We're here!!

So, "getting there" and "we're here" posts are being typed on the same day, but I think that's okay. We left Oklahoma on Wednesday around 8am and arrived in La Jara, Colorado (via 412W to 25N to 160W to 235S, I think) at 6:45pm. We stopped along the way to see the Capulin Volcano (a national monument) in northeast New Mexico. It is a great example of the cone shaped mountains produced after a volcano has erupted.

There were brief showers on our way into town and at the sign we realized that La Jara is the pot of gold you always hear about :) ... Check out the picture to the right.

Here is a picture of our house that we are currently sharing with 4 other volunteers. We have a good sized kitchen/dining area, a small reading room, a large living room, 2 bathrooms, 5 bedrooms, a greenhouse, 2 small sheds, a "sand" v-ball court (it's more like pea-size gravel), and a garden - oh, and a basketball hoop that needs a new net. The area we live in is in the San Luis Valley. So, it is flat in all directions, but surrounded by mountains; it is like the mountains are a fence around the valley. The fourth highest mountain in Colorado is near us - Mount Blanca, 14, 245ft. We may have to hike it before the year is done; our roommates said it took them 2 days! (To see a picture, go to this website: http://www.fone.net/~blancaco/Mt.%20Blanca.htm)

On Thursday we spent some time unpacking and "nesting" in our room. We gave ourselves a self-guided tour of Alamosa (the city we will be working in) and La Jara (the town we are living in). We decided that it is more populated than we imagined it to be, which is good because we pictured it pretty desolate. (Jeremy says that Goessel looks more out in the boonies than La Jara.) In the evening, we had pizza for supper and watched a movie with the other VSers.

Today, we went to work for the first time. Jeremy has a gigantic office; although it also serves as a conference room. He seems to have learned a lot on his first day about the valley's water supply and how some things work here. He was excited to learn that he will probably be out in the field for the next two weeks scoping out different sites. He may add more to this later, but that is all I can remember right now. I did a very brief orientation this morning, with more to follow on Monday. I learned that there is already a pile of stuff for me to do, so I am sure that I won't be bored. My days, by the sounds of it will be split in half by office stuff with La Puente Home and the various La Puente Enterprises (coffeeshop and thrift store and boutique). I am looking forward to learning how this will work. (If you want more information about the organization, check out the website: http://www.lapuente.net/)

I think that is it for now. We will be welcoming 2 more volunteers tomorrow (the couple that we met at orientation). Sunday we are going to our supporting church and to a bbq somewhere near the Great Sand Dunes. We will post sometime between now and Monday. Sorry there has so much to read. Hopefully, we will find a routine and update more frequently if need be. Have a great weekend.