It's hard to believe that we're heading home tomorrow already and we'll be home with our families again by midnight tomorrow. At the same time, I had to say goodbye to Angie and Stephanie at Hosanna Sur, two beautiful energetic girls that made my time at the school so much fun. When we left, they hung on to us and called out "No ca vas", "Don't go!". If I could have taken them home, I would have. It has been both wonderful and challenging as we have seen things that will stay with us for a long time, hopefully even for a lifetime. My prayer is that this has changed us, making us more caring and compassionate, but also more aware of the world we're in and of God's presence in our lives. The girls do want to save some of the important events and experiences for sharing with you personally at home, but I'll also let them share one last time on this blog as well.
-Jake
Today was a pretty perfect last day. We finally got to play the long awaited soccer game with the grade 11 boys. They are AMAZING. I played for about 20 minutes but the boys, Annelies and Tessa went on for over an hour. By the end of the day we had so many little inside jokes with them. It was hard to say goodbye to them. Even though some of them were 2 years younger than us they are just like the boys back home. We got pictures with them and their facebook account names so hopefully we can keep in contact. Later in the afternoon we went to the orphanage. That was probably my favorite experience yet. It was a perfect positive way to end our trip. The orphanage housed infants to 7 years old. I obviously spent most of the time with the beautiful babies. Mom and Dad, I want a baby brother....his name is Abraham, he's 2 months old and he told me he wants to be a Toufexis...make it happen. I can't wait to share pictures of this amazing orphanage with you all. God has really blessed that place. Today made me realize how much i'll miss Nicaragua.
Love Lea
p.s Can't wait to see my family and everyone else at the airport tomorrow!
Mom and dad, I am bringing home a baby sister (Mayling) and husband (Humberto.) Thanks for understanding!
Love you
-Tessa
Today turned out much better then I expected. Since I have a cold and didn't feel well today, I thought the day would long and excruciating, but thankfully it was the opposite. In the morning we went to Hosanna Sur to help with our final feeding program there as well as hang out with the grade 11 students. At the end we taught them some english and took a bunch of pictures with them and it was a lot of fun! After lunch we went to the orphanage and Annelies and I were able to go as well even though we have colds, since some of the children there were sick already. Though we didn't get to hold any of the babies, we were grateful we were able to go and see what an amazing place it truly was. The orphanage was definitely the most incredible part of the trip. The people there were so amazing, and it was great to see what kind hearts they all had. The children there were adorable and some of their stories were heartbreaking. The orphanage was well managed and well kept, and was a place where joy and happiness was seen in each of the children's faces. The compound also had housing units where teams and families could stay while they visited to help out and do work for the orphanage. It it absolutely completely and positively in my future plans to return to Nicaragua to go to that orphanage and hopefully next time I won't be sick, that way I'll be able to hold little babies too!
- Katherine
P.s. I can't wait to go home, flush some toilet paper, take a hot shower, eat something that has not had bugs land on it and last but not least, sleep without worrying about bugs and/or geckos crawling up my nose while I sleep. Love you Mommy and can't wait to see you!
Today was a great way to finish this Nicaraguan adventure. We finally got to play soccer with the grade 11 boys and were really able to bond with them during the game even though we had no idea what one another were saying. Tessa and I played for what felt like three hours and turns out I did something to my foot during the game but only realized when I washed my feet in the shower this afternoon and saw that my foot was blue :S. It was kind of sad saying bye to all the grade 11 students after the game but we got tons of pictures with them and hopefully we will be able to somehow stay in contact with them through facebook. This afternoon was torturous for me. I had been wanting to go to an orphanage this whole trip and three days before we go I caught a stupid cold ( thanks a bunch Terrance). Being in the infant room and being unable to hold any of the babies was awful. The orphanage itself was gorgeous though and the kids are way better off there. All of the children there aren't actually parentless. They are there because of neglect, abuse and abodonment. A lot of the tiny little babies that were there were simply left at the hospital after their mothers had given birth to them. Another three siblings were taken from their family situation because their grandfather was also their father. It was great to see that those kids were taken out of that awful situation and were now with people that cared for them.I would love to come back to that orphanage next year and actually be able to help and hold the children there. I have been so faithful with sunscreen throughout this whole trip on my pale dutch skin and for some reason today I forgot to put some on. I have the most horendous sunburn and I'm not looking forward to the nasty peeling that will be happening a few days from now. Even though this trip was an amazing experience and|I am so grateful to have had this oportunity, after ten days I am so ready to get back to my nice warm bed, my air conditioned house, my cold water that I can drink straight from the tap without worrying about toilet issues, my clean and bat free bathroom,my gecko free room, my family, friends and puppy, and lastly my nice WARM shower!! See ya soon pops, T, Dareck and Katie!
P.s One thing that I will miss so much is the gorgeous way that spanish people pronounce my name!
- Annelies
Today was an amazing way to finish our trip in Nicaragua. Bonding with the grade 11's was really nice and being able to show some of my soccer skills definitely created some type of connection between some of the boys and I. Unfortunately I went to bed feeling very sick yesterday and felt horrible today during the day so I didn't play soccer for too long. My 'feeling sick' had nothing to do with a cold or something contagious so I was able to hold my futur son at the orphanage. Kids as young as a few weeks old were part of this orphanage and I kept whispering, "you're all too young to be here, without a family" but the longer I was holding this child, the more I was able to reflect on the fact that all of these children are so much better off in this loving, caring and amazing placement. After experiencing the orphanage this afternoon, I realised that it's definitely something that I could see myself helping out with later on for a few years. We met two particular girls who work at the orphanage who we really were able to connect with simply because they were both not Nicaraguans! One was from michigan and the other from Wisconsin. One came on a ten day trip just like us, came back and married the translator that was designated to her group. She is now living right behind the orphanage and will probably live in Nicaragua the rest of her life. The other girl came as an intern for three months and has now been here for a year.
This experience has been amazing, heart warming and has made me grow a lot.
I am very excited to be back home tomorrow though.
see you soon,
Anya
Wow, I can't believe we will be heading home tomorrow. What an experience. It was such a pleasure for me to serve with these young ladies. They are all amazing in their own way. Parents you should be very proud. I will continue to pray for them all as they make life decisions and figure out where God will lead them.
I am a little concerned about going through Customs tomorrow..... Customs officer: "Anything to declare?" Me: "Yes, some cashews, some coffee, a hammock and a 2 month old baby boy named Nathaniel." Don't worry honey, I checked his feet and they were huge. I suspect he may make a great running back :)
I sign off with mixed emotions. I say goodbye to beautiful Nicaragua (even though there is much poverty, it is beautiful because God is doing some amazing things here), the humidity, the cold showers, the not so great bathroom situations and the quarter size bug I found on the inside of my towel (which I was wearing at the time!). I say hello to my family, my puppy, my bed, my warm shower, my toilet that flushes and tap water.
Please pray for traveling mercies and that we don't have any issues with our bowels (there I said it) on the way home. Most of us have been a little too regular for the last few days :(
Thanks for all of your support and prayers.
Love, Caroline
As you can see, today was a special day that has helped us all reflect more deeply on the total 10 days. God did something special today and we are looking forward to reflecting more when we're back home again and allow everything to settle more deeply into our hearts. Thank you for all your prayers
-Jake
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Day 8
Good evening, or morning if you're reading this with your morning cup of coffee. Today was shopping, painting and movie, I'll let the girls talk about all this, but I have to admit that the movie has touched me deeply and reminded what our walk with God is all about. I have a lot of reflecting to do!
-Jake
Shopping is nothing like montreal, thats for sure! We only had 45 minutes to shop through a bunch of little stores and surprisingly we were able to get everything we wanted in that time. We finally finished painting the school today, but it was a challenge. It was crazy hot today and the heat just made it that much harder to paint. A few grade 11's came back to help us finish up today and their help was definetly appreciated. Tomorrow we get to go back to say bye to the kids and to see the final outcome of our work. 1 more day here and we're home :)
-Tessa
Shopping was very stressful for me and unlike Tessa, I did NOT get everything that I wanted in 45 minutes (sorry Patrick and Elizabeth :S). We painted the second coat in the classrooms today and it was brutal. The paint wasn't staying on but we eventually finished it and it looks pretty decent. The movie we just finished watching was very inspirational and simply amazing. Tomorrow we will still be learning more about Nicaragua then we will be picking up food from the market for the feeding program at the school we're serving which will also allow us to say goodbye to the students, teachers and other staff that we met there during our 10 days. In the afternoon, we are visiting an orphanage which i am so so so so so excited for. It will be hard for me not to want to bring every single one of them home.
Goodnight,
Anya
Hello all, Hot, hot, hot and hottest! The humidity level is soooo high. Annelies and I have been fighting with a headache for the last 3 days. On the upside my hair looks great :)
The girls worked so hard today in the heat to finish our painting job. Thank goodness a few of the grade 11 boys came back to the school to help us. I wonder why........
The movie we saw was called Reparando. Google it and you will find a few youtube clips. An amazing documentary on how God can use a few people who feel called to change the lives of so many in Guatamala. I will share more when we get home.
Tomorrow we are looking forward to going to the orphanage. A few of us have had a cold (thanks Terrance) and depending on how we feel we may not get to go in and hold some babies :( Please pray that we all feel better. One of us is having bathroom issues. I will let her tell you about it in person. Pray also for Katherine. She has the cold and worked like crazy today and paid for it this evening. Don't worry Martine, we are all taking good care of her and she was feeling better.
The girls that did not blog this evening send their apologies but the heat and the hard work has sent them all to bed early.
Thank you for all of your encouraging words and your prayers.
Blessings, Caroline
After the movie we talked about what following Jesus is about: he was a friend of sinners, never turning anyone away, and loving with the love of God. At the heart of our faith, this is what makes our faith real: God's love being worked out in our lives and us loving God and others. To bad churches and Christians often forget this. Thank you for your prayers and your encouragement. I discoverd that the blog had privacy blocks on and I've disabled them so commenting should be much easier: comment and post.
God bless, Jake
-Jake
Shopping is nothing like montreal, thats for sure! We only had 45 minutes to shop through a bunch of little stores and surprisingly we were able to get everything we wanted in that time. We finally finished painting the school today, but it was a challenge. It was crazy hot today and the heat just made it that much harder to paint. A few grade 11's came back to help us finish up today and their help was definetly appreciated. Tomorrow we get to go back to say bye to the kids and to see the final outcome of our work. 1 more day here and we're home :)
-Tessa
Shopping was very stressful for me and unlike Tessa, I did NOT get everything that I wanted in 45 minutes (sorry Patrick and Elizabeth :S). We painted the second coat in the classrooms today and it was brutal. The paint wasn't staying on but we eventually finished it and it looks pretty decent. The movie we just finished watching was very inspirational and simply amazing. Tomorrow we will still be learning more about Nicaragua then we will be picking up food from the market for the feeding program at the school we're serving which will also allow us to say goodbye to the students, teachers and other staff that we met there during our 10 days. In the afternoon, we are visiting an orphanage which i am so so so so so excited for. It will be hard for me not to want to bring every single one of them home.
Goodnight,
Anya
Hello all, Hot, hot, hot and hottest! The humidity level is soooo high. Annelies and I have been fighting with a headache for the last 3 days. On the upside my hair looks great :)
The girls worked so hard today in the heat to finish our painting job. Thank goodness a few of the grade 11 boys came back to the school to help us. I wonder why........
The movie we saw was called Reparando. Google it and you will find a few youtube clips. An amazing documentary on how God can use a few people who feel called to change the lives of so many in Guatamala. I will share more when we get home.
Tomorrow we are looking forward to going to the orphanage. A few of us have had a cold (thanks Terrance) and depending on how we feel we may not get to go in and hold some babies :( Please pray that we all feel better. One of us is having bathroom issues. I will let her tell you about it in person. Pray also for Katherine. She has the cold and worked like crazy today and paid for it this evening. Don't worry Martine, we are all taking good care of her and she was feeling better.
The girls that did not blog this evening send their apologies but the heat and the hard work has sent them all to bed early.
Thank you for all of your encouraging words and your prayers.
Blessings, Caroline
After the movie we talked about what following Jesus is about: he was a friend of sinners, never turning anyone away, and loving with the love of God. At the heart of our faith, this is what makes our faith real: God's love being worked out in our lives and us loving God and others. To bad churches and Christians often forget this. Thank you for your prayers and your encouragement. I discoverd that the blog had privacy blocks on and I've disabled them so commenting should be much easier: comment and post.
God bless, Jake
Monday, 30 May 2011
Day 7
Good day everyone, it's hard to believe that we've been here a week already. The time has flown by and we've taken in a lot of information and experiences in the past 7 days. Today started with a sobering experience, as we were driving to Hosanna Sur, we came across an accident between a pickup truck and 2 motorcycles and one of the motorcycle drivers lay on the side of the road and he was dead. Many of them do not wear helmets, though with this accident, it's unlikely even a helmet would have saved him. It is a reminder that life is a gift from God and precious, but also that God may call us home at any time and we need to be ready right now, not leave our relationship with God for tomorrow. The girls were shaken up by this and it showed in their quietness for the first part of the morning. We spent time with the grade 11 students all morning and they helped us in the afternoon. I'll let everyone else share how they expereinced the day themselves.
-Jake
I'd first like to take this opportunity to apologize for my insane mothers comments. I love you and miss you Mommy but you gave us all a good laugh with your technical difficulties...it probably made me miss you more.Thank you to everyone who has commented. It is definitely nice to hear from people back home. Mom, Dad, Mr. Richard (Katie, you too)and Mr.Steve, you type exactly how you speak! We all miss you. Today had a brutal start but we were able to actually have a good time connecting with the grade 11ers. The language barrier will never cease to be weird and awkward but we did have the opportunity to laugh and poke fun about class clowns, dating, teachers... justin bieber...etc. We also got the majority of the painting done with the help of the tall grade 11er boys. We all discussed how we don't want to share too much on the blog so we can have some interesting stories to come home with. So that is all for now. Be prepared for june 2nd. Love you and Miss you all:)
-Lea
wafu banana bean and papa new guinea, MISS YOU! Mom says she misses you guys also.
- Annelies
Hello family, just like Lea mentionned previously, I dont want to mention too much on the blogs because I know I will have so much to tell you when I get home, which I believe you'll prefer more than: "well you read it on the blog, no need to hear me speak" (haha)
Love and Miss you very much. Can't wait to be home again.
-Anya
So i pretty much agree withh everything Anya and Lea said... I can't wait to be home to tell you guys about everything that has happened down here! I'm just writing cause I know mom and dad count on me to say something. I love you guys and miss you mucho.
-Tessa
Tonight we talked about God, doubts, our own faith and lots of questions, continue praying that God continues to work in all our hearts, helping us to love him more and more as he loves us,
-Jake
-Jake
I'd first like to take this opportunity to apologize for my insane mothers comments. I love you and miss you Mommy but you gave us all a good laugh with your technical difficulties...it probably made me miss you more.Thank you to everyone who has commented. It is definitely nice to hear from people back home. Mom, Dad, Mr. Richard (Katie, you too)and Mr.Steve, you type exactly how you speak! We all miss you. Today had a brutal start but we were able to actually have a good time connecting with the grade 11ers. The language barrier will never cease to be weird and awkward but we did have the opportunity to laugh and poke fun about class clowns, dating, teachers... justin bieber...etc. We also got the majority of the painting done with the help of the tall grade 11er boys. We all discussed how we don't want to share too much on the blog so we can have some interesting stories to come home with. So that is all for now. Be prepared for june 2nd. Love you and Miss you all:)
-Lea
wafu banana bean and papa new guinea, MISS YOU! Mom says she misses you guys also.
- Annelies
Hello family, just like Lea mentionned previously, I dont want to mention too much on the blogs because I know I will have so much to tell you when I get home, which I believe you'll prefer more than: "well you read it on the blog, no need to hear me speak" (haha)
Love and Miss you very much. Can't wait to be home again.
-Anya
So i pretty much agree withh everything Anya and Lea said... I can't wait to be home to tell you guys about everything that has happened down here! I'm just writing cause I know mom and dad count on me to say something. I love you guys and miss you mucho.
-Tessa
Tonight we talked about God, doubts, our own faith and lots of questions, continue praying that God continues to work in all our hearts, helping us to love him more and more as he loves us,
-Jake
a few pictures to reflect the schools we've been at, the poverty and the wealth
these pictures are from the Jordan school 
the Antorcha Divina school
the organic farm which has impacted over 5,000 families
the Treasures of God school
poverty is a major issue in Nicaragua
but there is also extreme wealth, not many inbetween howeverSunday, 29 May 2011
Day 6 Sunday
Hello there everybody, thanks for the postings, the girls especially look forward to reading your comments! If you want to post, you will be asked to register, but you simply need to give some basic information so that when you post a comment, we will know who it is from. Today we went to a Nicaraguan church, Hosanna Sur, right by the school we are working at and worshipped in Spanish. I'm sure the girls will share something about that, then this afternoon we went to the Pacific Ocean. It is now around 6 PM here and we have the evening to relax, and even I'm giving them a night off from talking! Now it's their turn to share--Jake
So today was the beach and it was amazing. The weather was perfect and we got to play a soccer game with some boys from here. We had an awesome day!
-Tessa
Soccer on the beach. Enough said.
loved it
-Anya
Today we got to go to the beach and play soccer against a bunch of local boys and somehow I managed to score a goal and it was the most exciting thing ever! Of course I got a sun burn again even though I've been putting on sunblock! The food was really good too. It was a great day!
- Katherine
I finally got a decent tan today :). The beach was amazing and so was playing soccer with some local boys. We also got to meet our guide/ translator's wife and step son. He was super adorable and played soccer with us also. The church service this morning was painfully long this morning but we all managed to survive somehow.
- Annelies
P.S HI RICKY RICARDO! miss you Pops! Tell Terrance I say Helloo
So I'll never complain that Pastor Jake's services are too long again. This mornings service was 2 hours and 15 minutes. Add to that, not understanding the language and deathly hot and humid temperatures. Enough said. Unbelievably, the Pastor was in a suit and tie! I did recognise a number of the tunes though :)
The beach was great. We kept a close eye on the girls, as did all the other men/boys on the beach....
Before I sign off, one more comment about yesterday's Zip lining. Moms, when you see pictures of your girls hanging upside down, or flying through the air like superman, they have been doctored, I swear! If you don't believe that, in my defense, I did tell them that I thought they were nuts!
Love to all. Katie, only 4 more sleeps and we will be home :) Tell Daddy and Terrance that we miss them too.
Back to work tomorrow :)
- Caroline
to sum things up a bit, it was a good day and I'm reminded that even when we are somewhere and don't speak the local language, worshipping God still happens! Worship is an international language and doesn't depend on us, but on the Holy Spirit working in us and our hearts and leading us to worship God with all our brothers and sisters. It felt a little bit like heaven today in Hosanna Sur!
-Jake
So today was the beach and it was amazing. The weather was perfect and we got to play a soccer game with some boys from here. We had an awesome day!
-Tessa
Soccer on the beach. Enough said.
loved it
-Anya
Today we got to go to the beach and play soccer against a bunch of local boys and somehow I managed to score a goal and it was the most exciting thing ever! Of course I got a sun burn again even though I've been putting on sunblock! The food was really good too. It was a great day!
- Katherine
I finally got a decent tan today :). The beach was amazing and so was playing soccer with some local boys. We also got to meet our guide/ translator's wife and step son. He was super adorable and played soccer with us also. The church service this morning was painfully long this morning but we all managed to survive somehow.
- Annelies
P.S HI RICKY RICARDO! miss you Pops! Tell Terrance I say Helloo
So I'll never complain that Pastor Jake's services are too long again. This mornings service was 2 hours and 15 minutes. Add to that, not understanding the language and deathly hot and humid temperatures. Enough said. Unbelievably, the Pastor was in a suit and tie! I did recognise a number of the tunes though :)
The beach was great. We kept a close eye on the girls, as did all the other men/boys on the beach....
Before I sign off, one more comment about yesterday's Zip lining. Moms, when you see pictures of your girls hanging upside down, or flying through the air like superman, they have been doctored, I swear! If you don't believe that, in my defense, I did tell them that I thought they were nuts!
Love to all. Katie, only 4 more sleeps and we will be home :) Tell Daddy and Terrance that we miss them too.
Back to work tomorrow :)
- Caroline
to sum things up a bit, it was a good day and I'm reminded that even when we are somewhere and don't speak the local language, worshipping God still happens! Worship is an international language and doesn't depend on us, but on the Holy Spirit working in us and our hearts and leading us to worship God with all our brothers and sisters. It felt a little bit like heaven today in Hosanna Sur!
-Jake
Saturday, 28 May 2011
Day 5 Cultural day
Hi there everyone, this has been a very different day for everyone. Today we took a break from work and learning about ministries and what God is doing in Nicaragua and went to see the beauty of this Central American country. It is truly a beautiful country with rain forests, coffee plantations, lakes and volcanos, all within a short distance of each other. I'll let the others share their favourite part of the day and what they saw.
-Jake
Zip lining through the forest, dormant and active volcanos, boat tour through some islands, feeding and taking pictures with a monkey is what our day consisted of. Today was amazing and we got to see some beautiful parts of Nicaragua. It was a big change and difference from the usual things we have been seeing like the slums and the poverty but it was so much fun. It was great to see the difference between the cullture in Canada and the culture in Nicaragua. We were able to enjoy and experience new things while being able to learn new things about this country.
-Tessa
Today was so much fun and I got to do a lot of things I wouldn't be able to do at home. In the morning we went to a pottery shop where they had three adult Chihuahuas and a bunch of babies which were so cute and cuddly but we found out after they had fleas....gross! After that we went zip lining over a coffee bean plantation which was incredible but also super scary at the same time. I even went upsidedown at one point! Then we had lunch at a really nice restaurant that reminded me of a resort. After lunch we took a boat tour to an island with actual monkeys on it, but wild, not like in a zoo! One even jumped on the boat and ate from junk food. Later we went to see an active volcano which was really cool and amazing. We had Pizza Hut for dinner and thankfully it was like at home! Now we have the evening off to relax and hopefully sleep really well tonight even though a gecko got into our room last night and is somewhere making annoying sounds!
- Katherine
Not very many people get to say that they saw an active volcano, dormant volcano, wild monkeys, baby chihuahuas and got to go zip lining, go on a boat tour around a bunch of beautiful islands, go out for lunch and supper all in the same day in Nicaragua. Today was amazing. That is all.
- Annelies
Cultural day is the BEST day! We finally got to take a break from working. We got to experience the amazing Rain Forest, beautiful Lake Nicaragua, The Masaya Volcano and the animals of Nicaragua. It was definitely a change from all the poverty we have been dealing with the past 5 days. One of my favorite parts was driving through the city of Granada. I would encourage you all to either google maps or google image it...Amazing. It was like a little piece of old Spain. Another mind blowing experience was the zip lining, so much fun for us adrenaline junkies. Also, While stopping off to check out a dormant volcano, Anya and I were asked to be interviewed by a Korean travel channel and all I could think was "great, let's throw another foreign language into the mix!". But hey, We're korean stars now. Today especially we really got a taste of how coveted young "gringas" (white girls) are here in Nicaragua. I don't think we've gotten so many blown kisses in our lives. Anyways, I think it was pretty important for us to see all the positive parts of this country as well on this trip. I will remember this day for the rest of my life. Who else can say they did all this in one day?
Love you Mom and Dad and the Toufexi
Lea xoxo
After reading everyone else's comments, theres not much more to say. It was an amazing experience and something that we will remember the rest of our lives. Not many people get to live through and experience what we did today and it's something we will be able to share with our children later on. It was refreshing to see the beautiful and positive parts of Nicaragua because monday we will be back to seeing and working with poverty. We all thanked God for the gorgeous weather that we had today, not too hot and definitely not too cold which was perfect for our zip lining activity and our volcano visit. Tomorrow we will be going to the ocean so please pray that we make it safely and have amazing weather as it will be our only day at the beach.
Goodnight,
Anya (love you mom and dad ps. thanks dad for letting me know about Alan's comment. That's so sweet of him)
So, wow, what a day! I am one tired lady. I'm proud of myself that I did not let my fear of heights get the best of me today. I went zip lining in a rain forest! I got harnessed up, climbed up to the platform with everyone else, watched all the girls go, got clipped on myself, then off I went zipping through the rain forest with my heart in my throat and fear in my eyes. When I was done I was so glad I'd done it but was glad it was over...... That's when they told me that there were 10 more that we had to do! Are you kidding me??????
We saw some beautiful places here in Nicaragua! What a drastic difference from the poverty that we have been surrounded by all week. We went on a boat tour in Lake Nicaragua, near Grenada and saw some amazing homes on there own Islands. Fred and Diana, I know you are planning on moving to Ottawa, but do you know that you can buy your own Island here with a beautiful home on it for around $400,000.00? You may want to reconsider your relocation. Just sayin.... I promise we would visit you :)
Katie, I'm glad to hear that you are doing well. I will talk to the Big guy about that canned dog food.
Love you and miss you Hon.
- Caroline xoxo
You've heard from everyone and there is not much to add. It's important that everyone saw that in spite of the great poverty here, there is also great beauty in this country that draws people back. At the same time, it was a reminder of the great gulf between the rich and the poor here; there is almost no middle class. Things are changing slowly and the Christian organizations and followers of Christ are playing a big role in this. Pray for the girls as we will be reflecting more over the rest of the time here on what God is doing here, what kind of a God he is and our relationships with God and other followers of Jesus; but also pray for those working here to reveal God to the people in Nicaragua through the work they are doing to transform the country and the people in it, and pray that we all may be transformed by God as well, blessings
-Jake
-Jake
Zip lining through the forest, dormant and active volcanos, boat tour through some islands, feeding and taking pictures with a monkey is what our day consisted of. Today was amazing and we got to see some beautiful parts of Nicaragua. It was a big change and difference from the usual things we have been seeing like the slums and the poverty but it was so much fun. It was great to see the difference between the cullture in Canada and the culture in Nicaragua. We were able to enjoy and experience new things while being able to learn new things about this country.
-Tessa
Today was so much fun and I got to do a lot of things I wouldn't be able to do at home. In the morning we went to a pottery shop where they had three adult Chihuahuas and a bunch of babies which were so cute and cuddly but we found out after they had fleas....gross! After that we went zip lining over a coffee bean plantation which was incredible but also super scary at the same time. I even went upsidedown at one point! Then we had lunch at a really nice restaurant that reminded me of a resort. After lunch we took a boat tour to an island with actual monkeys on it, but wild, not like in a zoo! One even jumped on the boat and ate from junk food. Later we went to see an active volcano which was really cool and amazing. We had Pizza Hut for dinner and thankfully it was like at home! Now we have the evening off to relax and hopefully sleep really well tonight even though a gecko got into our room last night and is somewhere making annoying sounds!
- Katherine
Not very many people get to say that they saw an active volcano, dormant volcano, wild monkeys, baby chihuahuas and got to go zip lining, go on a boat tour around a bunch of beautiful islands, go out for lunch and supper all in the same day in Nicaragua. Today was amazing. That is all.
- Annelies
Cultural day is the BEST day! We finally got to take a break from working. We got to experience the amazing Rain Forest, beautiful Lake Nicaragua, The Masaya Volcano and the animals of Nicaragua. It was definitely a change from all the poverty we have been dealing with the past 5 days. One of my favorite parts was driving through the city of Granada. I would encourage you all to either google maps or google image it...Amazing. It was like a little piece of old Spain. Another mind blowing experience was the zip lining, so much fun for us adrenaline junkies. Also, While stopping off to check out a dormant volcano, Anya and I were asked to be interviewed by a Korean travel channel and all I could think was "great, let's throw another foreign language into the mix!". But hey, We're korean stars now. Today especially we really got a taste of how coveted young "gringas" (white girls) are here in Nicaragua. I don't think we've gotten so many blown kisses in our lives. Anyways, I think it was pretty important for us to see all the positive parts of this country as well on this trip. I will remember this day for the rest of my life. Who else can say they did all this in one day?
Love you Mom and Dad and the Toufexi
Lea xoxo
After reading everyone else's comments, theres not much more to say. It was an amazing experience and something that we will remember the rest of our lives. Not many people get to live through and experience what we did today and it's something we will be able to share with our children later on. It was refreshing to see the beautiful and positive parts of Nicaragua because monday we will be back to seeing and working with poverty. We all thanked God for the gorgeous weather that we had today, not too hot and definitely not too cold which was perfect for our zip lining activity and our volcano visit. Tomorrow we will be going to the ocean so please pray that we make it safely and have amazing weather as it will be our only day at the beach.
Goodnight,
Anya (love you mom and dad ps. thanks dad for letting me know about Alan's comment. That's so sweet of him)
So, wow, what a day! I am one tired lady. I'm proud of myself that I did not let my fear of heights get the best of me today. I went zip lining in a rain forest! I got harnessed up, climbed up to the platform with everyone else, watched all the girls go, got clipped on myself, then off I went zipping through the rain forest with my heart in my throat and fear in my eyes. When I was done I was so glad I'd done it but was glad it was over...... That's when they told me that there were 10 more that we had to do! Are you kidding me??????
We saw some beautiful places here in Nicaragua! What a drastic difference from the poverty that we have been surrounded by all week. We went on a boat tour in Lake Nicaragua, near Grenada and saw some amazing homes on there own Islands. Fred and Diana, I know you are planning on moving to Ottawa, but do you know that you can buy your own Island here with a beautiful home on it for around $400,000.00? You may want to reconsider your relocation. Just sayin.... I promise we would visit you :)
Katie, I'm glad to hear that you are doing well. I will talk to the Big guy about that canned dog food.
Love you and miss you Hon.
- Caroline xoxo
You've heard from everyone and there is not much to add. It's important that everyone saw that in spite of the great poverty here, there is also great beauty in this country that draws people back. At the same time, it was a reminder of the great gulf between the rich and the poor here; there is almost no middle class. Things are changing slowly and the Christian organizations and followers of Christ are playing a big role in this. Pray for the girls as we will be reflecting more over the rest of the time here on what God is doing here, what kind of a God he is and our relationships with God and other followers of Jesus; but also pray for those working here to reveal God to the people in Nicaragua through the work they are doing to transform the country and the people in it, and pray that we all may be transformed by God as well, blessings
-Jake
Day 5 Cultural day
Hi there everyone, this has been a very different day for everyone. Today we took a break from work and learning about ministries and what God is doing in Nicaragua and went to see the beauty of this Central American country. It is truly a beautiful country with rain forests, coffee plantations, lakes and volcanos, all within a short distance of each other. I'll let the others share their favourite part of the day and what they saw.
-Jake
Zip lining through the forest, dormant and active volcanos, boat tour through some islands, feeding and taking pictures with a monkey is what our day consisted of. Today was amazing and we got to see some beautiful parts of Nicaragua. It was a big change and difference from the usual things we have been seeing like the slums and the poverty but it was so much fun. It was great to see the difference between the cullture in Canada and the culture in Nicaragua. We were able to enjoy and experience new things while being able to learn new things about this country.
-Tessa
Today was so much fun and I got to do a lot of things I wouldn't be able to do at home. In the morning we went to a pottery shop where they had three adult Chihuahuas and a bunch of babies which were so cute and cuddly but we found out after they had fleas....gross! After that we went zip lining over a coffee bean plantation which was incredible but also super scary at the same time. I even went upsidedown at one point! Then we had lunch at a really nice restaurant that reminded me of a resort. After lunch we took a boat tour to an island we actual monkeys on it, but wild, not like in a zoo! One even jumped on the boat and ate from junk food. Later we went to see an active volcano with was really cool and amazing. We had Pizza Hut for diner and thankfully it was like at home! Now we have the evening off to relax and hopefully sleep really well tonight eventhough a gecko got into our room last night and is somewhere making annoying sounds!
- Katherine
-Jake
Zip lining through the forest, dormant and active volcanos, boat tour through some islands, feeding and taking pictures with a monkey is what our day consisted of. Today was amazing and we got to see some beautiful parts of Nicaragua. It was a big change and difference from the usual things we have been seeing like the slums and the poverty but it was so much fun. It was great to see the difference between the cullture in Canada and the culture in Nicaragua. We were able to enjoy and experience new things while being able to learn new things about this country.
-Tessa
Today was so much fun and I got to do a lot of things I wouldn't be able to do at home. In the morning we went to a pottery shop where they had three adult Chihuahuas and a bunch of babies which were so cute and cuddly but we found out after they had fleas....gross! After that we went zip lining over a coffee bean plantation which was incredible but also super scary at the same time. I even went upsidedown at one point! Then we had lunch at a really nice restaurant that reminded me of a resort. After lunch we took a boat tour to an island we actual monkeys on it, but wild, not like in a zoo! One even jumped on the boat and ate from junk food. Later we went to see an active volcano with was really cool and amazing. We had Pizza Hut for diner and thankfully it was like at home! Now we have the evening off to relax and hopefully sleep really well tonight eventhough a gecko got into our room last night and is somewhere making annoying sounds!
- Katherine
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)