Day 11 (January 13th, 2017)

We woke up at our hotel in Antigua today and ate breakfast on the rooftop terrace. There were great views of the surrounding volcanoes as we enjoyed our coffee. We began the day with a visit to an afterschool program for kids called Ninos con Bendicion (Children with Blessing). The kids performed dances for us in traditional clothes and we eventually joined in to their dance. We shared a home cooked meal with the kids and were able to purchase some of the crafts they had made. The organization provides after school activities for kids where they can take various classes such as music, carpentry, English, and computers.

Later we browsed the markets and downtown Antigua for the last time and went to a goodbye dinner restaurant called Fridas. We were able to enjoy good food, live salsa music, and great company for one last time in Guatemala.

– Will

Day 10 (January 12th, 2017)

There is something in the water! This morning some of us were feeling quite under the weather from a mysterious ailment that seems to be putting us on the sidelines for about a day. But don’t worry! Nothing serious here. Luckily, Mary Lou, our friendly travel expert, packed plenty of remedies for those not feeling well.

So after a slow start to the morning we met for our final breakfast in San Lucas Toliman. Today, we were blessed to have three students give morning devotions to wrap up our trip. They were all extremely insightful and closed up a very meaningful six days of work.

After we all returned to our rooms and gathered our bags it was time to pile in the bus! Today, our final destination was Antigua, but first we got to see some Mayan ruins! The Mayan city we toured was called Iximche. This was the last major city built by the Mayan before the Spanish invaded and the city was abandoned in 1524. Interestingly, archaeologists estimated that this city was only 60 years old and was built in the post-classic era of Mayan history. Unlike earlier Mayan civilizations which were very open, this city was built strategically for defense. The city sits atop a hill surrounded by sheer cliffs on all but one side. Local Mayan people still come to this site to hold ancient Mayan rituals in order to preserve their culture. Unfortunately, there were no ceremonies going on at the time so we were unable to see it for ourselves. Our tour guide, Alex, spoke the local Mayan language along with English and Spanish and helped us learn some Mayan words. (It was very difficult). After our tour it was back on the bus and off to Antigua!

We arrived in Antigua and had some free time to explore. We went to a local market and saw so many fascinating things. There were rows and rows of people selling everything you could imagine from produce to electronics to live chickens. We got lost a few times but eventually found our way out and back to the hotel. For dinner tonight we were craving some American comfort food so we went to the local Domino’s! Just as we expected, it was great!

For the evening activities we went to El Barrio, which reminded me a lot of Ball Park Village which contains many different styles of bars in one building. The evening was certainly entertaining, to say the least, and I shall leave it at that!

Tomorrow we have another whole day in Antigua then on Saturday we are headed home! Hopefully the ice storm back home doesn’t mess with our travel plans! Fingers crossed!

-Ryan

Day 9 (January 11th, 2017)

Bright and early at 7 o’clock this morning we started our day with breakfast and our daily devotion. A quote from Maya Angelou started us off for the day. It spoke about the idea that creating a genuine companionship is just as important, honestly more important, than the work itself.

Today was our very last day working with Habitat and the families we have been serving, this was probably one of the most bittersweet moments on our trip thus far. Many of us happy to finally relax our sore muscles and to get to sleep, but at the same time sad because it was our farewell to the families we have grown so close to.

Today our work included, like yesterday, making bricks and creating the concrete foundations for latrines. We only had about a half day of work, and then we traveled to a different community to eat our last lunch with the masons we have come to know and love. After a short walk around the area led by German, and ice cream for some of us, we met our families one last time.

Children and their parents had come to the building we had ate lunch and were playing games, mingling and just embracing the comfort of one another as a family. The team was able to see and play with the children who we had connected with so well. We played twister and even played with different snapchat filters for some goofy selfies.

As our time together came to a close the team presented each family with a water purification system for their homes. This purification system is part of the healthy homes kit that Habitat provides. Each of us expressed our gratitude to the families for allowing us into their home, letting us play with their children and letting us have such an amazing opportunity here in Guatemala. We then said our final farewells and left to go back to our hotel in San Lucas.

Our day ended with class with Dr. Zlatic, reminiscing not only over our trip but the growth we have had a group during this experience. We then ended class by thanking Kristyna and German for their constant effort in being not only our translators, but for helping us, and really being the source of all our opportunities in Guatemala. Thank you both for everything, you will always have a place to stay if you visit STL!

– Amanda

Day 8 (January 10th, 2017)

Today we began our day with our daily devotion about a quote from Mother Teresa, “It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.” Today’s devotion reminds us that simply showing kindness and love to the families and their children are some the most valuable things we can give on this service learning trip.

It is the eighth day in Guatemala, and it definitely feels like it in many ways. All of the hard labor has left our muscles sore, and it’s harder and harder to wake up at 6:30 each morning. Yet, in many ways our eighth day here also feels like the first.

Today we learned the primary work that is necessary for building a stove and latrine. We learned the process of making bricks, laying the concrete foundation for a latrine, and how to effectively communicate to a family a potentially safer location to build a latrine.

With only a half work day, we also had free time to split into two groups to explore and learn about Guatemala. One group learned about the San Lucas Mission which is funded solely from donations and works to provide services such as healthcare, stoves, a women’s center, coffee Juan Ana and more that directly benefit the people of Guatemala. For example, the coffee project exports coffee under the name Juan Ana to help Guatemalans receive fair price for the coffee harvest and ensures the money is given to the farmer instead of the large producer.

The second group spent free time hiking the Cerro de Oro (The Golden Hill). On our steep trek up the hill, we were guided by Herman and he told us a little bit about the hill. Within five minutes of hiking, some of us had lost our breath, and Herman told us that some Guatemalans walk down the hill caring 100 lbs of different goods. We saw and learned about a Mayan altar that is still in use by shamans. It is believed when bad people die, their ours pass through the soot covered altar.

Just like our first day in Guatemala, we learned new things about the culture and we saw new sites and met new people. It’s important to remember to treat every day as a new opportunity to learn, to make new friends, and to see new things.

– Michele

Day 7 (January 9th, 2017)

The group kicked off a start to another great day filled with myriad opportunites to help and learn from the people of Guatemala. Shortly after breakfast, the morning devotion was led by Liz Pham with a quote by Rosa Parks, explaining the importance of helping others no matter the magnitude of service.

After a short 20 minute drive we arrived to our work site and waited by the entrance as the locals unlocked and lifted the gate for the vans to enter. Later we learned that the gate was to prevent cars from coming into the community and stealing the children. Because of the precautions, there was a strict schedule set in place to follow when it came to entering and leaving the community. However, despite the terrible abductions, the children seemed worry free and happy as they hatched on to the back of the van as we drove through the community.

When we finally got to the home of the family in which we were going to build the latriene and ovens for, we were faced with house built on a cliff over looking a beautiful landscape full of green life surrounding a river. The family told us that they had nothing and no place to live, so the owner of the land permitted them to live there for 10 years. Even though the family has only resided on the land for 4 months, the kids ran up and down the make-shift steps made of dirt as the team carefully side stepped through our way like our life depended on it.

After a very hot, but efficient work day, we were able to finish in time to stop by a local ice cream shop on our way back to the hotel. Then the team once again met up at the hotel restaurant to enjoy a wonderful supper which was then followed by movie night which featured a documentary of the Guatemalan history titled, When the Mountains Tremble. The 90 minute documentary went over the tragic history of the civil war and the effects of intervention told by a local Guatemalan who experienced the devastating events that took the lives of her entire family.

With a succesful work day and getting to learn about the history about Guatemala, we can only hope that tomorrow will be another gifted day as we get to help a different family.

– John

 

Day 6 (January 8th, 2017)

Today was our sixth day in the beautiful country of Guatemala. We started off our day with breakfast at the hotel and a devotion from Will. It was a quote from Ronald Reagan, “We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone.” It related nicely to our trip as we are helping families here in Guatemala. It is unfortunate that we cannot possibly help every family in need, but we can have a significant impact on the families that we are able to help. By providing these families with the smokeless stoves and the latrines, we are offering them a healthier future.

Today was a day off of work to see the sites of Guatemala. Our original plan for the day was to take a boat to San Juan to tour a coffee plantation. However, we woke up to extreme winds and rough waters, making our boat trip out of the question. But we didn’t let that stop us from having another great day exploring everything that Guatemala has to offer. We instead took a van to Santiago, Guatemala. There we waded through the bustling market to a beautiful church that was established in the 1500’s. We learned a little about the church and then set out in search of Maximón, a Mayan diety. The statue of Maximón is very important to the people of this region and they often visit the statue to pray and to give thanks. One interesting thing about the statue is that it’s location changes annually. Therefore, we had to ask the locals until we found someone to show us the way. The statue was very beautiful and it was a great experience.

Next, we walked around and did some shopping in the streets of Santiago. There were many merchants selling the most amazing handmade items. Many of us bought souvenirs today. We walked all the way down the street to the lake and then we were lucky enough to get to take tuk tuks back to the restaurant for lunch. We had a delicious lunch of either chicken or steak with rice and vegetables at a restaurant called El Buen Apetito. Then we got to tour a weaving shop where they showed some of the history of weaving and also sold very beautiful purses, wallets, and other accessories. Then we got to go visit where the actually do the weaving of the fabrics. Donã María, an experienced weaver, showed us how she separated the thread and weaved it into amazing scarves and tapestries. One handmade scarf takes her about 15 days to make.

After that we came back to the hotel to rest before dinner. For dinner we went to a pizza place and had nachos, pizza, and chili cheese fries. We had a special guest for dinner tonight, Clive Rainey, the very first international volunteer for Habitat for Humanity joined us to share stories. He told us all about how he met the founders of the organization and how he got involved as a volunteer. He also told us amazing stories about the people he had met through Habitat. We heard about the people he had helped, the projects he had worked on, and the volunteers that he had worked with. He also inspired us by saying that although he was the first volunteer, being first is just a place, and all of us can do our part in helping and impacting the lives of so many people in our communities and other communities. Meeting him and hearing his stories was such a treat and we were all grateful to receive the opportunity. We hope for the opportunity to dine with him once more during our stay. I am excited to see what adventure tomorrow brings.

– Liz

Day 5 (January 7th, 2017)

Day 5 began with a morning devotion led by Kendall. She shared a quote with us by Anthony Bourdain that read “travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.” This devotion ties into what we are hoping to achieve here in Guatemala: to make a difference for others as well as learn more about ourselves and the Guatemalan culture in the process.

After morning devotion, we got into our vans to travel to our worksites. Today, we split into 3 groups and returned to the previous homes we visited during the first 3 days of work. We built latrines at the family’s houses from our first and second work days and a stove at the family’s home from our third work day. It was nice to return to the families, the children were very excited to see us again. We worked very quickly today since it was a half of a work day and we wanted to finish as much for the families as possible.

On our way back from the work sites we stopped at two families houses that Habitat has previously provided stoves and latrines for to see how they have impacted their quality of life. One of the women told us that these stoves we are building are much more efficient as they only use 2 pieces of wood to work.

For dinner tonight we went to a local restaurant called La Cabana. We were served either a whole fish (head and tail included), or spaghetti with meat sauce. The meals were both a hit amongst us all. Once we finished our main meal, a waiter brought out a  huge cake with strawberries on it to celebrate our team member Liz McGiles’ birthday that was on the 3rd. Our group leader Kristyna told Liz that it’s a Guatemalan custom to take a bite out of the cake before cutting into it. As she was about to do so, we gave her a little extra push and her face was covered in cake! We then all enjoyed the cake and each other’s company.

As stated in our morning devotion, travel isn’t always comfortable, sometimes it hurts, and yes sometimes it even breaks your heart. We all have achey muscles, but seeing how greatful and humble the families we have been working for are makes it all worth it. We are greatful to them as well for letting us into their homes and allowing us to learn from them. I am sure that none of us will forget the lessons we are learning here in Guatemala.

– Karlie

 

 

Day 4 (January 6th, 2017)

On our fourth day of adventure in the beautiful country of Guatemala, we began with our morning devotion lead by Michele. She shared two quotes with us to apply to our experiences. The first was a quote by John Wesley: “Do all that you can. By all the means that you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as you can.” And the second was a quote from Albert Einstein: “The only source of knowledge is experience.” These were an excellent ilustration of the point of our trip. It is not only help these people, but to learn from them and hopefully learn more about ourselves.

Next, we travelled to our worksite where we would be working with two separate families building two smokeless stoves and one latrine. The worksite was similar to yesterday only we had a clearer view of the mountains and less children to ambush us with tickle fight. One child today, Edgar, gave the best hugs and stole a few hearts. We were also able to finish the projects in record time today. I guess we catch on pretty quick! For lunch we had a beef dish with potatoes and carrots and a side of fresh vegetables and lemons (which were confusing because they were green on the outside and orange on the inside). The children were more than happy to sit on our laps and share our food and laughter. Edgar was not too fond of the green lemons though based on his pinched face. These two families are some of the few that we will have the pleasure of working with again tomorrow.

Before our dinner this evening, we had our second class. Here we discussed two more essays involving truth in action and dire situations. This was followed by a wonderful dinner of savory chicken and kale crepes of sorts with a green soup and bread. The team then gathered with blankets and pillows in hand for a movie night featuring the Guatemalan film, Ixcanal. This was an incredible depiction of a Mayan family and their struggles but also their family love and values. Our team leaders arranged for popcorn and hot chocolate to be served while we watch. Our days are long but our hearts are full. We are more excited than ever to continue our journey and experience all we can, especially hugs and laughter of many more children.

– Anna

Day 3 (January 5th, 2017)

Today was another fantastic day on the work site. Our day started out with our morning devotion over breakfast shared by Anna. She shared a great story about a Guatemalan family that she had encountered in the United States on the train. Then we headed to our worksite for the day. Again, we formed three teams (two of the teams building smokeless stoves and one building a latrine).

The worksite today was very different from the site yesterday, even though it was within the same village. One group that was building a smokeless stove decided to take a break and walk down the block to the little store that was run by the women of the village. Here we tried corn chips that are made here in Guatemala. They came in an assortment of flavors a including lime, BBQ, and picante. After going back to the home we were working in, the children on the site started to warm up to us. One family we help today has ten children, the majority under the age of twelve. We started by playing catch with a tennis ball and man some of these kids have a great arm.

Next, we breaked for lunch that was catered by a reasturaunt here in San Lucas Toliman. Our lunches consisted of the traditional rice, beans, guacamole, and tortillas, with the addition of pork. During our lunch break, we went on a hike to see the most beutiful view on the lake. After lunch, we returned to our worksites and continued our work, when we became distracted by the children of the village. We played some more catch with them, had tickle fights, taught them the marcarana, and much more. To say the least, our afternoon was filled with smiles and laughter brought on by the children of the village. I even think some of us ended up playing with the children more than working. To say the least, our goodbye was bittersweet knowing that we will not be returning to these families as we became to know the names of many of the children including Martin, Lizzie, Wilsion, Kevin, Domingo, and Rein.

After returning to the hotel and cleaning up, some of us went on a garden tour of our hotel given by one of the hotel’s gardeners and translated by Senora Zlatic. While the rest of us either took naps or walked around the town. Our dinner tonight was refreshing with a salad and chicken pie. Following dinner we had our first class of the week. Here we talked about a few essays and became to know why our habitat leaders joined the organization. Overall, our day was great and I cannot wait to make more connections here in Guatemala even though we may not speak the same language.

-Kendall

Day 2 (January 4th, 2017)

Today marks the first work day of our trip and I can honestly say that it was very successful. The family we helped lived in a community that was a forty- five minute drive outside of San Lucas, the place we are staying in Guatemala. We were all split into three groups, two of which built stoves while the other had the task of building a latrine. All three groups had a translator, a mason worker as well as members of the family helping them throughout the day. The two stoves and the latrine were made out of bricks and mortar made out of cement mix, sand, and water.

The group that was responsible for building a latrine did so by building a wooden frame, putting wood planks in for the walls and a tin roof. To finish the structure off they put in the door. Most of the pre work such as digging the nine foot hole and putting in the cement floor was done already by the family members and mason worker respectively.

The two groups that built the stoves started with the frame of the base. To make the frame they had to lay down three layers of bricks with mortar. After that, they filled the brick structure with small rocks making it flush with the top layer of bricks. Mortar was poured on top of the structure to finish off the base. Finally, in order to properly install the metal stove top and the pipe to divert the smoke out of the building, a single layer of brick was put on top as well as cement. My group was one of the stove making groups and as you can see by the beautiful picture above we were very successful. In fact, I was thinking about dropping out of pharmacy school to become a mason worker.

Mom and dad if you’re reading this I’m just kidding. But in all seriousness towards the end of the work day when everything was said and done the family was very thankful for all the help we gave them to build the stoves and latrine. For us, it was a learning experience learning how to build these structures as well as getting a taste for how some of the impoverished Guatemalan people live. For them, it was an improvement in the quality of their life as well as the lives of their children.

Our day ended with a presentation from Kristyna, one of the Habitat for Humanity volunteers on the trip with us about Guatemala. She told us about the history of Guatemala. In fact, German, the other Habitat for Humanity volunteer with us, shared a personal story of how the Guatemalan Civil War affected both of his parents. She also shared that most of the country is in dire need of help including better education, nutrition and housing. Overall, the day was a great learning experience and I can’t wait for what the rest of the trip has to bring!

-Liz