Day 2 - Monday

Day 2 was a very very interesting and exciting day. It started off very shaky because in my excitement I had forgotten that Colombia is one hour behind US time and so I was up at 3:30 a.m. and made my way down to the lobby at 4:30 a.m. only to find that the front door to the hotel had been chained. This is the method of security for the building and so I was alarmed thinking that there was no one around who would be able to unlock this in time for me to meet the van that was to take me to Barranquilla. So after calling for help, a very sleepy young man jumped up from the sofa in the office area. I guess he was the night watchman and as I tried to explain to him in my broken Spanish, he stayed with me at the front door as we waited for the van.  I guess no one had informed him that I needed to be up this early.

 After a little while I realized that I had forgotten that Colombian time was an hour behind my time on my cell and so I tried to explain this to him and told him that I would return to my room and try again an hour later. So after a quick snooze, I tiptoed back down to the lobby area and asked for the young man's help again. He was very nice about it and stayed me again but after about 30 minutes, there was no van. I began to get worried. By about 6:15 there was still no van and the young man called the company which informed us that a van was on the way. They apologized for the delay. Finally at 6:30, the van pulled up packed with passengers and I was on my way. Well, I thought that I was on my way because during the course of the ride, I began to realize that the driver did not know where the Children International office was located in Barranquilla, even though arrangements with the address had been made the night before by the hotel staff. By this time, I realized that I did not have the address with me. Eventually,  I was the very last passenger on the van and after a few phone calls, the driver wrote down some address. I asked him if this was the correct address and he assured me that it was.

Well, to my dismay, I realized that we were not at the right building when we pulled up to a sign that did say Children International. It was a community center instead of the main office. By this time it was around 8:00 a.m., the time that I was supposed to start my visit with Bleidys and Maria! I guess I looked very funny as I entered the building with my small overnight bag and bag of goodies for my children, as I tried to communicate my reason for being there. Someone finally figured out that I was a lost sponsor! It was so funny as they scrambled to find someone who could speak English. Finally a gentleman was able to communicate with me and called the main office to contact my translator, Emily, who was going to meet me there at the center.

Everyone was very nice and as I was waiting for the translator, I was taken on a tour around the facility. I saw the offices of the doctor and dentists who do the checkups for sponsored children and I saw where medications are kept as well as the meeting areas for parents. The best part was visiting the pretty library where a group of children were gathered around a table reading books. I learned that the children were back in school now but that they attended classes at different times during the day. I had a chance to speak to some of the children in Spanish, asking them their names. They seemed to be very happy and comfortable in the center.

Finally, Emily entered and I could tell that she had been worried about what had happened since I had informed her the night before, that I would be at the main office very early in the morning, based on the information that the hotel staff had given me. I was worried too that we would not be able to do everything that we had planned for the visit with the girls, but Emily said that everything would be okay. I was so happy to have Emily as my translator because I know her. She is also a group sponsor for one of the children that I group sponsor too. I also knew Victor, the CI driver, because he had accompanied me on my first trip in 2011.

 Bleidys in her annual CI Photo, 2013

Maria in her annual CI photo, 2013

Anyway, we were finally off to see Bleidys and Maria. A little information about Bleidys and Maria. I have been sponsoring Bleidys for about 3 years now and after I met her little sister in 2011, I decided to sponsor her also. They are 2 very sweet little girls who write very loving and appreciative letters. Bleidys is now 11 and little Maria is only 6. They live with their mom and dad (the stepdad of Bleidys) and they both attend school. I have been able to pay for some of the girls' school tuition in the past.

As we entered the Village of Hope, the area where they lived, everything looked very familiar but I was too excited to focus on the details of the surroundings. I just remember seeing the areas of poverty and children walking to school in their uniforms down the streets, dodging trash and rocks in the pathways. . When we finally arrived at their home, I saw that the girls and their parents had placed a large sign on the front welcoming me to their home and they had decorated the home with balloons! I was so surprised!

Back a little later to continue with Day 2, Visiting Bleidys and Maria!