Looks Like We Made It

Please forgive my punctuation...the hotel computer keyboard is a bit wacky...

Friends, we made it to Costa Rica! What a day we have had. We took off for the airport at 6:30 a.m. today. After checking about 900 bags, scooting through security and eating a quick breakfast...we boarded the plane and left exactly ON TIME...way to go, Delta! I watched about half of The Bucket List before we ran into some nasty turbulence, which knocked out our movie feed for the duration of the trip. My friend and I are already the subject of rumors that we MAY be slightly overemotional, as the turbulence sent us into teary handholding and sustained hyperventilation. It did not help that we were already teary from watching The Bucket List ....the crazy dipping and diving sent us over the edge, man. It was later pointed out that obviously, everything was in Gods hands, and it turned out fine. Which didn't stop me from wanting to dump a few of those airline bottles of whiskey into the Coke I had with lunch. But I am on a nonalchoholic mission trip, so I settled for killing a bag of peanut M&Ms in the space of about 45 seconds. But ANYWAY....

After some awesome views of the lush, green Costa Rican landscape, we landed safely and with hearts beating regularly once again. After loading the 900 bags on to the top of a tourist bus, we made our first stop at the grocery store, aka the Costa Rican Walmart. Here we picked up the snacks and drinks that we will give to our kids at VBS, plus a few bags of souvenir coffee and specialty candies for ourselves. The next stop was the church where we will be working this week. We met the lively pastor and his wife, who welcomed us in Spanish and told us about their daughter who lives in North Carolina with her husband, who is from Alaska. The world just gets smaller and smaller all the time, doesn't it... Finally, we arrived at our hotel and, after unloading the 900 bags from the bus, we threw ourselves on to our beds and had a chance to breathe for a couple of hours.

Later, we gathered for dinner at a nearby seafood restaurant. We had the place to ourselves, and the service and food were amazing. My first taste of Costa Rica included ceviche, a grilled and buttery sea bass, fresh vegetables and sweet tea, all for the bargain price of around 8 dollars per plate! A highlight of the night was the appearance of a little girl of maybe 3, dressed in a princess gown. It was her birthday, and all the waiters made a big fuss over her, clapping and filling her pockets with colones. Our evening finished up a little while ago with a team meeting and an awesome devotion, which included telling a bit about ourselves and why we are on this trip. The conclusion was that each one of us has been called to be here for a special purpose ....a purpose that we may not know now, but that we will come to understand better as the week goes on. Spirit of the living God, wash over me, mold me, use me....Tomorrow is church day, which we are told includes at least two to three hours on your feet, with plenty of singing, worshipping God and enthusiastic preaching. Can't wait....