We awoke to Todd knocking on our doors telling us that breakfast was ready. We came to the dining room to a pleasant surprise, a more American breakfast of pancakes and bacon with the signature Jamaican touch of lots of vegetables. Before we left we had our usual meeting this time brainstorming ideas for games to play with the children. We gathered our things for the day, namely sunscreen and water, the only layer of defense our poor white bodies have against the unforgiving Jamaican climate.we where met by Maurice Mackintyre the son of Archie Mackintyre who both have been doing an amazing job driving our bus, in the seemingly unorganized traffic of Kingston. Before we started our work at the Kingston gardens center, we again donned our tacky floral shirts and strapped on our cameras for yet another sightseeing trip. This time our tour took us to the University of the West Indies, and to U-tech. at UWI we enjoyed seeing a beautiful chapel on campus, basking in the glory of a breathtaking mural, taking goofy pictures, and seeing where Usain bolt, world record Olympic runner, trained. At U-tech, we saw where our bus driver Maurice worked and saw yet another example of a less impoverished side of Kingston.
Our next stop was a money exchange or a "Cambio" as it is called in Jamaica. We walked in and all exchanged our money without incident. Meyer gave them $92 and was given $8050 Jamaican dollars in return. That may sound like a very large sum but in Jamaica one dollar here is worth a little over a penny in America so although the prices may seem outrageous, they are actually great deals.
The next stop on our seemingly endless itinerary was the mall. We stopped there for lunch, which consisted for the most of us, of KFC, another disgustingly accurate taste of home. Some people also stopped for Ice Cream.
We pulled into Kingston gardens eager to see the backbreaking work we had done the previous day, in action. We walked into the building just before the children started to arrive. Once they had arrived we had a short session of singing which was partly hindered by the fact that we did not know many similar songs. The songs ranged from praising God, to just being goofy, which was a great icebreaker for the inner city children. Then Todd taught a lesson on David's selection for king. He made the point that "People look at the outside, God looks on the inside (the heart)"
We then split them into two groups according to age. The children with Carolyn’s group where from age 1 to 13, while the kids with Todd’s group where teenagers ages 15 to 16, all of which were girls. This proved initially awkward for Todd and his all male group leaders, but eventually they warmed up to each other.
Carolyn’s group met each other by finding each others shoes, which where thrown in a pile in the middle. The group really started interacting when I (Isaac) taught them how to make paper hats out of news paper. At the same time they were making a paper chain out of pieces of paper which they wrote things they are thankful for on. After they started to become restless we brought them outside to play games such as the multiple games that involved singing and moving, but also where educational at the same time. While doing this many of us where able to build relationships with the children that we hope will stay with them forever.
Meanwhile, Todd’s group was busy performing the skit "Jesus and Me" for the teenagers which was followed by a discussion. They also played some games to break the rather thick layer of ice between the Jamaican girls and the all male mission team members by playing “Honey, if you love me.” The time at Kingston Gardens ended with time to talk with the kids and learn some games that they taught us.
After leaving Kingston Gardens we went to the super market to buy various Jamaican goodies. People bought things ranging from mangos to boxes of chocolate. This is the place were lots of people got the chance to get their first taste of Jamaican products.
Then we took another short sightseeing trip up the hills that we look at from our hotel. As we twisted around the switchback turns, Isaac thought out loud that we may be a little close to the curb; seconds later we bounced off said curb. Maurice pointed out various houses of entertainers and cricket players. The houses were in the price range of about 250 million JD or 1.5 million US. Once we got to the top of the hill we were able to get out and had a photo taken of the group looking out over the beautiful city of Kingston. When we arrived at the hotel everyone went to their rooms to quickly store their spoils from the super market. Our dinner was chicken and potatoes. Hmmm, chicken again.
After dinner we started having fun by putting a bottle in Emily’s puffy hair and making it stick up like a cone. Afterwards we had our group meeting in which we discussed many things about the day. We talked about how well behaved the children were and ways we could improve how we work with the children. We ended our day with games of Dominos and Rook. Some of us went to sleep at 12:00 while others went to bed at 2:00.
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