Back From a Wonderful Weekend at the Lake

It was an extremely relaxing weekend at Lake Atitlan. We got back around 2 this afternoon, so I'm showered, unpacked, and ready for dinner!

Friday was a really fun day at work. I explained to the director that I wanted to work with the babies for a couple hours in the morning and then work in the kitchen for the other two and a half hours that I'm there. They seemed okay with that, so we'll see how tomorrow goes! On friday, the orphanage had a group of students, probably high school age, come in and dress up as clowns in costumes and with make up to put on a fiesta for the kids. They brought in 3 pinatas for the kids, so they were all sugared up! There was cake, another bread dessert with an icing filling, and tostados with beans and an interesting drink. (I'm still not quite sure what it was!) It was a fun day, partly because the kids were so excited and happy, which was really nice to see, and partly because I'm finally starting to feel at home at my placement. There is a little girl named Belkis who gets excited every time that she sees me, and wants to help me practice my Spanish and is happy to tell me words and repeat things. She was very proud of using her English to count all the candy she got from the pinatas. She likes to get hugs and have her back rubbed! Another girl Helen and I made up a secret handshake and we practiced maybe 20 times in the 4 hours I was there. She was proud to show her friends! In the kitchen I helped to cut cucumbers and I picked out the bad dried black beans from about 8 big bowls that Paula dumped on the counter. A worker named Gabby came into the kitchen and told me if I needed anything or had any questions to come talk to her because she speaks the most English out of the workers. The language barrier is still a little frustrating but a smile and a hug goes a long way! I'm excited to go back to work after a nice and relaxing weekend.

Belkis and Helen. Pictures are funny here, not many people smile. The girls don't look that happy, but they really wanted their picture taken. We ended up taking a couple!

So after work on friday we had lunch and 4 of us got into a private van. It cost $14 for a 3 hour trip to Panajachel where we got dropped off near a dock going to Santiago. The hostel where we had reservations for friday night (La Iguana Perdida) is on Santa Cruz, a 20 minute boat ride from Panajachel. After we got dropped off we walked around the main streets looking at shops along the street and then made our way back to the dock where we decided to get dinner. We ate at a place on the edge near the beach. It had a great view, despite the kind of dismal beach. The volcanoes surrounding the lake made for an absolutely spectacular view! The food on the other hand was a little sketchy. One of the girls ordered a club sandwhich and found a worm on her lettuce. I ordered a veggie burger thinking it would be something cooked...but it wasn't. It was toasted bread with shredded carrots, sliced avocado, lettuce, tomato, and some french fries. After the worm incident, I was a little scared to eat much of the food. I ate the bread and part of the avocado, and called it a meal. I didn't feel like spending the whole weekend sick after eating vegetables washed in the local water. The cheeseburgers and french fries seemed to be the only safe thing ordered.

Me, Hannah, Emily, Guillaume at the restaurant in Panajachel before our food.

After our interesting meal we found out we needed to catch a boat at the other dock, at the other side of the little island. The waiter was kind enough to walk us along the coast, but it was dark, and again, a little sketchy. We made it in time for the last boat to Santa Cruz, but the drivers charged us double than what it should have cost. We had some girls in the house tell us that it should only cost 10 Q (quetzales) to cross to Santa Cruz and they started out asking for 25 Q a person. We got it down to 20. (the exchange rate is about 8 Q to $1) It was the last boat out so we didn't have much of a choice, but it was definitely frustrating knowing that you were being ripped off without anything to do about it. Needless to say, arriving at La Iguana Perdida was extremely exciting after our very interesting journey to get there. The people at the hostel were extremely friendly. We made it for coffee and ginger cake as well as quiz night. I wasn't much of a help to my team, but we ended up coming in second. I didn't stick around for the after celebration.

Saturday morning we woke up and had breakfast out on the patio looking at the lake. It was absolutely beautiful! We looked through the guide book figuring out what we wanted to do and decided that kayaking might be something unique. We walked along a little path from our hostel to a kayak rental place owned by a couple from Colorado who had moved down to Guatemala. The four of us rented a kayak and headed out. The views were astonishing. There are so many different types of beautiful in the world but the view from the lake was one of the most beautiful scenes I have ever scene. On one side there was the massive volcano and on the other side there were steep slopes covered in green! We kayaked about two towns over and found some rocks to jump off of, so we jumped and swam for awhile and then headed back to Iguana. We ate lunch there and ended up talking with a girl from Australia who was finishing up a couple month back-pack trip around Central America. The five of us headed back to Panajachel and found a hostel in the older part of town that was pretty nice. We watched some TV, something I haven't done in a really long time. We managed to find a channel in english. We walked down the main street, a little higher up than where we walked on friday night, and found a place to eat, then headed back to bed. We were all exhausted from the kayak trip.




Today, (Sunday) we got up at 4:45 to go see the sunrise. We were locked into the hostel, and tried to climb out, thought about giving up and going back to bed, but ended up running into the owner who was letting some workers out. We walked about 20 minutes down to the lake only to realize the sun was rising from the other side, behind the mountains. We did see the reflection in the clouds though, and it was beautiful. We squeezed a couple more hours of sleep in before packing our things and leaving.

Lake Atitlan from Panajachel at sunrise.

We met up with our tour driver again, and headed to Chichi (Chichicastenango) which holds the largest outdoor market in Guatemala. It was definitely a tourist destination, and it was tiring to bargain over prices. I did find some neat things though. :) We only lasted a couple hours there and ended up leaving earlier than we thought and got back to our house in Xela around 2pm.

It was an exciting adventure, and was one definitely worth repeating. Lake Atitlan is a beautiful destination with reasonable prices. It definitely made for a relaxing weekend. It is nice to be home though, and I'm soon ready for bed!

Marimba and Super Chivos!

I'm going to try uploading the video and pictures one more time. I was so tired last night I couldn't wait up for it to finish, so I'll put them up over breakfast this morning!

A video of Marimba. I didn't get to start it at the very beginning...but pretty close! It was pretty amazing to watch!

Before the game started, as the team came out, they had fireworks (roman candles, sparklers) and other things that let out red and blue and white smoke. Those are the teams colors. I did buy a jersey for all of 7 dollars. It was a pretty neat even to go to! Glad to say that I've been to a professional soccer game!

My Second Earthquake in 2 Weeks!

It's late here, so this won't be a very long update! Last night around 2:30 am we had an earthquake. The earthquake hit Honduras, and I think one person died and there was some sever damage there. I woke up out of a deep sleep right before it started for some reason. The earthquake lasted about a minute and it just felt like some one was on top of the bunkbed shaking it. Pretty crazy! I had never been in an earthquake until a couple of weeks ago, and now they seem to be a regular occurance! Everything is fine here though. Apparantly they have little earthquakes quite often here. Some of the staff told us that there was a smaller one a little earlier in the evening around 7:30 pm, but none of us felt it.

Tonight, we went to a soccer game, which is why we got back so late! We just ate our dinner. It was the Xela national team vs another national team from Guatemala that we never found out the name of! It was a lot of fun, but we're all exhausted after a long day at work and a late night. Like I said before, most of us are in bed reading around 8:30 and lights out around 9:30!

We went to a Marimba explanation and demonstration. A marimba is similar to a xylophone, but a lot more complicated with two rows of keys, and much larger, and it is played by three people who use multiple sticks each.

Work today was a little frustrating. I had expressed to the people in charge of CCS that I was unsure of what was expected of me at the orphanage, meaning that I didn't know if the orphanage was expecting me to create lessons and activities for the kids or not, and they took it as I was standing around not doing anything. So, the director came in today and talked to the director of the orphanage and so now I think I'm helping out in the kitchen. I wouldn't mind helping in the kitchen because there is a need, but I don't want to just leave the kids either. So we'll see how tomorrow goes, and I may need to talk to the director's of CCS and explain that I was being productive in the nursery and that I did enjoy that placement and that I would like to continue working there. So today I spent a couple of hours in the nursery (Nelzo cried every time I left again) and then I washed dishes for about an hour and cut a lot of cucumbers, squeezed lime juice, and cut tomatoes. Maybe I'll learn some good recipes though!

I'm headed to bed now. Tomorrow I'm headed to Lake Atitlan with 3 other people from the group for the weekend. I'm excited! I've heard it is beautiful, and I'm looking forward to spending time on sunday at one of the largest outdoor markets in Chi Chi.

I'll have updates probably Sunday or Monday after our adventure out of Xela. I'm looking forward to seeing more of the country and getting a little break from the busy schedule we've had here all week! I have some videos of the soccer game and of the marimba that I will try to post when I get back in town, but they are taking too long now, and I'm headed to bed!

Venturing to el Parque Central

I'm getting into the groove of things a little more after my third day here. I got to work a couple of minutes earlier today and met the kids at a sort of morning meeting and helped the other worker carry the little ones up to the nursery. Luis, the little boy who hurt his foot yesterday, did break his foot and so has a cast and is confined to bed rest for 2 weeks. He's not very happy about it! Marita had two poopy diapers today and I had to change her whole outfit. It was another interesting discovery because although there seems to be more clothing than I would expect at an orphanage, the kids where 5 layers all the time. It was a process to get her changed! I also helped bathe the kids today. The one worker brought in a big bucket of water and a bowl. The kids sat in a seperate bucket and we poured a couple of bowls over each child, scrubbed them down with some soap, washed their hair, poured 2 more bowls of water on them and dried them off. All of this was done in the nursery. In one regard, at least the children are being cleaned, but on the other hand, I don't know how clean they actually got. I felt like more of a help today in that regard that I got to help undress, bathe, and dress and feed the kids. Speaking and understanding spanish is so dificult and it is frustrating. I don't get much practice at work because it isn't an environment where the workers want to invest in helping to teach me spanish, and often times I am alone with the babies. I do have a couple of pictures from today! They're pretty precious!

Nelzo (who I thought was Nigel). He cried every time I went out of the room! He and his brother Oliver have the most contagious smiles!

This is Oliver, Nelzo's brother! Their dad came yesterday to play with them and both were horribly sad when he left!

Jenny is such a sweet heart. She fell asleep in my arms today.

And this is Marita!

After work we came home and had our lunch, rice and beans, and beets. The food is absolutely amazing! Dona Eva is an absolutely amazing cook. My throat is hurting a little, and she made me a concentrated drink of honey and fresh lemon. I thought that honey and lemon in tea was good, but the concentrated drink was a million times better!

After lunch I had my first spanish lesson. It reminded me that I really know nothing! It's extremely humbling. We took the bus, which is more of a big van, downtown, had our lesson and then walked around the central park. I saw the a highly recommended cafe today, but Hannah (a girl who came my week but is staying 8 weeks) took a taxi back to our house to go to the gym. It was a much needed release of energy.

It's been another long day, and I'm ready for a shower and bed...and it's not even 8pm here!

Two Hail Storms Later...

The internet was out since last night...but it's working again, so this is a recap of tuesday!

Today was another event filled day. I got to the orphanage around 8:00. I walked into the nursery and the 5 kids in the room had big smiles and big hola’s for me. Marita (as I was listening to the workers talk to her, I realized that I had written her name down) wanted to be held all day. Her real name is Maria, but she is the cute little baby in the orphanage that everyone adores and wants to play with and hold. It was an eventful day though. One little boy, who I’m still trying to figure out his name, I think it is Nigel, fell and hit his nose and it started bleeding, leaving a pool of blood on the ground. The 4 other ones were walking around/crawling on the ground so to keep them away from the blood while holding Nigel’s nose was very interesting. It worked out okay though!

I got to go outside with Marita and the other little ones with the other American group that was from Dallas Baptist College. They came down for ten days and spent their time playing with the kids in the orphanage. It was helpful because I got to ask them some questions about the orphanage. I found out that not all of the kids are parentless. It is a government run center for orphans but also for children who’s parents cannot take care of them and opt to give them over to the facility with the ability to come and visit. One father came today to play with his two sons for about an hour, and the kids sobbed as the worker brought them back up to the nursery.

While out on the playground, one of the little boys had the seesaw land on his foot, so he was being taken to the doctor for an x-ray, his name is Luis. Luis was abandoned in a junkyard at 10 days old. He has a lot of spunk! I think that he is three, and he can stand his ground for a three year old. It is so interesting to see how these kids fend for themselves and how protective of the few things they have. I watched a couple of other boys, Esteban y Manuel fight because Esteban got a new pair of school shoes. I guess it isn’t too different from any other kid not wanting to share a new toy, but each personal item is that much more precious for these kids. It is a relatively clean environment that seems to have sufficient funds for clothing for the kids. A couple of the kids go to school in the afternoon and so they change into their school uniforms after taking a shower and get ready to go right before lunch time. Although, one little girl wet her pants right before lunchtime, and was going to have to wait until after lunch to change. I think there are a lot of kids and not enough help. A lot of the kids in the home seem to have special needs, and after a couple of weeks, depending on how things are going, see if I can help out in that class.

After work we came home and had lunch, and got ready to go to the indigenous village. It was a little bit of a drive, but well worth it. The streets are busy in Xela, and so the village we went to was a little more peaceful and a little less crowded with cars. We went to a huge market with so many different food options, clothing, pottery, and other trinkets. The people are just beautiful here though. Walking through the market was just amazing to see the differences in faces and smiles, and how each one is so uniquely beautiful. The dress is so colorful, a long and skirt/wrap, with what looks like a long apron over top and then a wool cardigan. The market was a neat experience. After the market we went to a local pottery store where we watched the owner spin 3 different things (cup, pitcher, bowl) in about 10 minutes. His speed in spinning the pottery was amazing! The finished and painted products were so unique and so cheap. It cost $3 for a custom mug with a saucer. They took us to a café of sorts that had amazing bread and a specialty hot chocolate drink that was extremely rich. That concluded our trip to the village, but we were bombarded with hail a couple of times during the trip. Of the 4 days I’ve been here, it has poured every single day!

First Day of Work

I'm tired after my first day of work. All of the travel and the hustle and bustle is starting to take a slight toll. We got up at 6:30 this morning to get ready. After breakfast we all piled into the cross cultural solutions van (all 10 of us) and headed off to each of our placements, dropping us off one by one. I got to my placement and the director showed me around the facility a little, telling me there was a class of students with special needs, a very small class that needed an English instructor, and the nursery. He asked me where I wanted to be, and I told him that I wanted to work in the nursery. There were about 10 kids up in the nursery with rows of beds right next to one anther, and several cribs packed next to each other. They were watching Curious George on the carpet when I walked in. Immediately a little girl named Iris ran over to me and jumped into my arms and started asking me questions. She is 5 years old, and extremely attentive. It was fun talking with her and being able to ask questions, especially how to say things in Spanish. I don't know if there is someone in the room, or if there were other children that needed help and it seemed like I had things under control, but once I walked into the room, I saw another adult about 3 times in the 4 hours I was there. I'm not quite sure what's expected of me in the placement. They just got a new director and CCS hasn't had volunteers in that placement for over a year. It is the placement that I was hoping for though. Children's smiles and laughs are the same everywhere and it is the most rewarding thing to see one of them giggle. They loved attention, hugs, to be tickled, to be spun around, to dance, and to just sit on my lap. For a couple hours of the time I was there, I only had 2 little ones, both crawling around, Mariarita y Oliver. At one point, Maria had a poopy diaper so I asked the other women where the stuff to change her was, and they all looked shocked and asked if I wanted to change her. I said yes, so they got the things out and left me too it. They only had toilet paper and baby powder, so needless to say, she wasn't very happy! I didn't want to take pictures on the first day, but I think that there will be plenty of opportunities to take pictures of the little ones. It was a tiring first day though of just getting adjusted to the timing of things and continually trying to understand the language around me.

After work we had Spanish lessons, which weren't the most productive. I'm going to be taking one on one lessons on Wednesday which I think will be a more helpful, but we'll see. We then went on a tour of the city where we saw the central municipal buliding for Xela, a beautiful cathedral, and the parque del central where a lively market was going on, and a house that was a gift to someone related to the president of Guatemala that now houses different art shows. Tomorrow, we're going to an indigenous village nearby which should be unique and exciting as well.

It rains here everyday in the afternoon, and gets cold in the evening, but the house is always bustling with conversations and laughter. Another good day...looking forward to tomorrow. :)

Here are a couple pictures of Xela and our adventures thus far!

The Xela Futbol team playing the team from Guatemala City (they're big rivals) with one of Xela's volcanos in the background.

Overlooking Xela from Cerra de Baul.

A Relaxing Sunday

We arrived safely last night and I enjoyed a wonderful sleep! We share bunk beds and have our own closet with drawers and shelves and an upper shelf for our luggage. The house is absolutely amazing. It is gated in, so the house is completely secure. They have a guard here at all times in case of emergency. Everything is extremely well organized and structured. It has been a fun adventure so far. The people are at all different stages in life, I'm in the middle of the crowd, but am enjoying my time with some of the older volunteers.

We woke up today and had a simple breakfast of cereal, scrambled eggs, and fruit, and got ready for our language lessons. We had an hour Spanish lesson, going over basics and reviewing verbs and conjugation. The two women who run the program are coming back tomorrow for another hour long lesson. I'll have Spanish lessons every Monday. They are also offering one on one tutoring sessions on Wednesday for $20 for 2 hours. I'm think that I'm going to sign up for that, and just get some more conversational practice.

After Spanish lessons, we had orientation where we were introduced to the staff and the different positions that we'll be in. This was quite a wonderful shock for me, because as the director, Angelica, was talking, she started explaining my position as an orphanage for children ages 0-14, some with special needs, that are in a really hard place and need attention, and want a lot of physical contact. She said it is a beautiful place on the outside and the inside, but it is a very difficult placement, and that there is a lot of need for volunteers there. She said that there are also volunteers from other organizations as well, but I am the only one from CCS (cross cultural solutions). So what an amazing surprise. I had prepared myself to work with the elderly, and in the end i get to do what I have been hoping to do all along, work with children! I start tomorrow at 7:30 am. It should be an exciting first day.

The rest of our afternoon was filled with traveling to a mountain close by that had a beautiful look at the whole city. There was the biggest slide that I've ever been on. The kids were so funny going down the slide and running to the top to go down again. I have some pictures of my going down the slide! :) We stopped in on a local soccer game between the Xela team and the Guatemala City team. We stopped and got local ice cream that was amazing, I got strawberry.

We checked out a local gym and walked around some of the streets in the city. I'm looking forward to tomorrow! After our placement we're having Spanish lessons and then heading to a local village and market.

I Made It To Xela

I'm finally here in Xela...after more than 24 hours of travel! My stay in Chicago for a couple of hours was so wonderful. It was so fun to see how many details can be shared in such a short amount of time.

Travel went very smoothly. I did manage to lose my phone charger, but I can't complain about that! It's an exciting place. Extremely beautiful, but very underdeveloped. The home base I'm staying in is lovely, and I'm looking forward to getting to know my group members and the staff at the home base. After a long day, I'm ready for bed! I'll have Spanish lessons and orientation tomorrow. More details to come later.

It's Finally Here!

Today's the big day. I finished most of my packing last night, so today is filled with different odds and ends. My flight is at 6pm this evening. I'm flying to Chicago where I will meet up with a family for a few hours until my flight leaves for Guatemala. It's a red eye, so I'm leaving at 3:05 am and will get into Guatemala at about 6:30 am Guatemala Time. Guatemala is 2 hours behind east coast time, so not a huge difference, which is nice. The group that I am involved with at Penn State, DiscipleMakers, has different members on staff. At church, I was talking about my trip to Guatemala and some of my concerns for the long flight, and wait time in both Chicago and Guatemala before my program actually starts. A couple on staff mentioned that they had supporters in the Chicago area and that they would get in contact with some of them to see if anyone would want to come and get me from the airport for a couple of hours. The Freeman family volunteered to get my from the airport and bring me back in time for my flight! I'm so grateful for their generosity and hospitality in coming to get a stranger passing through!

I'm getting that excited/nervous feeling, but I'm ready to go. I'm so excited to see how I will be used in Guatemala, and I look forward to sharing stories of lives I have touched, and lives that have touched me. You can be praying for safe travels, my transition into my placement, and strength and patience for each day in a new country with a language that is mostly unfamiliar to me.

I found out that there is wireless at the home base where I am styaing, so I am actually going to bring my computer and be able to use it there. I was debating whether I wanted to bring my computer, but I thought that it would be helpful in order to plan activities and keep in touch and record happenings. In the conference call I had yesterday, the 4 individuals doing a month long internship with the program I'm going with are required to bring theres, and so I thought it would be a helpful addition to my trip...so I should be able to put up pictures and keep my blog pretty updated! :)

3 States in 5 Days

What a wonderful way to spend a long weekend! I flew to Vegas last Thursday where Ryan picked me up. We spent the night at his aunt and uncles, went to breakfast, and hung out with his cousin. We spent a couple hours at the strip where I successfully lost $20 in about 10 minutes. We went to the Bellagio and watched a couple of the water shows, and then headed back to the car to begin our three hour drive to LA where we met up with Ben and Lauren.

We all piled in Ryan's car and started our bumpy drive to the natural hot springs at Oak Springs near Hesperia, CA. I'm pretty sure that was one of Lauren's favorite car rides! :) We hiked about 45 minutes down to the hot springs where we crossed a waste high river, climbed up some rocks past the three-tiered springs. We found our campsite, enjoyed our dinner, and headed back to the springs to enjoy some relaxation. Before I left to, Hannah told me, "whatever you do, don't put your head under the water." I managed to slip climbing down, and fell right into the water... and my head went under the water, but I'm still alive! The next morning as I tried to get in a different spring I slipped and fell as well, so I was 2 for 2 trying to get into the springs. The drive out was less eventful.



We spent the next couple of days in LA and then I flew out on Tuesday. It was such a memorable trip, and I look forward to many more!

Other Highlights of the Trip Included:
The Wasabi vs. Cinnamon Challenge (http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php#/video/video.php?v=1149191322926&ref=mf)
Surviving an Earthquake
Meeting some of Ben and Lauren's friends
Having the sun come out at the beach as we were driving away
Eating at an In and Out
Going to Scoops
Smelling cactus flowers on our hike
Looking at the city from the top of Griffith Observatory
Omelette Figaro/Strawberry Crepes

Best Time: Relaxing in the hot springs after dusk!
Worst Time: Leaving.

I'm home for 2 days, and then I leave for Guatemala. YAY for wonderful trips! :)

School...Check...Unpacking...Check...

I'm done with school...almost...I still have 4 art lessons to do, but I'm hoping to get those out of the way tomorrow. This semester was one of the most demanding semesters I have ever had, and I'm so relieved to be home and almost finished with my junior year. I moved home yesterday afternoon and finally finished unpacking/throwing away unnecessary things today. It is crazy how much stuff I have accumulated over the years! I was going through boxes of letters that I have had since I was in 5th grade. Somehow I thought I would read them again or they would have some importance in my life later...but I was finally able to part with them yesterday.

I've set aside tomorrow for studying/finishing my lessons/reading/researching more about Guatemala. With the busy semester I haven't had a lot of extra time to brainstorm and get excited about Guatemala, but I am getting excited. I should be getting my placement within this next week, and I'm interested to see where they place me. I was reading over my handbook and found the page on what volunteers in Quetzaltenango are involved with: Caring for infants and children, teaching children, caring for the elderly, and caring for people with disabilities. I think that any of those opportunities would be amazing! My first preference would be to work with the infants and children, but I think that each opportunity would stretch me in so many ways. I'm getting excited thinking about it!

Here's a map of Guatemala/Quetzaltenango:

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/guatemala/western-highlands/quetzaltenango-xela

When I went on a spring break trip with DiscipleMakers to Wycliffe Associates in Orlando, I got in touch with a woman who had gone to Guatemala and had the contact information of families in Guatemala. Today, I unexpectedly recieved an e-mail from one of the families. They're going to relay some information about travel and hotels that they have stayed in, as well as get in touch with the people serving in Solola. My Guatemala trip has come together, and it has been so neat to see the connections and provisions that have been made.

Before Guatemala, I'm looking forward to spending time in LA with Ryan, and Ben and Lauren. Laundry is on the list for tomorrow so I can start packing for that! I can't wait! :)