So this is the first day I've been a le to have Internet service, so I'm going to try to put in as much information as I can.

We arrived in Quito on time, but got stuck at customs.  It was only because our paperwork didn't get one final stamp.  Luckily, we didn't have to wait long before we were loading up the bus and van and driving the approximately hour and a half drive to the hotel.  By then the whole team was exhausted and ready for bed.  So we packed everything into the hotel, picked our rooms, and tried to sleep.

The next day we had a wonderful fresh fruit breakfast and after we were finished we packed everything back up and after the military showed up, we loaded up again for the long drive to Riobamba.  Since we got in so late we couldn't go to our first site so we began prepping instead.  It was a long evening of trying to find the right shoe sizes for the site next Monday, but we seemed to manage it.

Today was our first day on site.  I washed a lot of feet and saw some blisters that looked like they were extremely painful.  I actually, after washing and fitting for shoes, sent one young girl to medical due to the severity of her blistering.  She, of course, refused to say she hurt.  I also got a lot of hugs and smiles from kids happy to get new shoes and the glove balloons that Jason, Nate, Tim, and Janny made.  We didn't see as many kids as we wanted to, but we were told that it was a holiday there and that many had gone to the next village or someplace like that.  All in all it was a great day and the team members are bonding and creating great friendships.

I have taken a lot of pictures and will attempt to upload them, but they may need to wait until I get home to do that.  Oh and my translators in shoes and socks are wonderful and patient as are the military that are helping.  Lily seemed to remember me from the first bus ride and hugged me this morning and remembered my name (for those of you who don't know hugging and a kiss on one cheek is a customary greeting in Ecuador).  And another soldier Alex is very nice and loves helping.

Before I forget, I should mention that today we had some babies who were crying and in an attempt to get them to stop one of the male soldiers was making silly faces and saying something (my Spanish is not great) to the baby in an attempt to help calm the baby.  Tomorrow I will have to remember to get his name.  Their was another female soldier along with Alex who were great with the babies and kids.  They were all, both female and male, playing and cuddling with the kids.  It was great to see.

So it's getting late and I think I need to go wash a bit and head to bed.