Day One

Saturday 7/11/09
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. (Pro 3:5-6, KNJ)
We are now in Juticalpa, Olancho, Honduras, having arrived at ~ 6:00 pm (EST) after a day that began around 2:00 am for most of us. The team exited St. Andrews’ parking lot in the van driven by Al Mackenzie, attempted to take the Courtney Campbell Causeway to the airport and found the way blocked by several police cruisers about half way across, forcing us to take Hillsborough Ave instead and arriving at Tampa Airport at 4:30 am.
During check-in, we were forced to redistribute materials in a couple of suitcases to meet the weight requirements, but that did not diminish our energy or enthusiasm. The short flight to Miami was uneventful and we departed for Tegucigalpa on time, enabling us to arrive there around 1:00 (EST). Clearing customs was time consuming since two x-ray luggage scanners were available for the many people from two full planes that arrived within a few minutes of each other. The HOI team was there to meet us, which was a blessing indeed. The Mad Hatter drive (rules of the road are considered by size - rather than right of way), over exciting mountainous roads, to our lodging for the night (Hotel Boqueron) took approximately four hours, we have had supper and we are now very tired. Dinner was delicious with flank steak, rice and vegetables - reminder to team to refrain from ice now. The hotel is a quaint colorful place with carved wood furniture, expressive art, and a beautiful blue swimming pool - which is where we ate our dinner on the veranda.
Tomorrow we travel to the ranch, which will be our base of operations for the next six days. More info coming tomorrow
(There are six team members from St. Andrews, two from Virginia, and three from the Texas soccer team). We are excited to see what the Lord has in store for us.
Written by Norm and augmented by Marcia