We're going camping now!!!

After spending three weeks with my parents, they left on 31st October, and I was not to have anytime to 'mourn' their leaving as on the 1st November I went off to camp for four days with the young people (Jovenes) in my church. 

This camp was not just for my church but for all the baptist churches around Peru, so I got to meet people from Lima, Cusco and other places as well. I have not been to a youth camp since I was 17 so was bit nervous about going as am not really that into camps, never have been. 

We did not go far, just to a place call La Joya which is an hour outside Arequipa but higher in altitude than Arequipa is. It was a lovely tranquil location which changed dramatically when about 50 of us descended there!

The sleeping arrangements were fun as well  - there were two rooms, one for the boys and one for the girls and in the girls room there were 30 of us... and what made it fun as well was only two toilets and three showers for 30 girls.... leading to many a queue! 

What did we do at camp? Well there various talks from different Baptist pastors, we had worship sessions, did group devotionals, rode horses, played water polo (which ended up in a couple of people being thrown in afterwards fully clothed!! 

Lidia being thrown in

Marylin being thrown in

As well as water polo there were other games including an army style obstacle course, hockey, volleyball, football etc. On day one the boys could not sleep that there were up playing football at 5am. That is dedication to the sport for you - maybe if Newcastle Utd were that dedicated we would have more points by now!!

We also had competitions, dressing up like twins etc. On the Friday night we had to answer questions and if we got the question wrong we got shaving cream pies in the face (this humour travels all around the globe)... I got my question wrong, but instead of getting the pie in my face, I thought it would be funny to put the pie in the face of the person answering the question  - I got an applause for that!

Lidia after the pie in the face!

It was a good few days, but I had to leave early due to ill health - I was completely exhausted after two weeks travelling with my parents, and just needed to go home and sleep. But I enjoyed the time I had there, and wish could have understood more of the talks, but it was great getting to know new people and spend time with the young people from my church. And for once was not the only 'gringa' there as there was another girl from Isle of Man and one of the Pastors (a missionary in Cusco) was from Scotland. So got to speak some English as well.

To see more photos please click here

Footnote: For those of who you do not know what a Gringa/Gringo is - it is someone from outside South America, it came from Mexico when a long time ago the American soldiers in their green uniforms were in Mexico and all the mexicans shouted Go Greens Go and it turned to Gringo and applies to all white people!!  I get called it all the time by one of my friends, so nice!!