On the second leg.

On the flight from Miami to Detroit.  Everything is going perfectly and planes seem to be running on schedule.  We arrive roughly 3:45 pm and will need to clear customs.  Then we'll head home for a nice nap. 

We are fed.

And when I say fed, I mean emotionally as well as in our tummies.  

A brief tour of Santiago and we landed at a combo sushi, italian, hamburger place.  The particular plus of this hotspot was that we could have wine that was drinkable while the kids had pizza and spaghetti and burgers.  After our taxi driver dropped us off in sort of the middle of nowhere...we were ok with that because we thought he was sketchy anyhow - we walked along in the, ahem, dark.....and came upon a group of men.  Trying out my Spanish with a friendly Canadian smile I said....Donde esta restaurante Sushi Ya?   The gentleman closest to me responded.....just go down to the corner and turn right.   THAT was a lovely moment.     There really is very little English here so that was quite a pleasant surprise.  Our sushi was fine - but I prefer Wasabi on Taylor.

Lovingly thinking of our friends Ron and Sue who posted dandy pics of their Okanagan wine tour as we drink our Chilean sauvignon blanc out of little teeny plastic cups in this overly hot lobby of our 2 star hotel in Santiago.  priceless. 

I do want  to mention that this is not entirely all fun and games and these kids really should be commended . It  is quite trying sometimes to be here where we don't speak the language and we all somewhat emotionally drained - we worried ourselves sick about the shoe arrival and the shoe distribution part can be a bit overwhelming.  Orderly and peaceful it's not.  The conditions the children live in are horrendous.   My legs are covered in some kind of explosive bug bites.  This is real travelling.  Sometimes a little too much authenticity. 

We needed every hand down here and they all came through with flying colours.  Whether it was finding matching photos or checking shoe numbers, or handing out stickers and neon bracelets, to entertaining and hugging and carrying kids on their backs....the photos will demonstrate all eventually.


(possibly giving the kids cake and pop BEFORE handing out the shoes was not the best idea.  Can you say ENERGY?  )

I think more than anything the amount of work put into our arrival by the Accion Callejara people really humbled us.  Welcome banners everywhere we went.  Unique and treasureably artwork - can't wait to show you some samples.  Parting gifts and the most incredible letter of thanks.  Speeches.  Hugs galore.  What an experience.

A quick update....then supper.

Today was the day.  We were up bright and early and ready to go for 8 am.  The taxi came for us at 8:30 and whisked us off to the Accion Callejara headquarters where we met the amazing Milagro and Bentodina along with so many others.  The shoes had JUST ARRIVED!   This morning.

So our first program involved "shoeing" for want of a better expression about 60 Haitian street kids.  Many of  these teens walked or found their way from Haiti after the earthquake.  They live basically on their own but the incredible people at Accion Callejara give them a place to drop in and feel welcome, often providing food but also activities and definitely lots of TLC. 

Then we were off to a school in the suburbs of Santiago.  This particular school started for 13 years in a railroad type trailer but has grown very well thanks to a generous donation by the Japanese government.  They've added a medical office, a dental office and several classrooms.  It is really the nicest facility for miles around.  More pictures later. 

We went back to headquarters and were served a delicious lunch by our wonderful new friends. 

The best was saved for last.  We travelled by car and truck and at the end walked in through the narrow winding hilly street....and we use that term loosely....to arrive at our next school.  Up an unbelievably steep staircase and we were greeted with huge shouts and cheers of welcome.

The kids put on several performances for our benefit - baton twirling, playing recorder, entertainment by their own version of Dancing Gabe named...Yanqui (no more than 4 years old).   Then it was "shoeing"| time - oh my goodness what a frenzy. 

One of the highlights was that 3 girls in the corner developed quite a crush on Derek and one of the English translators decided to tell them he was a rock star.  Oh Yes.  That did complicate things somewhat but it made it easier for us to clear a bit of space for the much overcrowded photography section (headed by Shea) when we sent him to the other side of the room to sign autographs. 

It was extremely crowded and loud through much of the time as we really tried to keep our cool in outrageously hot conditions.  But as you'll see when I get the photos posted...it was extremely well worth the effort. 

The kids made individual cards for us (I think there are at least 70 of them...all in Spanish). 

After we delivered the shoes we took a walking tour through the neighbourhood these kids live in.  It will be impossible for photos to capture it properly.  It is so heartbreaking...garbage and squalor everywhere.  People living in cardboard shanties underneath a bridge.  Pigs in the creek running through the area.  It was truly one of the most deplorable places I've ever seen - and most of you know I've seen a fair bit of poverty in my life.  I will post a photo but again, it is difficult to capture how truly awful it is.  

We really can't wait to add more photos and update this more...but we do need to go get some food before the town closes down so we're off to wake up the hard-working kids and get out to eat.  Will hopefully get more up later but definitely wanted to put at least a sampler up now.

Abundant thanks to Milagros and Bentodina, Ernesto, Dean, Bob and everyone else at Accion Callejara.  We will never EVER forget you and the children we had the privilege of meeting today. 

Exciting - Reliable internet.

We are now back in Santiago.  We have heard from the charity that all went well at the customs agents today.  The shoes were loaded on a truck and are expected to arrive in Santiago at 10 o'clock tonight.  Everything should be according to schedule then.


We've been told the Board of Accion Callejara had an emergency meeting yesterday and decided to pay the $600 customs fee.  We, of course, will reimburse them but they don't know that yet. (Thank you Sue B for always being so kind.)  We are so happy that everything has worked out after some scary moments.  The people at the charity seem to be extremely enthusiastic about the shoes and are so pleased that we are here and caring for these kids.  So we are clearly excited about the day we're going to have tomorrow. 

We realize that we really don't know how things are going to go tomorrow but expect to have lots of pictures and video when it's all done.

Many thanks to those of you who have been following the blog and cheering us on.  It means a lot.

And thanks to those who are being so supportive as we and Bree deal with the sudden loss of Tequila (our 12 year old chihuahua for those who didn't get the chance to meet her.)  Thanks Marnie for calling Bree.  She really appreciated the call.   

Ay Yi Yi!

Well , here's the update.  According to the charity, customs is holding the shoes hostage for another $600 in duties.  Our contact is headed down to Santo Domingo today to try to sort it out.  As everything is supposed to happen tomorrow we are very unsure of the situation.  we are supposed to visit 3 different areas tomorrow to deliver 324 pairs of shoes to these kids who really need them....some of them live in garbage dumps.....and once again we are being thwarted by the government.

Our arrangements had been for the shoes to be delivered right to the door of the charity on the 21st. 

So, bear with us as we all deal with this latest little crisis.  

No idea if our charity partners will even be able to arrange shipping for the shoes to Santiago even if they are able to get them through customs. 

So frustrating.

Weather is cloudy and extremely windy.  We had to work out how to get back to Santiago ourselves today.  That's our next project. 

Hopefully internet will be more reliable in Santiago. 

Much ado about nothing

It really wS no problem at all but the weather is now rainy and unpleasant. Glad we had a couple of nice days at the start. There is no Internet and this data use on my phone is crazy expensive so I likely won't post again til we are in Santiago. We go there tomorrow sometime.
We did go in an explore puerto plata a bit yesterday but today it is really coming down so I believe we are hotel bound. Hope all is well in the greAt white north.

Awaiting tropical storm Irene

Raining very hard. Worst part of storm expected in 2 hours. Will try to keep connected if possible. So far we have power but no Internet. Another little adventure.