Despite the protest, the police managed to get Audry's bag back and visited us to make sure her stuff was returned

 



Day 34:

One of the most stressful days yet. We set off this morning to talk with managers about speaking with police and viewing surveillance videos and what we saw... all the details and running around had us exhausted by noon. Searching alleys and markets for any sign of Audry's missing items swallowed up time like some kind of black hole. Back and forth we went from metro stations to police stations but at least the sun was out. As we stood outside waiting for another bus to take us to yet another place to fill out more documents, I noticed that things had seemed awfully deserted for the condition of the weather.

Around five this evening we had arrived at the police station at Marques de Pombal to pick up what we had been told was Audrey's bag. We received the message from Ellie that the police had called and said they might have found Audry's belongings dumped in the park so we were asked to come to the station and check on the items. Walking through the park, we had noticed crowds of people gathered in the streets. Traffic was held back from the central area but nobody seemed to know what was happening. Sure enough, Audry's bag was waiting for her in the police station. Magazines, bible, wallet- most of her belongings were still inside but a few items were missing. Her tablet and both her phone from the U.S. and from Portugal were gone, but we were happy to have at least some things returned. With most of the day gone, we had one more police station to visit in Baixa to fill out a few more forms for the police report. All of us girls caught our usual bus and were on our way to take care of business when we began to notice the bus take a very strange turn.

The route was not the same, the streets were not the same, even the traffic was unusual as we noticed the cars stopped ahead of us. Stopping the bus and speaking to us in Portuguese, the driver let those riding know that the bus would not make it to its destination as planned and suggested that we find another way to get where we needed. As I looked out the window I saw why- the streets swarmed with white flags and marching police officers. Chants and whistles filled the air outside as they made their way through the city. After they passed some ways, we decided to get off the bus and find our way back to the apartment. 

It took us some time, but we got there. Safe in our beds and exhausted from running around town, we all felt a bit defeated at the fact that with all our work today, we never made it to get the reports filed. Sometimes it can seem as though everything has a way of going wrong despite your best efforts; and then we got a knock on the door. Two officers stood there, they had come to help Audry and make sure that her bag got to her. Despite the strike, they came to us and to help us finish the day strong. What's amazing, too, is Ellie told us that these sort of things (theft and what not) happen every day and often take an extended period of time to get resolved given that they ever do. The fact that the police found the bag and then came to us- and the very next day after the theft, during a strike... it's almost as if our prayers were answered. So we go to sleep now, happy that the stress levels have subsided for the moment and that we can finally all rest easy knowing that things are going to be alright. Day 35 is full of service and a very special dinner out!

Today's Positives:

The weather was absolutely perfect

Audry got her bag back

Whoever stole her phones read our messages!

The police are working hard to help us

We are all safe

Tomorrow is going to be a better day with great weather and a promising evening