers as well! Lastly please pray that we would continue to stay in good spirits, which honestly is pretty easy with such a joyful team!
The Lord has truly been blessing us with sweet fellowship among the team and boys, and he has been knitting us together as one focused, unified family in the field. We would appreciate your ongoing prayers and will try to update again soon!
God bless, y buenas noches!
