dia numero uno

Hola from Quito!

It's great to be back! Although we're excited to be here we are also very excited to be continuing on with the journey tomorrow, down to San Lorenzo. But first an update about today! The morning started out relatively early since most of us didn't get to sleep until close to 2am and some of us had a surprise awakening at 3am. Thank God for moms! They always take care of everything. We had a quick breakfast and devotions on the third floor of the Extreme Response Headquarters, where we are staying for these first two nights of the trip. The view out the windows is an amazing one of the city, which we can enjoy during breakfast and devotions. We are reading and studying The Prayer of Jabez on this trip, if you'd like to follow along with us. :)

We were out the door by 9am and on our way to church about 45 minutes away. We attended the Remanso de Amor which held a very enthusiastic Father's Day service. Church lasted for two and a half hours. There were a wide variety of components to the service. We started with a reading of Psalm 51 in Spanish. Next we enjoyed an hour of praise and worship, all in Spanish! Our team was finally able to sing along, when we heard the music to "This is the Air I Breathe". It was really awesome to be part of a group singing simultaneously in both Spanish and English. Next we enjoyed some authentic Ecuadorian dance by the women and girls of the church. By this point in time many of the children had made their way over to the pews that our team members were sitting in. The children all around are so sweet and loving. They also thoroughly enjoy having their picture taken, even during church service. The pastor then began the service with a reading of Acts 8. He did an awesome job of switching back and forth between English and Spanish to keep all of us engaged with the service. They are preparing for some very special baptisms next week within the church. So, the message focused on how baptism changes us.

After the service wrapped up we headed back on to the bus to make the trip over to the middle of the world for lunch. We had a yummy lunch outdoors of empanadas, salad, rice, potatos, and chicken along with some delicious fresh juice.

Afterwards we spent an hour shopping at the various tiendas near the monument, followed with the traditional photos near the monument. A little secret got out among the group that the monument we were at wasn't located at the real equator. Some people were upset. ;) And so we decided to make the trip just a short distance away to the real equator. Here things got very exciting. Some of us balanced eggs on the head of a nail. We watched water flow down the drain clockwise and counterclockwise on different sides of the equator. And then watched what happens when you pour water down a drain directly over the equator. You'll have to ask your favorite team member about that experience to find out what happened when they get home. We also were educated about life in the Amazon with great examples of things which we never hope to encounter in real life...anacondas, boa constrictors, shrunken heads, and the sort.

We left the equator better educated and with plenty of pictures and souvenirs to get the trip started. By this time we were ready to start thinking about dinner. Paul and Susan took us to a food court with a variety of restaurants where we all were able to choose our own restaurant for dinner. Many of us decided to eat at El Corral, where we perplexed by the sign "DESLICE" on the door. I pulled on the door and nothing happened...we eventually made our way in and had a yummy dinner.

It has been a long day for many. Some of us are still a bit tired after the long travel day yesterday. So after enjoying your blog comments, most people are already getting ready for bed here at 8pm. Mike, however, is staying up late to pick Nicole up from the airport this evening.

On behalf of the team,
~Jennifer

P.S. An extra Happy Father's Day to all of our wonderful dads!

P.S.S. It is not likely that we will be able to post any pictures from the trip until after we are home, due to the lack of speed of the internet connections here.

P.S.S.S. Donna here! Hi family and friends! Thank you for all the posts of love for us. We are so glad we came on this mission. I know we will be blessing others, but it is already us who have received so much. Love to you all. We will mostly be posting a group blog each night, but keep the messages coming...everyone enjoys all of them.

P.S.S.S.S. Hoch family- I love you all. Thank you for the wonderful pictures! 12 more days til I get to see you again!
Brandon- Hope you had a good weekend! Keep busy. Miss you!
Love and miss you Mark! xoxoxo

P.S.S.S.S.S. Leisa and Ethan, we still haven't seen our first tarantula. When we do, I'll describe mom's reaction for you. ;) Pet Jen Jen for me. <3 Diana

P.S.S.S.S.S.S dad, happy father's day! also please post and keep me updated on how you're doing xo joey