Yunguilla

My friend, Diana, invited me to her family reunion at her family's vacation home in Yunguilla. Yunguilla is about an hour outside of Cuenca, in a valley surrounded by the Andes mountains. It was a beautiful place and very fun to meet people, play soccer, be in warmer weather, and eat authentic Ecuadorian food for the weekend.


Here I am with Diana (next to me) and one of her cousins. Notice the [HUGE] mountain in the back yard...pictures can't explain it!





















Sorry about all of the food pictures...I just love food.

This is a plantain stuffed with cheese ... (Hmm, interesting).



Yummy fish and yucca soup.

Kids make me laugh

Here are some funny things the children at La Fundacion Clif have said to me:

"Why is your hair white? Why is your skin white? Is everyone in the United States like that?"

"What are the United States like?....is there ice cream?"

"Where is your mom? ...Whats her name? ...Does she have a husband?" (I thought that question was interesting/sad)

One little boy would say "Oyga! Oyga!" (which means "listen") to get my attention when he needed help with his home work. The other children would all say in unison, "Her name isn't Oyga...Its SARA!"

One little girl, when erasing an incorrect math problem or incorrect spelling, says "Adios, nice to know you" to what she's erasing. When writing the correct word or letter she says, "Hola, its nice to meet you!"

Pray for these kids, that they will know how much Jesus loves them.

Fundacion Clif

Every afternoon I tutor kids in the Fundacion Clif. It is an organization to help "latch-key" children with their homework and also emotional and spiritual growth. The foundation also includes classes for parents to help the whole family grow. Most of the children have been abused in some way. Bolivar Ramon began this ministry and he and his wife and 3 kids have adopted me into their family. His wife, Ximena, homeschools their children and I have begun to help her in the mornings with their English lessons. Please pray for the Fundacion Clif as it no longer has funds to give the children a meal. Please also pray for the Ramon family, as Ximena homeschools her children and for Bolivar; that God would open doors for his ministries and for them to be blessed.

My suitcase finally came!

I'm so happy to get it!


And this is the first picture of me to prove I'm actually here :)















I was really happy to finally get my clothes.



















And I really missed my green tea.


















My room is starting to look like a room! Here is my "desk." Notice that I now have SHOES! (In the basket)













This is the extent of my room decorations.

First Pictures Woo!

Guayaquil from my hotel room the night after arriving






























































A blurry picture of the Andes Mountains on the van ride from Guayaquil to Cuenca. The fog made it so I could barely see :(













The view from my apartment of Cuenca


























The Gaithers!









First Ecuadorian Meal!

This is some sort of caramel dessert. Sue wanted her hand to be in this picture so it would be famous :)











Carne asada, vegetables and rice, Hmmm











Hominy, beans and sausage soup, soo good!
This 3 course meal was $2.50

Cuenca, Ecuador

Leaving for Ecuador tomorrow and will be back on August 16th! I will try to post pictures and updates.

Pray for me!