We're at our final destination

Saludos a todos!
Today was another incredible, full day in Ecuador! We all were exhausted last night, so we went to bed early and slept like rocks, except for one of the girls' rooms that erupted into a full-on slumber party-you know who you are! After packing up all of our belongings again, we left for the Zambiza Dump in Quito. Here we were met by Pastor Jose, an extremely devoted and loving servant to the people who work at the dump and their families. He told us about the history and goals of his ministry at the dump. It was truly inspirational! Then we got to see those beautiful faces! There were 35 kids ranging in age from babies to about 6 years old. They were so excited to see us, as were we to see them. We picked them up and played with them for as long as we could. Of course we had a few surprises for them too! Each child got a cute Beanie Baby animal and munched on chocolate chip cookies. They also loved listening to Brad play the guitar and totally surrounded him. We wished we could have stayed and played all day, but we had to say our good-byes. But they'll stay in our hearts...

After visiting the kids we went to see the actual dump and how the workers do their job. It was an eye-opening experience to see people climbing on the mountains of trash. The workers are organized into groups that collect certain types of trash like plastic, metal, paper, cardboard, tin and aluminum. They call themselves "industrial miners". Their working conditions have been greatly improved thanks to Extreme Response. Now they have a roof over their heads so they don't get wet while working. And there are medical services and counseling available to them. Pastor Jose also shares with them the word of God so that they too know that they are loved and that God has a plan for them.

Then we hopped a flight to Manta, a large fishing city on the Pacific coast. But our journey wasn't over there. Then we got on a bus headed toward San Lorenzo, our final destination.
The landscape is kind of dry, with interesting trees, cactus, and gorgeous flowers sprinkled in here and there. Finally, we got to La Cueva. Jorge the owner met us with a warm welcome and then we settled in. The accomodations are more than adequate. But it's the landscape and view that are unforgetable. This is one of God's beautiful creations on Earth. Thank you for this experience. Tomorrow we're off to the orphanage to start work and meet the kids. We can't wait!!!