Sunday, September 29, 2013

a day of planning and preparing for the next team .

We started the day early today , with an 8 am delivery of all the pop and water for the next team , we had it bought at the wholesalers in Bishkek and delivered . so now our balcony is full of drinks .

later in the day we went to the Tokmok bazaar to get more supplies , while there we ran into Victor . he rode his bike . he rode about 20km into town to buy a movie and a bag of salt .

 We also bought a new uniform jacket for Baktagul.. it turns out that the last one she bought was a Dr's  jacket and the Dr's did not think that was such a wonderful thing hahah 


   we ate all Emma's strawberry jam with the last team, so she stopped and bought more strawberries to get another batch done . 

 later today we picked up the blankets and started getting the apartments ready for the next team


 stopped at the grocery store and did a little shopping there as well

Then when we got home, Emma and Brook headed for Day spring where they had a birthday party for a few of the girls , Emma had fallen a bit behind so she was able to get caught up today , as well as bring some special treats from our friend Blair from Ohio







Saturday, September 28, 2013

found the fish

The next team coming has a special treat that they have been planing for a couple months .  They want to bring the kids from one of the larger orphanages here on a fishing trip.  But they wanted to be sure that all 120 kids will catch a fish .   they will then have a shore lunch and a craft, then go for a swim in the hot springs .  The plan was to take the kids 25 at a time.  

Well the curve came last week when the pond we had ready for them decided to close for the season and would not extend hours for us . so today we set out for the second time to find a stocked pond .. and boy did we hit the mother load 
 
 
  It will be hard not to catch a fish here ... especially when the team arrives with all the gear
Now of course it was necessary for us to catch a few today just so we could make sure that they will be biting , and so we could get an average price worked out for the fish   Bekah got right into that , and caught hers right away
then lost it
Not to worry, once she put some bait on her hook, she landed on in a couple minutes
Lots of excitement

in about 10 minutes with 2 rods, we had 7 nice  pan sized  rainbow trout
found a nice picnic spot as well


  a few fish and a few pork chops made for a wonderful lunch
Emma loved the flowers and the butterflies
after fishing, this is where we will bring the kids swimming .. it is a pool fed by the hot springs

Thursday, September 26, 2013

final day with GO team

The team started the day with a tour of the teen challenge centre . they brought some food for the men , and were able to see the chicken farm in full production.. we have some awesome sponsors out there that made this possible 

After the centre we went for a tour of Bishkek , frst to Svetly put , then to lunch down town , and to see the city centre 

This is the statue erected after the revolution .. 

this is the driver of a sight seeing train  that we took around town .


later in the day we headed to the carving centre to see where the carvings are made, and where the food is made to take to the homeless.
The team members were each presented wit a plaque that will have special meaning . It is of Victor receiving the girt bags .    The team spent a couple days with Victor, and , and had the opportunity to give out the gift bags.  

The team will head for the airport in a few hours , they will be missed . 





Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Last work day for GO. team

Today we were back to the mens home to continue working on the murals
It was great to have some of the men involved in the painting as well
  After a few hours there , we made our way over to the dump where we delivered 500 lbs of potatoes to our friends there .  it was a hot day to be out working , just over 100 F in the shade . 

  Then we headed for the village where they had prepared a wonderful lunch for the team.



after giving out some treats to the kids as well as new hats and mitts , the team go to work digging fence post holes for the new playground fence .

Tonight the team hosted a big meal for all the friends that we have been working with this week .   there we 40 people for a roast beef dinner with all the fixings ..

  Every one was blessed .. they kept saying wow meat , not just chicken .. but real meet .. it was a great blessing to be able to serve such great people .   

Tomorrow morning the team will head to the city for a well earned day of sight seeing then spend their last night at the guest house in Bishkek before heading to the airport in the we hours of the morning .  The will be missed .

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

The team is starting to get tired

The team is starting to get tired , they have been incredible , and have worked so hard, and given 110% and the people they are with can see that ..   Today they were at the mens home for a fun filled day of singing , dancing , face painting , coloring, and even painting murals on the walls .  
 




 Before leaving , we discussed with the director the difficulty with the heating system .  The main boiler has been fixed and the lines fixed, but the water is returning almost the same temperature as it goes out, but the home is still cold .  What the problem is , is that the radiators are way to small and do not give off enough heat.  There are 47 rooms in 7 sections .  it will cost $90 a room to provide proper heat .   With the team here , we were able to find sponsorship to cover one room in each section .. that leaves us with 40 rooms @ $90 a room , or $3600 in total .  The heat gets turned back on Oct 15, so we are in a bit of a time constraint to get this done in time for the heating season .  If you would like to sponsor a room or two , we would truly appreciate the help.


After work at the mens home, we went to the village for lunch, then the team started work on the playground .  They spent the afternoon shoveling sand ... Tomorrow we dig fence post holes ... , then the team will be cooking supper for those we work with here.    Its amazing how they are pushing through till the end .. well done .

Monday, September 23, 2013

the "amazin G race "

The Amazing grace .. thats what we are calling this adventure.  The team went shopping today for 27 care packages for  students and families in need .  the packages consisted of  
2 kg of potatoes 
1 kg of carrots 
1 kg rice 
1 kg pasta
2 kg sugar 
1 kg apples 
2 banana's 
1 box of tea 
1 can of chocolate condensed milk 
1 lt oil 
one cabbage 
one onion 
shampoo
soap
socks
toothpast
and a can of fish 

 it took about 15 minutes on the side of the road to make all the packages up, then the team was divided into three groups of three with nine bags each .     they were given a driver a translator and a list of names to find .  they were also given a call a friend list to get directions from .  They had to spend a minimum of 5 minutes with each person on the list, and if invited for tea, they had to go in ...


along the way, one team had 1/2 an hour to wait for someone to get home, so used that time to bring ice cream to the kids at the park




 ROAD BLOCK .... one of the teams hit a road block.  They were given a envelope with instructions to stop, and go out to Red river Orphanage to deliver a special donation and and a birthday present to one of our young friends .  


lots of incredible moments for the team , and lots of tears shed. and hearts touched ... 

Now for a funny side bar ... The team had two bags that did not arrive, and we have had an on going fight with Aeroflot to get the bags and compensation for not having them , after repeated trips to their office, Jengish was finally able to pick the bags up at the airport last night .  Thats when they told him .. " You need to Pay us "  when Jengish asked what possible reason they would have for charging for the bags , they answered  " Storage fees" ... Hahaha so they finally pushed Jengish over the edge .  time for a snickers ... bags are finally home with the team where they belong... and no storage fee paid .