2 More Days!

In 2 more days I will be on my way to JFK with 4 suitcases, and 2 carry-ons.  Why so much luggage one might ask?  Want the answer?  3 out of the 4 suitcases and 1 out of 2 carry-ons are filled with items to give to the Corazon de Dahlia Community Development Center in Saylla.  School supplies, personal hygiene items, educational books & games…you name it!  In just 2 more days I will wave goodbye to my potable drinking water, nicely pressured shower, and washer/dryer.  In the car I will notice the smooth pavement and multi-lane roads and the drivers that (for the most part) stay in their lanes.  I will notice it because I know when I arrive to Cusco the next day, things will look & feel much different!  This will be my 7th flight into Cusco.  Each time I feel both culture shock and awe.  The view of the Andes from the plane is spectacular!  As the plane will come closer to the ground, I will notice the adobe brick houses and the farmland scattered across the countryside slopes.  When I walk off the plane, I’ll take a breath and realize that I am back at 11,000 ft., “Closer to Heaven” as one airport billboard used to read.  The energy of the Andes is hard not to feel.  After all, it is the naval of the Incan Empire.  Peru, get ready, because in a few days, I will be back in what has become a second home.  -Dahlia

School Supplies to the Brim