never a dull moment

Oh, the adventures of living in Bolivia. I went to Uyuni with a couple friends over Easter break. We took a 3-day tour of the Salt Flats (google "Salt Flats Bolivia" if you've never heard of them...simply amazing), the deserts and a few lagunas. It was an incredible time of gasoline-tasting bread, the bumpiest car and bus rides I've ever experienced, and the most fascinating scenery I've ever seen. My friends and I played in the salt, stayed in hostels, climbed rocky mountains and even learned how to make delicious, homemade granola from the chef of a hostel restaurant.

However, the most adventurous part of the trip would be when I got stuck in quicksand. That's right. Quicksand.

Here's how it all went down. There's a sign that read, "Toilet 5 km." And below it said, "Stop!" So I'm thinking, Wow. They really don't want people using the bathroom here, as most backpackers tend to go anywhere and everywhere outside. I proceeded to walk out toward the little salt islands on the lake to get a closer picture of the flamingos. Bad idea. Two steps and I was up to my knees in gloopy, gloppy mud. Apparently "Stop!" does not have a thing to do with the bathroom. It means "Stop! Quicksand! Do not walk! If you take a step further you might die!" They should have been clearer. But I wasn't upset. All this was pretty funny, especially since just before a friend had said, "Tell us how mushy it is!" It was very mushy, though now no verbal explanation was necessary.

I had not yet realized it was quicksand because, from the movies I'd seen, I thought quicksand was something that swallowed you in one fell swoop if you happened to fall in. So, I began attempting to get myself free. My friends tried as well. No luck. After about 10 minutes of attempting, or struggling rather, in this sulfury, stinky sand, I managed to turn around, though not without coming close to breaking my knee cap, and free one foot. But as the tourists were snapping photos and my friends and I were cracking up at the hilarity of it all, I realized I was slowly sinking on the other side. And I was bummed because my shoe on that leg was halfway off. I really didn't want to lose my favorite tennis shoes.

By now lots of tourists had gathered around to witness the illiterate girl trapped in quicksand; and by now I was feeling a little bit like a circus animal. I probably resembled one with all my grunting trying to get free. I never really was afraid, but after a couple failed attempts by my friends to pull me out, I really was curious as to how I was going to get unstuck. I was now up to my hip on one leg. Then a lady from the nearby hostel, looking very distressed, came running to tell me not to move. Golly, if I had known before that it was quicksand, I would have known that I was making it worse. Some guys with masks followed the scared woman, tying an elastic band around my waist and pulling. It snapped in half. There was talk of having to get a car to pull me out, but the guys tried pulling me (hard!) several times by the arms. After I came to grips with the fact that I would not get to keep my favorite sneakers, they yanked me out and set me free! I'm lacking the lovely photo of the aftermath and the videos that my friends captured. That's okay. I'm not likely to forget much about this incident. Afterward, I threw the other shoe in, derobed in a freezing cold pond, paid three bucks to take a freezing cold shower in the hostel and gave my smelly, quicksand-covered clothes to the people working there. Good lesson to remember about not hanging on to material things.

Now, I wonder if they don't specify what "Stop!" means so they can keep dumb tourists' clothes. Not a bad idea.

river of delights

Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy. -Psalm 98:8Every Sunday afternoon my roommates and I go what we call the river, a shanty village near a sewer-river in La Paz. In broken Spanish (well, except for my roommate Ashlyn--hers is awesome!), we have the privilege of sharing books, math flash cards, and games of soccer with these precious kids.

As I read Scripture, I find several references to the river of God's love, the river representing life in Christ, the river of justice and righteousness. I know the heart of God is near to these precious children and their families, who have little to nothing, but many of whom are eager to be spiritually rich in the Lord. May his river of love flow to these dear little ones.
They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. -Psalm 36:8

rainy, er, haily season

Goodness gracious great balls of granizo! That's "hail" in Spanish, and it comes down quite often here in La Paz during rainy season. Pretty much with every rainstorm you can expect a good batch of hail. It's pretty interesante, so I took a little video.

happy valentine's day

My parents are too good to me. Not only did they love me, support me, and encourage me throughout my childhood and into college, but they continue to show their love for me in so many ways. I so appreciate their skype messages, their emails, their expensive-to-mail boxes of school supplies, how proud they are of me, and their prayers. They are really incredible individuals, and I respect their love for the Lord, for each other, and for others.

After a pretty stressful week last week, I got a call from the school office saying someone had sent me flowers from an international company. I picked them up and, after deciphering a sweet message gone awry by a non-English-speaking writer, I realized my mommy and daddy had flowers delivered to me for Valentine's Day! I recalled those special Valentine's Days as a child of heart-shaped biscuits for breakfast, sweet cards, and little gifts packaged in red and pink, and remembered those as small examples of how much my parents showed their love for my sister and me. Among those precious times, this special delivery will make this year's a Valentine's Day I will never forget.

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for being so thoughtful and loving. I love you. With a love that "crosses the Atlantic Ocean and scales the Andes Mountains..."

risky business

I think since I live in Bolivia, I generally take more risks. Like when food falls on the floor, extending the 5-second rule. Or taking aerobics classes hardly knowing any Spanish. Or biking the Death Road. I'm definitely not a daredevil, but what my friends and I did a couple weekends ago would be classified as pretty risky. First, we ate at a Chinese restaurant called "Love City." Bear in mind, Bolivians speak Spanish. However, the restaurant with the sketchy name served very tasty Chinese cuisine. So all the while I'm wondering why it's called "Love City." And then, as we're leaving, I see it: Love City in all its splendor. Ice caves, a disco ball, multicolored lights and lots of mirrors to watch yourself dance. I wish I had photographed the inside of this "discoteca." It was a hoot. Keep in mind, the food was really good. So we all ate a fair amount.

Next destination: Galaxy Park, an amusement park chock-full of sketchy, old, other-countries'-reject rides. There were a couple times I literally thought I was going to die. Like on the squeaky ride with a rusty metal car that didn't seem to be closed all the way.

Or the ferris wheel when the guy running the ride stopped it to tell us to press the metal bar. Too bad Sarah and I don't know enough Spanish to understand what "Push the metal bar and...flip upside down" means. I almost wet my pants. The guy died laughing. Among others, we also rode the dreaded "Kamikaze" (the one that flips you and holds you upside down). I had never been on one of these in the States, so my bright idea was to get in a 30-year-old one that just recently got shoulder straps put in. I guess I figured if a Bolivian I know survived without shoulder straps on a sketchy ride that goes upside down, I'd be okay.

And I was. I had a blast. Minus a little, well a lot, of nausea I felt there at the end, I'd do it again. My friends without tummy aches braved the food and got a stick of chocolate-covered marshmallows. Love City and Galaxy Park, however, were not so loving toward me.

If you're reading this, sorry, Mom. What you don't know until afterward won't hurt you. :)

overdue post

A snippet of my lovely Christmas vacation...how quickly it passed, but I know that from now until June time will fly as well. As I continue to consider my conflicting feelings of missing friends and family and wanting to be in NC with loving life, even though it is difficult, here in Bolivia, they are all reminders to savor every moment...

On the plane to Miami with my roomie, Sarah. I'm so thankful for her! Can you tell we're excited to be going home?!?!

Incredible view of Mt. Ilimani from the plane. Sometimes I'm still astounded that I live with this in sight every day!
Welcome home! My beautiful sister and niece, wearing a homemade shirt that reads "I love my neen neen." (That's what Maddie calls me.) Along with Charlie, my parents, and the surprise of 2 other friends, I felt so loved and even happier to be home!
My oh-so-precious niece and my granddaddy. It was such a blessing to be with family.

I've always been awfully fond of my family, but distance definitely makes the heart grow more appreciative.

These are some of my dearest small group girls from my days at Covenant...it had been so long since I'd seen them. They are amazing, and I got to catch up with them a little over dinner at one of the many Mexican places I ate at when I was home. (Bolivian food is NOT the same as Mexican!)

One of my sister and brother-in-law's Christmas presents was tickets for my sister and me to "A Chorus Line" in Raleigh, which was so much fun. As was staying with my sweet friend Sara in Cary. I miss you all! There were so many lovely times, but since I am not great about remembering to take pictures, these'll do. I'm so thankful for the people God has put in my life.
"I thank my God every time I remember you..." --Phil. 1:3

cinnamon roll

Alas, my Christmas break is over and I'm back to teaching full-force in La Paz. There are more reflections and stories from the past month to come, but for now, I'm happily busy with my first graders, curriculum, accreditation, and all those other jobs that only teachers really understand. But I had to take a moment to show off my now 20-month-old niece eating one of Momma Lu's special Christmas cinnamon rolls that only come once a year...I think Maddie was glad she tried it.