Peru Report #1 Wednesday, June 13, 2012 from the Lima, Peru Airport 3:30 a.m.
Dear Family and Friends:
We are in the same time zone as in USA but still feel like we are jet lagged because of the loss of sleep and travel challenges. (We only had 3 ½ hours sleep on Monday night before flying on Tuesday and sleep on planes is difficult with the various interruptions).
There are nine of us waiting for the flight from Lima to Tacna where the various evangelistic series will be conducted. Probably others will join us from elsewhere for this flight also coming from other places than Los Angeles like we did. We are supposed to fly at 5:55 a.m. and arrive in Tacna at 7:30. Fortunately there is a comfortable waiting area here in Lima Airport.
Our trip began at the NW Arkansas Regional airport yesterday at 7:10 a.m. Don Gilbert took us on short notice leaving our house at 5:30. David Jensen had offered to do it but the night before he had a severe foot wound from his lawn mower and could not. So, this is our 4th flight from when we left home. (Stops and plane changes at Dallas and L.A.) We are glad for the food we can carry with us since the airlines now serve very little without extra cost except for the international flights.
We won’t weary you with the various changes and challenges and difficulties in getting the straight story about how many check-on bags you can bring without extra cost. And airplanes differ in what they offer. On the commuter plane to Dallas the toilet area was so small you had to enter it sideways and take it from there. But the exercise opportunities still persist—long walks between gates and buildings. That helps to offset the cramped sitting for long hours.
Part of our six hour wait here in Lima was occupied by going laboriously through customs. They want you to declare the video projectors we use for the meetings and by doing so you must put a guarantee payment of money with them to assure that you will not sell the projector in Peru. Supposedly we will get the money back as we leave the country on the way home. I told them it was a gift to us because we would not be spending that money in Peru while here and will have something for the trip home. Fortunately, it was only $450 to cover four of us with projectors.
Every one of the team members has a story if we can find the time to dig it out. At the L.A. airport I recognized Harold Burden who leads out in the CHIP program on heart health. I chose not to chide him for riding the cart when he could be walking. I had seen him a year ago at the Kentucky/Tenn. Camp Meeting when we sat beside each other. With him is Dr. David Wilkins who knows Paul and Ruth Bonney from Gentry. In the Adventist World you are never far away from connections with someone you know or have known in the past.
Harold Burden served as a missionary in Peru many years ago. Now this is his first mission trip to come and conduct a series of meetings. Dr. Wilkins is an Ophthalmologist who was born here and comes back frequently to do clinic work.
Right now our Gentry group is resting peacefully trying to catch up. Jeff Quam came prepared with a pillow and blanket thick enough that he is sleeping comfortably on the floor. Dr. Neil Mullins and Brenda are sleeping sitting up with blinders on. Beside me Mary Alice is also sleeping while sitting up and jerking spasmodically when she dreams something. I’m keeping watch over the carry on luggage of the group while trying to get this ready to email when we get on the Internet somewhere.
When we came from Customs to the arcade area of the airport, it looked like a dormitory with dozens of people stretched out on the floor. Some must have been part of a youth group who were prepared with sleeping bags and blankets. Maybe only the “old bones” do better sitting rather than stretching out on the floor. “To each his own.”
We read on the plane from L.A. the entry forms that forbid bringing in fresh food, so Mary Alice and I supplemented our airline lunch with the veggies we had brought from home—lettuce, cucumbers and celery. Dr. Mullins thought to bring in four apples, but the sniffing dog picked up on them and he had to surrender them. I said to the dog officer, “Enjoy them.” He probably will. I doubt that much of the food gets destroyed except by digestive juices.
Here you must also pay attention to signs. I was following a man into the rest room (Quarto de banyo) when I noticed the sign “Damas” and knew I was headed for the wrong place. The man I was following was the cleaning man. Once inside I noted the trash can beside each toilet. That means the sewer system does not handle paper. We take so much for granted in USA.
We naturally wonder what lies ahead with the meetings and various experiences. We plan to share them with you as we find time to do the writing and an outlet for emailing them on. Thank you for your prayers . They will make the difference between success and failure of the mission.
In His love,
Glenn and Mary Alice (Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma)
PS We have just checked in at our room in the Dorado Hotel in Tacna where all the group is staying and our orientation meetings will be. In case you need to reach us for an emergency, the hotel phone number is 005152415741. At this moment I don’t know what it takes to get out of the USA to here by phone. Maybe that is included in the above number.
The “welcoming committee” did not meet us at the airport because they thought we were to arrive in the afternoon rather than 7:45 a.m. as we did. So now they will “properly welcome” us at the school near noon. We leave here in about half an hour so I’ll not lengthen this letter much. One of the bonuses here is we can send and get email from our room. That will save a lot of time and confusion and is without extra cost.
It is “feast or famine.” We had the famine on parts of the airline flights but the welcome is the feast stage. The brethren are warm and so glad we are here. We anticipate a nice response if the churches are similar.