Towers Peru Trip

We’re back! I’m very happy to report that all of us made it back to the USA safely.. and we even made all of our flights! Haha- more of that to come later.

I wanted to be sure and document our last day in Peru, since it was our tourism day in Lima! The wonderful Peru team took us to some of Lima’s highlights, and we loved getting to explore the city!

We arrived in time for lunch, and stopped at a cool outdoor mall called Larcomar. It is built on a cliff that overlooks the Pacific ocean. We shopped around there a bit (most of the stores there are expensive, and some are even USA-made). We ate in the food court (gelatto first of course), and several of us enjoyed some Peru-style Pizza Hut. There was also a cappuccino in there, but that joke might only be funny to us. I hope no one complains that I didn’t write the whole story in here.. (haha)

We then trekked over to a beautiful market, and Molly got to stop and pick up some of her favorite fruit! (I still have no clue what it is called, but it was pretty tasty!)

We had a full hour to spend at the market, and we were all on a mission! It was hilarious to see everyone partnered with a Peruvian racing around to different booths trying to find the perfect gift or souvenir!

Next we went to a cool park in the middle of the city, and (naturally) had a photo shoot. Thanks Anna.

Also in this park, we found a man who would draw your portrait for only 10 soleis. (about $4 US) Hannah signed up, and in no time at all there was a huge crowd gathered to stare at her. Jay, I hope this gem ends up with you.

By this time the sun was beginning to set, so we walked over a few blocks to a famous water park in Lima. We went there last year as well, but all the fountains are still amazing! There are hundreds of massive fountains all over the park, and they even project a light show with music on the main long fountains in the middle. It really is impressive!

We also got to walk through a fountain tunnel that was really cool! Here is a picture of Robby and I. “Fearless” leaders as I like to say. Little did we know the real adventure was to come..

Our flight was scheduled to leave at 11:50, so we drove straight to the airport. There were many more tearful goodbyes to the Peru team. It’s strange how fast we felt like family, even with a language barrier. We will keep praying for each of them, and never ever forget their love & hospitality.

Upon entering the Lima airport, all we could see were lines. We got in our delta line, expecting to be there for a while, but not rushed. No one had eaten dinner yet, since we had a big lunch and some snacks. After we finally checked in for our flight, we realized we actually did not have as much time as we thought.

We raced to the food court (outside security), and literally grabbed our pizza to scarf down while in line for security. I am sure we made great impressions on everyone.. We were still in a hurry, but even after passing through security we would make it just in time for the boarding call.

And THEN we saw the immigration line. Oh my. It was the longest line yet, and it was not moving! When traveling, sometimes you really can’t let these things stress you out, so we just said several prayers silently and in small groups that we would make it to our gate in time! Thankfully, a few of us made it through first, sprinted to the gate, and I stood and waited for everyone! Apparently the long lines had caught everyone off guard, because I also saw half the plane run in by me while I was waiting for the rest of the group.

Relief would be the word.. Of course then we sat on the tarmac for another hour before we took off, which backed up our time in Atlanta too! Thankfully, we did not hit any lines in customs or security in Atlanta, and the last person sprinted to the next gate for our connecting flight with only 3 minutes to spare! I’m glad we can laugh about this now!

What a trip! I am so incredibly grateful for each and every team member, both Pine Cove and CCI. The Lord proved Himself faithful and strong over and over again. Please continue to pray for the seeds that were planted this week, for continued discipleship with the campers, for more leadership development with CCI Peru, and for our Pine Cove staff as they process what the Lord taught them the past several days.

Here’s my favorite and fitting picture of us on the last day:

Yikes. So awkward. Love it.

Missing Peru already, -Chelsea

Our precious campers left yesterday. It was an emotional goodbye on both sides. We had a version of “camper share” before they got onto the bus, and it was incredibly encouraging to hear what they said.

It really is crazy to think how the Lord has worked in such a short time. I think I speak for everyone to say that we are so humbled to have had this opportunity to work with amazing people in a far away country, and to love on campers we knew nothing about.

Over and over yesterday we got to hear stories of how thankful the campers were for this week. The Peru team and the campers mentioned over and over how they are so grateful for our joy. They commented on our constant smiles and gracious attitudes.

Before they left we got to interview a couple of the campers to see what they thought of the camp. I encourage you to take a few minutes to hear just a small part of what the Lord has done this week.

Yesterday afternoon we spent a while debriefing from the camp, sharing stories with both staffs together. Again, it was so encouraging to hear stories of how the Lord worked this week!

Today has been a lot of debriefing as well. Don’t worry though, we have managed to squeeze in plenty of play time too! Last night after dinner turned into a giant arm-wrestling competition (who knew Hannah was so strong?), national championship-watch party (it’s still too soon), volleyball/dodgeball/four-square game inventions, trips to the beach, and plenty of quality time with the Peru staff.

It is becoming difficult for me to express all of what we have learned through a simple blog post. To think that we have formed such deep relationships with people that we can barely communicate with in just a few days is crazy. They have said thank you to us. They say they have learned a lot from us. The opposite is true. Life here is simple, genuine, and reverent.

To all the friends, family, and supporters, I strongly encourage you to ask your student on this trip what they are taking away. After hearing most of the answers this morning, there is a lot.

Tomorrow morning we will pack up our things and get on a bus for Lima for our tourism day! We are very excited to see all the fun sights the CCI staff have planned for us!

Our flight leaves Lima late tomorrow night, so it’s probably safe to assume I won’t be making another post. Parents, we are scheduled to land in Atlanta around 7 AM (eastern time) Thursday, so I’ll be sure to have everyone text or call when they land! If you want to check on us, our flight number is Delta 150. We’ll land at DFW (delta 2310) at 10:08 AM.

Much love again from all! We cannot thank you enough for this opportunity! Can’t wait to share even more in person.

Signing off with a picture of the 2012 always lovely & awkward program directors,

-Chelsea

Yes, at least half of the campers are older than us.

In fact, after I wrote that post the other day with the age range, we found out that Matt has a guy that is 35 in his cabin.. and he’s married! Haha he has been a great camper though! We joke that Matt has had to give him marriage advice..

Regardless, as Towers staffers, it is hard for us to imagine camp without buffalo hunt! We decided it was worth a try, so we played on the beach yesterday!

Here is Carlos in the middle of his “pump up” speech, and a buffalo attacked!

Girls looking fierce:

Moises, the camp program director, was prize buffalo. He was excited because he didn’t get to play last year!

We split up the campers in half, so we ended up having 6 rounds. One group would go, then another, repeat. Each group went 3 times each. No one got hurt, and the campers and counselors loved it!

Even Robby got in on the action! He did a bit of taunting.. and got attacked:

The dark sand was sticking to all of our sunscreen like glue!

After we played buffalo hunt, we just hung out on the beach for a while, which was so fun! The waves are massive so no one ever got in further than knee-deep, but we loved it! Matt and Jarrett decided to act out Baywatch for us all..

The girls decided that this sand and mud made great natural exfoliants. (With Katie and Angie)

The campers all begged Johnny to let them bury him. It didn’t take too much convincing, and they loved it!

We spent all afternoon at the beach, and after dinner we returned. The Peru staff planned a huge bonfire, and we all stood around the fire for hours enthusiastically singing all of their favorite songs. It was really fun, and everyone was engaged. Parents, be sure to ask your kids to show you the “conga song” when they get home!

It was a wonderful day! As I’m writing this, the campers are all packing up to leave soon. I cannot believe it. I am so glad we got to have so many days with them. We have loved getting to know them so well.

More updates to come; we have so many stories!

-Chelsea

Hola! Today is our last full day to have campers.. which is so crazy! Time flies when you’re having fun, eh?

There has been an ongoing joke since we’ve been here, and it all started with a huge pelican we saw on the beach our first day here.

As you can tell, it was huge! We joked about Johnny eating it, since he had just eaten a crab. We also spent a lot of time standing around staring at it.

The next morning, Molly and I went for a run on the beach, and we came across a giant lump in the sand. As we came closer, we realized it was the pelican from the day before, and it was dead. Worse than finding one dead pelican, we actually found two!

When we made it to breakfast, Ronnie, a CCI counselor, asked me if it was me on the beach this morning. Then he asked if I saw the dead pelican. When I nodded yes, he pointed to Carlos, another of the Peruvian counselors. Carlos joked that it was him who killed the pelican! Soon the the whole table was laughing.

Campers arrived later that day, and Carlos proceeded to tell his campers how he had fooled us into thinking 1) he had killed the pelican, and 2) that I was not eating chicken for lunch, but that pelican. The guy campers thought it was hilarious, and kept telling me and everyone that we were eating pelican.

For an activity class, we have been having a couple cabins at a time go down to the beach and pick up trash. Guess what Clayton and Carlos’s guys came back with?

None other than the dead pelican in this bag. They seriously have laughed and laughed! Again, boys will be boys..

As a Year 2 trip, we plan for the CCI staff and Pine Cove staff to have an equal partnership. Last year we planned the whole schedule, every night activity, and how long everything would last. This year, the CCI staff formed most of the schedule before we arrived. This includes having morning Bible studies that last for 2 hours. Surprisingly to us, none of the campers have even grown restless. Impressive attention spans!

It has also included their planning of most of the night activities. Last night instead of a crazy game, we had a night walk. Their staff had set up stations for the campers to walk through, each with a truth and a lie. We concluded with a long worship service. The whole evening was very impactful. It has been so neat to see the Peruvian staff step up and run a camp in an effective way! We have been very encouraged.

Speaking of partnerships, I have to mention how close Matt has become with his co-counselor, Ronnie. I asked Ronnie to take a picture with his “best friend,” but Ronnie said “no, brothers!” Love it!

Keep praying for everyone’s continued health and energy! Camp is already physically exhausting, but here we add in the mental strain of Spanish immersion. Still, we are thankful to come to a place where we can only rely on the Lord for our strength.

Love to all!

As I mentioned before, we had an AWESOME talent show last night. It was the best. They all took it really seriously. After seeing them practice before and after dinner, I was very excited to see what they came up with.

We had the talent show after club, in a room on the campsite. During dinner, we noticed that suddenly camp had tons of energy! It was loud with cheers even during the meal, and club was crazy too!

Each cabin performed something different. I took tons of pictures of course, and picked some favorites.. Here is Nick with his cabin. They did a beautiful drama, of picking Jesus above all other gods. (Business, money, fame, studies, popularity, strength, etc.) I teared up a bit!

All of the skits or musical performances had a spiritual lesson. All of them were the campers’ ideas, and they were really excited to perform for the crowd!

Below is Hannah’s cabin, who acted out David and Goliath. David even had “sheep” (other campers with white towels over their heads) come out to show him when he was a shepherd. They picked Hannah to be Goliath (hilarious!), and she played her part very well! Here is a picture of her terrifying the other Hebrew soldiers. David soon shows up to save the day, and later “cut off her head.”

In another skit, Matt’s cabin acted out the Good Samaritan. The Peruvians love Matt; consistently commenting on his height since he is at least a head and a half taller than everyone! They picked him to be the Good Samaritan, so here he is stopping to help.

Besides acting out Bible stories, several groups performed a song. Reese’s cabin sang and had a choreographed dance by Marivel (front & center in the orange), and Reese played and led the song (in Spanish!) They sang a common praise song that we sing at club occasionally. I loved seeing the girls really get into it!

Naturally, we decided the Pine Cove staff needed to perform as well. There isn’t a sound system here, and the room echos like crazy, but we figured if we stuck the megaphone up to Robby’s computer and played “Soldiers,” it would work. Haha- the music was nearly impossible to hear, and our line dance was met with blank stares at those “crazy Americans.” It was hilarious. I’m sure they loved it..

Yesterday was an excellent day of camp. For the most part, the campers are truly excited to try everything and to participate. They loved the the talent show, and loved cheering for their peers. So many people were taking pictures of each act it looked like the paparazzi were present!

The people here are so genuine. Clayton’s cabin (below, with the Spirit stick), have already begun teaching him the native Peruvian language, Quechua. I laughed this morning as his campers were teaching him “insults” in Quechua and Spanish to tell Matt. Matt would then turn to his campers to come up with something better. Boys will be boys..

Happy Saturday! Love & hugs from all!

-Chelsea

Howdy!

Oh my- where to begin? Since the last update, we have explored the beach

While at the beach we found hundreds, possibly thousands of crabs along the sand, and also spotted dolphins swimming in the waves!

After the beach, we began our orientation with the Peru CCI staff. We went through a “Commission Camping Way,” which is similar to “the Way” we go through at Pine Cove Orientation each May that explains the philosophy behind the way we do camp.

This morning the campers arrived before lunch, so we got to do cabin assignments! It was fun to see the national staff get into the fun too!

While we were waiting for the campers to arrive, we taught the Peruvians how to play Spikeball! (Thanks to Nick who brought it along!) They loved it so much we decided to make it an activity class for the campers. I am happy to report they caught on quickly, and we have some real competition on our hands.

We knew going into this trip that the campers would be older than elementary age, which is what we are used to at the Towers, and is also the age group we had last year in Peru. As it turns out, the campers are between the ages of 11-27. They are all from the same youth/young adult group at a church in Lima. We were a little nervous about how it would work with older campers, but so far it has been wonderful! They are all eager to try new games and very excited to be here.

We loved getting to model to the CCI team how to show enthusiasm upon their arrival, and it was well-received.

Immediately after we helped unload the luggage, we played a few icebreakers, led by the CCI director Moises, and then we announced cabins for the campers.

We started our first round of activity classes this afternoon, and were impressed with how excited the campers were to do archery, ultimate frisbee, futbol, parachute games, volleyball, and many more.

Our team is doing great; we have all agreed that we have the best group of people together! Everyone has been very flexible & joyful, even when things change or don’t go according to plan. Jarrett and Molly have been a huge help translating constantly for everyone, even though I think their brains are getting pretty fried..

Much love again from all of us! More pictures & an update tomorrow!

We made it!

After almost a full 24 hours of driving, flying, & layovers, I am happy to report we are safely in Peru! We landed in Lima last night around 10:30 PM (it’s eastern time zone here), and were grateful to easily pass through customs and pick up all of our luggage!

We were picked up from the airport by a few of the CCI leaders here: Ana, Moises, Antony, and another Ana. After a joyful reunion, we hopped on a bus and made the 2 hour drive to our lovely camp down the coast, arriving around 2:30 AM.

This morning the CCI staff had some more training to do, so we were free to sleep in (!!!), and we did not have to report anywhere until lunch. We will start our Orientation with both teams together this afternoon, and have cabin assignments after dinner.

For now, we are enjoying the sound of the ocean waves (only a few hundred feet from our cabins), 78 degree weather, and many familiar faces from last year’s Peru trip! All of us are busy getting into Spanish mode again, which means a lot of laughter mixed in with our conversations! At lunch one of our new friends asked me if I had “email.” With the accent and our broken English/Spanish, Nick and I both thought she said “a male.” I responded, “no, no novio..” We all burst out laughing when we realized our mistake!

The guys are gearing up to play the Peruvians in futbol (soccer), and I can see a frisbee game going on out the window currently. Thanks so much for all your prayers! We are overjoyed to be here & thankful for the opportunity to form relationships here to further the Kingdom of Christ. Our campers arrive tomorrow!

Much love from all!

-Chelsea