A City of Contrasts

We hit the ground running in Lima. We landed at 530am, after me and Neil having had 2 or 3 hours sleep across the whole journey. After showers and brekkie (bless Margaret for buying in some Kelloggs, especially now we have seen the cost!) We then headed out and tackled immigration and Interpol, a busy first morning, but it means that our paper work has all been submitted and we are waiting to see if we get our resident's cards. In the last few days (it feels like a month), we have started to explore Miraflores and been out on our own, trying to make ourselves understood in cafes and at the park! In training, we were told that we would feel like we were infants and totally dependent when we first arrived, and I resonate with that, and I am grateful for Margaret's patience and understanding!

Today was just crazy and I am attempting to process it. We started off by wandering around the perimeter of Huaca Puclanna, a pre-Inca ruin that we can see from Margaret's apartment. Daniel is amazed by the cacti that are here - they are pretty big.



And here he is checking out a local rock, looking ‘very cool’ as he keeps telling us.




We then caught our first sight of llamas in Lima.



And, finally, I saw this and it was the perfect moment for a photo!



After this, Margaret took us to a church that she was visiting, followed by her church. The car journey revealed the poverty that many people in Lima live in. There were lots of rubble and half finished buildings, as well as views of the buildings and shacks built precariously onto the side of the hills and dunes surrounding Lima. It still seems unbelievable that people live there. And then, we were in church and it was wonderful to be worshipping our Almighty God, who is the same yesterday, today and forever, and the same in the UK and Lima, alongside other believers. We were warmly welcomed in both churches, and then it was back in the car. This is an experience in itself as driving in Lima is absolute madness. I have no idea how Margaret dares to do it, and I believe that the gift of safe driving is a gift of the Spirit that Paul forgot to include.

To complete our day of contrasts, we went to Larcomar for lunch, complete with Pizza Hut, KFC and TGIs (and very yummy ice creams). My head is totally jumbled up. It is a city of contrasts; the view below is from our bedroom and you can see houses with corrugated iron roofs next to expensive apartments. If you look carefully on the right hand side, there is a window with a very expensive child’s car in it. It is hard to comprehend it all, but we trust that God has called us here and know he loves everyone here, from those in the expensive apartments, to the families living in the shanty towns. I pray that God gives us ways to demonstrate this love.