Our Trip to The Mountains

WOW..is the only word to describe our Mountain trip yesturday. We left around 8 in the morning and the drive was about 5 hours south towards the Nicaragua border in the mountains/jungle. We had 12 people in a van with us and the youth and then the pastor followed in a little SUV with 5 more and the baby…no air conditioning and a lot of people smashed into the car made for an interesting trip J When we got close we were driving through the mountains and picked up a lady walking carrying food on her head…we must of drove with her for at least 20 to 30 minutes in the car…a walk that she would have had to make. I can’t even imagine how long it would of taken her…it would of taken me a day…and that’s how far they walk all the time to get into the village for food or supplies. We could only go so far in the car and parked it and then had to hike down the mountain and CROSS A RIVER! You can’t drive across so all 17 of us crossed the river that was about up to our knees carrying the toys and supplies for the children above our heads….it was crazy! We just get into our car in the states and these people have to cross a river to get anywhere! After we crossed we had to hike back up the other side of the mountain, which was so hard by the way…I’m not used to hiking up a mountain…and what made it harder was we were all in flip flops bc we were crossing the river so it was pretty difficult. When we finally got to the top the youth and us were sent out to go invite all of the children in the pueblo to come to where we were meeting. The people there don’t all live together but are spread out across the mountain so we all followed in a line and continued to hike through the mountain inviting all the people and children that we saw. These people lived in the most desperate situations with animals and feces just laying around everywhere. They were self sufficient with the outside stoves built by clay and their own livestock...I felt like we were in a different world.




After we were finished inviting everyone we headed back to the center of the village and the children started coming in, changed into their best clothes and dresses with all their hair fixed...they wanted to look their best and they were so precious. They gathered all of the children into a circle and began to explain why they were here and we all introduced ourselves…and then we sang songs with them J They were so happy! We couldn’t understand the words to the songs because they were all in Spanish but we knew the tunes and they were all the songs that we grew up with in children’s church J Two of the youth got dressed up as a clown and one had on a tiger outfit and ran out doing a drama for the children…some of the little ones cried but overall the children loved it! They did a mini sermon staying in character and acting it out and then we did the chicken dance and played games with them. They were so cute! Then, it was time to break out the piñata! The little ones went first and I don’t think I ever seen kids get so excited for 1 piece of candy falling on the floor…they were diving and falling on top of each other to get a piece. It was the saddest thing, because you could see that us being here was probably the best thing that’s happened to them and to get a toy or a piece of candy was the biggest deal! It started to rain and we had to move all of the kids inside and so we were all crammed into one room. They said the river starts to rise really quickly and if we didn’t watch and hurry we wouldn’t be able to get out. We had all of the children standing in a line, 1 for the girls or and 1 for the boys. They were pushing and shoving to make sure they didn’t lose their places in line…so afraid they wouldn’t get a toy. We handed each child a goody bag of food and then the boys got cars and trucks and the girls are got baby dolls, or play kitchen sets and jump ropes….they were so happy! We prayed with them and they are bowed the little heads and closed their eyes…it such an awesome thing to see! The grandmother of the house made us tortillas and beans and we ate and stayed with them a little while and then it was time to get back across the river…when it came time to cross it the current was really strong and it had risen to about mid thigh. All of us girls held each other in a line so we stayed above water and didn’t get pulled with the current! It was CRAZY!! I wish I had pictures but it was still raining and we were crossing a river so definitely wasn’t bringing the camera out J We got the car and once we all got in we had about 4 extra people in the van because we were taking them to their houses. We got up probably 5 minutes not even and our van got completely stuck in the mud…I mean STUCK! It had been raining for hours and all their roads are just dirt so it was DEEP mud. Everyone got out and pushed the car and we were already completely soaked but now we were covered in mud and still had a 5 hour drive ahead of us. This happened 3 more times right after each other and we ended up spending about 2 ½ hours trying to get up this one hill! We finally had to have two cows pull the car up the hill…COWS! Donna said no one would believe us if we told yall but it was the craziest day of my life…after crossing a river, getting stuck in the mud in the jungle like 4 times and now cows were pulling our car!! Now Honduras the people can’t drive…they’re absolutely crazy. The roads aren’t like normal roads, they’re potholes and different pavements and really bumpy. Well our driver was driving really fast and we would hit these bumps and everyone would come out of their seats…well we hit one and something happened to our tire…so we had to stop again! And did I mention that I was sitting in the backseat and had 3 LIVE CHICKENS in a box right behind my seat!!! No one told us there were chickens back there and I kept hearing things move and make noise I was getting really freaked out like there was something under my seat...and they were chickens! It’s no big deal to them because chickens are a part of everyday life…but every time the moved the would kick my seat and I couldn’t help but jump every time! I was freaking out! HAHA They were in a box taped but the box wasn’t secure at all and they were starting to get out…it most definitely made for a very interesting trip! We finally got to really start driving and stopped to eat Wendy’s in Choluteca, about 3 hours away from Reynel Funez. Because it gets dark here so early, by like 6:30 we’re worn out really early. We didn’t get back until midnight and it felt like the longest day ever! Defiantly an experience we’ll never forget and one that most will never have, not to say that I would like to have to car ride all over again though.




Today, we’re getting the rest of the supplies for our room because we are putting in a sink and a refrigerator. Our shower is still not done being built so we’ve had to use buckets and wash our hair for each other…life will be much easier once these things are done. We’re going to start English classes this this coming Monday and will be holding them everyday at 4 along with the services that’s the village had nightly. We’re going to be very BUSY! Continue to pray for us as we are making this adjustment and that we can make a difference in this village, we love you all!


The internet is so slow it won't let me add any pictures..I'm trying to add to myspace so check there :) www.myspace.com/alisamarie87 Also I'm uploading the pictures to Picasa http://picasaweb.google.com/home and if you click on the slideshow you can get to them or search the username alisamflores :)


Love, Alisa