Blogs from El Salvador, Central America Caribbean - page 4

Geo: 13.9344, -89.0238It doesn't matter how many times I get reincarnated, one thing never gets old - spending a languid morning spooning in bed, underneath a warm tortilla blanket, made of freshly-ground corn, by an old Salvadoran granny. Soft, warm, and squishy, there is no bed anywhere that is as cozy as one covered by a fresh corn tortilla. Ahhh ... such a grand way to start the day ... until, the gang sent their elite group of assassins to take us out!!!The gang had upped their efforts, sending type of killers that you definitely don't want to mess with - for all of the horrific assassins I've disposed of during my countless lifetimes, I have never seen any as frightening as the ones that showed up in our room today. Known as the Barbie Butchers, ... read more

Geo: 13.8691, -89.8518No time this morning to enjoy being newlyweds - a snitch at the monastery had given away our location to the thugs, who were now hot on our heels, and en route to Antigua. This was especially disappointing as we had hosted an open bar at the wedding last night, and that damn parrot drank more than his fair share of booze! But the details of how this all came about quickly became unimportant, as we needed to get to some place safer. The monks knew that the thugs would hit the monastery, and hit it hard, but they were prepared to fight to the death, in order to keep our escape route a secret. Deep down, I knew the monks would be slaughtered, but I took solace in the fact that, having converted ... read more

Arriving in Juayua at about 5pm, in torrential rain (bringing the number of times rain has been annoying to the grand total of 2!) we made our way to Casa Mazeta to check in, and I instantly hopped into the shower to get the remaining gravel out of my arm. After ending biking on a high, nothing hurt too bad, but bruising is out in force now, a couple of days later - I think I might be pretty stiff and achy for a few days. The cuts and grazes on my arm are now joined by an impressive rainbow of bruising all over one leg and shoulder, but still - maybe it will be a fun conversation starter! It turns out that maybe Juayua might have been a better first stop, as at the weekend ... read more

That is just what God has done. He has opened doors for us. This month has been one filled with new ministry opportunities, and new experiences. And finally, God has opened the door to allow me to share the team’s experiences with you. So here’s what’s up… Spanish classes have started. And not too to my surprise I was placed in Basico 1. So yeah it’s a bit humbling to start at the basic level, but it also presents an opportunity for me to get better at the Spanish I do know, and learn more in class. I quite enjoy my Spanish class, although the idea of being in school is kind of a drag. Also the atmosphere in class is very different. Our teacher says about five English words per class, which is good cause ... read more

So we finally touched down in El Salvador Thursday afternoon. After months of fundraising and patiently waiting we finally made it to El Sal. Being here these past couple days has totally made all the hard work of fundraising worth it, and I am nothing but glad and thankful that God has called me here. It has been such a blessing to be able to work with such awesome teammates, and we're all really becoming a family. We've all opened up a ton, and we're growing closer in unity as well. It's also super cool to see how everyone's gifted in different ways. Asher and Emma are phenomenal worship leaders. Emily is such and extrovert and loves to engage with everyone. Lane came across as quiet but has really opened up and is really fun to ... read more