A weekend in the mountains

First let me apologize for the lapse in blogs. Things for me have been pretty busy, and I haven't had my normal Tuesdays for typing. I also had to write an update for the PC USA's website, so that took one of my computer days and can be found at http://www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/ along with updates from other YAVs and PC USA missionaries all over the world.

Today's issue is going to get pretty long so go grab yourself a cup of hot chocolate and maybe some fruit cake and then we'll get down to business. I'll wait for you to get back.

Ready?

Ok, so I spent this last weekend outside of Lima for only the third time since I have been here, and what an experience it was. This was my weekend with a church in Lima that is pretty much one family. They have close connections with another presbytery in Junin, about 5 hours north of Lima, which was having a convention Friday through Sunday so I was invited to attend. I was warned that the weather there was pretty cold and that the altitude was pretty high, about 4,100 meters or 13,000 feet. To put that in context, the highest point in North Carolina is about 6,600 feet.

Since I was going to have to adjust to the high altitude, we decided that it would be best if we went up to La Oroya, which is at a mere 3750 meters or 12300 feet. The problem with La Oroya is that it is one of the most polluted places in all of Peru. There is an American run company there that operates a smelter for copper, lead, zinc and other precious metals. The emissions from this plant contaminate the air, water and earth surrounding the city. The mountains surrounding La Oroya are now white with pollution and there is a high content of lead in the drinking water.

There were 5 of us that left Lima early Thursday morning for the 4 hour trip to La Oroya in a collectivo. These cars gather at a certain point in Lima and drive back and forth between various places in Peru. Arriving at our destination at about noon, I was pleased to find that I could breath pretty normally. Danny, one of the people I came with that lived in Lima with his uncle, was from La Oroya and we were staying at his house with his parents and 2 little sisters. After lunch he took me out to see the sites of the city (there will be pictures to follow at some point). Being a town in the mountains, there was lots of climbing to do. This would be when the difficulty breathing came in. It was hard for me to climb more than 15 stairs at a time without having to stop and catch my breath. Then the headache started. Now, I've had headaches before, but not one that lasted for more than 12 hours. We visited a nice little park, a cemetery where you could see all of the city, and the main plaza of the city. Finally making it back to his house where I could relax and breath, I was given some Aguita de Coca. Now, while it may sound like Coca-cola, its not. It is a kind of tea that is made with the leaves of the coca plant...yes, the same plant that is used to make cocaine. It is a natural remedy to help with altitude sickness and is not illegal. I was able to relax the rest of the afternoon and watch some TV which was good because I had quite a night ahead of me.

One of Danny's sisters had her promotion that night. This is kind of like a graduation from middle school to high school and is a pretty big deal. Everyone gets real dressed up and goes to the school for the ceremony, food and dancing. I was invited to go, even though I had no nice clothes with me. So I go in my jeans and American Eagle hoodie, with everyone else in suits and prom type dresses. It was supposed to start at 9 pm, but being in Peru, it didn't start until after 10, which was good because we didn't leave the house until 9:45. They ceremony was very nice. They read out the names of all the kids, sang the national anthem and had a lot of speeches. After this they had a band play so that the kids could dance with their parents teachers, and each other. I also got to share a dance with the graduate. Then we took lots of pictures and the party really started. The band, which played pretty traditional Peruvian music, wrapped up and on came the "dance music." First song, Daddy Yankee, yes the same one you hear in the states. Then finally at about 1:30 we got our dinner. I think I mentioned something about a headache before...yeah, that was still going on this whole time.

We left the school at 2 with the party still going strong. The plan was to put me up in a hostel since there wasn't much room in the house, but at 2 am, they were all full or closed. So it was back to the house to find a place for the gringo to sleep. We moved the couches, put the cushions in the floor on top of some sheepskins, and there was my bed. It didn't matter if it was comfortable or not, because my head wasn't going to let me sleep that night anyway. We were getting up early to leave, so after 4 short hours of trying to sleep, we were off for an even higher altitude. After breakfast, some more coca tea, and some aspirin, the headache finally went away.

We hopped in a collectivo for Junin, now with one extra person, the recent graduate. Upon our arrival in Junin, the mother of the family decided it would be best if we visited the hospital for a hit of some oxygen for me and her granddaughter. I felt much better already, but risking another 12 hour headache was not something I wanted to endure, so I gladly sucked on the oxygen tank for 30 minutes.

Then it was off to a nearby town called Sasicucho, situated on a plain between the nearby mountains. There was a lake nearby which I didn't see, but it definitely brought in a cold win. This was the first time since I have been in Peru that I could answer yes when someone asked if I was cold. It almost felt like I was at home for the winter, the only difference being that there was no escape. In the US, there is always a building to go in with heat to warm up, but here, you have to try and find a stove or a bunch of blankets.

The weekend was all planned out with Bible studies, worship services and times for food. There were two different leaders for the Bible studies, the pastor of a church in Huancao, where another volunteer attends, and the president of the Iglesia Evangelical Peruana. The worship services were lead by a musical duo, filled with traditional hymns and music, and preaching by the pastors in attendance. And then there was the food. I can now see how the two volunteers in the mountains have been able to lose a total of 40 pounds. While the food wasn't bad, it definitely wasn't the heaping portions that I have grown accustomed to in Lima. On the menu? Sheep, sheep, and more sheep. The hills were filled with sheep. The family whose house I was staying at raised sheep, so that's what we ate. I even got to see them kill, shin and gut one. Somehow, it seemed different when I was killing the little mice in the lab.

The house kind of reminded me of something you might see in an old western. It was a small walled compound with several little stone and concrete buildings with wood or dirt floors. There was a building for cooking, 2 for sleeping, and one for storage and hanging the sheep carcasses. They all faced inward on an open space where we gathered to eat. And of course, there were dogs.

The conference was well attended with upwards of 200 for the worship service on Sunday. I was able to participate a few times with my guitar and the songs that I know in Spanish. Sunday morning there I went with the youth to their Sunday school class where we talked about Spiritual gifts. The lesson really spoke to me. I have been wondering for a while now what the next step in my life is going to be. Wondering if I was cut out for mission work, or where God was leading me next. While I still have those questions, I was reassured that everything is in His hands and when it is time for me to know, He is going to reveal it to me.

I spent the afternoon on Sunday playing with some of the kids in the family from Lima that I was there with. It was pretty fun to see the games that they play and what makes them happy. Being from Lima, they had never experienced lightning, and were so excited to see some in Junin. They also got about an hour of fun out of sliding down a small hill on 2 liter plastic bottles. It was fun to be able to connect with them and talk with them and just play!

As the weekend was winding down, I received two invitations. One to attend a youth conference near Huanuco, where the YAVs had our first retreat, and another for another presbytery meeting in Junin in March. I don't think I will be able to attend either one, but to be invited let me know that I was at least doing something worthwhile and they wanted me to share in their ministry.

We left Junin for Lima at about 11pm. We caught a bus and arrived back in Lima at 4 am. After a few short hours of sleep at Abdias's house, I headed back out to Carabayllo to drop my stuff off and head out to work. It was nice to get back to a normal life here in Lima after an exciting weekend. It was also really nice to get back here where I could wear a t-shirt and shorts. It is a little weird to me, however, that my normal life now includes going and talking with teenagers in Spanish all day!

I hope that you have enjoyed this "brief" summary of my weekend. There is much more that I could share, but my time is growing short. If you have any questions feel free to email me or leave a comment.

I hope you all have a great Christmas! I miss you all and will be thinking about you. I'll have a nice long blog next week about Christmas here in Peru, which I have already experienced some of. I can't wait to share it with you all!