The Rainforest Up Close and Personal

Sunday afternoon, Euardo chauffeured us to the river which was not too far away. We were eager to see some rainforest wild life.  The boat was long and narrow and held all of us plus the people from Grecia.  The river was very placid and the ride was relaxing.  We enjoyed the view and animals we saw.

A sloth with a baby-very unusual to see

bats

monkeys

 Before the boat ride

Me and Shirley

Just as we came back to our pier, it started to rain. What great timing!

On the way back to El Palmar we stopped at a hotel in the town of Pueblo Viejo.  We enjoyed an ice cream cone and made contact with family and friends with the free WiFi.  It did seem like a long time to not be in touch.  How much we depend on these electronic gadgets!

Some in the group either did not have a cell phone along or opted not to use it. They were approached by a few men from a group who were from the States, doing mission work in CR also.  They offered to pray for our group who were waiting for the cell phone users. God had some prophetic words through them and our group was blessed.

We finished out the day with a group time and decided to get to work the next morning before breakfast, planning to make use of the cooler hours in the day. We also heard that we would be leaving a day earlier than planned.  There was a threat of mud slides in our area and if the roads would wash out, we would have a day's travel to get to Grecia, which would mean we would miss our day of shopping. I don't think anyone was disappointed with this announcement!

So early Monday morning we donned our boots, hats, sunscreen, bug spray and work gloves and went back to work.  It was more pleasant to work in the early morning, but the temperature rose very quickly.  Monday was a repeat of digging, pounding and framing. Again, we had many water breaks and a siesta period mid-morning until early afternoon.

A load of lumber being delivered.  I believe all the lumber used on our project was from one tree.

A banana delivery!









 

Shirley and mango

Nothing like fresh pina!

Geiselle and Shirley-very special ladies from
Grecia.  I enjoyed speaking with them in Spanish.  They were very patient with me and knew a bit of English.  We shared about family and life.  Geiselle, unfortunately got ill on Sat. and I did not get to see her after that.

Melissa, Taylor and Matt G. all had birthdays while we were there.  George surprised us with a cake he bought Monday afternoon. The candle was lit 3 times so they each had a turn blowing it out.

Another game of Golf. A great way to pass time and enjoy our team mates.  Thanks for teaching us, Jackie!

Parrots congregating in a tree on the property

Our time in El Palmar was drawing to a close.  One more day of work and probably only half a day as we have almost finished what was expected we would do.  I will miss the people who we have spent time with all week.

Some report says Costa Ricans are the happiest people on earth.  These sure were.

Estevan, Eddy-Roberto, and Tino

Macho-the project manager and a jokester
We all loved Macho.










The Pastor of El Palmar-Tino

Pastor's wife Tina, on left

one of our cooks

Maria Elena-very special

Eduardo, our driver

The last day in El Palmar!  The women now are moved from the back digging hole to the front drive where we need to scrape gravel off the driveway.  It isn't easy to find the gravel as it is covered with grass and dirt.  After the gravel, a pickup truck load of sand is brought in and we shovel that into buckets to go over the packed ground in the new building.

 

Clean up begins!












                                                          The roof is put on. 

The project is completed! The floor will be cemented later. We were able to give George money to buy the cement.

That night an impromptu meeting is called and church folk come for a dedication service. There are many who testify and express their thanksgiving for what they now have.  We pray that the children who will be taught in this new building will learn about God's kingdom. Many of the cooks give glory to God for healing all who got sick.  They were very impacted by the events on Saturday.

God has been faithful to us and them.  I am thankful to have been a part of this work.
Tomorrow starts our journey back, first to Grecia and then home!