This morning, we woke up at 8:00am and ate breakfast at the base. Gary brought us some fresh bread and Brandon scrambled some eggs. Around 9:30am, we departed for Volcano Irazu (the tallest volcano in Costa Rica), where we toured the crater and looked out at the view. Volcano Irazu is a huge tourist attraction. There is a line of volcanoes in Costa Rica because it sits on the boundary of two tectonic plates. More specifically, there are 67 volcanoes in Costa Rica, but only 6 active.

The team (from left to right: Brandon, Melissa, Karina, Lisa, Amy, Danielle, and Gary) — **The team (from left to right: Brandon, Melissa, Karina, Lisa, Amy, Danielle, and Gary)**

After visiting Volcano Irazu, we headed to the Basilica, which is a huge Catholic place of worship. As we arrived, mass was just ending and we saw a man carry out a statue of a "virgin angel" and a crowd of people were gathered around to touch it because the believed it would bless them. When we walked into the building, people were crawling on their knees to the front alter while others were sitting in the pews. This I found very weird because the alter was centered around a very elaborate golden statue, that the people prayed to. The Basilica also had "holy water," which people were lining up to touch, and jugs in the shape of the statue, which people were purchasing. They believed the water had healing abilities. People could also purchase charms in the hopes that their prayers would be answered. In general, the whole team felt uncomfortable and sad to see this distortion of Catholicism. However, it was important for us to come here and see the country we are serving, as the predominant religion is Catholicism. Our only hope is to continue to pray that the people will be saved from these false practices and turn to God.

When we finally left the Basilica, we ate lunch at Taco Bar. Again, I had another LARGE Guanabana drink. It taste like a mixture of yogurt and lychee.

By the time we were done and leaving, it started to rain - hard. We finally made it back to base around 5:00pm to pack and move in with our host families. Karina and I are staying with Maribel's family. Maribel has two young daughters (Daniella and Valeria who are twins), and three sons (William, Esteban, and Jorge). Maribel also lives with her parents, who reside in the lower floor and are hosting Danielle and Amy. Maribel cooked a yummy dinner for me and Karina that made us go into a food coma! The language barrier makes it hard to communicate at times, but the twins are studying English in school and has made things a little bit easier. Brandon and Melissa are staying with Norma's family, which is right across the street from where we are staying.

Daniella and Valeria posing for a selfie with Lisa and Karina — **Daniella and Valeria posing for a selfie with Lisa and Karina**

Overall, it was an exciting day to experience the culture here in Costa Rica. However, we are more excited for our first day of ministry tomorrow, where we will be serving the Ticos through the sewing ministry. I will be sharing my testimony and Karina will be teaching a lesson on the story of Ruth.

Prayer Request :)

Energy for the week since we will be starting our ministry
Wisdom and ability to minister to our Tico families despite the language barrier
Team unity and safety

Spanish Phrase of the Day: Hola, Mi Nombre Es ( which means hello, my name is... I used this phrase to introduce myself to the Tico Family.).

In his Love,

Lisa Mai (with inputs from Karina, Danielle, and Amy)

Day 2 - Getting to Know the Ticos