Tomas Arellano

Today, January 26 was our second day in Antigua. Breakfast was from 8:30 to 9:30, which was a relief from the usual wake up time 7 am. We could only have breakfast three by three since the table in the small hostel was only for three people. Ernesto volunteered to help out Father Kirk to make breakfast. They made pancakes with eggs. Breakfast tasted like glory since all we had for breakfast in San Lucas was oatmeal with beans. 
At 10 am there was a van waiting for us outside the hostel. My classmates and Father Alvin hopped in the van. We headed out, it was an hour and a half journey to volcano Pacaya. The roads were in good condition and there was no traffic, so it was a good journey there. When we finally arrived, there were about twenty kids trying to sell us sticks for five quetzals. Father Alvin was smart enough to bring his own. We headed down to buy the tickets and everyone got his ticket in and we met our tour guide. He asked us in the beginning if anybody wanted a horse since it was the same price in the beginning as it was ¾ up the volcano. Everyone rejected the offer. We all felt strong enough hike it all the way up.
The Pacaya volcano hike was 2.5 kilometers long. It was steeper than we thought it was going to be. As we were 10 meters in we all thought, how am I going to be able to hike 2.5 kilometers with this steepness. To add to the difficultness there were a bunch of tiny rocks that made the hike slippery. The first rest stop was 0.25 kilometers up. By that point we were out of breath. Ernesto asked the tour guide for a horse and as he was making the call his phone ran out of credit. Ernesto was out of luck. In the rest stop there was a magnificent view of the lake and Guatemala City. Shortly after we continued the tour guide saw his brother and asked him for a horse. Ernesto was back in luck. They brought his horse and everyone was jealous, but they all felt strong enough to continue walking. Julio couldn’t take it anymore so he also asked for a horse. The hike was long, steep and slippery it was difficult but the vegetation was amazing and it gave us some shade. As we reached the top where there was no more vegetation we all felt a feeling of success and accomplishment. The view was amazing; I have never seen anything like it. It is hard to explain how beautiful the panorama was. There was a shop at the top that sold volcanic jewelry. There are only three places in the world that sell that and it was the only one in all of America. We weren’t allowed to go to the crater because 5 people died two years ago when the volcano erupted but it was still amazing. The hike down was long and tedious. We were all very tired from the hike up. When we finally reached the bottom everyone rushed to the store to buy water and Gatorade. We got in the van and headed back to Antigua. Most of us fell asleep on the way back since we were exhausted. When we arrived at Antigua most of my classmates stayed at the hostel to watch movies. I didn’t want to waste the day so I went with Julio and Mario to take pictures and grab snack. At 6 pm we all met at the hostel and we went to a nice restaurant. The food was exquisite and plentiful. As an appetizer it was either a bean soup or a salad. As an entry we had a variety to choose from. I ordered “un poco de todo” which means a little bit of everything. It had beef, chorizo, chicken, guacamole and beans. For dessert it was either mole or cheesecake. The food was delicious but it was too much I couldn’t finish everything. After we ate we went back to the hostel and watched movies. It was a great day

Angel Martin del Campo
January 25th 2013

     Today I woke up with a sensation of relief and satisfaction. Today were the last moments of our time in San Lucas Toliman. My roommates and I woke up a little earlier. Instead of getting up at 7:45 AM, we woke up at 7: 20. It was hard for us since we really need all the sleep we can get. After our typical reboot, we started packing. Clothes, gifts, and personal items went into our luggage. At 7:50, we headed towards breakfast. The typical beans with oatmeal were set on the buffet table. With a sense of joy, we all ate our last  breakfast at the mission. As we headed back, we saw that our luggage was being set on the bus. Adrenaline rushed through my body as I made the final preparations for our upcoming trip. I checked my room four times for unseen or forgotten items. The room was clear, except for a few socks and a water bottle that were forgotten. As I hunted for my seat at the bus, I noticed that the long-term volunteers were depressed as our group,the best group, was living their humble mission. Goodbyes were exchanged and probably a few tears were shed, but adrenaline rushed through our bodies as we were about to discover an old but new city to our eyes. We left the hotel and made a quick stop to pick up our travel buddies. After long and annoying discussions about who was going to sit where, the wheels rolled and we were on our way to Antigua. We passed all the landscapes and small villages we had seen before arriving to San Lucas. It brought a small portion of nostalgia to my being. I spent all the way listening to my I pod with my head smashing against the wind. When I started to get bored, Fr. Alvin caught our attention by mentioning the Volcano we are going to be hiking  tomorrow. I am really scared but I think it is going to be a fun experience. The trip was starting to get very long. I had now switched from three genres of music and we still had a really large portion of road left. I went from Electronic to Latino and from that I felt homesick and played a little Mariachi. I was falling asleep until something caught my eye. A really old church and colonial buildings started to show up. Antigua has finally been reached! In the  following moments, everybody got out their picture-taking device and put it to work. We started to explore the town as a toddler explores a brand-new toy. We arrived to the hotel and felt comfort. The house where we are staying its pretty nice. Some went to sight-see, and some, including me, stayed resting. A few hours later, my roommates and I went out to get familiarized with Antigua. We were lost in the first 10 minutes. We had to pull out our map and ubicate ourselves. Time passed and the need for food made its way on to the mind. We found a pizza place that offered a 10-slice pizza for 35 quetzales. We took the offer and headed to the park. The reason we headed to the park is that you have to pay if you are going to eat in the restaurant. So on top of paying your order, you have to pay to get a table. people these days. After filling ourselves with bread covered in tomato and cheese, the market was the destination.We did not find anything interesting there so we left. Chichicastenango was way better on the market side. We left and headed back to the hotel. At 6:45 we had a meeting on the roof. Father Kirk explained to us what the next few days are going to be like and we left for dinner. We ate at a nice restaaurant. Little but very comfortable. We had a nice dinner. I ordered the meat. It was pretty tasty. I remember having a conversation about movies and psychology. I think it was entertaining. I might even join psychology class next year. When dinner ended, the group headed back to the hotel. Exhausted, we got into our beds and slept like angels. I am looking forward to hiking the volcano and to Anitigua in General.

Mario Orso

Our last day of work at San Lucas has arrived, January 23. We started our day like any other, breakfast. This time we were given the choice to work a the plantations, picking coffee, or construction at the women's center. Every one choose the sweaty construction job over the calm coffee picking. Father Alvin chose to go work with another group coffee picking. We made our last work day memorable; hard work and dedication was in everyone's mind as we shoveled dirt as if our life depended on it. We carried rocks, filled bags with dirt, mixed cement, and planted beautiful flowers for three hours. By the time the truck came we all celebrated for the hard work we had put in. It is truly an amazing feeling to see everything your hard work achieved. On our way back to the mission, we made a short stop to look at the small homes in construction. The little houses were constructed by the government to help those whose shacks were flooded during rain season or just didn't have a home at all. The government constructed these homes to help around 400 people. Although the government built these 16x10 meter homes to benefit the ones without a home, they still have to pay for a part of the house and help to construct it. The houses are small, especially if twelve people are going to live in it. There is neither ventilation nor a kitchen. These people have to cook their food outside their home using their own methods. They use aluminum foil over a campfire to cook their food. The government is putting a great effort into giving these people affordable homes. Although these homes lack basic facilities such as kitchens and more space, they are doing a very honorable thing giving these people a place to call home. This has truly opened my eyes to the conditions some people live in here in Guatemala but also to the incredible effort some people pay to help their fellow man. It is incredible how these people are so happy with so little. It shows that happiness truly does not depend on material wealth, but spiritual wealth and love. After lunch we visited a woman named Silvia. Yesterday we prepared a small basket of regular market goods to gift to her. The gift included cooking oil, coffee, rice, beans, detergent, among many other basic goods. Silvia was very grateful. She shared a little bit about herself with us: she has 5 children whose father is not with them anymore. Things became very emotional when she started to explain to us how she owes a large quantity of money to the bank. Silvia was in a very tough position, and she almost had to give her children away to one of her family members because she could not afford to give them a decent life. Luckily she did not have to do that; someone lent her the money and she was able to pay a part of the debt. Silvia blessed us all and we were back on our way to the Parish. We attended Mass at 4:30 PM. The Mass was held at the small village of San Andres. The road there was extremely bumpy. We felt like India Jones as we hummed its theme song. As we rushed to get to the church, because we were late, people and children were warmly welcoming us. Father Alvin and Father Kirk said mass. We got back and are preparing for tomorrows trip to Chichicastenelga.

Mario Cota

January21st, We go back to the usual work routine the parish usually encompasses. Breakfast consists of the now classical beans and oatmeal with a side of bananas and bread. After feeding ourselves faster than a child who just found a cookie jar, we took of on the magical fantastic magnificent loyal old and reliable red truck on which we have been traveling around so far. We were dispatched to the women´s center tasked with doing more construction work. By now, construction worked has becomed a loathed activity. The sweat and blood shed during these work assignments is recognized by many in our group as arduous, since blood is literally shed due to the many cuts received from carrying rocks or work tools and sweat is caused by the physical strain of moving heavy objects around. Many of us would have rather been run over at a black Friday opening than having to move more rocks. The knowledge that we were sent to do construction because the other groups were not physically able to perform work of that nature and the thought that we would only have to work for three hours were our only consolation, although three hours may have seemed to be an eternity for some. During the three hours we spent there, a variety of different tasks were assigned to different groups. The first half-hour was spent mostly picking up rocks and tossing them over to one of the terraces being arranged in the women´s center. The rocks´ weight did take a toll, but we managed to move a large amount of them quickly. The amount of large rocks requested was fulfilled so the small rocks that still had to be moved were assigned to about four people while the others split to do other jobs. Planting seedlings and watering them, pounding newly set dirt, breaking up rocks with chisels, hauling bags of dirt to another terrace near by, and shoveling dirt for those hauling the dirt was what was available to do at the time. I personally spent the rest of the time hauling bags of dirt to the terrace, and by the time we returned to the parish I felt accomplished from having been able to endure the entire time carrying the bags, since my physical endurance is not my strongest attribute. Let´s just say that I am glad I do not work in a Chinese factory that would happen to have a manager making us work twelve hours a day, but that is a subject not relevant at the time. Returning to the parish I had lunch and immediately returned to the hotel for a nap since I deemed that the best way to use the time we had until returning to work was supposed to take place. At two o´clock we reported to the parish in order to set out to work and I realized that instead of working that day, we were going to put together a food basket for a family in need. The market was a quick walk from the parish. We stopped along the first merchant that we saw and bought everything there because he had everything we needed. Corn, instant coffee, noodles, and cooking oil were among the items we purchased from him. The amount of time we took to buy everything was around fifteen minutes, so when we returned to the parish, the longterms remarked that we were the fastest group to finish. I would attribute that to the fact that we were so tired from the morning, but I would rather say that we are just decisive shoppers. To make up for the time that still remained, we cleaned windows around the parish. The rest of the afternoon was free for us, and after supper we were invited to a bonfire by the group from Winsconsin next door. We sat around the bonfire and conversed until it was pretty late so I returned to the hotel and enjoyed beautiful, peaceful, delightful, relaxing,

Joey Whebe

 Today, January 20^th, our group took a trip to Santiago Atitlan, a Guatemalan city by the lake. We started our day off with some pancakes for breakfast, and then we were on our way. The ride to Santiago Atitlan was very bumpy, but it was worth it when we arrived and saw the beauty of the town. Our visit began at La Iglesia de Santiago Atitlan. The church was full of rustic and modern beauty, and it was founded almost 500 yeas ago in 1547. The mass was a celebration of the anniversary of the death of Padre Francisco, who used to be the pastor of the church. The mass was crammed with locals, coming to celebrate the anniversary of one of the most influential people in the Guatemalan Civil War. Padre Francisco put his life on the line for his people during the war, and suffered the ultimate consequence. To all of the people their, Padre Francisco was a symbol of courage and love.

After the service, my friends and I walked around Santiago Atitlan, in search of some new experiences, and eventually some great food. After walking through the crowed marketplace, we found ourselves at a restaurant called El Pescador, or The Fisherman. There my friends and I sat down and were treated with some delicious fried fish, and we were able to watch some soccer. To top that all off, we decided to go to one of the small tiendas and get some chips, sweets, and other snacks.

Eventually at 2 o'clock, we were back on the road to go back to our hotel in San Lucas. Although we were sad to leave Santiago, we were all very hungry and tired. Fortunately, to contribute to our already great day, we were invited to play a game of soccer with the other groups. We had lots of fun playing, and of course my team came out victorious. In a valiant effort we managed to win the game 14-13, to add to my great day.

At 6 o'clock, we had dinner as usual, and made it back to the hotel for a reflection of the trip so far, and also a spiritual reflection. Our spiritual reflection was from a reading of Saint Paul to the Corinthians. In this reading Saint Paul talked about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and how we all have some of these gifts, and how we can use them for good. The reading really helped me understand our purpose of being in Guatemala, and how we can use the gifts of language and others to benefit others. Also by everyone else's feedback, I can tell that the reading was very powerful and moving to them.

We were also able to get eah others status regarding the trip. Many of the students in our group were homesick, but for the most part they were all very happy about how the trip has been going. For me, I am rather homesick, but I really love Guatemala, and am looking forward to the next few days.

More Pictures

Ernesto Padilla

          After five days of working in both morning and afternoon, it was a relief to only have work for an hour and a half. The day began with the typical breakfast of oatmeal and black beans. The work consisted of polishing and filing some spoons. We spent the whole hour and a half on just one spoon, it took a lot of time and patience. The wood was incredibly hard and only hacked out with machete. The man there told us the story behind the particular wood which is found only high up in the volcano. It was really beautiful but sadly no one took any pictures.
          After coming back from a light work day we headed back to the hotel to prepare for lunch. I lied down for a moment and one of my roommate told me that there was a scorpion in my bed. I did not believe him, but after standing up and looking at the sheets from the foot of the bed and I saw it. After my roommate left in a lightning quick way out of the room and alerted the others. In a matter of second our room became a zoo. Everyone came rushing into the room.
          After dinner we were invited to a bond fire with another group of high school students from Wisconsin. So at almost eight we went to the hotel right next to ours to get to meet the Wisconsin group. When we arrive at their hotel it was quite crowded at the beginning but after a while the place began to empty out. We went around introducing ourselves and telling what we are interested in. After singing songs and talking we decided to call it a night. Today, Sunday was different. We began the day with breakfast, and we headed to Santiago De Atitlan in a Mayan taxi which is all of us in the back of a pick up truck. It was a great view on the way over there.
         Upon our arrival to Santiago Atitlan we went to Church there, it was really full. The crowd spread to the outside of the Church. We arrived exactly on time, right when the mass was about to begin. It was a special mass there were about 23 priest and the Bishop that was celebrating the Eucharist. After mass we had about two hours to tourist around before returning to San Lucas. Some went shoping others went to the take a look of the lake. After the two hours we returned back to San Lucas in the same pick up and arrived safety back.