The past few days to say the least have been humbling and inspiring. The 3rd of January we drove 20 minutes on dirt roads surrounded by jungle and small homes to the chatino village in San Martin. I was able to spend the whole day with Betty in the pharmacy working on my Spanish and educating people on how and when to take medications that they were ordered by the doctor. This experience has given me confidence to now explain medication to Spanish speaking patient estados unidos. A couple ladies in the village made us a delicious chicken soup for lunch and the best hand made tortillas. Once getting back we all headed down to the beach and had wonderful conversation. I love getting to know everyone on this trip and forming deep connections. 

Around 8:15pm we all walked over to a little restaurant that was run by a man who is a local but after talking to him in Spanish for 10 minutes he spoke English all of a sudden. We asked him how he had such good English and he said he grew up in Washington and moved here because it is tranquil. He is not wrong, Oaxaca may be the poorest city in Mexico but it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been and I’m so blessed to be here. 

On the 4th of January we had an early morning starting at 7am. Kylie and I got to the 4th floor of the house and watched the sunrise over the ocean. We drove up to Tututepec for a day of history and understanding where these city and these people came from and how the beliefs arose. The murals were stunning, colored with bright and vibrant energy! As we hoped back in the van at 12pm ready to go the van dies…the ladies in the restaurants offered us a place to wait and a hibiscus flavored juice. We made the most of our time waiting by having great conversation and enjoying the scenery. (Eddie also played some great music)

Update…a new van came and picked us up at 3pm and we rushed back to the mission to eat a quick lunch. We then went to a lagoon and got to look at some beautiful birds and then relaxed on a beach that connects to the lagoon. When it got dark we got back into the small boat that took us to a spot in the lagoon where we got to swim with bioluminescent plankton. Swimming in that water was top 3 most amazing things I have ever seen, as we swam around the water glowed around us and made our arms sparkle. Today was full of adventure and I loved every second of it. 

Had a great first full day here at the mission. It started out with helping separate medications at the clinic and then eating a delicious breakfast at 10:35! Then we got to do home visits and that was an experience like no other. I was able to apply my critical thinking skills and in the end we taught a lady and her daughter pursed lip breathing to help them both breathe better. Once we got back we went to the orphanage and they made us lunch that was so incredibly good! We got to play soccer and red light green light with them after we ate which was so fun. Around 5:30 we went to the beach and swam in the water and played some frisbee while the sun was setting, then once it was dark we had a bonfire with hotdogs and s’mores! We all stayed up till midnight here to celebrate the new year which we are all very excited about!