As we descended into El Alto International Airport at 5am on Friday morning, I only saw one car on the roads of this mountain city in Bolivia. This was the first sign that I was landing in a very different place than I was used to. My world race had begun!
El Alto the city is unlike anywhere I’ve been in the States, but because of the people I have met it feels like home at the same time. For the duration of July, my teammate Esther and I will be staying with a host family, getting to know the Bolivian culture in such a unique way. Instead of being a backpacking tourist, we get to see their way of life from the inside. It’s such a treat! Our host parents, Alicia and Abram have five kids (Rolando 26, Sergio 24, Vania 22, Alex 13, and Oscar 9), all living at home so it’s a busy household. Abuella (Grandma) lives with them as well, so there are 10 of us occupying their little piece of the city.
Alicia, our house mom, is a wonderful Christian woman who has made us feel right at home. She feeds us so much food, and with the exception of allowing me and Essie to peel a few potatoes (let’s just say that our American peelers don’t stand a chance against a Bolivian woman peeling a potato with a knife), she has refused our help in the kitchen or with the dishes. Bolivian moms are somewhat mother hen’s, managing the household and taking pride in providing for everyone that’s staying under the roof.
Essie and I have been having an absolute riot getting to know the family on a more personal level and I have laughed harder in the past two days then I have in the past two months. Card games like Slap Jack, Spoons, and a Bolivian version of Scattergories have us keeling over at times. I didn’t realize how competitive I was until we sat down for family game day on Sunday. Just kidding.
With the exception of a few days of recovering from the effects 13,300ft had on me, the first bit of time here in El Alto has been an incredible blessing. There are things I definitely have to get over, like the outdoor toilet, but give me another week and I think it’ll be second nature to take my headlamp with me while I do my business in the cold air.
I look forward to the rest of this month, as I get to know my host family even more, and get into the swing of working with my ministry, Word Made Flesh. But for now, just know that I have settled in quite comfortably here in El Alto, and my home life and ministry time are absolutely wonderful and so much more than I expected. Thank you all for your prayers and love! God is doing some amazing things with your support.
Buenas Noches!
I’ll be writing a blog about my ministry time soon so stay tuned!
