OK, Folks...bear with me. I have attempted to put some of my pics thus far on line. Now, it will be very clear when you look at them, that I am nearly technologically inept. However, I really want to share them with you as soon as possible. They are slightly disorganized, work backwards in order, and have no labels at this point, but here they are. Please enjoy and share with all. You can find them at:
http://lovesimply.shutterfly.com/
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Nearly at the Finca!
Tonight is the last night before I permanently move to the Finca for the next 2.5 years. It is so unbelievable that we are finally here, in La Ceiba, only 3 hours from the Finca. I can hardly contain my excitement, and I think the same could be said of all 8 of us. First, let's back track a bit to our 10 day journey across Guatemala and Honduras!
After a mass sponsored by Juan Sisay to send us off on our journey with many blessings, we had our graduation from Juan Sisay. It was so weird leaving and saying good-bye to our teachers and new friends we made there. But, I think we were all ready to get moving.
On Saturday, Carlos (our driver for the whole trip) picked us all up with our rather large collection of luggage and we were off! We first visited Lago de Atitlan - a beautiful lake surrounded by volcanoes (which WE DID NOT climb!) and just amazing scenery. I think a special spell has been cast on this area in which all people who visit fall into a trend of relaxing and doing nothing. At least, this is what we all did for the two days we were there. One day we ventured out to go kayaking and a little shopping in a mercado, but beyond this we sat in rocking chairs on our balcony, read, talked, played cards, ate great food, and just relaxed! It was so wonderful and a great start to our trip.
Then, we headed north to Coban - the favorite spot of us all. Coban itself is nothing to rave about, but about two and a half hours outside of Coban, in the mountains lies Semuc Champey. Semuc Champey in Mayan means "where water meets rock." That really translates to a natural land bridge that goes directly over a raging river. BUT on top of the land bridge lies a series of stair-stepped, jade-colored pools of crystal clear water. We got to swim in them and work our way down the series. Ultimately, we ended at the bottom in which we climbed down a rope ladder, down a waterfall (not a big one) and into a cave that goes under the bridge. Here we saw water gushing with extreme force out from under the bridge (from a "Guatemalan" safe distance, of course). It was by far the coolest and most incredible thing I have seen in a very long time. It was just breath taking.
Afterwords, we explored a bat cave. Knowing that the Mayans really respect nature, it came as no surprise that this is another respected, place of worship for them. The cave was quite beautiful but was rather full of bat guano! Let's just say we all came out of the cave not very clean. It was still a really fun experience.
Our next stop was Esquipulas, a town near the Guatemalan, Honduran boarder. Many of our Guatemalan friends told us that this was a place we must visit. It is the home of El Cristo Negro (The Black Christ). It is place of pilgramage for many people in Central America. We all went to mass there. It was an impressive church, but not my favorite stop.
We then headed for the boarder. It was an interesting experience. We had to pay to leave Guate and enter Honduras, however, there is not a required fee for either. It seems that the boarder control can just charge whatever they want to. And, considering we need to cross the boarder, we have to pay whatever they ask. However, we lucked out and really only had to pay about 4 dollars. We all passed successfully and without any hassle.
Next, we headed to Amigos de Jesus, another orphanage in Honduras. We had made friends with the volunteers there during language school. It was really exciting to see an orphanage and just get a quick glimpse into our future. Amigos is a little different because it only houses boys at this time. They hope to house girls within the next few years. The boys were just great and so full of energy. The facilities there are beautiful due to a sponsorship from Villanova. I think our excitement level was heightened by this visit.
Our final stop was Copan (not to be confused with Coban, Guate). Here we found some very well preserved Mayan Ruins. There were so many impressive things to see here. I felt like it was just a good way top off our Mayan history lessons of the past two months. They really knew what they were doing there with their architecture, art, and technology. It was a great way to end our trip.
Yesterday, we finally arrived in La Ceiba, where Andrea, our US coordinator lives with her family. I guess we have officially started our orientation today. We have been learning about Phase 3 of the Finca. Phase 3 is where the adolescents move to La Ceiba to go to schools here and find local jobs. It is really a way for them to learn how to live independently. We also spent some time learning about the history and mission statement of the Finca.
TOMORROW we arrive at the Finca! I feel like I have been preparing for this day for so long, it is surreal. However, I am so very excited to meet my new family and get started. Please pray for us as we continue to grow in community and learn more about this beautiful mission. In return, we are all praying for you all daily.
After a mass sponsored by Juan Sisay to send us off on our journey with many blessings, we had our graduation from Juan Sisay. It was so weird leaving and saying good-bye to our teachers and new friends we made there. But, I think we were all ready to get moving.
On Saturday, Carlos (our driver for the whole trip) picked us all up with our rather large collection of luggage and we were off! We first visited Lago de Atitlan - a beautiful lake surrounded by volcanoes (which WE DID NOT climb!) and just amazing scenery. I think a special spell has been cast on this area in which all people who visit fall into a trend of relaxing and doing nothing. At least, this is what we all did for the two days we were there. One day we ventured out to go kayaking and a little shopping in a mercado, but beyond this we sat in rocking chairs on our balcony, read, talked, played cards, ate great food, and just relaxed! It was so wonderful and a great start to our trip.
Then, we headed north to Coban - the favorite spot of us all. Coban itself is nothing to rave about, but about two and a half hours outside of Coban, in the mountains lies Semuc Champey. Semuc Champey in Mayan means "where water meets rock." That really translates to a natural land bridge that goes directly over a raging river. BUT on top of the land bridge lies a series of stair-stepped, jade-colored pools of crystal clear water. We got to swim in them and work our way down the series. Ultimately, we ended at the bottom in which we climbed down a rope ladder, down a waterfall (not a big one) and into a cave that goes under the bridge. Here we saw water gushing with extreme force out from under the bridge (from a "Guatemalan" safe distance, of course). It was by far the coolest and most incredible thing I have seen in a very long time. It was just breath taking.
Afterwords, we explored a bat cave. Knowing that the Mayans really respect nature, it came as no surprise that this is another respected, place of worship for them. The cave was quite beautiful but was rather full of bat guano! Let's just say we all came out of the cave not very clean. It was still a really fun experience.
Our next stop was Esquipulas, a town near the Guatemalan, Honduran boarder. Many of our Guatemalan friends told us that this was a place we must visit. It is the home of El Cristo Negro (The Black Christ). It is place of pilgramage for many people in Central America. We all went to mass there. It was an impressive church, but not my favorite stop.
We then headed for the boarder. It was an interesting experience. We had to pay to leave Guate and enter Honduras, however, there is not a required fee for either. It seems that the boarder control can just charge whatever they want to. And, considering we need to cross the boarder, we have to pay whatever they ask. However, we lucked out and really only had to pay about 4 dollars. We all passed successfully and without any hassle.
Next, we headed to Amigos de Jesus, another orphanage in Honduras. We had made friends with the volunteers there during language school. It was really exciting to see an orphanage and just get a quick glimpse into our future. Amigos is a little different because it only houses boys at this time. They hope to house girls within the next few years. The boys were just great and so full of energy. The facilities there are beautiful due to a sponsorship from Villanova. I think our excitement level was heightened by this visit.
Our final stop was Copan (not to be confused with Coban, Guate). Here we found some very well preserved Mayan Ruins. There were so many impressive things to see here. I felt like it was just a good way top off our Mayan history lessons of the past two months. They really knew what they were doing there with their architecture, art, and technology. It was a great way to end our trip.
Yesterday, we finally arrived in La Ceiba, where Andrea, our US coordinator lives with her family. I guess we have officially started our orientation today. We have been learning about Phase 3 of the Finca. Phase 3 is where the adolescents move to La Ceiba to go to schools here and find local jobs. It is really a way for them to learn how to live independently. We also spent some time learning about the history and mission statement of the Finca.
TOMORROW we arrive at the Finca! I feel like I have been preparing for this day for so long, it is surreal. However, I am so very excited to meet my new family and get started. Please pray for us as we continue to grow in community and learn more about this beautiful mission. In return, we are all praying for you all daily.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Departing from Xela!
Well, my time in Xela has come to an end! It is so hard to believe that I have been here for 7 weeks now. It does not seem that way AT ALL! But is the reality. The seven us will be leaving Xela on Saturday and begin our 10 day journey through Guatemala and Honduras. It does not take that long to get there...you could probably make it in two days, but we are planning to stop at many places along the way. We plan to visit Lago Aticlan (a beautiful lake surrounded by Volcanos I will not be climbing!), Coban (a beautiful area more to the north that is surrounded by jungle and caves), Copan (an area with Mayan ruines), perhaps visiting Amigos de Jesus (another orphanage in Western Honduras), and La Ceiba (where our US coordinator and former volunteer, Andrea, lives with her family). I am really looking forward to getting on the road and also having a lot of quality time with each other. We will pick up our 8th volunteer, Quinn, in La Ceiba. Please send your prayers our way as we will be on the road quite a bit.
Other than looking forward to traveling and continuing to learn Spanish, I have been taking in more of the beauty of this country. I have been meaning to comment on how amazing the views are in this country. It is a rather small country...but it owns such breath-taking veiws. One thing that continues to amaze me is how close the clouds are here in Xela...granted I am 7000 ft above sea level...so yes I am closer to the clouds. But coming from flat lands...it is just magical.
Last weekend, I went to Antigua with Liz and Beth. Antigua is a beautiful city that is very, very clean in comparison to the rest of the country. It is also has many US influences including Subway and all! But it was nice to visit and see all the beautiful churches there. I also climbed yet another volcano, Volcano Pacaya...I know I keep saying I am not going to do it again, but then I do! This one I had to though...it is an active volcano and actually has flowing lava! Don´t worry, it was not a danger...but we did get rather close to the lava. Close enough to roast marshmellows! I cannot even begin to describe how hot it was to just be near the lava. It was incredible. But so crazy to see. While being there, I couldn´t help but think...these are the types of things you see in National Geographic or on the Discovery Channel! It was simply amazing.
We have continued to learn about the culture and history here. There is so much to tell and share, I just think you will all have to come and see for yourselves! Just kidding, but not completely. But the richness of this country is just amazing. I feel blessed to be able to learn so much about it. My eyes have indeed been opened a little wider while being here, that is for certain.
The only misfortune that has come my way is a stomach bacterial infection! It isn´t the worst thing that can happen. In fact, it hasn´t really been that bad at all and is actually to be expected when traveling here. I am taking antibiotics now and am back on the mend. It was an interesting expereince to go to the hospital here...much different than in the states, but not bad.
Well, I think that is enough for now. My entries may be a little more spread out now, as I don´t think I will have quite as much internet access at the Finca...but I promise to keep you all as updated as possible. Also, I am trying to figure out the best option for pictures...I am not the best with technology, so bear with me. At some point I have some beauties to share with you all.
Many prayers and love your way!
Other than looking forward to traveling and continuing to learn Spanish, I have been taking in more of the beauty of this country. I have been meaning to comment on how amazing the views are in this country. It is a rather small country...but it owns such breath-taking veiws. One thing that continues to amaze me is how close the clouds are here in Xela...granted I am 7000 ft above sea level...so yes I am closer to the clouds. But coming from flat lands...it is just magical.
Last weekend, I went to Antigua with Liz and Beth. Antigua is a beautiful city that is very, very clean in comparison to the rest of the country. It is also has many US influences including Subway and all! But it was nice to visit and see all the beautiful churches there. I also climbed yet another volcano, Volcano Pacaya...I know I keep saying I am not going to do it again, but then I do! This one I had to though...it is an active volcano and actually has flowing lava! Don´t worry, it was not a danger...but we did get rather close to the lava. Close enough to roast marshmellows! I cannot even begin to describe how hot it was to just be near the lava. It was incredible. But so crazy to see. While being there, I couldn´t help but think...these are the types of things you see in National Geographic or on the Discovery Channel! It was simply amazing.
We have continued to learn about the culture and history here. There is so much to tell and share, I just think you will all have to come and see for yourselves! Just kidding, but not completely. But the richness of this country is just amazing. I feel blessed to be able to learn so much about it. My eyes have indeed been opened a little wider while being here, that is for certain.
The only misfortune that has come my way is a stomach bacterial infection! It isn´t the worst thing that can happen. In fact, it hasn´t really been that bad at all and is actually to be expected when traveling here. I am taking antibiotics now and am back on the mend. It was an interesting expereince to go to the hospital here...much different than in the states, but not bad.
Well, I think that is enough for now. My entries may be a little more spread out now, as I don´t think I will have quite as much internet access at the Finca...but I promise to keep you all as updated as possible. Also, I am trying to figure out the best option for pictures...I am not the best with technology, so bear with me. At some point I have some beauties to share with you all.
Many prayers and love your way!
Monday, September 1, 2008
Un poco a poco
Hola a todos...
Well, as you can tell from my lack of blogging in the past few weeks, life if more than busy down here in the mountains of Guate. I somehow thought that the slow pace of life down here would translate to a not-so-busy lifestyle for me...I will admit that most things do not start on time, but that does not mean that they are not busy. But, I can honestly say my days are filled will all good things including learning more and more español, making amigos with all types of great folks, taking in all the history and culture of Guatemala, and seeing so many beautiful sites. Life is busy, but I wouldn´t say trying...at least not yet.
So much has happened over the past few weeks, it is hard to capture them all. However, I will give you some highlights. So here we go...upon arrival to Guatemala it doesn´t take much knowledge to recognize this country is just dripping with history and culture. A large amount of women in the country dress in beautiful, vibrantly colored clothing. It is the tipical clothing of the Mayan. Most men do not wear it because there is a lot of discrimination against the Mayan, even though about 80% of the population (mas o menos) are indiginious or are part indiginous. The women must wear the clothing most times because they are made to by thier husbands. I personally think that the clothing is so wonderful and such an attraction to the culture. I do not quite understand if the women feel ashamed to wear their clothes...I kind of gather that they do not. But actually this week there is a conference on it, so I guess I will learn more there.
I have also had the blessing to take in more of nature´s beauty down here. I hiked up another not so strenous volcano. This one was called Volcan Chicabal. It is a sacred space for the Mayan. One because it is a volcano and two because it has a lake at the top...it is magnificent. When we got to the top there was a group of Mayan singing prayers in Mam...a native touge. It was amazing.
We also took a weekend trip to a beach on the Pacific. I am not quite sure of the name of this area, but it was pretty much deserted by American standards. It was weird to be on a beautifl beach with few to no other people. The other great thing was that the water was very warm and the waves were great. We got in some great body surfing. You really didn´t need to have any skill becuase the waves were strong enough to do all the work. It was great. It was also just a very relaxing weekend.
Yesterday, we took a short half-day trip to a town that was destroyed by one of the volcanos about 20 or so years ago. It was kind of eerie to be there but very interesting. We also got a beautiful view of Santa Maria (the volcano I struggled up) and Volcano Santiaguito (a currently active volcano, but not a threat currently). The beauty of this country amazes me.
Beyond all of this, I have really been building community with both my fellow Finca volunteers and some of the Volunteers from Amigos De Jesus (An orphanage also in Honduras). Two of the current volunteers from the Finca, Teresa and Nathan, came for a surprise visit one week. They brushed up on their spanish but also answered many of our questions about the Finca. They were great people and only built our excitement to reach the Finca. Our 3 final volunteers that were planning on coming to language school arrived late Friday night...so we are 7 strong now. It is great to have everyone here. We will meet our final and newly added volunteer at the end of this month on our trip to the Finca. The volunteers from Amigos de Jesus were here for about the past month to month and a half studying Spanish at Juan Sisay as well. They are great people. We really built a sense of community with them. They all headed closer to thier orphanage this past weekend. It was sad to see them go, but I am fairly certain we will see them a few times over the next year. It is was reassuring to know that there are other people in Honduras working for the same cause we will be at the Finca. Bottom line, I am feeling more and more a part of a community down here and it is very welcomed!
OH, Spanish is coming along. ¨Un poco a poco¨ is what my teacher keeps telling me which means little by little. So, I guess I will just keep fumbling through muy words. But I am seeing improvements and am hopful.
OK...this was a lot I know. I will try not to leave so much time in between entries. But, there is just so much to share. You are all in my prayers and thoughts daily. Much love to you all.
Well, as you can tell from my lack of blogging in the past few weeks, life if more than busy down here in the mountains of Guate. I somehow thought that the slow pace of life down here would translate to a not-so-busy lifestyle for me...I will admit that most things do not start on time, but that does not mean that they are not busy. But, I can honestly say my days are filled will all good things including learning more and more español, making amigos with all types of great folks, taking in all the history and culture of Guatemala, and seeing so many beautiful sites. Life is busy, but I wouldn´t say trying...at least not yet.
So much has happened over the past few weeks, it is hard to capture them all. However, I will give you some highlights. So here we go...upon arrival to Guatemala it doesn´t take much knowledge to recognize this country is just dripping with history and culture. A large amount of women in the country dress in beautiful, vibrantly colored clothing. It is the tipical clothing of the Mayan. Most men do not wear it because there is a lot of discrimination against the Mayan, even though about 80% of the population (mas o menos) are indiginious or are part indiginous. The women must wear the clothing most times because they are made to by thier husbands. I personally think that the clothing is so wonderful and such an attraction to the culture. I do not quite understand if the women feel ashamed to wear their clothes...I kind of gather that they do not. But actually this week there is a conference on it, so I guess I will learn more there.
I have also had the blessing to take in more of nature´s beauty down here. I hiked up another not so strenous volcano. This one was called Volcan Chicabal. It is a sacred space for the Mayan. One because it is a volcano and two because it has a lake at the top...it is magnificent. When we got to the top there was a group of Mayan singing prayers in Mam...a native touge. It was amazing.
We also took a weekend trip to a beach on the Pacific. I am not quite sure of the name of this area, but it was pretty much deserted by American standards. It was weird to be on a beautifl beach with few to no other people. The other great thing was that the water was very warm and the waves were great. We got in some great body surfing. You really didn´t need to have any skill becuase the waves were strong enough to do all the work. It was great. It was also just a very relaxing weekend.
Yesterday, we took a short half-day trip to a town that was destroyed by one of the volcanos about 20 or so years ago. It was kind of eerie to be there but very interesting. We also got a beautiful view of Santa Maria (the volcano I struggled up) and Volcano Santiaguito (a currently active volcano, but not a threat currently). The beauty of this country amazes me.
Beyond all of this, I have really been building community with both my fellow Finca volunteers and some of the Volunteers from Amigos De Jesus (An orphanage also in Honduras). Two of the current volunteers from the Finca, Teresa and Nathan, came for a surprise visit one week. They brushed up on their spanish but also answered many of our questions about the Finca. They were great people and only built our excitement to reach the Finca. Our 3 final volunteers that were planning on coming to language school arrived late Friday night...so we are 7 strong now. It is great to have everyone here. We will meet our final and newly added volunteer at the end of this month on our trip to the Finca. The volunteers from Amigos de Jesus were here for about the past month to month and a half studying Spanish at Juan Sisay as well. They are great people. We really built a sense of community with them. They all headed closer to thier orphanage this past weekend. It was sad to see them go, but I am fairly certain we will see them a few times over the next year. It is was reassuring to know that there are other people in Honduras working for the same cause we will be at the Finca. Bottom line, I am feeling more and more a part of a community down here and it is very welcomed!
OH, Spanish is coming along. ¨Un poco a poco¨ is what my teacher keeps telling me which means little by little. So, I guess I will just keep fumbling through muy words. But I am seeing improvements and am hopful.
OK...this was a lot I know. I will try not to leave so much time in between entries. But, there is just so much to share. You are all in my prayers and thoughts daily. Much love to you all.
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