Cotopaxi finally appearing from behind the clouds at sunrise
We soon were headed to Carmen Bajo church, and were instantly met with a crowd of smiling faces, warm hugs, and kind greetings from friends and strangers alike. After a lovely church service, our group split up with Pilar and her mother serving a touching sermon upstairs, and the rest of us having loads of fun downstairs with to the kids. We danced, made collage crafts, and even did a very entertaining reading of David and the Goliath.
Singing and dancing in children's chapel at Carmen Bajo. We recognized the Spanish language versions of songs from Holy Comforter and Camp Weed!
We then hopped back on the bus with some friends from Carmen bajo to go have a delicious lunch of rice, creamy potatoes, and the best fried chicken I’ve ever had in my life (sorry Popeyes!) We enjoyed having conversation with our friends, and even got the pleasure of live music in the background!
A statue depicting an Inca priest praising the sun during the equinox. The twelve horns on his mask represent the twelve months of the year. There is a face on the back of the mask so he never turns away from the sun and it also represents the balance of opposites.
After lunch, we drove to the equator museum, and got the experience of standing at the bellybutton of the earth, (that’s what our tour guide called it at least!) We got to see many attractions at the museum, such as 8 feet anacondas, guinea pigs, (don’t worry they were alive) bird eating tarantulas, and even a real life shrunken head!
Intiñan is a Quechua word that means "path of the sun." Quechua is the second official language of Ecuador and is spoken by the Inca people
We went back to the hostel for a much needed break, before heading back on the road to have dinner with John and Caroline at their lovely home. And we got to meet a very special member of the family, Zoey; their adorable little dog, who captured all of our hearts, and our loose food! We enjoyed a delicious dinner of tacos, chicken quesadillas, and enough guacamole to feed a small army.
All together at Caroline and John's place
We then met up in there living room for our debrief, somehow fitting all 18 of us, including Zoey. We talked about our favorite memories of today, and how we were impacted by God, the church, and this community. We then said our farewells, and got back to our hostel to get a good nights sleep and pack for tomorrow. We can’t wait to go to camp, play games, see old friends, and make many new ones!
Balancing an egg on a nail with the help of the special gravity here on the equator
-Layla Adams
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