Camp #2 & Upcoming events

Camp is over!! Due to a city wide strike, we finished the camp Wednesday night and we are now enjoying break. All of the shops, restaurants and streets were closed/blocked on Thursday so the only way to get around was on foot. The strike was politically motivated, but only lasted until 6pm on Thursday.

The camp was great. I was on the blue team for this camp and the kids all were great, although a bit more difficult to control. The theme was the same, "cultivating character", and we discussed loyalty and integrity. Tuesday night we took the entire camp to the PSJ La Palmera soccer game (over 200 campers/leaders!). Normally when the camp goes, the team loses, but this night, they won 4-1 in their opening game of the second round of the season.

Now, I have a nice break until July 30 when school starts. During that time, my parents and my cousin are visiting and I will also spend some time figuring out my curriculum for the 3rd trimester when my computer class starts. There is a team here now from Hisperia, California and another team coming next week from Minneapolis. I plan to put them to work painting a wall in the computer lab and there are some other tasks to be done elsewhere at the school. Once school starts I will need to restructure the electrical work in the lab so I can move the machines around. August 1 I will return to Santa Cruz when my parents leave and purchase the computers I had planned to buy last time I was there. There is also much work to be done on the La Palmera website, as well as installing the network at the school. So, I have a lot on my plate!!!

My cousin has arrived to visit me as a part of his South America tour (He's now been to Bolivia, Peru and Paraguay). After here he is headed to Machu Picchu and then to Bogota, Colombia to visit a friend. He is staying until next Wednesday. My parents arrive Thursday and will also leave next Wednesday. It will be nice to have some family around this week and next. I am also very excited to share the project with them so they can understand a bit better why I am so passionate about it. I am making a return trip to Santa Cruz next week when my parents leave to see them off and also finish my computer shopping that I couldn't do a few weeks ago.

Bolivian Independence Day is coming up on August 6 and I will be marching in the parade as part of the staff at La Palmera. We will be dressed in our uniforms. Should be an interesting experience . . .

Tales from Camp

Well, I survived my week long camp out in the Chaco. Since I arrived I had been dreading this week since I knew it would be very tiring and I've had some negative camp experiences in the past, so it's not something I look forward to. But, truthfully, I had a good time, but at the same time am glad it's over. I was also a bit frustrated the first day since my digital camera broke (the lighting is all messed up now), so I'll be looking for a new one soon. I got it in 2004 though, so it's time for a new one. Fortunately all of my friends took pictures so I'll just make sure I get theirs.

We left Monday afternoon in "flotas" (long distance buses) and made the 30 min drive to the "Chaco". The weather started out warm, but that night dropped significantly. The next day we received a cold front and the wind was blowing all day. That night, the Trinidad area had the coldest temperatures it had received in 30 years, in the low 50's (high 40's with windchill). Keep in mind the average temperature here is in the high 80's/low 90's. Needless to say, the Bolivians were FREEZING. Myself and the other volunteers were a bit cold as well and we made a fire every night. I have spent about 7 1/2 months in Bolivia now and this is the coldest night I can ever remember in the Trinidad area.

The camp itself was great. The theme for this year was "Cultivating Character" and we focused on loyalty, integrity and kindness (1 day on each) - things the Bolivian culture does not exemplify well. Each day started out with exercises at 7 am sharp on the soccer field (with exercise music accompanying). During this time I could usually see lots of parrots flying around in the distance. Other events at camp included a ropes course (with the obstacles focusing on teamwork), worship, soccer/volleyball, and evening presentations.

We also had the theme of military for camp, so each of the kids were "soldiers" and the leaders were "Sergeants". If the leaders felt the kids were doing well and participating, they could be promoted to Lieutenant or Corporal. Ademar, who organized the camp was the "Major" and Lucho was the "General". The idea behind this was to instill discipline in the kids.

I'm now back in Trinidad and will get some rest this weekend. Next week is the camp for the younger kids, but it will be held at the school, so I'll get to sleep inside, maybe even in my bed :-).

Visit to Santa Cruz!

I am back in Santa Cruz for a couple of days to look into buying some computers/computer stuff for the lab at the school. It worked out for me to come during this time since the wife of one of the other volunteers was arriving this morning with another girl as well. I came with the husband (Larry) via bus (or "flota") as they call them here. It was much more comfortable than my bus ride in Peru, but this time I was cold because the person in front of me had the window open and the air was blowing in my face for about 3 hours+ before I finally stood up and reached over and shut it (they were sleeping). I'm staying with a friend that lives here and am planning to return to Trinidad Thursday morning.

This is the last week of classes at the school before they have a 3 week break. Monday the first camp begins out at the "Chaco", where I´m a co leader for about 11 boys. I'm on the red team, same as the last camp I went to. The next week is the camp at the school for the younger kids, it's only 3 days though. For that camp, I'm on the blue team.

My schedule is rapidly filling up, this past weekend I started teaching Microsoft Excel to some of the staff at the school and I have plans to continue with other subjects. Because of this, I am considering scaling back my involvement with the youth group, at least for now, especially the AWANA JV because they have plenty of help.

Oh yeah, Happy Fourth of July to all of you!