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Scorpion under my pillow

That is a rather unusual sounding exclamation, but it is exactly what happened to one of our workers here in YWAM Puerto Madryn. Actually, finding a scorpion at all is rather uncommon here, so when he found one underneath his pillow we were all quite concerned. However, in my four years of living here this was the first scorpion that I had ever seen, either inside or outside of the base.

The scorpion we found

Por Juan-Pablo however, was not so convinced. While he had been sleeping, he pushed a hand underneath his pillow. Suddenly something moved, causing him to withdraw his hand quickly. Thinking it was something unusual (for this area) such as a cockroach, he raised up his pillow to brush it away. It was only then that he realised the danger that had been awaiting him. A scorpion (see photos) was hidden underneath.

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Busted Bike

Today I tried to jump my bike over the gutter onto the footpath. I almost made it… but I didn’t. The back wheel landed on the sharp edge of the gutter and left me with a square rim. Some stomping on my wheel, removing the brakes, and careful riding ensured that I was able to return home. The bike however, as you can see, needed to have a new rim sewn in before it was back to normal again.

My broken bike rim

The lesson from this? Jump higher and longer. 🙂

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Farewell to Palma Real

Today we said goodbye to a team of four workers from our YWAM base. They are heading into the jungle in the south of Peru for six months, to relieve a missionary couple there who have not had a rest for over five years. Our team will also be working towards starting new ministries and other activities.

The Palma Real team (L to R - Vicky, Yolanda, Maricruz, Paul)

The village where they are going does not have electricity nor running water. Purchases of groceries has to be done every month by travelling in boat to the nearest large city/town, called Maldonado. Each month they will also be able to respond to and write emails to everybody. Outside of this singular monthly visit they are very isolated from the world.

Foods eaten in this area are quite different to what we would call “normal” foods. Things such as monkey, turtle, and grubs of all sorts are common here. Tropical fruits are also, naturally, very abundant. It is a challenge, but each member of the team, through prayer, is convinced that it is worth making the sacrifices to be able to help the people there, and to continue the work being done by the missionary couple.

These guys would love any support you are willing to provide them. Please advise me by the contact form for further details on how you may support them (prayer, giving, letters of encouragement, etc.).

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Pedro and Yanina’s Wedding

A couple from Puerto Madryn had become good friends of ours, and through us they became good friends of many in YWAM Puerto Madryn. As a result, when they decided to get married they wanted to get married here on our YWAM base. So we decorated everything and prepared it for the happy couple, and the ceremony took place outdoors on our base. Here are some of the many photos of their wedding, and the subsequent reception in a private room in the city:

The wedding ceremony

The wedding ceremony, complete with red carpet.

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Flash Visit to Buenos Aires

For two days I visited Buenos Aires. The reason? To retrieve my permanent residency that I have been waiting almost 6 months for. The result? They told me it was not ready yet and I needed to come back in another two months. So after travelling the 18 hours to get to Buenos Aires, I spent a night there and returned the next day.

Bus travel

After the jump there are some photos from my visit…

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It was Time

Yep. I had decided that wrestling with my hair was too much, so I did the best thing that anybody could do… cut it all off. shawnbefore.jpgshawnafter.jpg

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Felling Trees

Over the years that we have been in Puerto Madryn, some of the trees have not been able to survive the harsh conditions. Not only is there little water, lots of wind, and harsh winters, but there are also a lot of nasty borer-type bugs that burrow into them and kill them off slowly. As a result there were a number of trees that were actually starting to become dangerous, so it was time to bring them down.

Pulling the trees down one by one

The first tree took out the power lines to our main building.

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