Oaxaca 10 Day 1

Praise God, we have made it safely to Oaxaca. The flights were blessedly uneventful plus all our bags made the trip with us. There were no issues checking in and going through customs in Mexico. Miriam and I were one of the few folks that were selected by Customs to have our bags inspected. The way people are selected is by going through a line and pressing a button. If the light turns green you and your bags get to leave the Customs area and head out of the airport terminal. However, if you press the button and it turns red you and your bags are escorted over to an inspection station where Customs agent rifles through the contents of your bags. I am not sure what they are looking for since they just looked around the edges of the bags. I was a little concerned because we were carrying several things that might have caused suspicion. Miriam was carrying all her diabetes supplies and I was carrying 5 one gallon zip-lock bags full of eye glasses that will be used for an eye clinic later this year. Plus we had two duffle bags of school and other supplies for the students here. I did not know what the attendant would think of me carrying such a collection of large quantities of items, but there were no issues. I think that 3 of us were tagged by the red light and were required to go through the process but there were no problems or big delays.

The weather in Oaxaca has been very pleasant thus far. We were greeted with 74 degrees when we landed. It is like spring in Florida. The fact that we have left Florida during record heat makes the temperature change even more delightful.

It was planned for us to stay at the house in town, however as with most things here, the plans changed. We are now staying in the dormitory out at the site. When we drove up all the students came out to greet us. It was somewhat humbling to have 40 plus high school aged kids excited to greet the folks that are on the bus. It was like we were celebrities. The bus drove up and all the students came outside and swarmed the bus. After we unloaded I pulled out my computer and showed the pictures from our trip 2 years ago. The students found great delight in seeing friends that have completed their stay or who were still here. It was a source of great amusement and distraction while our team took advantage of some sandwiches they provided. Peanut butter and Nuttela on white bread, ah, I haven’t had that since last time I was here.

Staying on the site will have many advantages and yet some disadvantages. The largest disadvantage is no internet. They do not have it at the site yet. Providing regular updates will be more difficult. The advantage is more students can be housed in the dorm so we have more students to interact with. School has not started yet so we will be able to work side by side with all the students. It will be interesting to see how they will coordinate nearly 60 people on the site. Plus with many hands, we should be able to get much accomplished.

Tomorrow is Sunday and all of us, the Mexicans and the Yanks, will be headed to Church in the morning. I am not sure how it all will happen but God is good and will provide a way for us all to fit on the bus and make it to Church. It should be an interesting service. If I understood the conversation correctly, Saul is coming from Mexico City and is to preach at the service we will be attending. Signing off for day 1.