Last week I had a flying trip back to Onzole, to the jungle communities there. Well, it was flying in that we were only there a very short day and a half. But we definitely did not fly there! Janna and I got on a bus at 9pm on Wednesday, and didn't get off it until 13 1/2 hours later! Let me tell you, that's a really long time to be sitting on one of those buses, squirming and turning and trying to find a place to put yourself so you can sleep!! There were endless delays, including 2 more police checks - the men all had to get off, police got on, and looked through bags and checked all our documents. I'm told that buses on this route are checked more because of how close the Colombian border is at the end of the trip. And then we were stopped for a very long time, could have been 2 hours, someone said that there had been an accident on the road.

By the time we got off that bus, I was ready to never see one again, EVER! But then there is the canoe trip, which to me makes up for all the preceding miseries. The river was very low this time, only a few inches in places, so it took 3 hours to get in to our villages, with the men having to pull the motor out and paddle and pole in the shallowest spots. But I am still enthralled by being on that river, so I didn't mind it taking longer. I did feel sorry for the men though, having to work so hard to get us upriver, they had left Santo Domingo at 5:30 that morning.

The purpose of the trip this time was to be there for the kids' Christmas program at the school in Santo Domingo. That little school very nearly didn't reopen after the last school year, the funding that had been coming from outside was pulled, and nothing was coming from the government, and when we were there last February it really looked as though school would not be happening for the children of that village. But there was some juggling and talking and someone in Canada took up the cause, and some funds have been raised, and school has gone ahead for this year.

The program was on Friday morning, and such a program it was!! All 140 students, and many of their parents, and a few visiting missionaries. The room was decorated, a stage was set up, practices were held, and it all went without a hitch. Included in the proceedings were a full length nativity play, Joseph, Mary, angels, shepherds, innkeepers, wise men - the lot! And during the play each class had a turn to sing a song. Which they did with great enthusiasm and volume. Now if they could just learn to carry a tune...! There was also a drama of the prodigal son, and one about the 10 virgins. There was a complicated little ceremony involving the "Christmas Princess", which was a very solemn affair. And through it all, these so very cute kids to watch - SO cute!

Then it was outside where they all lined up to receive their gifts. Many of the kids are sponsored by Compassion, who provides gifts for their kids, a very practical gift of a set of sheets. But every child received something.

Finally there was a special lunch for all the teachers back at the mission house, and a talk for them from Lloyd Rogers about being an example, and how much of an example teachers can be.

And that was it. A very long way to go, for a very short time, but worth it. I had a chance to go with my friend Nixon to visit the man who had injured his hand so badly in October with the machete. I went wondering what I would find, remembering the fiasco involved in getting it sutured. But it has healed fairly well, it didn't get infected, and looks not bad. But he has limited use of the hand, which is a problem, his work involves using a machete, which he is unable to grip, so he has not worked, or been able to provide for his family, since October. I'm not sure how they are managing. I gave him some exercises to do, and hope that in time it will improve and allow him to work again.

If you can stand to see more photos, here is a link - http://picasaweb.google.ca/heathermoore21/OnzoleDecember2008?authkey=py_sADDXJGU#

And now Christmas is coming. At least so I hear. I'm having a little trouble coming to grips with Christmas this year. It's 31 degrees out there, I wrote cards with 2 fans blowing on me, there's not a snowflake to be seen, and no Ikea Christmas trees! I read of everybody at home busily doing what you do there to get ready for the big day, and I see definite signs of Christmas coming here too. There are lights on houses, decorated trees inside the houses, and the stores and malls are packed. In the mall Santa has his house set up, and there is also the biggest nativity scene you ever saw. So Christmas must be coming. But to me it just seems completely unreal. I guess it's just the completely unfamiliar surroundings, and the lack of all my usual signals. I'm not really minding, it's just strange! But there's still more than a week to go, we'll see how it goes! One thing I am finding though - there isn't the "political correctness" that Canada obsesses about. Here, Christmas is called Christmas. There are nativity scenes everywhere, and many seem to remember just what it is that we are celebrating - Jesus' arrival on earth. And that's kind of nice.

where did November go?

November passed in a blur of activity. There were 2 major events that made the month go by in a flash. My sister Alison arrived on the 1st, for the month, and it was her first visit down here, so there was lots to show her - places to go and people to see! We travelled, went on 2 separate trips, both to the mountains. First we went south to Cuenca for a day, and then on to Vilcabamba, close to the border of Peru. It's a beautiful place, seems to have the ideal climate - warm and sunny during the day, and cold at night, so you can pull up the blankets (not something you do here in Guayaquil!) and have a good night's sleep. We stayed at a place outside of the little town a bit, partway up the mountain, and the views all around us.........oh my! We had hammocks outside our room, with views of rolling hills leading to mountains, and happy hours were spent there with books. And the dining area was a covered over area, but open, with views that I don't think you could ever get tired of. We arrived at night, went there for dinner, we could see lights off in the distance but had no idea what was out there. Until the next morning when we arrived for breakfast - we just couldn't believe it. So we spent 3 days there, did a walk, tried a bike ride on awful gearless 400 lb. bikes - not altogether successful! And had a relaxing restful time. And took one or two pictures between us!

Our other trip was to Banos, where I've been a few times now, but always enjoy, and I like taking others there too. We had a much more successful bike ride, 22 km through the mountains, one very scary section through a pitch dark tunnel, but the rest of it is fine. You get to stop off and take a cable car across the river to a waterfall, and of course we were in the Andes, so there was no shortage of splendid views along the way!

We spent 2 days there, then headed north to Otavalo, which is the area around which most of the Ecuadorian handicrafts come from. Saturdays is the big market day, and the main square in town, as well as many of the surrounding streets are taken up with hundreds of stalls with the indigenous people selling their crafts. Of course, you are expected to bargain, you never just pay the first price they ask, and I discovered a talent in my sister that I didn't know she had - she drives a hard bargain!! So we went home with a rather fuller suitcase than we had arrived with!

So we had some great times, it was good to be away from all that goes on here for a little while, but I have to say that it was nice to get off a bus for the last time. Some day I may write a book all about the joys of bus travel in Ecuador!

Then the other big event of the month was Narcisa's long awaited open heart surgery. It did indeed finally happen, that's what kept us busy between travels, and I'm delighted to report that she came through it well, and is now at home recovering and doing really well. There were so many concerns around this operation, a big one, and being done at a hospital which doesn't exactly have a marvellous reputation. But God is bigger than all that, and I had to keep reminding myself that she was safely in God's hands throughout. It was an anxious time that we spent waiting while she was in the OR, but I had a picture in my mind of God holding her in His hands while the doctors operated. And I knew she was safe there, no matter what happened.

Of course, any time spent at that hospital, making arrangements, paying for services, or even just trying to visit the patient, is always an adventure. That may be my other book - all about the joys of Luis Vernaza Hospital!! I mean, just getting inside the place is incredibly difficult. You have security guards whose primary purpose seems to be to keep you out. I think it's probably easier to get into Buckingham Palace, or the White House, than into this public hospital. Always a series of questions - "what's your business, where are you going, what to do, who's the patient, No you can't go in. Okay then let me look in your bag" - you can't take in any food or drink, or cameras, it seems. Alison had a little camera in her purse one day, and they weren't going to let her in with it - it's just not allowed. Well we weren't about to leave it with them, so we just pressed on! I mean - really!! And then you get your bag inspected again when you're leaving. And all of that is just at the gate. Don't even get me started on all the rest!

A surprise at this hospital, a lovely parklike square inside, some of the wards open onto it. (the photo is a little crooked, I was in a hurry with my apparently illegal camera!)

So Alison got a good look at a side of life most tourists don't ever get to see. The medical sytem, and Bastion too, of course. We had lots of visits with friends there, and she got to meet people who had just been names to her for so long. And we got well fed, as usual. I've decided that I don't really need a kitchen in my house, all I have to do is walk by houses around Bastion and I get invited in and fed. I could have had 2 suppers in a row on Saturday, I had to decline the second one, I simply couldn't manage it. Why do they want to feed me - is it because I look thin and malnourished? Definitely not, they are just so kind and generous and willing to share what they have. These are my friends.