The Park, Church, and More Peru Life with Maggie

Yesterday my parents decided to take us all out and embark on a new Peruvian adventure. Oh gosh, I love those....

We went to the heart of Miraflores (the district where we live). Parque Kennedy is a park surrounded by shops, art, and beautiful buildings. There are a lot of people there on Saturdays. It was the first hard-core sunny day I have seen in Lima, and it was HOT. Very sticky and humid. I can see why they call it the heart of Miraflores. Artists set up paintings, carts sold sweets, and people were meeting with friends. I liked the central place; it was cool to see everyone enjoying the weather and their family time. A man sold us USA TODAY, and I was excited to read an English paper. I sometimes just thirst for hearing other Americans speaking English; it brings comfort of home. However, I am working on my Spanish...slowly but surely.

Today we went to church at Flamingo Road Church of Lima. There we met Erik, a translator from Buckner that we know! Our family was excited to see him. The church service is held on the fourth floor of a movie theater! It is about 5 minutes and 5 soles from our apartment by taxi. Yes, five soles (about $1.75!) And yes, we fit my entire family in it. Anyway, the sermon was on video from another church in the United States (Florida, maybe???) The church (Flamingo Road) has different locations. We attend the Lima one...duh. The music was really moving; I loved the lyrics. The song Surrender was so beautiful. It's pretty contemporary...3 guitars, keyboard, saxophone, and drums. Plus also great singers. I really enjoyed it, especially since it was the English service. My parents met a family, and we went out to lunch.

The family is American with adopted kids--3 Peruvian and 1 Chilean. They live in another section of Lima and have lived in Peru for a while. I talked with Robin, their 13-year-old daughter, after lunch. There was a little boy (9 years old) trying to sell us candy on the street. In Peru, the sellers don't leave you alone, even when you say no. The boy, Luis, came inside, and my parents bought him and his little sister hamburgers. Robin and I watched the little kids, and Luis came in the playroom. Using my limited Spanish and his hand motions, we got introductions and small-talk going. I taught him a hand game (the Kit-Kat one), and then he started playing with the other kids. I felt really good about making him laugh. The family we were with, the Jacksons, said that a lot of kids sell stuff on the street. People pay parents 10 soles a day (about 3 bucks) to lend them the kids. It's basically human trafficking. The kids do not go to school or anything. Sometimes kids as young as 3 years old run between cars selling candy to people. Isn't that horrible?!

We take SO much for granted. I am learning a lot about living in Lima and its differences to Lafayette. We can't drink the water or throw toilet paper in the toilet (it goes in the trash, by the way...). Kids sell things on the street, and traffic is horrible sometimes. I am so blessed to live in the United States. I really want to help people who don't have the opportunity to better their situations. We should make more of an effort to share what we have with others.
Ciao! (instead of adios, its ciao, pronounced chow)
Mags:)