Some members of the church that I grew up in are partnering in missions with a Guatemalan church by the Lake. They invited me to join them, and so I met them for a few days. It was awesome to see people that knew me from elementary school, but that I haven't seen in years!
It was quite the adventure getting there-- much more difficult than I had thought. First I took a shuttle van to Panajachel, the largest town by the lake, and one that I had been to before.
I wanted to catch a boat- or lancha - directly to San Lucas. But it turns out they don't run that route on Tuesdays (or Mondays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays, for that matter). So I took a boat across the lake to the next larger town, Santiago. No lanchas from here, either, but there were buses!
This chicken bus was thankfully much more empty than the ones I occasionally take in the city. It still drove just as fast though! They dropped me off at the edge of town; after wandering through the market awhile, I asked directions and found my group!
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| Stopping in Santiago for something to eat |
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| My hotel room |
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| The Group |
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| The school where they were teaching English to the grade K - 6 students |
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| Preschool / Kindergarten lesson |
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| 3rd grade lesson |
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| Special birthday lunch |
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| The church that they are partnered with: La Esperanza |
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| Digging and Building the sanitation well |
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| Mixing cement |
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| Of course, I found a kitten! |
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| Lake Atitlan |
Getting back to Antigua proved just as difficult as getting there. Thank you to JoHannah for helping me find a safe pick-up truck to take me back to Santiago. That was the most amazing drive! Flying up and around curves; the wind in my face; colorful farmlands sloping down to the sparkling lake, a vivid blue, out of which rose the volcano. I try to describe one of the most beautiful sights I've seen in the country, because with about 15 Guatemalan men and me in the open back of a pick-up, I was not going to dig through my purse and take out my camera!
Another lancha and I was back in Pana to catch my shuttle van home.
Thank you to the missions group for letting me help translate and spend some time with you all!
