Back to the Beach

On Monday, the Engineers told us we would have no electricity from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. They needed to work on something that needed to be fixed for the Comedor.  So, we decided to have an adventure by taking the bus to the Huanchaco beach.  It cost 3 soles for both of us to go one way, which is about 89 cents.  Both times we have been there before it has been overcast and we wanted to get some sunny pictures.

We ate Sea Bass for lunch at El Sombrero Restaurant.  When the host saw our name tags he took us over to their little office to show us that he had pictures of the temple in the window.  He is not a member but his boss is a member.   He seemed proud to have them on display.

Bill talking to him about the church.

Yummy Sea Bass!

The Coastline in Huanchaco caters to the tourists so it looks more like a resort.  However, the rest of Huanchaco is quite poor.  These pictures were taken from the window of our bus on the way home.

Some buses are better than others and the one we took back to the temple was a little on the rough side.  We could see the sky from the roof and the street from the floor. But it was a fun day and we felt like real Peruvians riding the bus.

We picked up these little school kids on their way home from school.

Bill wanted me to take a picture of this mid 60's ford.  It reminded him of the
cars he rode in when he was a missionary 50 years ago.






This weeks odds and ends.

A tasty lunch at the Comedor.  It was all really good.  Fried chicken, beat salad and
refried peas.  And of course potatoes and rice.

A truck full of policemen. 

Two school girls buying ice cream at McDonalds. 

Bill buying a watermelon.

They sell these cakes (keke) in all the stores, especially around Christmas time.
They are loaded with that candy fruit you put in fruitcakes.  This whole aisle is full of different
varieties.  This young lady is pushing her brand and her uniform matches the package of the cake.
We haven't tried them yet but they don't look too appealing to me.

Another busy Sunday in the Cemetery.  Bill and I took a walk through here on Sunday
afternoon.  The Albergue is in the background with the temple spire. 

And back home in the states..............................

Micah gets braces.

And Brent and Amanda get a new toy.
Drive safely!

Casa Urquiaga & Porvenir Stake Conference

Last Wednesday we headed to the Post Office after our shift at the temple. When we arrived, we found that it was closed. So on Thursday, after our shift, we headed back downtown to the Post Office, only to find that it was closed again. After talking to a guard nearby, we were informed that they are on strike with no end in sight. It could be weeks or even months.  It still amazes us that a city of over 1 million people, only has one post office. They must not send much mail down here.

We walked up the the Plaza de Armas with the intention of buying an ice cream cone at McDonalds. On our way to McDonalds we passed by this big blue building on the square. The doors were open and we were invited to come in and look around.  It was free admission so we wandered inside.  

We found out it was Casa Urquiaga (Casa Calonge), a traditional colonial manor.  Nothing is labeled or marked but there were some interesting artifacts and antiques.  We were told one desk was supposed to be Simon Bolivar's who lived here for two years after proclaiming Peru's Independence in 1824. He is the George Washington of South America.

It also hosted the first viceroy of Peru in 1604 and was the headquarters of the first bank in Trujillo. Today it is owned by Banco Central.

Bill by one of the big doors.

Two spacious courtyards. 

Simon Bolivar's desk.

Sunday was Stake Conference for the Porvenir Stake.  The little choir we have been practicing with was asked to sing at the Conference.  I was also asked to play the piano.  There are no organs down here.  Our choir director lives in this stake.  President and Sister Marler spoke as well as President and Sister Casos and the Stake President.  The Congregation sang "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" for a standing break hymn.  They love that hymn down here and sing it often which is interesting since it was originally written for the Civil War.

Daniel Salazar brought us to the Stake Center in his van that
he bought in Japan 15 years ago.  it still purrs along and can hold 7 people.

The Porvenir Stake Center. 

A neighbor's laundry can be seen across the street from the church.

Across the street from the church in the opposite direction.

Our little choir practicing before the Conference.  

After conference, all our little temple worker friends ran up to say hello.
 President and Sister Casos are on the right.

Back to the Laureles Ward

We went back to the Laureles Ward on Sunday. This is Bishop Guzman's ward.  Hermano Bustamante from the temple was not there the first time we attended.  He has been asking Bill to come back to his ward.  

Hermano Bustamante & Bill 

Of course we always love seeing some of our favorite missionaries.
This ward is actually in the new Trujillo South Mission that was formed in July. 

The Bendezu's from the temple also attend this ward. Hermano Bendezu is the
brother to the wife of Juan A. Uceda, of the Seventy.

This cute young lady is Paola Rodriguez.  She led the singing while I played the piano.  She
is 18 and speaks very good English.  She is hoping to attend BYU in Provo.  The Stake
Patriarch is in the background. By the way, there are 7 stakes and 43 wards in the City of Trujillo.
It will take us awhile to visit all of them.

This little cutie was all smiles for the camera after I gave her a dulce (piece of candy).

Bishop Guzman's wife had a new baby a month ago.  She was not at church so his mother and brother walked us to their home from the church to see her and the baby.  They said it was 2 blocks, we would guess more like 10-12.  But it was a nice walk on a nice day.

Bill, Hermana Guzman and Cristian Guzman.  Cristian is 18 and getting his papers
in to serve a mission  He hopes to go in January or February.

We ran into this beautiful poinsettia tree on our walk.  People have to water
a lot to get anything grow in all this sand.

Holding baby Juan Esmaro Guzman.

Two modes of transportation we saw on our ride home from church.

We went to the mall on Monday and had lunch with some of the senior missionaries. Christmas is in the air in Trujillo.

The Hawses, Hartmans and Fackrells.

I shared a club sandwich with Patti Fackrell. They put fried egg on them.
It was really quite good.

I got a little homesick when I saw this beautiful picture of Logan posted on Facebook.  I heard today that they even had snow in Utah.  Would you believe I miss the snow this time of year.  The weather is always the same here, 62 to 75 degrees.