Wednesday:
Up at 7:30 am. Stuff your pack full of what you think you might need for the next 11 months. Then meet your squad in the hotel lobby to begin your very first TRAVEL DAY together!
Mid-afternoon: Pass by a circle of Atlanta airport employees singing patriotic songs in a capella harmony… a beautiful way to say “goodbye for now” to your home country.
5:00 pm – Call your mom to say a final goodbye, and board the plane to Costa Rica!
10:00 pm – Arrive in San Jose, Costa Rica. Your entire squad of 50 people makes it through customs in a surprisingly fast & orderly fashion.
11:00 pm – Find a place for 36 of you to stay in San Jose. One of your team’s contacts recommends a pastor nearby. You load all your packs on the top of a “microbus”, watch the driver tie them down, and squish together for the short ride through the city.
By 11:30 pm (9:30 San Jose time), your squad finds themselves inside La Iglesia de Luz y Vida (The Church of Light and Life). The pastor and his family welcome you warmly, pray for you, and tell you that you are an answer to their prayers. You learn that Pastor Pilo and his family gather supplies all year long to bring food and clothing to young children who live in the mountains…a 4-6 day journey on foot. They hope to welcome back more teams like yours to help them one day! They also tell you, “We want to feed you guys breakfast in the morning. And we want you to eat a lot, because this isn’t a business transaction. It comes out of love.”
Thursday:
8:00 am – Pastor Pilo’s church family feeds you a delicious breakfast with rice, eggs, fresh papaya, pineapple and coffee!
8:30 am – They help your teams find transportation for a fair price. You end up serving as translator, and thank God for the ability to speak and understand Spanish!
11:00 am – Your ministry host, Seth, comes to pick up your team. He takes you to his home, where his wife, Andrea, and three kids feed you a delicious American/Costa-Rican lunch.
1:00 pm – Seth and Andrea sit down with your team for a mini-orientation to Costa Rican culture and to their ministry in La Carpio called “Encaminame” (or “Give Dignity”). Home to many Nicaraguan immigrants displaced by war, La Carpio is full of big hearts and amazing stories. Seth & Andrea have a huge desire to help single moms, jobless young adults and struggling youth to gain the skills & education they need to sustain themselves.
5:00 pm – Seth takes you to the market for groceries. You’re able to find your way around pretty well, and decide to take Seth’s recommendation to try yuca (a potato-like root vegetable that soon becomes a key ingredient in one of your team’s favorite dinners).
7:00 pm – Your team sets up camp on the ministry property of Give Dignity. You pull together a quick dinner and pitch your tents inside the tin-roofed building with a dirt floor. Your living quarters are close, but contentedly cozy.
Friday:
6:30 am – Your team is awakened unexpectedly early by the rooster with larengitis next door.
Morning – You take a walk around the property and take stock of what the needs are. Before you know it, you’re hauling rock, picking up trash, and getting excited to begin maintenance projects on the property.
Afternoon – Seth and Andrea come by to take you for a walk around the block. You meet lots of neighbors, learn where to buy fresh tortillas, meat, and produce, and buy a few pejibayes for lunch (a large seed with the texture of a sweet potato, once it’s boiled and peeled). You’re excited to find out that some of the business owners in the neighborhood are graduates of Encaminame’s “Jobs for Life” class!
Saturday:
6:30 am – Once again, awakened. You opt to try to give the rooster some cough syrup tomorrow.
Morning – You rediscover the magic of pancakes made with only eggs and bananas! Then your team jumps into renovation work together, clearing space for a water tank, a garden, and a patio.
Afternoon – You’re invited to a neighbor’s home for a lunch full of laughter and delicious fried rice.
Evening – Your team begins a healthy competition of Nerts (Dutch Blitz) and ends the night with a capella singing and praying together.
Sunday:
Morning: Your team visits an international church in San Jose with Seth & Andrea’s family. This week, Costa Rica is celebrating both their Indepdence Day and National Children’s Day, so the service is full of patriotic color and led by kids mostly under the age of 18 (including many talented young musicians!). One 10-year-old even plays the soundtrack from Pirates of the Caribbean on his violin, which makes your heart smile.
Afternoon: Your team spends time preparing to help out with the evening church service in La Carpio. A few team members plan activities to do with the young kids, and you partner with another teammate to plan the worship music. It’s fun to begin to learn some familiar songs in another language!
Evening: Children, young adults and a few families pour into the small front building on Encaminame’s property. You love talking with the people and learning about the impact that Seth and Andrea (and God’s Spirit) have had on their lives. You go to bed happy that night… excited to begin a new week.
Check out my teammates’ blogs for a few fun pictures and a video of our home this month!
http://brittanydavis.theworldrace.org/?filename=let-your-spirit-overwhelm-me
http://benjaminbaecker.theworldrace.org/?filename=our-new-home
