Bridge of Love (Puente de Amor)

Day 3

Sunday morning started out well. We finally got the hot water working properly, and everyone enjoyed a hot shower (and we were very thankful).

Attended the 8:30am worship service at Amigos en Cristo Iglesia (Friends in Christ Church) in Cotacachi where we were staying. We then headed to Ibarra to attend services at Puente de Amor Iglesia Cristiana (Bridge of Love Christian Church).

Atlee’s first mission team had helped construct the foundation for Puente de Amor back in 2004. In 2007, they helped out with construction of the 2nd floor. Puente de Amor is also the home of the Bible Training Center.

When we arrived at the church, the service had already started. As we walked in, we were ushered to the stage where the entire team had a chance to introduce themselves (with the help of a translator) and received a round of applause from the congregation. We then took seats and participated in the service, singing praise songs in Spanish.

Cecil Davis was the guest pastor that day, and delivered a message on Living for God. Tommy Davis also got up and shared his testimony about Listening to God.

After the service, we all got a tour of the church. It was very cool for a new team member like me to see what had been accomplished by the first two teams. I’m sure it was an even greater experience for the previous teams to see the finished results of their labor. The interior looked great with all the tile and wood work.

We also got to visit the roof, where the 3rd floor construction was underway. The views from the rooftop were great, and we got a real appreciation for some of the construction methods and challenges they face.

Puente de Amor View Photo Album Play Slideshow

Tourist Day

Day 2

All of the towns we are visiting (except for Lita) are in the Ecuadorian Andes. Mountain tops are obscured by clouds most of the time. Saturday was beautiful, the best weather they’ve had here in two weeks.

Headed out to Otavalo about 10am for their indigenous open-air market. You could find everything from jewelry and clothing to produce and meats. With the help of our local guides, several team members bargained for gifts.

Otavalo View Photo Album Play Slideshow

Had a great lunch back in Cotacachi at La Marquesa restaurant, which is owned by Pastor Washo’s family (Amigos en Cristo church).

After lunch, we headed to Cuicocha Lake, a crater lake at the base of the Cuicocha volcano. Took a 20-minute boat ride around the two small islands in the lake and observed occasional gas emissions rising up from the bottom of the lake. Because the lake has very steep sides, there are no places for fish to lay eggs. Since fish cannot reproduce, there are no fish in the lake.

Cuicocha Lake View Photo Album Play Slideshow

After the lake, we prepped for Sunday’s youth camp. Set up the large dining tent and the volleyball net. Inflated the many footballs, basketballs, and soccer balls donated by folks from Atlee Church. Also picked up a Foosball table from a neighboring church.

Wrapped up the evening with another great meal at La Marquesa restaurant.

We Made It !

Just a quick note to let everyone know we made it.  A long day and night of traveling, but we are now in Cotacachi.  More later…

Travel to Ecuador

Day 1

Left the church at 9am for a 12:45pm flight from Richmond to Atlanta. Grabbed a late lunch while waiting for our flight from Atlanta to Quito. Our flight to Quito was about an hour late leaving (I´ve been told that DELTA stands for DELayed Through Atlanta).

After a 5.5 hour flight, arrived in Quito about 10:45pm and spent several hours clearing immigration and customs. Part of that time was spent tracking down one of our bags, which they suspect is still in Atlanta. Hopefully, they will deliver it to us within 24-48 hours.

Cotacachi was a 2-hour bus ride from Quito, and we arrived at Amigos en Cristo church about 3:15am. In bed by 4am, and the roosters had us awake at 6am. A little tired as you might imagine.

Green Team View Photo Album Play Slideshow

Gonna Take You Higher

One of the challenges the team faces in Ecuador is higher altitudes. We leave Friday from Richmond at an altitude of 157 feet (48 meters) and arrive later that evening in Quito at an altitude of 9350 feet or about 1.8 miles (2850 meters).

Abrupt changes in elevation sometimes have ill effects on travelers, known as altitude sickness. Symptoms include insomnia, headache, tiredness, nausea, dizziness, and shortness of breath.  In most cases, this can be remedied by drinking lots of water, getting lots of rest, and taking aspirin. For severe cases, there is a drug called Diamox that increases oxygen profusion. Diamox (or its equivalent) is available in Quito pharmacies.

Here are the various elevations during our trip:

• Richmond = 157 ft (48 m)
• Quito = 9350 ft (2850 m)
• Cotacachi = 7824 ft (2384 m)
• Ibarra = 9990 ft (3044 m)
• Lita = 1975 ft (601 m)

Luckily, we will have a day or two to adjust to the higher elevations before the work starts.