David playing futbol...

Well...the game was a bit of a heartbreaker.  But it could have been worse.  It almost was.  David's team was mostly asleep in the first half.  The only reason the other team didn't trounce them was that they were playing into hurricane winds.  When the other guys got a goal early in the second half, I figured it was all over.  Then David and the guys woke up, realized they were in the middle of a game, and actually started playing soccer.  They got one goal, and then another and pulled into the lead.  Then...with less than a minute left in the game, the other team got a penalty shot.  Those are next to impossible to block, and the other team tied it up.  And that's where it ended...2 - 2. 

David showing off his moves...

Cows coming to visit...

Everyone has time to stop and watch...

Like I said, it could have been worse.  It almost was.  =)  But they did well in the end...

 

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Everyone thinks they're a commedian...

This is what happens when I leave my room unlocked...

Then one of the other guys comes in and, without missing a beat, says "Hermano Ken!  It's time to get up!  Let's go!"

Yea, the guys think they're pretty funny.  All the time.  Every day.  All ten of them.  David has started, everytime someone annoys him or mocks him (which is alot it seems), looking up at the heavens, pointing to the offending guy, and making a "Really?  Are you sure?  I could get rid of him right now..." kind of a look.  So far it's been keeping me fairly entertained.

The sun is shining today and we're off to David's soccer game.  He plays for his university, so it should be a good game.  The university is happy with me...they couldn't win a game to save their lives before, but I brought along three good players (some of my guys who aren't studying there but wanted to play on a team).  David is probably going to get a full scholarship next year (he's at 50% right now), so that's a happy thing too.  It's the Christian university in town, and it's a quality education, so...everyone's pleased.

We'll see how they do today.

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Yes, this is Ken's Blog...

 
As you can see, the blog looks a little different.  I was having problems with the last template, so I decided to change things up a bit.  Hope it looks okay.  I think it's maybe a little more user friendly.  Guess we'll see...

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This is what I mean...

I really feel like I'm beating this motorbike thing to death...

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Back home...

...

Obviously (since I'm posting about it) Yimy and I made it home safe and sound.  Only a day later than the most recent plan, and four days later than the original plan.  As I only packed for three days and we ended up being in Trinidad for basically a week...my clothes are smelly.  I did in fact shower while I was there, but you wouldn't know it by how I smell right now...

That may have been too much information.  Sorry about that.  But I am pleased to announce that Yimy is the proud owner of a shiny new Bolivian Driver's License.  He's happy (as you can imagine).  He got 99 % on his exam, so I guess he was in fact, ready.  I made him drive half of the trip home...and then nagged him about a bunch of stuff along the way.  Just like my Dad used to do to me.  =)  I think that was the first time I've ever done a road trip in Bolivia where I wasn't driving.  It was a nice change.

But anyhow...here we are, back in Santa Cruz.  Winter is thankfully over (it lasted a full two weeks this year), and it's been sunny the past few days.  It actually went down to 3 C on Sunday, and before all you Canadians mock that, imagine living in a tent in 3 degree tempuratures.  It's cold!  There's no place to ever feel warm...

I figured I'd throw up a few more pictures of our trip.  Somehow it felt longer coming back than going, even though I didn't drive all of it.  I think I was just ready to be home. 

Transito (the Transit Police) where we spent most of our time...

Just as a side note before I go on.  I'm not sure I really painted a clear enough picture in my last post, about just how many motorcycles there are in Trinidad.  And they all (ALL) drive like they're the only person on the road.  It's like driving through a swarm of bees (and it sounds about the same too) and trying not to smash any of them against your windshield.  It's ridiculous...

See...I wasn't kidding...

Random scenery shot on the drive home...

Yimy the proud driver...

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ROADTRIP...

...

Thursday afternoon I found myself in the middle of the Bolivian bush, 138 km from the nearest gas station, with the needle on my truck’s gage quickly sliding towards the big “E”.

Sounds about right, doesn’t it?

How did I manage to...ahem...once again get myself into this kind of situation? Well...it certainly wasn’t my fault. As any good Saskatchewan boy would, when Yimy suggested a road trip this week, I thought, “Sure, why not!? I’m always up for a good road trip.” Sadly, there are very few opportunities here in Bolivia for a good road trip. Where would our road trip take us, you ask? Beautiful downtown Trinidad. That’s a city in Bolivia, by the way...not the tropical island off the coast of South America. I figured I should probably mention that...you know, ‘cause there was bound to be someone who wondered why the heck I was travelling to the Caribbean (Hi Mom!).

For those of you who don’t know, Trinidad is in the northeast part of Bolivia...kind of in the middle of nowhere. The reason we decided to head to the middle of nowhere (besides the intrinsic adventure value), was to get a driver’s license for Yimy. Supposedly it’s cheaper and easier to get in Trinidad, as compared to Santa Cruz...small town and all that.

I didn’t have a map of Bolivia (yes, yes...I could have Google Mapped it...that didn’t occur to me until just now. And yes...they actually do have a map of Bolivia...I just checked...), so we were occasionally winging it a bit. But...it’s mostly one road in, one road out. So...it was all good.

It’s a pretty drive, but it got a bit boring after awhile. Yimy and I usually play Punch Buggy when we’re driving around the city (that’s where the first person to see a VW Bug gets to punch the other person), but obviously that wouldn’t work very well way out in the country. So we started playing Punch Tractor. That actually worked pretty good except that I had to correct Yimy (with a couple of “friendly” shots to the shoulder) that combines were not, in fact, the same as tractors.

On the first half of the trip there were lots of towns, so I wasn’t all that worried about the fuel situation. I figured when I hit a half tank, we’d stop and fill up. We went through a town just as we hit the half a tank mark, but there was a line up of probably thirty cars waiting for fuel, so we decided to fill up at the next station. In hind sight, there was probably a reason why so many people were lined up for gas. For some reason, both Yimy and I both had it in our heads that the next town down the road, San Pedro, would be a big place.

It wasn’t.

Five houses and a soccer field...and definitely no gas station. Now I was down to about a quarter tank, and starting to get worried. I asked the cops at the next check point if there was a gas station nearby. Oh yea...200 km down the road...in Trinidad. But then the officer helpfully added that so and so sold gas in such and such a town just up the road. I didn’t really understand any of the names. But he told us to watch for a red house with a barrel...

And on that helpful set of directions, off we went. Let me just take a moment to fill you in on a little piece of Bolivian trivia. The colour red? That covers everything from orange to pink. It’s not a very specific descriptive word here. So for the next hour, Yimy and I slowed down every time we saw a house that was vaguely in the family of “reddish” to see if there was a barrel somewhere on the property. That got tedious fast...

Then suddenly there was a bang and a funny noise from the back of the truck, and my first thought was, “Oh good...fuel is no longer a problem. We’re going to break down long way before we run out of gas.” We kept driving (what else was I going to do?  Even if I did figure out what was making the noise, the best I could do was hit it with a tree branch...).  Then there were a few more funny noises and I just did what I usually do in these kind of situations...I prayed (if that doesn’t work, sometimes turning up the radio so you can’t hear the funny noises works too).

Prayer worked this time around, and the funny noises went away (we later determined it was the chain that holds the spare tire up under the truck. It had been seized up for as long as I’d had the truck, but had decided to come loose at that moment and was dragging on the ground). At any rate, we were back to worrying about the fuel situation. Just as we were discussing what to do, we drove past a house that had a little hand lettered sign that said “Gasolina”. Sure enough, for twice the going rate, this guy was selling gas...out of a barrel. The house was in fact pink, by the way. Not even close to red.

We did eventually make it to Trinidad. And what was supposed to be that quick and easy two day trip?  It ended up getting more complicated. Of course it did. Due to a miscommunication (which we’ll place squarely on the shoulders of the police officer Yimy was talking to), we didn’t finish everything we needed to do on Friday morning. Our only option was to hang around until Monday, or head back to Santa Cruz and lose everything we’d done so far.

So here we are...beautiful downtown Trinidad. Fortunately I brought along my Lonely Planet travel book on Bolivia, to give us ideas on what to do here. Unfortunately there are exactly two paragraphs in a 500 page book on what to do in Trinidad. We did do some exploring in my truck yesterday, and found a cool river and a nice lake. We got out of the truck to brave the +6 Celsius weather (it’s winter) to take a couple of pictures...and then that was the end of that.

Tomorrow it’s back to the police so Yimy can write his exam and take his driver’s test. He says he’s ready. I really, REALLY hope so.  =)  All in all though...it’s been a fun little adventure. We’ve had some good laughs and we both learned some new card games.

A few pictures so you can appreciate our adventure along with us...

The highway...

The demonstration we met along the way...and no, I don't

really know what they were demonstrating. 

But I honked supportively anyhow...

Buying gas from the guy with the "red" house...

Our first view of Trinidad.  Strangely there are probably

ten motorbikes for every car in the city. 

I don't know why...

The river...where I hear you can fish for Piranha. 

That's definitely on the list for next time...

Cool wooden boats on the river...

We also discovered where LAB (our defunct national airline) planes go to die...

The freezing cold lake...

A crazy, little bridge that people actually drove vehicles over.

And for some reason I kind of wanted to try it...

Yimy demonstrating how wide the bridge was...

And that's been our trip to Trinidad so far.  We'll be on our way back to Santa Cruz on Tuesday.  I guess if I post here again that means we made it...

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Back in Bolivia...

...

I'm sure many of you will smile when I tell you that I came home to winter here in Bolivia. Yep...it's cold out. I've got my fleece vest on over my jacket, and I had to dig out my tuque and mitts. On the upside, this will maybe last a week at the most, and then it'll be +30 again. =) So laugh while you can all you Canadians. You know I’ll be returning the favour next February.

So...what else did I come home to...

...well, a house full of guys who seemed happy to see me. They were kind of distracted by the World Cup games, but they smiled at me when I managed to direct their attention away from the TV for thirty seconds. So it’s all good. That’s really the most I could have hoped for.

...a staff member who was REALLY happy to see me. =) Things went well while I was gone, but Maribel was still relieved to have someone else back in charge I think. Her family is happy to have her back as well.

...a broken truck. But what else is new.

...I managed to get my internet all paid up today and turned back on. But then the electric company shut off our electricity. Oops. Oh well...it’s not the first time that’s happened, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. I’m hiding out at a coffee place this afternoon waiting for my mechanic to have time to look at my truck, so hopefully by the time I go home it’ll be turned back on and all will be forgiven.

All in all...things are good. My pastor and friend, Jorge (for those of you who know him) and his wife Viviane had a baby boy, Eduardo. As you can see, he’s a cute baby (not all babies are you know..). He also has a head of hair like you can’t imagine. Some might be a bit jealous of that...

Anyhow...that’s life down here. As soon as I can get it uploaded, I’ll be posting a link to our new video. Come back soon and check it out!

As always, thanks for praying for us down here.

Eduardito with his mom and dad...

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I'm still here...

...

This is just a quick note to let everyone know that I'm still alive.  I'm just enjoying a bit of time in Canada.  It's always a bit crazy when I come home, so I don't have much time to keep the blog updated.  But hopefully I'm seeing many of you who read this, and seeing me in person is much better than just reading about me...right?

RIGHT?

I have one more week in Saskatoon, then it's off to BC for four days with my family.  I haven't seen one of my brothers and his family for a couple of years, so it's going to be nice to hang out with everyone.  Then on the 8th of July I'm on my way back south again.

For those of you who haven't heard yet, I spoke with my doctor last week.  It was good news!  The results of the biopsy came back, and there's no cancer anywhere.  =)  He told me what I do have...and yea, didn't understand much of what he said.  Which is annoying my medical friends to no end.  They want to know details.  All I needed to hear was that it was treatable and not to worry.  That works for me.  So as soon as I get back to Santa Cruz, the doctor said we'd start whatever treatment is required.  Sorry...that sounded kind of vague even as I wrote it...I'm sure he knows what he's going to do.  I just didn't get it from the phone call...

Anyhow...don't give up on the blog.  Give me a week or so, and I'm sure there'll be some kind of crazy story to report.  And if nothing new comes up, I can always write about my last afternoon in Santa Cruz before my trip when the police wanted to put Jimmy in jail for five days...

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Health stuff...

...


Well, I’m back…and mostly in one piece except that it really, REALLY hurts to pee. That’s probably too much information, but I’m feeling the need to share the love…

Tuesday went fine, except that we got started late and then I had problems with my blood pressure. I have low blood pressure (thanks to Mom’s side of the family) at the best of times, but for some reason it dropped even lower after the surgery. I ended up staying in the hospital for two more days (I just got out now), so that’s why you haven’t heard from me. I did get asked if I was an athlete and if that was why my blood pressure and heart rate were so low. I said that, yes…yes I am…

Results…well, after my kidney got all famous last week, it’s not the problem and is doing just fine. The problem is at the neck of my bladder (from what I understood). There’s something blocking it, I guess. They did a biopsy and we’ll have the results next Tuesday. The doctor was very reassuring that he thinks it’ll be fine and that it's not cancer. We’ll know for sure next week. Until then, it’s just a bit of a waiting game.

Until then, all I can say is that I definitely don’t look forward to a full bladder these days. When I was lying in recovery, I told the nurse that I had to go to the bathroom, so she gave me a handy-dandy little plastic bottle. No one clued me in that it wasn’t going to be a happy experience. So I got pretty close to the moment, realized what it was going to feel like and just went, “Oh heck no…” and backed off. Funny thing though…that’s not something you can avoid forever. In the end it just made me cry a little bit.

There were a few other funny moments, but maybe they’re not so blog friendly. Take me out for coffee when I’m home, and I’m sure it won’t take much to convince me to tell you the stories. Suffice to say that in Canada (in my experience) they knock you out before they start prepping you. Bolivia…not so much. Let’s just say that I’m better friends with a bunch of nurses and doctors that I didn’t know before.  No doubt that was going to happen anyhow, but I’d rather be unconscious when they start the process…

Thanks for praying everyone! I appreciate it. I was pretty calm through the whole experience, so that was great. I’ll let you all know what I find out, as soon as I know…

Thanks again!

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Basilica of St. John...

I had never thought about it, but Paul wasn't the only one to go to Ephesus.  Others from the Church in Jerusalem traveled to different cities in and around Turkey.  The disciple John spent many years in Ephesus along with Mary, Jesus' mother.  Since John was given responsibility for her, it would make sense that they would have traveled together.

After his imprisonment on the Island of Pathmos, John returned to Ephesus where he wrote the fourth gospel.  When he died, he was burried on a hill overlooking the sea.  Eventually a church was built to protect and honor his grave site.  When that small church was destroyed, in the beginning of the sixth century, a huge cathedral was built in it's place by Emperor Justinian. 

In the eleventh century, the Turks captured Ephesus, but even then, the Byzantines stayed in the area for another three hundred years.  The basilica of St. John was eventually destroyed in an earthquake, but if it still existed today, it would be the seventh largest church in the world.

There's your history lesson for the day.  Now some pictures...

The gates...

Ruins of the church...

The Baptismal...

For me it was a moving moment to think of the hundreds, if not thousands, of people who had been baptized in this place. 

A model of the church...

The Temple of Artemis (Diana)...

This is the only remaining pillar of the 120 columns that originally made up the temple, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world.  The temple site has been plundered many times over the centuries, but no one has ever touched the site of the church  of John that overlooks it.

The Isa Bey Mosque that sits at the foot of the hill...

Much of the building supplies of this mosque were brought over

from the ruined city of Ephesus...

 

The grave site of John...

When the church was excavated in the 1900's, coins were found dating back to the first and second century, showing that this was commonly accepted by Christians at the time, to be the site of John's grave.  It was interesting to see how different people responded to this.  A group of Japanese ladies posed with the grave like they were visiting Disneyland.  When I went back later to take these pictures, I thought I was alone, until I came closer and saw that a group of about 40 Anglicans sitting there quietly, not talking.  I liked their approach better...

It was a bit of a surreal experience to walk around the ruins of that church, and realize that Mary and Paul and John had all walked where I was walking, and had looked out over the same valley (granted it was all water back then).  Tradition tells us that John wrote his gospel just up the hill from here.  With the warm sunshine and breeze off the Mediteranean, it was a very peaceful spot.

I enjoyed this place a lot...

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