Sorry it's been a couple of days since I have been able to write and a lot has happened in just two days! We have been going to churches in Pisco which is about an hour by bus. It is the area which was hit by an earthquake 3 years ago. 500 people were killed and most of the town was flattened. It is still a devastated area and we haven't even seen the worst of it. I guess it is a very dangerous place and everyone tells us we shouldn't go deep into the town. Today we thought we should be able to at least drive through it so we could take some pictures from the bus windows but the bus driver wouldn't drive down there. I could tell by the look on his face he was really afraid. He was a city bus from Pisco and he said he could get stopped by the police there and get fined for being out of his area. We did stop at the bus station to use the bathroom and two Peruvian men walked us across the street and into the station and stood outside the bathroom doors to walk us back. I could feel the tension and the curiosity of the locals who were standing around. They looked like a rough bunch but several of us were in a state of emergency to get to the bathroom because the church we were at all a day didn't have a bathroom, just a very smelly hole in a room. Nothing to flush!

Some of the group felt a tremor one night but I of course slept right through it. I guess it is fairly common. One of the doctors had his backpack with all out his a money and passport stolen out of the area we congregate in every morning. His had to back to Lima to get a new one and just got back tonight. The people we are seeing now are very sick and pitiful looking. We are having usually 30 kids for bible school and they seem to be having lots of fun. Many of the group are getting sick now. I had one day were I didn't feel well so I've been lucky so far. My knee has been better and I haven't had as much trouble with it today. Tomorrow we go to Paracus for the weekend to see the Nasca lines and some museums. Take care!