Climb Every Mountain

Sunday morning started with a departure from the house at 8 AM. We were on our way to do the one thing I was waiting to do since signing up for the CCS program...visiting the llamas! I have no idea why I get such a kick out of these funny animals, but they crack me up! They just have a funny look on their face all the time, they're hysterical. So needless to say, even though I was not feeling 100%, I was so excited for this day!

We drove for about 2 hours into the Andes. Our first stop was near a very pretty waterfall. There were a few llamas hanging out around there. I only hiked half way up the hill to the waterfall. I just found it a little too hard to make it the whole way. But I was still able to take lots of pretty pictures, plus spend quality time with a few of the local llamas.

After the waterfall, we drove a bit further and stopped a few times to admire the scenery and the llamas. We stopped for lunch, and then headed out for the big trek. Mind you, I am not outdoorsy in any way, shape or form. So this was pretty adventurous of me! We walked for probably about 2 hours, through all sorts of different landscapes. We made it down some pretty steep rocks, marshy area, and open plains. There was definitely more than one time when I felt a little like the Fellowship of the Ring trekking through Middle Earth (yes, I really am that cool). I may or may not have been singing the Lord of the Rings theme in my head for portions of the day.

I won't lie, it was definitely a challenge. I had the added bonus of not really being able to breathe through my nose due to the headcold. We hiked to over 14,000 feet. I took my time and made it through. The open air seemed to do something for me. I felt very accomplished by the end, dispite my rather large headache. The bonus at the end was several large, open fields filled with llamas. We got pretty close to them, and they gave us the funniest looks. I took like 100 pictures of just the llamas.

I was very ready to go to bed early after such an action-packed day. I woke up this morning and still felt rather sick so I spoke with Marisol (who works for CCS) and she went to the pharmacy for me. They sell antibiotics over the counter here, so hopefully I will be able to kick this cold before I leave for Macchu Picchu. I went to the Wawa Wasi despite my stuffy nose. The little kids always have runny noses, so I figured I would just fit in! The kids are really starting to open up to me. Marco, who has been rather resistent to me, even let me feed him breakfast today. Hairo and Josef practically tackled me with hugs when we were outside playing. It made me happy that they felt more comfortable with me. We worked on some simple counting in English today. Basically, they just want to play though :o)

I decided after such a physical weekend, I really needed to rest this afternoon. I read and slept for a while. I even finished my second book since being here (for those of you who know me well, you know that actually finishing a book is quite a challenge for me!). And to top off the day, we just discovered Monday Night Football in Spanish on ESPN. I'm thrilled! This means that next Monday I will probably be able to actually watch the Ravens (come on guys, let's pull it together for that game. I mean, I'm cheering for you in South America for God's sake). Only a few days left with the CCS crew, which I find hard to believe. I am hoping to get to go to the orphange and the soup kitchen at least once before leaving. Alright, back to the game... :o)