So long those jungle villages....... So long those villagers... So long those cute innocent children... In what ways have we touched their lives? In what ways have they touched ours? Only in heaven we can fully know...
The extra time spent with the translators in Iquitos was quite memorable. The long walk from downtown Iquitos to Belen after a rainfall was rather refreshing and relaxing. We took quite a few pictures along the way. The local farmer market was extremely unhygenic that Christine found it unacceptable and unbelievable. Due to the notorious pickpocketing, we stopped at the outskirt of Belen.
It seemed to me that only hotels are equipped with A/C in Iquitos. None of the stores we passed by are air-conditioned.
Instead of taking a nap like the rest of the team, Elmer, Luis, Jessica and I visited a local electronic shop to check out the prices. All electronic gadgets, in general, even with older modals are more expensive compared to their counterparts in America. We also stopped by one of the Internet Cafes in Iquitos, for Elmer would like to show us his family pictures.
Below is our daily formal report.
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Amazon Medical Team final update, 1-2-09
Today's report was given by Steve Yeh:
They left The Chosen Vessel and visited the mission compound in Iquitos. It is comprised of a school, hospital, living quarters for the workers, a woodworking shop and a dock for The Chosen Vessel and 3 auxiliary vessels.
They had a "little adventure" today and took a boat tour of an anaconda farm (finally sighting those critters!). Monkeys were jumping all over them, and there are pictures of team members holding snakes. "This was the only wild thing we did."
On the streets of Iquitos, they passed out 400 tracts and 250 "Jesus Loves You" buttons. They also gave free meals to five street kids outside the restaurant where they ate.
Today, they made contact with a member of the Chinese community in Iquitos, They started off by talking with a Senor Younge, who is both a local Chinese politician, and an evangelical Christian. He gave them the name of Yi Wong, who is the president of the local Chinese benevolence association, and the owner of a Chinese restaurant. Mr. Wong had been given advance notice of the team's coming, but when they arrived, he was "extremely unfriendly" and essentially refused to talk with the team. He spoke only Mandarin, but handily, Hannah Ong is fluent in Mandarin and translated for the team. They tried to convey to him that they had come all the way from Chicago, and represented an equivalent Chinese benevolence association (the Pui Tak Center), but he still was hostile to their overtures. The team decided to eat in
his restaurant anyway, and later identified a young man in the dining room as the son of the owner. He was home on break from York University in Canada, and spoke English quite well. After spending some time talking with David (the son), Mrs. Wong (the wife of the restaurant owner and mother of David) came out and apologized, saying they were "too busy to talk." She asked the team what they wanted, and the team replied that they just wanted to make contact and see how they could bring medical supplies and help to the Chinese community (as they had been doing for the local Peruvians). Finally, Hannah and Steve went to the kitchen to wave goodbye, and Mr. Wong came out and gave them his business card, a sign that he had finally thawed at least a little. The team spoke again with David, and then left. Steve said they will write a letter to Mr. Wong.
Tonight the team is staying at the Europa Hotel in Iquitos. The team will leave tomorrow morning at 7:30, and expect to be in Lima in the afternoon. They will return home to the States by overnight flight and should be back in Chicago around noon.
Steve reported that everyone is in good health, with recovery of those who had motion sickness from the boat. He requests prayer for:
1. the Wong family. Despite the seeming initial reserve, if not actual hostility, Steve feels they made good progress. Pray that God will grow this relationship, and for opportunities to make inroads into the Chinese community in Iquitos, which does not have a history of good relationships with the native Peruvians
2. safety on the trip back
The team is in good spirits and is eager to share what they have learned and experienced on this trip. Overall, the team visited 7 villages and saw 627 patients.
By His mercy and grace,
Eudora and Te Hua
PS. If you are interested in tracking the route of the team, please go to:
http://tinyurl.com/ccuc2amazon
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