la primera semana

Photo descriptions (left to right, top to bottom):
1. typical looking street/view of San Cristobal

2. one of the mian streets, where some of the markets are

3. inside the church building

4. and 5. streets by the church building

6. JC Enlow, John Gibbs, Chantel and I eating together on the 2nd night

7. the outside of the church building

8. one of the streets in the downtown area

Greetings readers! I have been wanting so badly to update my blog, but every time I think I will have time to do it, something else comes up. Hopefully in the near future I will be able to settle into a more normal routine and be more consistent about updates. I have spent my first week here enjoying one of my favorites pastimes: shopping! When I first arrived my room had only a bed and a sink. So I have had to buy all kinds of odds and ends to store my clothes and books in, fill up my room, and make it feel more comfortable. All that it lacks now is curtains for the door and windows (all of which are very see-through right now!) I went to a fabric store for the first time the other day to pick out material for the curtains, and I must admit, it was actually kind of fun! Shopping here takes much longer because you have to go to a different market for everything you need; and sometimes the bus ride to go to the market takes 30 minutes or more. San Cristobal does have one large department store that is similiar to Wal-Mart, but even though we can find more of what we need there, I was disappointed in the higher prices.

From 5-8:30 each night I have been translating for the Bible class that meets here at the school. Because we have been studying the book of Hebrews, I have been learning all kinds of big new words (in Spanish : ) like priesthood, concubine, and grafted. At first the teacher felt discouraged that only 5-7 students were coming, but since Mon. the number has almost doubled. The preacher, David, pleaded with the congregation on Sun. night to try to attend the class, so his words must have really affected some of the members. The students range in age from 12 to 66 and include both men and women. Daniel, the 66 year old student who has been taking the classes for credit, always comes eager to learn and preached about a 2 hour sermon last Wed. (while the preacher was still traveling). I´m pretty sure that´s the longest Wed. night service I´ve ever sat through!

As promised, I will tell you more about where I´m living; but not too much, since ¨pictures speak louder than words.¨ The school meets on the first floor of the house Chantel and I are staying in, and it has 3 classrooms. Global Missions bought the house from one of the families at church a few years ago. We live on a busy street, which has its advantages and disadvantages. One of the good things is that buses and taxies always go right by the house, but one of the bad things is that the street comes alive as early as 6 in the morning with roosters crowing, busses squealing, pedestrians yelling...and all kinds of announcements that get broadcasted through a megaphone, like ¨Agua Pura!¨ The trucks that pass by my window sound like freight trains. But really I´m not complaining, I just wanted to share some of those cultural differences with you. As for the climate...if I told you that it rarely even gets hot enough for me to break a sweat, would you believe it?? Well it´s the truth! Not only is the entire city surrounded by mountains, but the temperatures are very similar to what Tennessee would feel like in late April or early October: cold enough at night and in the mornings to wear a sweater or jacket, but warm enough during the day to feel comfortable in a T-shirt--and still get a good tan! So to all of you sulking about those steamy southern temps and unbearable humidity--na na na na na na!!!

My first few days here have really been quite enjoyable. Many of the church members have gone out of their way to make me feel welcome, and I feel grateful to have so many friends in such a short amount of time. On Saturday I went to a young people´s class at church, and then some of us hung out in ¨el centro¨afterwards (basically the downtown area, where most of the shops and restaurants are). I thought it was really appropriate that the guy who gave the class spoke on friendship, and then we were able to go out and have fun together afterwards--something I later learned that they hardly ever do, but that they all enjoyed very much.

Random thoughts:

--I think I´m going to start wearing only shoes that are completely flat on the bottom, so that I won´t feel so tall compared to every guy I meet--I´m just not used to that!

--I´m starting to see more and more signs of the Mexican culture becoming Americanized. For example, the last time I came (which was only 3 years ago) nearly everyone greeted with their traditional custom of hugging and giving kisses on the cheek, but now only some of them do that, and the majority just shake hands. I think that´s a real shame!

--Today I ran on a track instead of the normal roads and sidewalks. It really killed me to see the hurdles falling apart and the high jump and long jump pits overgrown with weeds!

--This week I rode a motorcycle for the first time and also ate tacos off the street for the first time (I figured if I´m going to get sick, I might as well get it over with). To my utter astonishment, I actually enjoyed both very much--and still have yet to be more than a teeny bit sick to my stomach (knock on wood!)

Have a great day everyone...and thanks again for your comments and interest!

--Elizabeth

p.s. 1 I wanted to add more photos, but it just takes too long; so I will try to add a little at a time.

p.s. 2 ¨mañana¨ means morning and tomorrow