El Mejor Fin De Semana - Lago Atitlan

The Best Weekend - Lake Atitlan!

So, after a long week of study DeeDee and I decided to take a well-deserved break and travel to Lago Atitlan. We had heard from the locals here in Antigua and other students that Lago Atitlan is one of the premier places to visit in Guatemala. Lago Atitlan is located at the base of three volcanos (Volcano San Pedro, Volcano Atitlan and Volcano Toliman) and is surrounded by many other mountains.

After a few days of internet research we booked some hotels and eagerly awaited the dismal of class on Friday. As a result of el Dia de Maestras (Day of Teachers, a national holiday) we ended class on Friday a bit earlier than usual, grabbed a quick bite to eat and then met our van driver. After picking up a few more travelers (this time all from the States) we were on our way to Lago Atitlan for some good ole R&R.

The trip to the lake confirmed our growing opinion that there are no straight roads in Guatemala. Needless to say, getting from the ridge of the mountain range down to the base of the volcanos and level with the lake was quite an adventure. We have also come to the conclusion that there are no "safe" drivers in Guatemala, including myself. (Note from DeeDee:it reminded me of the bus in Harry Potter that is able to squeeze itself into an impossible space between two lanes of opposing traffic... perhaps a little magic could be helpful at times....)

Once it was all said and done, we arrived at our hotel in Panajachel about 3pm in the afternoon and, as usual, it began to rain. (We are in the "rainy" season in this part of Guatemala, and every day at about 2pm or 3pm it rains. Some days it will stop after a few minutes, others it last all night, but most days it quits about 6pm or so) DeeDee and I did not mind at all that we were forced to hang out at the hotel for a few hours. We were able to watch a few shows on TV in English, something we had not done in about 2 months.

When the rain stopped about 6pm we headed out to find some dinner. After a few trips up and down la calle principal (the main street in Panajachel), we located a small restaurant that had a filet mignon that had a description that sounded amazing!! We filled our bellies, walked a bit, got some helado (ice cream)... which seems to have become a daily chore...and headed back to the hotel for many hours of sleep.

On Saturday, we rose early to see the lake with no clouds or as few clouds as possible. Then we spent some time kayaking around the lake, walking, shopping and laying by the pool. A great day for R&R.

On Sunday, we chartered a private boat (sounds expensive, but in Guatemala, nothing's really expensive) and traveled to two other communities on the lake: San Pedro and Santiago. Both of the communities were really unique and beautiful! And because it was Sunday, the markets were full of people and all kinds of necessities (I will not even attempt to describe what it is like to walk in a outdoor market here, it is just something one has to experience for him or herself... try to picture live hens, dried fish, hanging meat and hanging bras, etc...). After watching the States give up a 2-0 lead to Brazil in the South African Confederation Cup and eating a delicious late lunch, we headed back to Antigua. Yet another adventurous ride...most likely the most curvy and rough "paved" road I have ever been on in all my travelers. (DeeDee: I don't normally get car sick, but this one was pushing my limits...)

Even with the crazy car rides, we had a awesome time relaxing and resting at Lago Atitlan...and yes it is a remarkable place to see. Below are a few pictures from this adventure but they do not come anywhere near portraying the beauty of God's creation.

One quick side note: When we traveled back to Coban a few weekends ago, I obtained two water samples from the project the engineering team implemented in Benitzul Ulpan. These samples were sent to a lab here in Guatemala and I received the results. After reviewing them, I forward them to the States and got word from the Director of the Harpeth Valley Utility District (the man that says if my water at home is safe to drink or not) that he believes the water is SAFE to drink! This is AMAZING news for my team and the 350 people of this community because there is no filter in the system at all...the water comes straight from the mountainside! Praise God for his providence, guidance and grace as we long to make a difference in these communities!!!

Tikal and Rio Dulce

Well... we're pretty tired, and we're trying to find time amidst our studying to share our adventures from the past weekend with our friends and family. We have quite a bit to tell!!!...

Last week was our first week of 6 hours of Spanish each day. Although it proved a bit tiring, we believe that we have progressed well and that the extra hours of practice in the afternoons with our teachers will prove beneficial for us. That doesn't mean we wouldn't still appreciate your prayers for endurance!

Now, for our weekend adventure...

Last Friday, we left from Antigua with about 30 people- including other students, a teacher from the school, and our host family- for Tikal in a school bus (yes, we said a school bus... not the most comfortable mode of transportation for a 24-hour roundtrip). Tikal is the general name for a national park and collection of Mayan ruins in the northern region of Guatemala. These ruins aren't your typical small pieces of statues and stones left here and there... these were the remains of whole central complexes of Mayan cities and magnificent temples. We really just stood around open-mouthed part of the day in amazement of the size and complexity of the buildings. We walked around for 7 hours or so in the park (and climbed a few temples) and probably only saw half of the ruins. We think our pictures may be more interesting than anything we could describe of them...

Just like in Legends of the Hidden Temple - thanks, Nickelodean!

Us on top of the highest temple, Temple IV. You can see other temples in the background.

Temple V. And yes, that tiny person climbing the really steep stairs is DeeDee.

Kris in front of Temple I - the Jaguar!

(Steve, we cannot believe you actually slept on top of this in the 1970s!!)

Us and some of our host family (the four females directly to the left of us)

When we left Tikal Sunday morning (at 4 A.M.... don't worry, the roosters next to our hotel helped wake us up!), we drove 4 hours to Rio Dulce, the main river in Guatemala that connects the mainland to the Atlantic Ocean. We enjoyed a nice breakfast on the water, then traveled to the famous site, el Castillo de San Felipe- a castle from the mid-1600s that helped protect the waters of Lake Isabel from intrusion from the Rio Dulce. We took a short boat ride touring part of the river (costing only $2 a piece... have we mentioned that we love prices here?!) and then got a guided tour of the castle, with original cannons and all. We finished our 6-hour bus ride back to Antigua quite pooped and ready for bed!

Don't worry... the cannnons weren't loaded!

The entrance to the castle.

Yes, we were pretty tired by this point!

Corpus Christi, Volcan Pacaya and Return to Benitzul Ulpan

Well, the end of last week kept us pretty busy...

On Thursday we went to the Parque Central Cathedral to witness the Catholic service and celebration of Corpus Christi. Although we were almost standing outside because of so many people piled in the church and we were only able to comprehend a few words here and there, it was very humbling to be a part of a celebration of the body of Christ, our Savior. My (DeeDee's) favorite part was all the little girls dressed like angels, waiting outside of the cathedral doors with baskets of flower petals for when the priest and bishop of the church came out and descended the steps. We also enjoyed the fireworks, band, and parade that were all a part of the celebration, as well as walking through all of the booths that had been set up in parque central with fresh fruits, tostadas, etc.

I don't know how many people can say this, but we can now say that we have climbed an ACTIVE volcano and been just a few yards from glowing, flowing lava! Crazy, huh! Let me just say that a similar tourist sight in the states would have had a lot more safety precautions. To summarize our adventure, Thursday afternoon we headed out in a bus with about 15 other young adults from Australia, Switzerland, and the U.S. to the volcano by the name of Pacaya. To take a quote from Wikipedia: "Pacaya is an active complex volcano in Guatemala, which first erupted approximately 23,000 years ago and has erupted at least 23 times since the Spanish conquest of Guatemala. After being dormant for a century, it erupted violently in 1965 and has been erupting continuously since then." After arriving, we had to hike 4 km. in length covering 2 km. in elevation, on an unstable mix of black ash and dirt. At one point, it looked as if we were in a desert of ash, and then we came upon the crystalized or hardened lava which was very brittle and very sharp and not so easy to climb over. Finally, we were able to see some thing glowing red in the distrance. As we approached, we realized that it really was lava flowing in a stream down the mountain. As we got closer we began to feel its heat. A bit of fear hit us as we saw chunks of glowing rock break off and roll down the mountain not many yards from where we were standing. Well, we took plenty of pictures and videos, although none could really capture the incredulity of the moment. Just as we were finishing up our pictures, a thunderstorm settled in on the volcano. I really don't know what we were scared of more... being next to flowing lava or being way too close to the lightening that was surrounding the volcano. Needless to say, we got down off that volcano as quickly as possible, but not without a scratched knee and elbow. All I could think of as we descended was the hymn "He Leadeth Me." I do believe God's hand was with us there and led us safely down that volcano (whether he led us up that volcano to get yards from flowing lava is probably a topic for debate... but that's for later). And we got back home safe... even through a very foggy and once again scary descent in our bus. Here are some pics of our adventure..

After our grand adventure on Pacaya Thursday, we headed back to Coban for the weekend. Christian Aponte picked us up at Probigua after class Friday and off we went. The purpose of our return trip to Coban was two-fold: 1) to revisit Benitzul Ulpan and the water system installed in May and 2) investigate potiental projects in 4 other communites. Christian had visited 2 of these 4 communities in May but it was our first time.

We knew that we were in for another adventure because from the school in Benitzul you can hardly see these communities across the huge valley of the farm. We arrived in Benitzul around 8:30am Saturday morning and were greeted by old friends of the community and a nice Kak-ik breakfast (Kak-ik is a typical soup-based meal of the Coban area which includes many different spices and either chicken or turkey). After breakfast was over we headed down the mountain to begin our journey to 2 communites; San Vicente 1 and San Vicente 2. The best way I have heard our day described is by my wife, "I walked as far as I thought my body would take me, then crossed two mountain ranges, and then had to walk the whole way back." Needless to say, we spent 7 out of 9 hours walking in the mountains. The other 2 hours were spent talking with community leaders about their needs or investigating potiental clean water sites.

On Sunday we headed back to the farm to visit 2 more communites. Our bodies were tired and sore, so luckily we were able to drive most of the way to these communites. Sunday was a very humbling day. We arrived to the first community for breakfast and ate a feast while over 150 people watched us...not an easy thing to do. We spent some time walking to a water source for this community and then visited the house of Juan. Juan is the father of 7 children and his family is at the extreme end of proverty. Juan was gracious enough to show us his home and how his family survives. During the rainy season, Juan is able to catch water off his roof and channel it into a rectangular plastic holding area. Yet during 3 months of the year when there is no rain, Juan and his family make 2 two-hour trips to the closest river for water every day. Juan carries about 15 gallons of water on his back and head, while his wife and children also carry water... we can't even imagine what it is like to live like this...

After visiting Juan's house, we made a stop at one more community of 1,000 people. None of these people have a sustainable water supply, and all of them either go to the river or catch the rain for their water.

The last stop on our trip was one more visit to Benitzul Ulpan. Even though it had not rained in 10 days, the tank we installed was overflowing with water. We found out from the community leader that except for the pila at the school, each site had been operating since we left. We needed to obtain two water samples so that we could test for contamination. When I went to get to these samples I was astounded by how clean the water looked. I cannot explain the feeling I had when I turned on the spigot at the clinic and water gushed out!!! God is good, and I am so thankful for all that he provided and accomplished through our work during the water project at Benitzul a month ago.

After 3 full weeks of Spanish school it was a much different experience for DeeDee and I to visit with the men, women and children of these communities... we could acutally communicate and understand what they were saying... what a blessing!

In conclusion, all I can say is that there is plently of work out there for God's people, not only in these communites but also in our own towns and country.

See some pictures below of our greeting committee at one of the villages, the beautiful mountains we walked, Juan's method for carrying water and a pila spigot gushing with water....

Semana Dos (Week 2)

Well, this has been a week full of adventures and challenges!

Last Saturday, we thought we'd go to a FREE concert by the Notre Dame choir and orchestra taking place in one of the local churches. I guess we didn't think about the fact that this was a pretty big cultural event for the city, and since it was free, everyone and their children and their neighbors and their neighbors' children would come. We got there at least 20 minutes early, only to find every seat in the magnificent cathedral filled. We thought we might tough it out and stand in the middle isle almost at the very back, but as more and more people pushed their way in (there seems to be no concept of "personal space" here) and as it got hotter and hotter (there is also not much concept of an air conditioner here), we decided that two songs were enough for us to hear. After all, we can visit the Schermerhorn when we get home!

This has been a tough week for learning Spanish, especially for Kris. With us being at different levels of Spanish knowledge (since I had 2 years in high school and Kris has no history with the language), it has been difficult. Plus, learning a new language is just plain HARD sometimes. Kris has really been frustrated, but God has been faithful to bring him some patience and peace right when he needed it. Nevertheless, we would still appreciate your prayers for both of us as we work through the upcoming weeks of intensive learning.

On Tuesday, our mission contact in Guatemala City, Christian Aponte, picked us up around lunchtime and took us to his workplace in the city. He works with CAFNIMA , an organization that is located near a large dump and that reaches out to several of the poorest and most violent areas or zones in the city. Included among the activities and services the organization has to offer are: micro-credit loans for women and tracking of their business success (there are over 300 women presently benefiting and succeeding with this service), literacy classes for women (one of these classes is taught by a very enthusiastic former graduate of this program), a kindergarten for children from struggling families in one of the most dangerous areas, and high school level night classes for young adults who never finished school (9 students recently graduated from this program with a high school diploma). Christian took us on a short tour through some of the closest communities that make their living off of collecting recycling goods from the dump. We did not take our camera because 1)we didn't want to draw attention to ourselves and risk having it stolen and 2)there is no way to capture the poverty or way of life of the people there. If you wanna picture it, think of the slums in Slumdog Millionare and you're pretty close. Christian talked about many struggles these people face... sniffing glue, many women in depression, children in the streets with no playground and parents not sending them to school, abusive husbands... not to mention sanitation and physical health issues. Overall, we were very impressed with CAFNIMA's work and their passion to invest in these people who are so often overlooked and literally left at the curbside. You can't convince us that CAFNIMA is not being the hands and feet of Christ in Guatemala City.

On Wednesday, we took a trip with our school to the House of Artisans in Textiles. We got to watch a man making a tablecloth by hand using a wooden machine that was approximately 100 years old! We were very impressed! Somehow, through American industrialism and such, I believe we have lost this art in the states. Of course, we had to buy a few hand towels from there store, especially when each one sold for less than $1!

Today, we spoke with Christian again and found out that we will be returning to Benitzul Ulpan this coming weekend. We are very excited about returning to our friends there and checking up on their new clean water system! We are also excited about visting several neighboring villages (a few "neighbors" to be reached only by a two-hour walk through the mountains) and exploring the prospects of future clean water, engineering, and literacy projects to take place there! We have no idea what God has in store, but we are ready and willing to follow Him! We would appreciate your prayers for discernment here...

Also today, we walked around the city and through the HUGE outdoor market. I don't know that words can really describe all the colors and scents, but maybe pictures can help you visualize (I don't think you'd really miss the smells)...