Tamachindi

The month of April for Drew is the beginning of months of travel. I will have the opportunity to travel with him on some of the trips, as I did this weekend. Our destination: a Guarani village called Tamachindi. It was a real adventure, as I suppose almost any trip in Bolivia is.

Our Bolivian friend, who knows the village, wanted to take us. So, when he asked us to arrive early for a bus that leaves at exactly 12 noon, we showed up at 11:30. Our friend met us there at 11:57 to tell us we were at the wrong bus stop, our bus would take off 3 blocks down the road. We made it onto the bus, just before pulling out. two hours down a paved road, and 11 hours down a dirt road (that time does include a 2 hour pit stop because the headlights didn´t work), the bus stopped. When we got out, there was a river flowing through the road. The bus wouldn´t go any further. We asked how far until Tamachindi, and they told us 30 kilometers. Our friends decided it would be best to spend the rest of the night in the bus, then hike through the water the next morning. When we woke up, there were already some motorcycles waiting for us on the other side of the water. We gathered our things in a hurry, and got off the bus.

When we got to Tamachindi, the village was killing a cow, and we found out the weekend was a gathering of 11 Guarani Churches from nearby. All day, people started showing up until the tent was full and we starting singing about 7:30. The service ended at 11:30, not too long at all for a multi-Church gathering.

The next day was the same. I tried to stay around the house and chat with the old women. That is my favorite part. I try to help them with their daily tasks, and they enjoy laughing at me, speaking Guarani, of course. Eventually, they feel comfortable enough to start a conversation in a common language, and I have an opportunity ask questions and learn. The last picture from above shows a women who is nearly 100 years old. While she drank her mate, and we shared a few small conversations when there was a translator there to help. Just a few years ago, there was no pastor in this village, and so she took up the responsibility of leading the Church. We were told that she would gather the youth, and teach them about the Bible. I think it is pretty incredible for a lady that old to still desire to teach and share with the youth.

I will let Drew talk in another post about the Church services, if he finds some time. It was good to see how the Guarani people viewed Church, and it was encouraging to sit and fellowship with them, and also worship with them. This will hopefully be the beginning of many trips back to this village.

Our trip home was exciting too, of course. We bummed a ride off some other people who had come from the city. About an hour into the trip, our brakes went out. Thank goodness we were in the Chaco, a large flat piece of land. To fix the brakes, we had to stop in the ENORMOUS Mennonite colony to ask for some tools. The Mennonite population here in Bolivia could be another post in itself. I will stop here to say that it is pretty crazy their life and culture here. And those blonde haired, blue eyed, overall wearing Mennonites are just as Bolivian as the Guaranis that we visited this weekend.

Also, we stopped in a town on the way back, there the government was giving away free milk, but it had started to go bad. So, the women in the group wanted to make cheese. We took the milk, about 30 liters, and made cheese before finishing our journey home.

This post is already really long. I am hoping Drew will have time to write a little more, but this will have to do for now. It was a crazy, but really good, trip. I am thankful for that time, and look forward to other trips where we can continue to learn more about the Guarani people and their life.