Monday, 7 May 2012

Prof G writes the following about our packing list: "Packing List -- Peru Trip 2012
As I was putting together the packing list for the Peru trip, I was reminded of the packing list that Jesus gave His disciples when He sent them out two-by-two to teach from village to village (in Mark 6:6-12). It was actually a list of what NOT to take though. They weren’t allowed to take money, food, a bag, or extra clothes! They were only allowed to take a staff and their partner. Why was that? Perhaps it was a reminded to rely completely on God to take care of them. Perhaps it was also a reminder of how Jesus was their Good Shepherd in Psalm 23, “Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
Of course, I’m not going to suggest we don’t take money, food, bags, or clothes on our Peru trip! However, it’s a great reminder for us to rely completely on our Good Shepherd, who provides for all our needs, whether we are here in the U.S. or traveling to Peru!

Baggage:  United Airlines offers the first checked bag (up to 50 pounds) for FREE  on flights to South America and the second checked bag for $70. I suggest weighing your bag before you leave for the airport. In addition, you are allowed one carry-on item and one personal item.

1.      Apparel
a.    It looks like it will be in the lower 70’s during the day and drop down to the lower 60’s at night.
b.    Keep in mind Dimas’ house doesn’t have heat or air conditioning, so I suggest being prepared for both cooler and warmer weather.
c.     It doesn’t rain much there. Instead it mists. Keep in mind this is the winter season where they do get more moisture. So a light water-proof jacket might come in handy.
d.    Something dressy/nice for social event. They just now started having weekly church services on Sunday.
e.    Good walking shoes.
f.      Sunglasses/hat
g.    I’m not yet sure what they do for washing clothes. I’ll get back to you on that.
2.      Documents
a.    PASSPORT!
b.    Copy of passport to carry with you on day trips
c.     I also highly recommend scanning your passport and e-mailing it to yourself. That way if you lose your passport, you have a copy of it on the web to access.
d.    Gov issued photo ID probably isn’t necessary, but might be handy to have with you for some form of ID.
f.      Minors need notarized permission to travel and medical release form. Give to Prof. Gullerud to carry with him.
g.    Medical insurance card and/or travel insurance information
h.    Dimas's contact information. This is included on the permission slip.
i.      Spending money (These are just rough estimates.)
                                                    i.            Food = $270
                                                  ii.            Transportation $200
                                                iii.            Other = $100
                                                 iv.            All U.S. bills must be almost new, no tears or wrinkles. Otherwise they will not exchange the money.
                                                   v.            Optional: Credit Card
                                                 vi.            Dimas is looking into the possibility of going to Machu Picchu. I’ll have to let you know the extra cost on that. It might be around $300 extra.
                                               vii.            We plan to use some of the fund-raising fund to pay Dimas for housing us.
3.      Sleeping
 .      Since Dimas doesn’t have enough bed for everyone you should bring a mattress pad/bed roll/air mattress, along with bedding or sleeping bag & pillow.
4.      Toiletries/Personal Items
a.    at least a half-roll of TP; most restrooms don’t have TP, so you’ll want to carry some with you at all times
b.    hygiene items
c.     bath, hand, wash towel
d.    sunscreen
e.    medicine = pain reliever, cold/alergy
f.      hand sanitizer
5.      Media/Technology
a.    cameras & batteries or charger
b.    phone (unless special plan is purchased, you’ll only want to use your cell phone in the U.S. of course)
c.     Wi-Fi is available at the house
d.    I will be taking my laptop with web-cam, so video Skype conversations will be possible. If you don’t already have a Skype account, I suggest doing so. It’s free and easy to use.
6.      Teaching & Writing Material
a.    paper & pens
b.    journal
c.     craft and puppet show materials
d.    lesson plans
e.    Bibles
f.      music
g.    Spanish dictionary
7.      Transportation/Map Information
a.    city/area maps
b.    tourist attraction information
8.      Travel Items (all of this is optional, so just consider what you might need/want)
a.    water/drinks
b.    snacks
c.     book
d.    music
e.    cards/games
f.      extra sweatshirt (last time I went the plane was very cold)
g.    backpack for day/overnight trips
9.      Gifts/Donation Ideas
a.    money donation for housing us (I will take care of this from the fund-raising fund)
b.    candy
c.     crayons
d.    books
e.    toys/balls
f.      hacky-sac
10.  Other
a.    personal snacks for when we're there"

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