Mission Trip Day 8- last day

Well it was another long day of travel for us. We woke up early and then all had breakfast and then took a group photo on the beach this morning. Gus and his other driver came and picked us up in Tela at 9:00 and we drove 2 hours to San Pedro Sula to the airport there. Checked in & payed our exit fees and then went up to the gate and hopped on the plane. It was suppose to be a 2 hour 48 minute plane ride but we made it in 2 hours 30 minutes which was awesome! We got through boarder control & customs and one of our group members got randomly selected to be thouroly checked which didn't take up to much time. Then we hopped on the bus for the 45 minute bus ride to the church. I got home ate some dinner (it was great to have food that I didn't have to worry about eating!) and then had my dad's older half brother and his youngest daughter (he has 3 girls) and my grandpa (dad and his half brother's dad) come over for a visit because my half uncle and his daughter were passing through and wanted to see me and since they couldn't see me on Sunday due to work I had to see them the day I got home. It was a nice and very short visit since I have to go to bed to get up to go to work tomorrow morning. I can't wait to get all of my photos on my laptop and get them on Facebook so that they can be shared with everyone. Now I have to go to bed so that I can get up in the morning for work even though I am an hour behind and will be for a few more days....ugh! I wanted a day to rest from the time change but I also need the money! Why!?! 

Mission Trip Day 7

What a day. It rained all day! Woke up this morning and went to breakfast and after breakfast went to sit in the bar area and play cards with some of the people from the trip which was awesome to do. Then we ate lunch and decided to go into Tela. There were 19 of the 22 people that went into town and we walked around for about an hour and as we were waiting for the resort bus to come get us it started to pour down rain. Then we went back and did our own thing. I started to pack up which will help me out a lot when Gus and his other bus driver come and pick us up in the morning. Then we all meet back up at the bar area and played cards again. While we were sitting there they sprayed bug spray around the room to keep the mosquitos out and they chocked is all! We played cards until about 6:45 and then went to have dinner and after dinner we went to a show that is preformed by 6 of the employees of the resort it was a comedy and dance show. After the show a few of us went back to the bar area to watch some of the teens play pool and one of our teens was in a heated game of pool with a Latino person and it was fun to watch because it all had come down to getting the 8 ball in and the Latino ended up scratching (cue ball went into the hole instead of the 8 ball). Then we all left and went back to our rooms to go get ready and jump into bed so that we can get an early start tomorrow morning. 

Mission Trip Day 6

We got an extra hour of sleep due to all the rain. When we all went downstairs we were told that we were leaving La Ceiba because of the rain and the river levels rising. We went to the work site for awhile and delivered more food and said our goodbyes to everyone. The Americans made lunch and it was a true American meal for the Hondurians. After we left we started the almost 2 hour drive to Tela and the resort we are staying at. It was raining all day and by the time we it was black because the sun went down and on top of that it was raining. We had dinner at the resort then we had devotion time and we went to the bar and hung out and did Kareoke. It is kind of sad when a mission trip can close down a bar! Then we were able to sleep in until how ever late we wanted. 

Mission Trip Day 5

Well I didn't have internet last night (Wednesday) so there will be two post today. The day started out okay it was raining but then stopped for a few hours and when the two buses went their separate ways it it was cloudy but then it started to pour down rain. We get a phone call that says we need to pick up boots because the worksite is under about 2 feet of water. The bus I was in didn't get to the work site until about 11:45. We are lunch cooked by the ladies who work in the kitchen. Then we all ate lunch and got to work a little more but it was raining. Then we sent out 3 groups to deliver food to some of the poorest families near the school and we only did 44 people out of 70, which was good considering the weather. We left about 5:30 from the site and started toward a souvenir shop, but everyone in the small bus had to get on the big bus because Gus (the driver of the small bus) wasn't wanting to drive his van in the 3 feet of water on the roads because it was scary for him. We then went back to the hotel and went to dinner at a steak restaurant and it was amazing! We had to be byses to the restaurant and back because we couldn't find running taxis because there was so much water on the ground that small cars couldn't move up and down the streets. We got back to the hotel at about 9:00 and we all settled in for bed and we got to get an extra hour of sleep because the least of our trip didn't want to get an early start due to the weather. 

Mission Trip Day 4

Seams like everyone is getting sick in our group. But other than one person staying back today everything went amazingly at the work site. Someone said tonight at dinner that it is like watching a movie because it is a crazy mess with people coming in the gates and people going out all in pickups and tractors and dump trucks. We finished the pad for the school's play area today which was huge since it has been about a two year (one week each year) project! Today the Hondurian workers and the American missionarys all sat down together at lunch which was so cool! Lunch was provided by the ladies who work in the kitchen and it was like chicken fried rice and a potato salad with hard boiled egg and a mustered sauce as well as a piece of bread and pop. We got back to the hotel and relaxed a little and then we ate dinner at the hotel (it was takeout) which was Church's Chicken. We all sat around the pool in small groups and talked and the the adults say around one table and talked while the youth played games in the lobby area. I hope that I am not getting sick because I don't want to be sick at all because I will have what ever is going around a lot longer than anyone else due to my asthma. I am feeling a little stuffy but I took some meds and hopefully that will knock it out of my system tonight. 

Mission Trip Day 3

Forgot to post yesterday on the actual day 3, so there will be two posts today. Yesterday was long as well, but a lot more got done. Concrete was poured on the slab and most of the outside painting got done. We started VBS and that was a blast! The kids loved it. For lunch Gus made a Habanaro slaw and that was amazing it will knock out anything you have! We came back to the hotel about 5 pm and everyone showered and rested then the hotel used a banquet room to host a dinner for us. It was rice, fried chicken, carrots in a sauce of some sort, beef tips, a roll, mexican pop (soda), and a slice of cake. Dinner was at about 7 and afterwards we all hung around and talked and said bye to one of the missionaries who left Tuesday (today) morning. We found out that there is still a little painting to do outside and we are going to start painting the inside. 

Habanaro slaw by Gus:

Habanaro Peppers 

Red onion

Oregano (fresh) 

Apple cider vinegar 

Lime juice 

Salt

Put all in a bowl and let it sit and then serve 

Mission Trip Day 2

What a day! Woke up early (not as early as Saturday) to get started on the day. I was one of 6 people to go to the store (it is huge!) for lunch items. Then we went to the open market and got fresh fruits, then dropped off two men at the Ace hardware store (yes, Ace hardware) to buy a few things there. After the rest of us went to the school to work on painting and making a concrete slab for the school. Then the group that went to the store prepared lunch and after lunch we went back to work and played with the kids that were there for a few hours. The guy who drives us around (Gus) made us a jar of fresh jalapenos in balsamic vinegar and they were wonderful. The ladies of the village made us a wonderful chicken and rice dish! Then we had a church service at the school singing and all the tank you'd from the locals was all in Spanish and then the pastor from my church spoke and had a translator for the Hondurians. We did wonderful for having a translator. It was an amazing day all in all and it was wonderful hearing all the locals come and thank you for what you are doing there. I took pictures through the day and people were thanking me for taking photos. It was a VERY rewarding day if I do say so myself. 

Recipe for jalapenos by Gus:

Fresh Jalapenos

Balsamic Vinegar 

Slice jalapenos and put in a jar then pour the vinegar into the jar. You can eat right away or let them pickle a little. Be careful they are SPICY! And a little addicting if you like spicy.

Mission Trip Day 1

I am on my first ever mission trip to Honduras. It was a day of travel really. I woke up at 5:15 am (EST) to be at my church at 6:00. We left for the airport at about 6:45 and got there at about 7:45. Checked in in the international terminal in Atlanta. Went through security and bought lunch because we were told not to buy anything in Honduras. We got on the 3 hour plane ride, landed, and then waited for about an hour for customs. After we got through customs we hopped on a 4 hour bus ride to La Ceiba. We checked in to our hotel and put our stuff in our rooms and then went next door to eat dinner at Pizza Hut. Then we hung out at the pool and talked.