I arrived safely in Peru- Part 2

I was originally supposed to have a two hour layover in Miami which actually ended up being a three hour layover (It Happens!!). The luggage situation caused an even further delay of leaving the airport in a timely manner. But I was blessed to have a really helpful attendant named Alex who spoke English fluently. He took care of all the necessary paperwork and really expedited things for me. My next main thought was that a taxi had been dispatched by Nexos Voluntarios to pick me up at 10:35pm to drive me to the host home of Ms. Clara. I got worried that he had left thinking I never arrived. But that worry was quickly dispelled when I got outside and saw a Peruvian gentleman holding a sign up that read "DIVA CRICHLOW" Yay again!! He was extremely pleased to see me (especially after patiently waiting about one to two hours for me to appear) although I distinctly remember hearing a few grunts and whews as he struggled to get my luggage in his car. I quietly laughed under my breath. By this time, it was about oneish in the morning. We then proceeded on an offensive-defensive drive to Ms. Clara's home. My driver's name was Senor Carrazco(pronounced kuh-roz-co). I asked if he spoke any English and without any hesitation he replied, "Nada". This basically translates into...NO, nothing or no way jose! My spanish is "muy poquito" (meaning 'very little' for those that don't know). But can I tell you, we had wonderful communication as he swerved across lanes and sometimes even drove in the middle of the road, ducking and dodging other vehicles that were driving in the same manner and some even worse (LOL). He was a very capable driver..Thank God!! On the way, he talked spanish, I talked spanglish and somehow we understood one another. It was great fun. He pointed out points of interest and taught me how to say them and corrected me when I didn't get it right (LOL). I loved every minute of it! We arrived intact to the host home which was at the top of three flights of stairs (no elevators). You thought he grunted and whewed the first time (rotflmao)...but he was strong and quite a good sport.

I arrived safely in Peru-Part 1

Hello Everyone,
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. As for me, on November 15th, I traveled from Atlanta to Dallas to spend time with my awesome and supportive daughter, Toria, my son-in-law, David (who if I had ever had a son, I'd want it to be him), and last but not least, my marvelously sweet and very intelligent grandson, Julian Amari, whom I absolutely love and adore. I began my actual journey to Peru two days before Thanksgiving on the 24th. My flight departed Dallas at 11:30am. I had a 3 hour layover in Miami (definitely not my favorite airport... wish I could bypass it on my return). I arrived safely in Lima at 11:40pm only to discover that all of my luggage did not arrive together. If you read my packing dilemma post, you know I had quite a lot (LOL). Toria said that the possibility of losing luggage would be the main reason for taking less. I say that had I not taken as much, I would have had diddly squat to wear. (LOL) The good news is that it was located and delivered to my friend Jessica's office the very next day...Yay!!

Less than 48 hours to go

Hi Everyone the time is drawing near for me to begin my mission trip to work and live with the rescued children in the village of Urubamba. It's less than two days away and I am a bit nervous mixed with excitement, and that feeling we get when we're dealing with the unknown. So I am asking for everyone to keep me in their prayers, as I attempt to do something wonderful for God's Glory.

A Pre-Trip Interview

Didn't get a chance to edit, but work with me people :)

My Packing Dilemma

This is my first video blog as I started packing for the trip... HELP!