October Vacations

Let me start by apologizing for my negligence of this blog and keeping you all up to date with life here in Peru. It seems as if day turns into night and back to day all too quickly, and my free hours fill up with activities faster than I can write things onto my calendar. Some weeks Friday arrives and I can't even remember everything that's happened in a week, but I know from the exhaustion I feel that I didn't have much time to relax. I can't complain about that though, because for me, investing in the lives of others and building relationships is a priority, and sleep (while necessary) can always be made up for in the form of mini-naps after school and on the weekend.

This week we've had vacations from school. Where I work (and other schools, too) we get time off at the end of every term. We wrapped up our third term last week, so this week we've had a free week. My initial plan was to relax, catch up on things I've neglected, go shopping for things I'm still lacking in my apartment, and maybe visit a few local sites. However, now that the end of the week has arrived, I look back and realize I did very little of that, but instead I spent time with people which in some ways is the greatest vacation ever.

Saturday I spent nearly an hour and a half at the bank with a friend of mine trying to sort out my account and transfer money to the USA. They kept telling us the code was wrong and gave us a new one, but after the new one didn't work for us or the bank employee it was determined there were other problems on the account. In the end we got it all straightened out, and the transfer went through. We then had lunch and walked to the laguna before I returned home to relax and do some laundry.

My favorite place to just sit...la laguna.

On Sunday I went to church and then headed to Pachacamac with a friend to visit the Children's home. Upon arriving in Pachacamac, we went to the plaza and discovered and exposition in celebration of the holiday, so we walked around to the different booths and had lunch before going to see the kids. I ended up taking some of the girls back to the exposition later in the afternoon.

An image at the start of the parade made completely of flower petals. 

On Monday and Wednesday I went shopping. Monday was spent with a missionary who is moving back to Lima. We checked out prices for appliances and other home goods as she is renting a completely unfurnished apartment. After a morning run to the laguna on Wednesday I went shopping on my own just for fun.

Tuesday was an official holiday (Battle of Angamos) and it ended up being my favorite day of the week. I got up early and met a friend in Manchay to go to an event at BCM (Bible Centered Ministries). We arrived at BCM about an hour early and ended up going for a walk through the "countryside". We also spent some time talking on the rocks near the river. Upon returning to the BCM event, I played with the kids from the children's home and talked with some of the "mamas" for the afternoon.

The path we walked along. This used to be a river.

A field of corn...just like home!

Taking a break before heading back to BCM.

Macarena

 Bridget and Vanessa 

Ruth

The backdrop of a show that was done at BCM.

Thursday was a fun day, too. I went to the Oasis in Manchay which is another ministry of Kids Alive. The Oasis has programs to teach moms useful skills for work and there are childcare programs for children, a new elementary school for kindergarten aged students, and a homework club for students in school. I helped out with the 3 year olds, to which I must admit the best part of the afternoon was putting them down for a nap...hehe! They are adorable children, but they wear you out quick! I had a lot of fun with them. 

Today I'm using as a "me" day. I have no plans but to clean, do laundry and go grocery shopping (none of which I've done in the last 2 weeks). I woke up late (see, I told you I could always catch up on sleep later), read for a while, and now I find myself typing this blog with coffee in hand. I must admit, it's been the perfect start to my last "official" day of vacations. 

The Lord continues to break me and mold me here in Peru. As I become more vulnerable, I am realizing my insecurities, my pride, and my selfishness. It's been interesting to see how the Lord has used two very dear friends to teach me valuable life lessons even if they don't realize it. Through their lives I have been challenged and stretched to have more faith, to live simply, and to love. It's not always an easy path to take, but being here in Peru has been a blessing, and if I leave here with nothing at the end of my time (which is still quite far off), my prayer is that I will have grown in faith and love and that I may continue to fall more in love with my Savior each day. What a journey it has been, and I'm excited to see what else is in store for me throughout the next 2 years!