Glory a Dios- Plans Change

With now 3 weeks behind me, I am now starting to feel settled...

Last Friday, I was just wandering around the city not too far from Plaza de San Pedro and I found a Christian book store. I was looking at the children´s books and attempting to speak with the sales people. With the little Spanish I know, I was able to communicate my purpose for traveling Bolivia and Peru, and I was very excited to discover they could understand me. I also met a pastor of a nearby church who invited me to visit on Sunday.

Sunday I visted the church, Iglesia Evangelica Rey De Reyes. The Pastor approached the front with some announcements which is when I recognized my name. He introduced me as Ariel from Boston and asked me to stand and say something. I stood up, turned around and saw 20 or so faces starring at me. I could feel my face turning red as I started to speak. I said that I speak only a little Spanish, that I am happy to be here, and concluded with Glory a Dios (which got a group response).

A projector displayed the words to the songs that played on a stereo. Although I could only make out some of the words, by the 3rd song, I was struggling to hold back tears. My teary eyes and I were not alone in this small space.

As a band set up, a man came over to sit beside me. He introduced himself as Ron (in English). It turns out that Ron and his wife, Ronda are missionaries who moved to La Paz 10 months ago with their son after visiting in 2008. After meeting the pastor during their visit, they kept in touch and the church was started on the first day of Ron and his family´s arrival back to La Paz in September of 2009. It also turns out that when Ron and his family first came to La Paz in 2008, they stayed with the same family that I am currently staying with. Now if that is not the providence of God then I dont know what is!

The band was amazing. A group of 6 talented guys singing folk music with a Christian twist. They had a CD for sale, and yes I did purchase it for a whole 10 Bolivianos ($1.50). After the music, one of the head Pastors approached the front to give a message. I attemped to follow along with my English Bible, but I would be lying if I said I understood everything he was saying. Thankfully, Ron leaned over a few times to clue me in. There is a great lack of education around the Bible in Bolivia. The best Seminary is in Ecuador which is much too far for the vas majority of Bolivians to travel to.

3 hours later, the church service ended. I am looking forward to meeting with Ron and his family later in the week.

FORK IN THE ROAD

It has become crystal clear to me how I am part of something so much larger and that my plans may not align with what God has planned for me.

All this time I was planning on leaving Bolivia and heading for Peru August 8th, after visiting Amistad Orphanage in Cochabamba. Well... after re-assessing my budget and purpose for this trip... I have decided to return to La Paz on the 8th and stay.

I had always been questioning my intinerary to Peru, mostly because I never actually had one... Yeah, it turns out I was a lot less planned and scheduled for coming to a foreign country for the first time then I am duing my daily life in Seattle- Go figure! Then after meeting Don and the amazing people who make up the small but mighty church I stumbled upon, more questions started swarming in my head. This morning, I emailed the orphanage in Trujillo, Peru briefly stating my uncertainty about traveling there.

An hour ago, I checked my email not before briefing myself first... I said to my roommate next to me, ¨I dont even know what I am hoping to see in my email... a message from God, Ariel do this...¨ I proceeded to enter my password and enter my email page to see a response from the orphanage. The email read that my cancelation may have worked out for the best because the onsite volunteer coordinator has to return to the US in August, but to keep in touch and they would love to have me another time.

So that is it! I am sticking around here in Bolivia and I believe it is for the best. I am excited to speak more with Ron and find out how I can help be a part of some of the projects he is doing.

Unpredictable Titicaca

The story begins on a chilly Saturday morning. I had to meet Iris, my coordinator, and the 5 other volunteers down the street at Plaza Avaroa at 7am. We jumped in taxis and headed to El Alto (the highest town in La Paz to catch our bus. 2 hours and lots of shivers later we arrive to the lake but we need to cross over to the other side in order to reach our destination.

This is the scary part, we packed on this boat until the weight of the passengers lowers the boat to the maximum with out the waves splashing over. It is a short distance, we can see the other side but about 3/4th of the way over, Iris decides to announce how there is no coast guard or lifeguards so if boats tip, usually the passengers all die (the lake is freezing). For a total of 8min. yes, I was a bit worried but I sang songs to ease the anxiety for us all ¨Jesus loves the little children¨- my personal favorite. On the other side we wait for our bus to cross the lake on a barge (sp?). Our bus makes it across safely and we proceed on to our destination. For about 20 minutes the bus is driving along side the edge of cliffs that overlook the lake... quite amazing and a little terrifying.

Woohoo we arrive on the other side of the pennisula- Hola Copacabana! (this is not the Copacabana which is sung about.. that is in Brazil). Interesting tourist town that holds a lot of tradition and culture. There is a beautiful church which is the center of the town. Not only do tourists come country to come be blessed here. They drive their brand new cars to the town, decorate them with all sorts of adornments and wait as a Priest blesses their car with safety and no problems. Beer is shaken up and poured all over and sometimes fireworks are lit in celebration of the blessing.


There is also a sacred walk up stone steps that eventually lead up a mountain which overlooks the lake. The walk is suppose to be one of reflection and traditionally you are to carry a large stone representing your sin which you then discard when you reach the top. Along the trail are crosses and at the top are several large crosses with places to burn candleto see the famous site, but Bolivians travel from all over the s. Children sit at the top for the entire day selling candles which are different colors representing different things such as health, wealth...

We were planning on crossing the lake to visit the Isle de Sol, but the wind and wavy waters led to cancelation of all boat crossing. It is 1 1/2 hours across and on the same small, shaky boat as before so I was not terribly disapointed although I hear there are some interesting things on the island including Incan steps. We also found out that we were the last bus to be let across the lake due to the dangerous conditions. So no visiting the island this time around.

After an unevenful evening in our freezing, no water running hostel.. we ventured over to the market to an indoor hotspot where all the traditional breakfast goodies were cooking. It was very crowded, but we managed to snag a table for the 7 of us. We drank Api (a traditional purple corn drink) and enjoyed a plate of fried dough topped with honey as well as a large puff like pastry that includes a tiny morsal of cheese in the center.

After breakfast we found out that no boats were being allowed to cross the lake therefore we could not cross back over... hmm only one way out of this pennisula- PERU! So the plan emerged that we would cross over the Peruvian border only to cross right back into Bolivia and then proceed onto La Paz that way. However, 2 of the volunteers did not have their passports present so 4 of us ventured home, while Iris and the 2 gals stayed another night in Copacabana.

We begun our journey home at noon. We took a mini bus to the Bolivian border, filled out paper work at the immigration office had our passport stamped, walked across entered into another office filled out more paperwork and had our passport stamped again. We then took another mini bus to the Peru border where we filled out more paper work, had our passport stamped and walked across. We entered into the immigration office on the other side filled out our 4th and final paperwork and waited to have our passport stamped. BUT after looking at our passports, the police claimed they could not let us enter. Apparently one cannot leave and re-enter a country on the same day. The police wanted us to go back to Peru and spend a night there, but we had already had our departure stamp from Peru. So after my counterparts argued in Spanish and gave the ¨we have to be back so we can volunteer at the orphanage in the morning¨the police decided to stamp our passports and send us on our way.

After negotiating with a taxi driver, we were on our way back to La Paz! I was home sweet home in Sopocachi 5 hours later.

Dear Peru, I will see you again in 3 weeks, until then thank you for the short visit. (View of Lake Titicaca- The Pennisula on Bolivia´s border and Peru in the distance).

Breaking language boundaries

Like I may have mentioned previously, I am staying at a house in Sopocachi, La Paz with a Bolivian family who host foreigners. The house is very nice and quite large. We all have our own rooms and there is a terace that has a great view (Also great for drying clothes). Amy is a speech therapist from Philadelphia who came to Bolivia to study Spanish and volunteer. Sharon is a recently retired Spanish teacher who came to Bolivia to improve her Spanish and have the travel experience. I am the only one who is volunteering through Reach Bolivia although, after describing my volunteer work, Amy has joined in with helping at the hospital. She is going to try to improve some of the children´s speech because so many of them struggle to communicate verbally. Sharon is interested in visiting the hospital and hopefully the 3 of us can paint the 3rd floor which is in serious need of color.

Every day is different at the hospital. When I arrive, I walk up to the 2nd floor and wait to be let in (there is a locked gate and there is one individual with a key, usually a child that was put in charge for the day). I am greeted by several children. There is one girl who follows me trying to tickle me, a boy who grabs my arm and escorts me and lots of hugs and sometimes kisses on the cheek. There is a set list of patients I am suppose to be working with daily, however, it is not so easy tracking them down. They could be wandering the 2nd floor, outside (although this seems rare) or not at the hospital at all (visiting with family etc.). Because of my limited Spanish, if I ask where a child is and receive an answer that includes something other than a finger pointing to a room, I nod and start looking for the next child. I wonder what the nurses think of me sometimes... the blond girl with the bag of art supplies and the same 3 Spanish phrases...

Yesterday, I was happy to enter Monica´s room. She is a 35 year old woman with cerebral paralysis who has been living at the hospital for the last 25 years. Every time I knock and open her door, she is there- in her wheel chair, infront of the tv watching a soap opera. I greet her and take out some paper, finger paint and crayons. She turns down the volumn of the tv and rolls over to the card table where I am. Initially she would wait for me to start coloring and then she would follow mimicking my symbols. Now she dips her finger in the paint and begins pressing the color onto the paper. She looks over at me after each mark she makes. I start to make a flower and ask for her help. She adds some petals and smiles. Next I take a new piece of paper and lay out crayons. Monica begins to draw a face and I see real intent behind her eyes as she makes each mark delibrately. I point and ask who. She pulls out an album of photos, one with two men. Monica is not very verbal, instead she uses gestures to communicate. She points to one of the men in the photo and makes a sound. Then she takes out a letter and hands it to me. It is a letter made to her from her brother, they have the same last name. I gather that the two men in the photo are her brothers. I ask who the woman in the photo is and she points to her ring finger and then to my ring, his wife I assume. I smile and thank her for showing me and she continues with drawing herself next. I hand her the pink crayon and pint to my lips and then her. She smiles and adds a pink mouth. She writes her name and her brother´s. Then continues drawing her 2nd brother and adding his name. When she is finished I pick up the paper and move it to the wall asking ¨aqui? (here)¨ She shakes her head, makes a noise and points to a different place. I move the drawing, ¨aqui?¨ I say and look for her approval. She smiles and nods. I tape it to the wall. I know this picture is important to her. The others she has created she wanted me to keep.

I know my time here is meaninful. Witnessing the circumstances at the hospital can lead me to feeling hopeless at times but I know that I am a small part of something much larger.

Art Therapy in the works at a Children´s Hospital in Bolivia

So, I volunteer at an impoverished children´s hospital daily. This week, being my first, has been one of observation, evaluation, and introduction. I was placed here to do art with the children, but there are a lot of children there as you can imagine. Initially I was helping with the infants, interacting with them since the only stimulation they get is from staring at the tv that remains on at all times. They have very few toys and they all have some mental disability and or physical disability. I also help feed them lunch.

Because the children are so young and for the most part unable to participate in art activities, I have been seeking out the older children. The doctor and I decided on 8 patients ages 13 to 20 and one 35yr old, that I will plan to work with individually as I see fit. Wednesday I began my ¨evaluations¨of them where I basically asked them to complete several tasks to get an idea of what their art making capabilities are. This means I need to communicate these tasks in Spanish... draw a circle, rectangle, triangle... do your name, paint, look (I take out watercolors and demonstrate the process of wetting the brush and aquiring the paint). Then we move onto finger paints where I demontrate again and finally modeling clay.

For the most part, all of the patients did excellently. They express joy when using the materials. I did make a note that severl of the patients did not take direction from me well. I would ask them something and they would not do it. Upon speaking with Amy about my directions, it turns out that I was not totally clear seeing as I was pronoucing some things totally wrong. Amy replied ¨those poor children!¨Where I thought they were not taking direction well.. in actuality I was not giving direction well! Well.. thats what happens when you ask a minimal spanish speaking girl to evaluate.

Today Iris came to the hospital to help me look through the medical records of the 8 patients and translate for me so I could have a better understanding of their challenges. I was not too surprised but even so, hearing that a child was abandoned and has been living at the hospital for the last 14 years is heartbreaking. My oldest patient has been living at the hospital since 1985 (the year I was born!). Several of the patients have Cerebral Palsy where they are unable to use the bottom half of their body. One is restrained to a bed, another to a wheel chair. One has an ¨organic personality disorder¨as result of having a concussion at an early age. One girl has ¨organic psychosis¨due to epilepsy. For example, she believes God is punishing her and she hears the devil tell her she is going to have a seizure before it happens. While hearing this record being read to me, I just kept thinking of God´s grace and how I hope I can be a vehicle for it. It did not come as surprise to me that one of the boys has behavior problems, but I learned today that he has an ¨organic mental disorder¨caused by a brain lesion. A previous evaluation in his record stated that he ¨thinks in images.¨ HELLO ART THERAPY! In more than one record, a note was made of art (music, dance, visual) that the client has engaged in.

So more than making the diagnoses, the doctors who created these records gave me a deeper inside to these individuals. And, for the most part, they noted how ART THERAPY could be beneficial to them. So this is where I come in. I am motivated, eager, and of course a little nervous about my 3 weeks doing art with these 8 amazing individuals. I know they will have a lot to teach me as God is already teaching me so much through this experience.

Day 3- Transportation

Today I had my first huge accomplishment (besides surviving the whole getting to Bolivia thing) I traveled by myself to the children´s hospital (my work). This was huge! I walk down a street which is cobblestone and steep down down to a main road where I stand on a corner and wait for the public transportation. The public transportation is comprised of mini bus and Trofi (car). They have signs on the windshield which say where the vehicles are going. I look for Oborajes (sp?) to take me to the hospital. As they approach me, a person, usually a child, holds open the door and yells out the names of the destinations. I nod or wave my arm and hop in the car quickly as it leaves. I pay the designated amount when we head down the hill, $2 bolivianos (7 Bolivianos = $1). When we reach my destination I yell ¨Abajo!¨ which means ¨down¨and the car pulls over and I hop out. There are no bus stops so yes it is quite chaotic! So after being very impressed with myself for making it to my work solo I had some difficulty getting back.

One of my housemates, Amy, was suppose to be meeting me at work.. however after an hour of waiting I got impatient and decided I would just go home. After standing on the street for 10min. waiting for a trophy or mini bus and not seeing ¨Oborajes¨I realized that of course I would not see that because I was currently in Oborajes and what I needed was to get home... of course, I forgot the name of the area in which I live. I decided to call my coordinator who I had to convince her I did not need her assistance. As I tried to call my coordinator using my new Bolivian number, instead of hearing a ring tone, I was greeted with some woman speaking spanish... ahuh sooo I must be out of minutes. So I wandered around, found a kiosk that sells minute cards and managed enough spanish to purchase a card. OH but then there was the getting the minute credit from the card to my phone! soooooo as I paced back and forth staring at this card in one hand and my phone in the other hand, I looked up and saw Amy walking toward me on the opposite side of the street. THANK YOU GOD! Glory a Dios! Together we figured it out and continued for an adventurous day.

The first photo is the view from across the street from where I live. The 2nd is the mini bus and the 3rd is me with the traffic zebra which is Bolivia´s solution to the traffic problem in La Paz.

HERE at last

I am here in La Paz, Bolivia. The highest elevated city in the world!
I flew yesterday from Boston to DC, then to Miami and then finally to La Paz. We had a bit of a delay so I did not arrive until 10:30ish pm. I sat next to a very friendly woman on the plane who is from La Paz but was visiting her son in New Jersey. She also speaks fluent English. 6 hours later we arrived and I had to go through customs and get a visa etc. Difficult when no one speaks English but I managed to skirt by on the few phrases I know- "I do not understand" was a huge one! After all that I walked through a sliding door and saw people waiting for their loved ones. Then I saw a man holding a sign with my name on it. I approached him and he took me to his taxi. This was very movie (esk). He picked up his cell phone dialed a number, said a few words in Spanish and then handed the phone to me. "Hello! welcome! How are you?" it was the voice of the woman coordinator that I had been emailing back and forth. So nice to here her voice- it made the whole scenario a lot more comfortable. She told me that the driver was taking me to my home- Casa de Gloria. And that she would pick me up in the morning at 10am to take me to the hospital where I would be working. We arrived to Gloria's house and I was greeted and shown my room. The house is very spread out.. many rooms and steps here and there and windows and plants growing. I will post photos soon. I was brought some coca tea (sp?) to help with the altitude.
In the morning I woke up to my phone alarm 8ish and walked to follow the voices in conversation. I approached the kitchen and was greeted by three other foreigners. One older woman who was a previous professor of Spanish in Maryland who arrived on Friday. One gal about my age who is studying Speech Therapy in philadelphia who also arrived Friday and another gal who had been there for a couple weeks. Everyone was so friendly. Speaking Spanish and helping one another with the language. I was given a bannana with yogurt and some yummy bread with a variety of spreads and more coca tea. These women are not in La Paz to study and volunteer as well but through different organizations. I am the only one who networked through REACH BOLIVIA and the founder- Iris.
Quickly I changed my clothes and sat to do some journaling. Then Iris (the coordinator/ founder) came and brought me to the orphan home and then hospital. I dont know if I can even describe the hospital and children. They are in need of a lot and there is not a lot being given to them. First I met with the doctor who met with me about art therapy. I then went to meet the "adults" who are children ages 13-18 who have mental disabilities and some physical. I was immediately approached by one girl who hugged me and would not let go and then another and another. Within 30seconds I had 3 children all around me. They have such little stimulus while at the hospital that they just attack people when they see them. The doctor has agreed to set aside 7 of the 14 children who are more able for me to work with. Tomorrow I will see them in groups of 2 and observe their motor skills to identify what art media/ projects could be beneficial.
Next we went to see the younger children. These children have SEVERE disabilities. From severe autism to lack of movement in 2 or more of their limbs. One of the girls also in the program with me plays with the children, Christine. There is so much to write about my experience with them for that 2 hours- it is overwhelming and very sad. I will maybe write more about this another day.
At 2 Iris took me for lunch and we talked about the plan for my time here. She then took me to get a phone card so I have a bolivian number now! If you dont mind the fee, feel free to call me- 011-591-79582441

Now I am at her office, where she is giving Spanish lessons. I begin my lessons next week. The two girls having lessons today are the other two in my program. They are both studying Fashion design, one from Paris and the other from Canada. She let me use this computer. Then she will take me home where I will most likely pass out. There is just so much to take in- I am very tired. Tomorrow morning, Iris will pick me up at 8:15am and take me back to the hospital where I can start my evaluations of the "adult children". Then lunch and soccer watching with the other 3 girls and then Salsa dancing later that evening!

Okay, Iris is done- I must go.