Friday

We needed more supplies today so Alex (one of our drivers and interpreters) and Emily went to town. That meant that Ann and I traveled with the teams installing systems. Ann went with one team and I with the other. The weather was a bit cooler as it rained through the night. And it stayed cloudy most of the day and rained off and on. Our first installation was about an hour from where we are staying. The drive was into the mountains and in roads that look like they were meant for mountain biking (not wide and very bumpy). When we arrived we had a short trek up a hill but nothing like the walk to many of the houses.

The homeowners greeted us and we got to work. All went smoothly until the solar panel was damaged. But we made a decision to do everything except the panel and to come back with that later. The homeowners were gracious and very excited to be farther along with lights in his home. They fed us a wonderful homemade lunch which we didn’t expect. We tested the system as far as we had gotten it done and all worked well

Our driver parked the vehicle farther away because of the rain and muddy conditions. As we headed over the mountains we saw beautiful vistas but also hit a few treacherous roads. For this house we had to walk a half of a mile in slippery mud.

Once again the homeowners greeted us warmly and we got to work. The sun came out while we were there. The installation went very smoothly and very quickly. There was a cute little girl and boy at this house. They posed for pictures and of course wanted to see their photos. In this installation I stayed out of the way except to take pictures. I also had the best connection and was able to post a few blogs.

It was exciting to finish the installation and hear Eileen explain to them how to work the system. And then have them test all the lights. When we gathered the family for a photo the little boy wouldn’t join.

As we were finishing up the rain started in full force again. It was slippery going down the mountain and one of our team went down (no it wasn’t me). The Hondurans helped us as we slipped and slides our way down. As we loaded up the truck (6 the cab of the truck and 8-10 in the back) we were on a steep slope. Our driver is excellent but it was like being on ice. And we had a very scary moment on the side of the mountain, so much so that all of the Hondurans in the back of the truck and one of our team in the front got out and walked the rest of the way down. After that while it was still treacherous we made it without incident thanks to Javier, our driver.

The other team also had a good day. The stories are fun to listen to and share with one another at the end of the day.

The rain may make it difficult for us to get around tomorrow but there is still work that we can do to prepare for more installations.

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