Well the good news is that we had a great smooth trip to Uruguay. The bad news is that means I don't have any really fun stories to tell. :)
We met at the Teague Center around 9 and loaded 47 people and all their stuff (somewhere between 150 and 200 bags if you count carry-ons and personal items) on a charter bus. Dr. VanRheenan prayed over us us. Sandy made sure the appropriate pictures were taken. :) And off we went.
We arrived at the airport around 1. This is really only significant because our flight didn't leave until 7:30. (The Oxford's group had a flight at 4:30.) After we all were successfully checked in and through security we went to find something to eat. Then we spent the rest of the afternoon taking turns watching the luggage and wandering around the airport doing exciting things like riding the tram the whole circuit. Actually the time went faster than I expected. I guess a rousing game of Nerts will do that. Before we knew it 7 arrived, of course our plane hadn't yet, so we left a few minutes late, but nothing that was concerning.
The flight was uneventful. I got two seats together to myself, so I could get semi-comfortable, so I slept most of the time. The only interesting thing that happened was that they were showing a movie that got stuck on the face of a little girl crying. That picture kept popping up on the screen at weird times, like during the descent and landing. That was a bit like something out of a horror movie. :)
The lay-over in Argentina was a few hours and wasn't too bad. We left there late too. We arrived in Uruguay around 12:30 Uruguayan time (10:30 CDT) 24 1/2 hours after we left Abilene.
Rhonda was there to greet us. We loaded up all our luggage (something like 1400 lbs of it) got on the bus and headed to CasaACU. The weather was gorgeous. We stopped at a look out spot where we could see Montevideo, had a prayer, and of course took a group pictures, including the one on this blog.
Once we arrived at CasaACU around 2, we ate lunch, which was oh so yummy, cleaned up, and got ready for our walking tour. Rhonda took us around the neighborhood to show us important things like the ATMs, grocery stores, and gyms. When we got back to la Casa we had an hour or so to unpack, rest, and get ready for church.
The church here has its midweek meeting on Thursdays. I didn't understand much, but it was nice to visit with brothers and sisters from another country. After the meeting we had cake, because it was one of the members birthdays.
Afterwards we went to dinner early on Uruguayan time (8:30 PM). I had been told that Uruguayans like there meat, and I believe it. I had a Milanese Pollo, which was basically breaded chicken. The piece was as big as my plate. Several of Rhonda's friends joined us for dinner.
After dinner we finally headed home to crash for the night. I was glad to see my bed. I can't believe how smoothly the first 36 hours went. Our group did so well and I now feel much better about my job. :)
