Calle 5 #14-32
La Mesa, Colombia
aaronlaurak@gmail.com
Time with Family
Dear family and friends,
It's been over a week since Aaron's parents left for the States, and we figured it was about time to write about our wonderful vacation with them.
Rainbows and Forbidden Photos: Seeing Bogotá
After 10 months of not seeing family, the wait at the international gate at El Dorado airport on July 3rd seemed excruciatingly long as we strained for a glimpse of Dennis and Rose. Abby fell asleep in my arms as the excited crowd grew larger by the minute. Finally, an hour after landing, they walked through security and we were so joyful and relieved to see them here safe and sound!
We spent the first evening relaxing together and unpacking a large suitcase full of goodies. Abby especially loved paging through new books with Grandpa, jamming her fingers into play-doh, figuring out Legos, and ripping off her clothes to try on all the beautiful new outfits from Pennsylvania! After an hour with the Grandparents, she was warmed up and acting like her playful self with them.
The next morning we prepared to see the sights of Bogotá. With Abby in the backpack, we explored the famous Gold Museum - chock full of beautifully wrought gold made by indigenous groups living in Colombia before the Spanish arrived. We were reminded of the rich cultures that existed here thousands of years before it was "discovered" by Europeans.
After dazzling our eyes with more gold than we'd ever seen in one place, we browsed through an artisan market, admiring jewelry and colorful textiles. Then we set our sights on Monserrate, a steep mountainside jutting up from the city, with a Catholic cathedral perched on top. Instead of making the long and arduous (and free) hike to the top, we paid to be effortlessly whisked up in an efficient, Swiss- designed cable car. We enjoyed the breathtaking view of Bogota below us - the massive, sprawling city filling up most of the plain, bordered by huge mountains. We had our lunch on top of Monserrate in a French restaurant, and it was by far the nicest place we've eaten since coming to Colombia. The combination of fresh flowers, candles, lovely piano music, amazing vistas, and the company of Mom and Dad Kauffman made that time together seem golden. We felt like we were extra-blessed when, after lunch, we saw a brilliant double rainbow extend over Monserrate.
After descending back to the city, we went to the historic section, Plaza de Bolivar. It's the equivalent of Washington D.C.'s Mall area, with the Senate and Courthouse and a block away, the Presidential residence. Abby delightedly ran through hundreds of pigeons, and eventually we walked by the President's house. A guard told Dennis not to take a photo of the place, but it was too late - he already had! Thankfully they didn't confiscate the camera, and we just walked away, trying to be inconspicuous. :)
Keep Your Hand On the Plow: La Mesa
The next day we filled the baggage hold of a bus headed to La Mesa with our big suitcases, and introduced Dennis and Rose to the winding journey to La Mesa. It felt so good to finally show family members our home, our yard, and our pets. We spent some relaxing days together around the house, taking a scenic hike and introducing Dennis and Rose to our friends in La Mesa. We spent one night playing Dutch Blitz with Ruth Daza, who got to show off her amazingly fast reflexes. A highlight was spending an evening at Martîn and Elsy's place, eating LOTS of empanadas and pinchos (like shish kabobs).
Saturday Aaron and I shared with and MMN Youth Venture group that was spending a few days in La Mesa. We enjoyed telling about our experience here so far and fielding questions. I think they liked having a presentation in English! While we were up front, Aaron invited them over to our place for lunch, then looked over and asked me if it was ok! (We talked later how its best to go in the other order) They piped up and said they had been craving Sloppy Joes and Mac and Cheese, which are easy enough to prepare. So Rose and I got busy in the kitchen, and ended having a wonderful lunch with the Youth Venture group.
Sunday morning Dennis and Aaron shared a mini-sermon in the form of a conversation between father and son. They posed the question of what to do when we doubt our calling, and looked to Jesus' saying about "keeping our hand on the plow," and the life of Menno Simons, to find the answer. They did a great job, and it seemed a timely message for both Martín's family, as they contemplate their next steps after pastoring in La Mesa for 9 years, and the Youth Venture participants, many of whom are discerning their own call to mission and service work.
Pirates and Postcard Beaches: Cartagena
We watched the World Cup final in the Bogota airport, hearing the gasps and cheers with each penalty shot. Abby also discovered the joy of escalators, so we passed lots of time together gliding up and down.
When we landed in Cartagena, the warm, moist, salty air hit our faces, and we could immediately tell we weren't in the high Andes anymore! The Spanish rolled at a faster cadence and we had to strain to decipher the consonants. Our excitement mounted as we drove along the 500 yr. old wall built to protect the city from invading pirates and saw the castle/fortress dramatically lit up against the night sky. We settled into our hotel for the week "Hostal de Las Palmas" - a very attractive colonial spanish - style place with lovely courtyards and a small pool that Abby adored.
We devoted Monday to exploring the beautifully maintained historical district of Cartagena. We browsed shops and enjoyed feasting our eyes on the colorful, picturesque streets, looking at waterfalls of flowers hanging over balconies, stately arches and doorways and brightly painted homes and storefronts and restaurants. I've never seen a larger or better - kept historic district of a Latin American city. It reminded me of restored sections of old-town Havana, for those of you who've been there. I could go on and on about how beautiful it all was and still will feel like I haven't done it justice. We have some photos on our website.
The heat is very intense in Cartagena (being a coastal town near the equator) but we walked all over, and then came back by late afternoon and gratefully cooled off in the pool. Abby was simply ecstatic to jump into the cool water - it was the highlight of her day! Forget all the shopping and historical stuff!
Tuesday we found ourselves on a motorboat with 30 others heading to Isla del Encanto - one of the 27 islands off the coast of Cartagena. We stopped first at a small island home to an aquarium. We ambled over boardwalks looking into pools of sea turtles, sting rays, sharks and dolphins. Abby especially liked the dolphin show where she got splashed when they leapt out of the water. Then we got back on the boat, on our way to eat lunch and relax on a private beach on a different island. We hardly could eat our lunch fast enough - the beach was so beautifully enticing, with crystal clear aquamarine water and white sand and coconut trees. We spent a few glorious hours floating in the warm water, collecting coral, soaking in the stunning tropical scenery. Abby was absolutely delighted with the ocean and we had so much fun enjoying it with her. Our only regret from the trip is that we were not able to spend more time in this incredibly beautiful and peaceful place. All too soon we had to get back to the boat to head to the city. Once back, windblown and sandy, we walked along the top of the old wall surrounding the historic district while the sun set on the ocean. It had been a truly magical day.
Street Preaching about Menno Simons: Barranquilla
Wednesday we decided to take advantage of being on the coast to visit Gamaliel and Amanda Falla, another couple under Mission Network, who are planting churches in the city of Barranquilla, 2 hours by car from Cartagena. It was refreshing to take a trip on roads that are straight and flat, and not have Abby get carsick.
The Fallas are a very hospitable family and very committed to their ministry. They had invited Aaron to share that evening at their church service, which he had agreed to more out of courtesy than out of deeply wanting to preach there. After he and Dennis prepared their talk for church on Sunday, they figured it would be easy to simply share the same message together in Barranquilla. They didn't find out till the night before that the church service in which they were supposed to preach was an outdoor evangelistic meeting, something the church does every month to attract people. They weren't sure their message fit, but without time to put something else together, they decided to go ahead and do it.
Situated along a busy four-lane street, the church saw plenty of traffic, by car and on foot, go by that night. Church members had canvassed the neighborhood, inviting people to come. The turn out was not impressive, with just a handful of people occupying the white plastic chairs set out by the street, but the band heroically performed Caribbean-style praise music, knowing that many people in the neighborhood who had not come to the service would still be blessed by the songs. Then it was time for the father-son duo to hit the stage. Fighting back feelings of "what on earth am I doing," they launched into their slightly adapted message from Sunday, talking about Christ's call to faithfulness no matter what the cost. With the congregation seated in the dark at some distance from the pulpit, it was hard to tell how people received the message, but the forged ahead hoping that what they shared might find at least a few receptive ears. Aaron never felt so relieved when it was over. The service closed with more songs by the band, but this time the zealous drum playing brought the police out! Some people joked that the two officers had arrived too late to hear the message. They simply talked to Gamaliel and another church leader, Jaime, and then were on their way.
Jaime owns a hamburger joint, so he invited us there after the service. Over delicious hamburgers and arepas we learned how he had become part of the Mennonite church, and he mentioned that what Dennis and Aaron had shared about Menno Simons was a great way to let the community know what "Mennonite" means, because most people, including some church members, have no idea. Just hearing that comment made it all feel worth it.
A Long Goodbye: Heading Back Home
After a restful night and a delightful breakfast with the Fallas, during which Abby couldn't stop talking about the pet turtles they had, we headed back to Cartagena for one more day. We spent the afternoon exploring the dramatic looking castle that guarded Cartagena for centuries. We freely wandered through dark tunnels and up high towers with sweeping views of the city below. We watched the city turn progressively more golden as the sun set. After dark, we found a nice restaurant in the old city, and enjoyed romantic ambiance of nighttime Cartagena.
Friday found us flying back to a cold and rainy Bogotá. We were struck by the change of climate, culture, food, and accent. It's as if the coast were another country entirely! Our last night together we ate at a place with traditional Colombian food - thick potato soups, chicken, rice, potato, yucca, salad, etc. We were also serenaded by mariachi singers belting out Colombian folk tunes. It was a nice way to close out our vacation together.
With some sadness on Saturday we took Dennis and Rose to the airport and accompanied them till they had to go through Customs. Unexpected tears sprung to my eyes as we said our goodbyes. What a special time we had shared together as a family and we would miss their company! Even more, Abby had really enjoyed having "gamma and gampa" with us for two weeks, and in her time, it will a while until we see each other again. Hopefully the memories of this trip will carry us all along when the distance from loved ones seems unbearable.
Looking back, we are so incredibly grateful that our travels were made safely, without any transportation hitches or health problems or anything else that could possibly go wrong! We feel so blessed to have spent this time with Dennis and Rose. And we're thankful to have supportive parents like them.
Thanks for your prayers during this time. We truly feel rejuvenated and ready to engage the work God has for us.
Peace,
Laura, Aaron & Abigail