Bolivia is a beautiful country and the scenery of the mountains is breathtaking. Lots of animals roam the hills; they all belong to some local farmer.
This photo was taken on Palm Sunday at one of the old Jesuit Mission Churches which was renovated in the last 30 years. As you can see it was an extremely hot day. We walked from the graveyard to the Church, a wooden church; very large in size. It was full to the door that day.
The photo on the left is of the children at the orphanage where I visited while in Cochabamba. The second photo was taken about a week after I arrived in Cochabamba, Bolivia. This is the family I stayed with while studying Spanish there. Rolando, Wendy, Andres and Ely and myself in front of the crib in their house.
The above photos were taken while in Bolivia. I have great memories of my time there. The people were poor but friendly. Bolivia is the poorest country in South America. Living there for 5 months brought that home to me. Hope you enjoy the photos. Will post some more photos next week please God.
Dear friends,
since January of 2009 I have been living in South America. I arrived in Bolivia in early January to learn spanish. During my time there I lived with a family and travelled to the Institute every day where I learned the language. In June I moved to Ecuador and here I will spend my first Christmas away from family and friends. I am living in the outskirts of the city of Guayaquil.
The name of the area is San Francisco, same name as in the U.S.
The name of the parish where I work is Jesucristo, Pan de Vida. We have a population of over 50,000 people. It is real mission territory, lots of families who have moved to live here in the last five years, who have had no priest to serve them for years where they come from.
I will post photos of the parish on this blog and also of events such as the celebration of the sacraments. It should give you an idea of what the place is like.
I take this opportunity to wish all of you, family and friends, a very happy and peaceful Christmas and the very best for 2010.
P.J.
