One Month :)

I have been in Peru for one month today and have loved it very much!!!!! There have been some difficult moments but nothing that is not normal for someone adjusting to a new culture and new life. This month has gone by so quickly and have learned several new Spanish phases and learned some important need to know information. The hardest part at start was the kiss on the cheek when people greet you and say goodbye, at first I was uncomfortable with it but now I have started to do it(when I go to the States for Christmas I might greet everyone with a kiss on the cheek lol).

I have also become confident enough to take the buses to school and to church and to the house by myself. Taking the bus is literally an adventure every time. They pack the buses so tight to where everyone is very snug up to each other. I have gained quite some muscles holding on to dear life when I have to stand up on the buses. Twice I have been literally at the door while the bus is moving. I have not fallen out of the bus thankfully. If you don't want to take the bus, you could always take the taxi but you have to be very cautious when taking taxis so for that reason I tend to stick to buses.

The school is about 15 minutes walking and 5-10 minutes taking the bus from the house. I teach K4 and have 24 students. They are a joy to teach and some days tend to be disobedient but over all a joy. I teach Phonics, Math and Language and share opening routine and Bible with the other teacher(who teachers Science, Skills, and Art). I spent last week talking about the United States and bought in Dr Pepper and Cherry Coke(there is a grocery store that sells American products but they tend to be a little pricey) for the students to taste. I also bought in Inca Kola which is the soda here in Peru, it is like Mountain Dew and Cream Soda put together.

This week at school was a very short week. Monday and Tuesday was a normal teaching day, but Wednesday was a whole school activity. Every class went to different locations to spread the Gospel and pass out tracts and Bibles to the people. My class went to a local preschool and sang "I Have The Joy Joy Joy Down In My Heart" in English and Spanish. We also told the Easter story and passed out little baggies filled with treats along with the tracts and Bibles. The children were amazingly good(until we got back to the school) on the bus and at the other school.

The food here in Lima is very good, we are eating a lot of chicken and rice which are two of my favorite dishes so I am happy. The past week however I have been eating only crackers and Gatorade and ginger ale cause my stomach was getting used to the food. The Peruvians eat their big meal at lunch(which is around 2 p.m. ) and then have a little snack at night time. I am getting used to that routine but sometimes it is nice to have a sandwich and chips for lunch and have a decent size supper.

The weather here never changes. Since we are in the desert there is little to no rain. If it does rain it sprinkles for a few minutes and then it is done. Since it is a desert there is dust everywhere and you are covered from head to toe at the end of the day. The temperate right now is about 80 degrees(it is summer time right now) during the day and 69 degrees at night. Winter will start at the end of May to beginning of June and then it will get cloudy and down to about 50 degrees.

There is no air conditioning or heating system at the house and school so we use fans everywhere and have windows and doors opened and drink alot of water. I have drunk more water since I came down here. In the States I would drink maybe 5 cups of water a day, but here I am drinking more like 20(no exaggeration) cups of water a day.

Two weeks done!

I have been in Lima for about two weeks and have loved every moment of it. The weather here is nice cause it never changes so you always know what to expect. I have recently experienced the routine stomach issues adjusting to a new culture and foods and hopefully I am over that cause it is not fun. School is interesting at this point, the kids are slowly learning that if they speak in Spanish I will not help them cause I have no clue what they are saying. I am working on a few key phases that I can pull out when they are not listening to me in English, so far I have go, sit, stay, no, yes, stop, listen, and quiet in Spanish down pat. The kids are funny when I speak in Spanish cause they get this very scared look on their face as of if they are thinking "wait you just spoke in Spanish, we are in trouble". The church that I have been attending as a translation device so that is good for people coming who know none to little Spanish. However this week I was on sermons audio and fount my church in Greenville, Suber Road Baptist Church, on there so I have been listening to messages in the afternoons to just stay in the word and be encouraged. Thank you all for praying I appreciate it and feel the prayers on hard days.

New Month, New Ministry, New Culture

As of yesterday I boarded a plane for Lima,Peru. This is my first time out of the United States. Got to Lima about 12:30 this morning and slept for about 5 hours. I got a chance to go over to the school this afternoon to meet the teachers and staff and some of the staff children. Played a vigioroua game of volleyball and had a cookout and got to know several people. I experienced my first bus ride this afternoon which was interesting and scary at the same time. The house that I am staying out over looks the Andes mountains(which I thought was cool cause growing up I read about the Andes mountains and now they are essentially in my backyard). The house does have a pool and a pool house and at least 9 bedrooms and a lot of bathrooms. It is a huge house to where you won't be bumping into people. School starts on Monday and I can not wait to meet my 24(that's right that is how many students I have) students.In preschool there are two teachers(Peruvian and American) and I will primarily be teaching Phonics, Math, and Social Studies.