After our last post we headed off to Atitlan. It was a long drive and it included a boat ride across the lake. it was a very fun and splashy time, Laura took great pleasure in splashing us all on the boat. Once we made it Panabaj we went to the meeting place of a grassroots group called ANADESA. ANADESA is an organization that works to look out for the members of the community. They raise money by selling handicrafts (of which we bought many!) that is used to create projects for the town. At the meeting place, we jumped right into playing with the children in afternoon play group. We then were given a tour of the village and learned about its chaotic history. We learned of the non-violent resistance where the local people stood up to the military during the Civil War that plagued the country for 30 years. We learned about the havoc Hurricane Stan and the resulting mudslides caused in the town and the responses to these disasters and we saw the school that had to be closed because of the damage from the mudslides. We're happy to share that the people of the village are working to clean up the school so it can be re-opened and that some of the money raised in Pennies for Poverty is going to provide paint for the buildings. Once we got back to the centre we were separated into groups for our first homestays.
The next day, we went to the market and went swimming in the lake. After swimming, we went back to ANADESA and did another children's hour, which included arts and crafts, basketball, and duck duck goose. After doing the children's program, we learned how to make tortillas...old school style. It was quite fun and way more difficult than expected. We learned you really have to move your body to do it. After that we went back for our second night of homestays. It's very difficult to communicate with people in another language but none of us spoke Spanish at all so it actually made it easier. They actually spoke a native language so with broken English and Spanish we were able to laugh and smile together. When we woke up in the morning we said Adios to our families and set off on an early morning bus ride to San Marcos.
In San Marcos we met Nate Howard, an MCC worker who spoke to us about Canada's involvement in strip mining for gold. By mining for gold in the northern part of the country, big corporations, such as Canada's own GoldCorp, are devestating the ecosystems and rural areas around the open pit mines. People are drinking water contaminated with the chemicals used to remove the gold from the other minerals and their ways of life are also being compromised as many foreigners are coming into their Indigenous lands for work. It was a very informative talk which caused us to get excited about informing others of the problem.
After that we took a chicken bus out to Sibinal. Here is where the fun begins. To start, a chicken bus is an old school bus on which people are packed on. We're talking 3 people to a seat and the aisles full of people. We all got in and it was very crowded. Let's just say that it was a very cultural experience. We were quite glad when we got to our very comfy motel in Sibinal.
In the morning we woke up early to get on another chicken bus to La Vega de la Volcan. It is in the mountains and it is flippin gorgeous. We arrived and ate breakfast and had a presentation on what our work project was - a cabin for tourists. Again, P4P stepped in and a large portion of their projected budget was donated by the students and supporters of RJC. We helped dig the foundation until 3:00. Because it started raining, the holes filled with water and we couldn't dig anymore. We spent the rest of the day hanging out and exploring. We then enjoyed a talent show where we enjoyed dancing, singing, and laughter. We separated once again into groups for another night of homestays. We were all shown an enormous amount of hospitality and generosity. The next morning, we picked rocks for cement and helped with rebar since we are now experts at that. We had trout for lunch from their hatchery that was supported by MCC. We played another game of soccer of Guatemala vs. Canada, which we almost won. After the game, we piled back onto a chicken bus back to Sibinal where we enjoyed a night in a comfortable bed and showers. Woooo!
In the very early morning we went back into the chicken bus and drove to San Marcos. There we had breakfast and then got into the Guatemalan equivalent to a Greyhound to Xela. That's where we are right now. We got here and headed out on the town for lunch and an afternoon to explore the downtown of this very cool city. There is a ton of Spanish architechture here and the building facades are amazing! In the afternoon there was a huge fire! it spread to some other buildings but is now under control.
Well the trip is coming to a close but we are determined to have fun these last few days so off we go! We'll be spending the night in Xela and will head off tomorrow morning to spend some much needed R'n'R at some sweet natural hot springs in the area. From there it's back on the micros to the City. We'll spend the rest of our time sharing about our experiences, highlights and low spots, what we learned and what we plan on doing with all this new information. We're looking forward to seeing our families and friends again soon.
Your blogging buddies,
Danika, Heather, and Taylor with a bit of help from Carmen
PS - sorry there aren't any pictures. We'll put up what we can when we can.
PPS- happy belated Valentine's Day and Go Canada!
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