He Makes Beautiful Things

Today is our day off because Camp starts tomorrow!!! Im excited to get started into the routine of camp and am blessed to have a relaxing day to enjoy by myself and become rejuvenated for an ENERGY filled next 5 weeks! Since I have some time I will update ya’ll just about random things that might be interesting!

                We went on a staff retreat Sat. and Sun to Welchez coffee farm and reserve about an hour away. It was Beautiful! It’s a family owned business where they grow coffee beans but haven’t completely done away with the natural landscape because they said the land needs its natural resources so they have preserved the land and grow the best coffee possible. They drove us up a hill and we took a walking trial around part of the land. It felt like I was in a rainforest!! It was gorgeous! There were giant trees and vines everywhere. We even crossed a wooden bridge over a small waterfall that had crystal clear water.

The path took us to an open restaurant where we ate a meal similar to what they would eat when they have special guests or during holidays. They served us tamales as an appetizer; rice, beans, and meat as a main dish; and a small thicker tortilla fried with honey and sugar as dessert along with coffee! After lunch we walked back to the house we were staying in and walked past the machines they wash the coffee beans in. They wash it about three times to get different layers off and then it dry’s and goes into another machine and comes out ready to sack! The rest of the time there we spent going over UPH’s core values, having devo’s, and enjoying each other’s company! (The Welchez have a café in Copan Ruinas just down the road from the UPH office with is where im sitting right now)

                Not really too much has happened besides the retreat because the rest of our time has been spent preparing for camp. We’ve gotten our class rooms decorated and our materials ready for the first couple days of camp. We’ve also been coming up with different games, songs, and activities that we want to do at camp…just a lot of running around and meetings!

                But I can’t end on that more boring note so here are a few random facts:

·         The power here goes out at least every few nights. Sometimes it flickers and other times it goes off for maybe an hour.  

·         20 Lempiras is $1 and things here are pretty cheap. You can get a Honduran meal for anywhere around 40 Lemp.s unless you go to a more touristy restaurant and then a meal is more Americanized and costs about $5.

·         It is the beginning of rainy season so it is pretty hot and humid. You can’t go anywhere without sweating, or at least I can’t J the good thing is its more cloudy than sunny and when it does rain it’s in the evenings and it cools the air down a lot!

·         Oh and I held a baby parrot!!