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!