Ahhh...it is such a good feeling to finally have passport in hand! It arrived in the mail today and I am so thankful and relieved! We have been counting down the days until we leave for Ecuador and the time is already here! I should be cleaning our house and packing right now, but decided to take the opportunity to update our blog since we won't be posting for a few weeks. Here is a very brief preview of our trip and I know that these few pictures won't even capture what our experience will really be like but they are a few things that I expect to see. Above is the geography of where exactly Ecuador is. It's funny how many people don't really know where it is located. So for the geographically-challenged, it is in north-western South America. The equator runs right through it. In fact, on the last day that we are in Quito we usually take the teens to the Mitad Del Mundo or the Middle of the Earth monument so that they can take their picture in the northern and southern hemisphere or some people just like to pee on the equator.
We first arrive in Quito, a very beautiful city. It is not the typical tropical south america that one would imagine. It is high in the Andes mountains, about 10,000 feet elevation and very mountainous. I am not for certain about this picture, but the mountain above might be the famous cotopaxi, a popular peak for advanced mountain climbers. but like i said, i'm not for certain, all I do know is that you can see it while in quito.
The majority of our time is going to be spent at campamento bellevue. here are all the campers at the firepit/amphitheatre. i have yet to enjoy an ecuadorian camp session. jeb had lots of stories to tell about his time there last year. he kept on commenting on how different it is from american church camps. i am excited to be there for it this year. because of the language barrier, we know a little spanish, but not enough to teach any classes or anything, our main responsibilities at camp are just to participate in the activities, to help clean the bathrooms and set up for classes, etc, and cook in the kitchen. it is a week of service and behind the scenes helping. 
Once camp is over, we usually take a few hours to go to the otovalo market. The picture above is the market and it really doesn't represent the hustle and bustle that takes place there. It is like a HUGE saturday market with lots of beautiful hand-made sweaters, jewelry, dolls, tapestries, paintings, etc. There are so many beautiful things to see and it is a great tourist trap. I am a sucker for all the purses. Last time I went I came home with like 4 or 5 new purses. the other things about the market is that you have to be ready to barter. 
The people in cayambe (where the camp is) dress like the above pictures. It is a more rural village area, so they dress with these hats and all the ladies where a blouse with a shawl or jacket over it and a long skirt. And they are very short because of the altitude. most of the men and women are probably less than 5 ft tall. someone told me once that it is because of the reduced amounts of oxygen in high elevation that makes these people shorter and broader. look at that beautiful baby above. they are just as cute as that picture. that's one thing i will miss this year is that we won't be having a vbs like we did in the past with all the little tykes, instead we're sticking with the teens at camp. but they are so adoreable. a lot of times the older sisters would bring their baby brother/sister with them tied onto their back with a sheet. they are so cute! 
After all is said and done we end back in quito for our last full day. we usually go to all the tourist spots. this is old quito. it is such a beautiful part of the city with narrow streets and georgous old buildings all in the old spanish colonial style. i would love to just take a vacation to quito sometime as i have never gotten my fill of spending time there.
now as the final day of preparation for the trip arrives, the same old feelings run through my head of why i even decided to go. don't get me wrong, i am excited, but it is so big and looming over me until i finally get on the plane and am on my way. i don't know if anyone else ever feels that way right before time to leave, but i get that feeling often before volunteering for anything. then in the midst of it all, god just guides me and takes me through and at the end of it all, i can hardly imagine what i would have done if i had just stayed at home. god always helps me through those feelings of uncertainty and once i make it through i can only be thankful for what he did along the way. so here's a prayer for god to just do what he wants to do with this mission trip. work mightily, change hearts, change lives, make us love you more.
see you back here at the bristowhanna blog in a couple of weeks!
