Hello! (Below is an update I posted on our - Sophie's and my - personal blog page. Feel free to visit it at themccanns.blog!)
Well for the last 10 minutes I've been spending time on this rooftop and then on a balcony, thinking of what to tell you guys. A lot has changed but at the same time we don't feel a whole lot different. Sitting in the Lima airport on our third day in Peru about to take off to Arequipa Sophie said, "It's weird how normal it feels being here." I would say I agree. Maybe it's because at this point our minds adjust to 'tourist mode', but deep down we both know it's because God has prepared us to be here. I'll give a quick summary of the first few days so far. (Edit: it didn't end up being so quick, but for all of those that love the details, enjoy!)
Wednesday: we arrived at 2:30am and stepped into our guesthouse in Miraflores at 3:30am. Traveling was 23 hours of smooth sailing. No bags were lost, everything was on time, and we really did enjoy it. 8 hours later we woke up and were welcomed by our missionary leaders Carlos and Meredith. We love them already. Together we paid for visas, got our new cell-phone numbers, had some nice meals, and met another nice couple that teaches and serves in Lima. The food and the fresh fruit juice here is absolutely incredible!
Thursday: Sophie, Meredith and I woke up early and met Israel at the police station to begin the immigration process. 4 hours, 4 typos and fixes on my legal document, and 2 locations later the paperwork was completed. Peru is a country that is developing fast and policy is ever changing, making it difficult on officials and civilians alike. We then met Juan - a Yanesha pastor and great leader - and his family for pollo along the cliffs of the Pacific coast at Pardos Chicken. It was fun conversing in basic Spanish dialogue. That evening Sophie and I explored a bit and found some empanadas y jugo at grocery store called Wongs. Once again, amazing.
Friday: the morning was spent preparing to head to Arequipa. After checking in our 71kg of excess baggage we ate with Meredith and Carlos at a popular Peruvian restaurant called Tanta. They took off for San Ramon and we went to Arequipa, where our language institute is. While waiting for our flight, a Peruvian businessman began speaking in English to me. He was very kind and we talked about traveling to the USA as well as locations in Peru. When I told him Sophie and I were in Peru in the jungles with a church organization he thanked me. It was the way he thanked me that is still etched in my memory. It was so genuine and sincere. I just had this overwhelming sense that this is exactly where God has brought us and wants us! Later on, our flight did eventually take off and we met Julio, our host dad who is also a professor at our language institute.
Saturday: we had an amazing sleep here at 7,500 feet and 53 degrees F. We are still so tired so a nap will come later. We met some fellow students and walked around our neighborhood. The mountain/volcano views are pretty insane. For all the moms out there: it's a safe neighborhood and we have fellow students, host families, and teachers telling us what taxis, grocery stores, bus routes, and markets to use.
Now that I'm currently on a second page of my word document I realize updates like this will probably not exist super often. Expect recipes, more photos, big events, funny stories, and really just random tidbits of our life here!