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How Much Can You Sleep?

After burning the candle at both ends, I finally find a day to rest, basically sleeping through the whole thing.
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Well, I arrived at the bus station with plenty of time spare, only to discover that the bus arrived an hour after I was expecting it to. Fortunately for me, the bus I had inadvertently chosen was a full-cama. This meant there were big comfy seats that leant a long way back which I could sleep on.

So from midnight last night, when I boarded the bus, until 8am today, I slept soundly and hardly woke throughout the entire journey. This should have been sufficient sleep if it were not for my current sleep-deprived condition.

You see, over the last week, and especially the night before, my sleeping hours grew progressively shorter and my condition progressively worse, as I tried to complete all of my commitments to people before I left. I succeeded, but my body was a wreck.

So today was a day of rest. Literally. When I reached the hostel in Puerto Iguazu, only 5mins walk from the bus station, I put down my bags and climbed into the bed. Another 6hrs later, I climb out again, and wander slowly around the quiet township which has all but completely shut up for the siesta hours.

After finding a small shop for lunch, at around 3pm in the afternoon, I then return to my hostel, and my bed, and sleep a further 3hrs. I guess I was really tired, huh. I feel better now, but expect an early night will also help out a little more. Then it is off to Paraguay tomorrow.

BTW some recent news that I heard leads me to believe that Australians and New Zealanders no longer need a visa to enter Brazil. It would be nice to know that my journeys through Brazil are now no longer subvertive. I will ask at the border tomorrow.

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Back to Paraguay

Tonight I travel again. I am heading up to Ciudad del Este in Paraguay to pick up some electronic bits and pieces from there. I have visited this city quite frequently lately, and this visit is one last attempt to get all I can out of my multiple entry visa that I purchased almost three months ago.

Purchasing is the name of the game, and I have a very long list of items to research and purchase while I am there, as the prices are so much better than here in Argentina – all of it electronics. I don’t mind visiting this city as it is quite interesting at times, albeit dangerous.

Paraguay is not my ultimate destination however, as during the latter part of the week I plan on joining up with the students in the Mobile Missions School in San Pedro in the northern end of Misiones. From what I have heard they are working with the local indigenous people there (Amerindians) amongst other things.

As I have now become the key person in communications in this YWAM base, my job has widened to include videos. Actually, it seems that a great deal of my time is spent in this area. So just to add to the increasing backlog of videos that I am producing, I thought I would take a bunch more with the students to try and create a video encapsulating their experiences. I am new at all of this so we will see how it goes.

One of my first video attempts was of the flood that came through the area, and although a little long, you are welcome to check it out… Corrientes_Flood_Apr2005.wmv (8Mb).

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The Riches of a Western Nation

I live in Argentina. Now Argentina is not a poor country. In fact, the people here have it pretty good. But back in 2001 the economy collapsed, and many people lost everything they had. This crash has caused a great widening of the gap between the haves and the have-nots. My home is with those that have, although they do not have like those in western worlds. Actually, most people from western worlds would say that we are the have-nots.

In most if not all of the western worlds, people spend to satisfy their desires. Not their needs. People spend to keep up with the fashions, to keep up with the Jones’, or just for the sake of spending. Money is a commodity, not a necessity. I speak in generalities of course, as there are equally people that have very little money in these countries too. But the majority do not need to think about where their next meal is coming from.

The problem as I see it, is that we have forgotten what our needs really are… and see our wants as part of our needs. Basic essentials include: a roof over our heads (warmth and shelter), food in our stomachs, clothing on our backs, and someone to love us and to love. If we have these items then we can live rich lives.

But what happens when your roof is a mansion, with clothing draped over the floor that is designed to be trodden over. What happens if the food in our stomachs is excessive, and the waste has to be thrown out for nobody can eat any more. What is it when the clothing on our backs has lost meaning in function and labels and form take precedence, with no expense spared to acquire the current trends. What have we come to when the person offerring true love is rejected for the offer of cheap sex.

Continue reading “The Riches of a Western Nation”

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Ciudad del Este

Well, I have finished my travels into Ciudad del Este, the famous shopping centre of South America. It is also the famous mafia centre, the famous crime centre, and the famous money laundering centre of South America also. Some of its not so wonderful reputations.

I discovered about the cime aspect of this place today, when my backpack was surrupticiously opened and my recent purchase of 25 DVDs disappeared forever. When I found out about it, there was no trace of the DVDs. Fortunately, some of the more expensive items in the same pocket were tucked out of sight, and survived the intrusion. Non-the-less, it was a wake up call to me to be a lot more cautious than I had been recently.

Of all of the places I have visited, there has never been a place of such incredible contrasts as this city. It still amazes me to see people inside currency-exchanges with piles of hundred dollar US notes, while beggars, some without an arm or leg hobble along the footpaths outside. Carts full of notebook computers, printers, clothing, stereos, and virtually any other goods you can think of are pushed up and down the steep roads, piled to almost twice the height of the men manuevering it.

My task this visit was to complete some purchases for some friends, and to pick up a couple of things for myself. With budgets tight for all of us, it took a lot more searching to find what we needed at the prices we could afford. The difference this time however, was that I was not exhausted tired as I wandered through the city.

One of the things that has annoyed me greatly about Ciudad del Este, is the amount of stress it seemed to cause me each time I have visited it in the past. However every visit in the past has also been during moments of great tiredness. My first day there yesterday was the first day that I arrived in the city feeling refreshed and alive. This turned out to make a huge difference in everything.

Not only was I fresh, but also did not feel any amount of pressure to buy everything that day. This allowed me to meander and look around the place, and as a result I found some of the best prices available. I am sure my friends will be happy. I know I was.

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Why this blog?

Since this is my first entry, I thought I would tell you a little about why I have created this blog…

I am a Christian, and have been for over 20 years. Wow, that sounds pretty scary when I put it like that. During this time, I have been “churched” in many different places of many different sizes and denominations. I have met some wonderful people during this time, and not all of them fit the “mould” for a church. Not all of them fit the “mould” for what the churches tell me is a Christian either.

And this is one of the key reasons for this blog. A search for what is a “True Christian”? Or is there no such thing? Why do we do the things that we do? Why does it seem that there is little if any reality to the words and themes that we talk about in the church? Basically, why are we the way we are, and is it Biblical?

There seems to be many things that happen to me through the days that cause me to re-think my beliefs, to re-examine this world that I am in. To look at what I am doing and ask why. To wonder how I might be able to be part of the solution, and not just part of the problem.

Musings… that hopefully will turn into actions…

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Why close churches?

I was walking along the street today and passed a church building. It was locked up tighter than a bank after hours, with nothing inside but an empty room. How hollow, I thought. How useless. Why pay for a building and use it only twice a week?

Many churches follow this same principle. They claim that they are “open” for everybody that needs them… but neglect to add that it is only during the hours of their convenience. Some churches go the “extra mile” (refering to a teaching of Jesus in the gospels) and place a contact phone number on the door should people need them. Now I don’t know about you, but unless it was my only choice between life and death, I would prefer to find an alternative source of help than call some unknown person on a phone number at what almost always turns out to be an inconvenient time.

So what is the solution here? What could happen instead?

Continue reading “Why close churches?”

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My World is a Flood

Today it is raining. Yesterday it was raining too. That is about all it takes here before there is a flood. Lots and lots of rain. Mind you, that is all it takes in most places for it to flood. Most floods are quick and small, and they disappear as fast as they came. This one was no different, although it still has not stopped raining.

The base building survived the flood

Even though the water was up very high, our new wall kept the water out of our base building.

Fortuanately for us, there is no serious problem for our base and buildings, as we have made many changes to the place now and our flood wall, the newest addition, worked very effectively. However, our neighbour suffered considerably, and had to punch holes in the wall of his house to let out the water that had flooded it.

Cautious from the damage I had caused to my last camera when taking photos in the rain (the LCD screen died), I went out with an umbrella to protect my gear and then took a bunch of photos to try and give an impression of what we were experiencing. The locals tell me that this is the worst they have ever seen it.

Our dirt road was carved up in some large washouts, the sewerage system was overflowing onto the streets, the drain storms were inundated, and parts of the street were completely covered in water. It was very impressive to see the power of nature in effect.

Neighbor gets flooded

Even though we survived this flood, our neighbour’s house was filled with water. You can see the water running strongly down the right side of his house where the front door is located.

In spite of all of this, people continued to go about their daily business. Shop owners found a way to collect the bread they need every day, buses still rolled down the road, albeit slowing down for each of the deeper water holes and the washouts, and there were people to get on and off the buses. It was business as usual.

Well, not quite. Our new kindergarten was empty today when not one child turned up due to the heavy rains and localised flooding – a rare situation indeed. Compared to dry days or even normal wet days the number of people outside was cut down to the bare minimum. It was a bleak and rainy day. The students also, simply stood out on the back patio and looked through the sheets of rain out over the waters. There was not much more they could do.

Flooded Street

A nearby street was far deeper in water than ours. The fountain in the foreground is the overflowing sewerage system, overwhelmed by the amount of water trying to flow through it.

But, just as fast as it arrived, when the rain stopped, it was almost all gone again within a few hours, leaving a mushy and muddy ground for the next day or two as it dries. As I write this tonight it is raining again, although lightly. If we get some more heavy rain then the waters could easily rise again quickly over the already saturated land, although it is unlikely. It was large thunderstorms that brought this huge flood last night and this morning. Now they are only rain clouds.

So although we are wet and drying out, all is well in this part of the world, and we are in a good situation. Only six months ago things would have been very different, but we are making good progress on establishing this base and fixing up the most significant areas of need.

Enjoy the photos that follow. Rob.
Continue reading “My World is a Flood”

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New Blogging System

Copied from my old Mambo system after I had finally gotten around to installing and populating WordPress:

Well, if you have not yet discovered by now, there has not been new content posted here for quite some time. The reason for this is that I am now using a different system for posting, where eventually all of my information (that is scattered over more than three different websites currently) will be combined into one. So if you are looking for the latest news and information, amble your way back to www.samafas.com where you will find the link you need to my new site (or click here).

Eventually, even this site will disappear from view, once all of the information is incorporated. So have a look around and enjoy it all, and then wander over to the new site for the latest news. And have a great day. Rob.

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Back from the Abyss

Well, I know it has been a while since I have written anything here. Goodness knows that there was more than enough things to write about…

* Buying a new laptop and digital camera in one of the cheapest cities in Latin America.
* Making it through the anal-retentive Argentine customs with this new laptop.
* Losing my new Sony Ericsson telephone with my only copy of everyone’s addresses and telephone numbers.
* Getting broadband internet access (from Arnet) from my bedroom here in Corrientes.
* And I am now about to go on a “Survival Camp” or something like that called a “NIKO” from the greek word which means “to overcome”.

So let me treat each of these one at a time…
Continue reading “Back from the Abyss”

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On the Road Again

Tomorrow I leave for another journey. Easter time provides a great opportunity for travelling, and the fact that my friend Chris needs to renew his visa provides the motivation.

So we leave at 6am for Posadas, Missiones (1), then hitchhike to Obera (2), a smaller town only one hour away where we will meet up with the Mobile Mission School team that are working there. This is the same group of people that I was with during my time in Ciudad del Este. They have moved back into Argentina now.

From here we continue North to Puerto Iguazu (3) to check out the famous waterfalls on the Argentine side, then stop around at the Brazilian side in Foz de Igua?for a general impression of the whole place. From here we will don a helmet and brave the dangers of a motorbike taxi over the crowded bridge into Ciudad del Este (4) for a look around and to pick up some purchases for some friends.

After this, Chris continues on his journey through Paraguay, while I return to Corrientes to continue with my work here. It should be a fun time.

Just in case anyone does not know where some of these places are, I have provided a map below with arrows to indicate where we are going. Have a great day, Rob.

Our Journey North

NOTE: Puerto Iguazu, Foz Igua?and Ciudad del Este are all in the same area, and you can see the other two from each place. Obera is only a short distance north of Posadas. Argentina is Green, Brazil is Orange, and Paraguay is Yellow. This is the North Eastern part of Argentina.