Fifty six hours later on a double decker bus that traveled along the coast of Peru to La Paz, Bolivia to this adorable hostel called Adventures Brew House that totally looked like Hogwarts on the inside and had an incredible roof top view of La Paz. We stayed there for one evening and was able to enjoy a nice hot shower for the second time on the race and enjoy a huge hamburger and homemade French toast in the morning. We were to leave at 8:30am in the morning for Mapiri, which we were told would be an adventure of a ride (including a drive on Death Road, which is considered one of the most dangerous roads in the world even though it has been renovated it is still extremely dangerous) and that we were the first World Race team to go to Mapiri. Excited to leave and see our new home for the next month, we waited downstairs with all our packs to find out that our driver was running late and would be at the hostel around 10:30.
Finally our ride had arrived and we saw that all seven of us would be riding in a Su SUV and they started to tie our packs on the roof while we began filing into the vehicle with the rest of our stuff. We were told that it was around an eleven hour drive to Mapiri and since we were behind on the schedule we were going to stay in … for the night and drive the rest in the morning. So the adventure began and I was up front and center in the vehicle for the ride of a life. I was able to get some of the best pictures showing the amazing experience that we were going through just to get to our ministry, such as having to back up so another vehicle could pass or being extremely close to the edge of the dirt road on a cliff.
Then it started to get dark and we were still about an hour away from where we were going to stay for the evening. As we continued to drive on the crazy dirt road winding through the mountains of Bolivia, I saw the moon shining so brightly up above and then right below is the river we are driving right along my side. I tried to take a picture but no camera could catch the beauty of the evening. So I just sat back with my arm hanging out the window and occasionally poking my head out the window just admiring this incredible beauty that God had right in front of me. I seriously cannot explain this rare beauty that was right before my eyes but I will try: pitch black, four-wheeling on a curvy dust filled road, roaring river running along my side and the moon shining so brightly up above with those beautiful delicate dark grey clouds floating around the star filled sky, and the mountains jetting up here and there, all around us. Then the song by Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors ‘I Like to Be With Me When I’m With You’ and I just could not stop thinking that is how I feel right now towards God. I just sat back and just listened to the lyrics and thinking I love who I am when I am focused on God and what he has for me. “With you I can be myself, With you I don’t have to be someone else, It is like putting on my favorite pair of shoes, Oh I like to be with me when I’m with you.”
The adventure does not stop there because next we get to where we are staying and well it had a rough and walls. We could not stop cracking up and started joking with one another about who had the wifi password or the huge concrete tub that we filled our buckets up to flush the toilet was our Jacuzzi or where is the tv with the hd because clearly we see the cords outside for it. It was an adventure that is for sure and we had the best time just laughing it up and just enjoying one another’s company. Then 7 o’clock came around for us to continue the journey to Mapiri. More crazy winding dirt roads that were now more like mud rivers due to the fact that it had rained all the following night. Then the jokes continued when we broke down because the vehicle was over heating, which our driver got that fixed and we were on our way again. Until we met this curved mud hill that the vehicle just could not get up so us seven ladies got behind and pushed it up the hill. Do not ever under estimate the power of the Awakened Warriors. Finally that afternoon we made it to Mapiri and to our host family.
Mapiri is a small town in the jungle-mountain side of Bolivia and is a mining town. The people are incredible and extremely giving and welcoming. Our host family is a wife and husband, who are pastors, and they have three adorable kids: Anna-Ruth 2, Debra 8, and Emanuel 12. They have been treating us like we are their own kids and just pour so much love over us even though they do not speak any English and only three of us understand Spanish.
Sorry for not posting this sooner but here in Mapiri there is only one little internet café that uses dial up and it takes almost thirty minutes to get your email to come up. It has actually been amazing not access to internet because we are spending more time focused on getting to know one another and spending time focusing on our host family.
