Guatemala Adventures 2003

So, I took a wee trot over to Guatemala in February of 2003. We stayed there for a little over two weeks. We did a lot of volunteering (teaching about agriculture, because they dont eat vegetables and fruits they harvest, built a water well, taught some basic english to children, and helped out everywhere else). We had a really good trip and only got sick once!

-A scenic picture of Guatemala.....it really is a beautiful place and I would go back in a heartbeat

-I bought a lot from this woman! They just have a way with words, "I make this for you pretty girl.....your mother love you forever you buy this for her, I make this special for you" ugh!!

- I found the picture of "the jump"

-This was a banana tree. We would pick these bananas and the locals would dip them in chocolate and then freeze them.....in the summer I still do this! "Chocoban"

-We lived with these women for a week up in the mountains called Bezaleel. It turns out that they were all older than us by atleast 2-5 years. I swear they are so short and little due to the fact that they hate fruits and vegetables and only eat beans and tortilla.

-Just a boat of us sitting in the ocean passing by a small volcanoe that was letting off a little steam....no worries or anything!

-I turned 18 in Guatemala, so they took us to a secluded baby waterfall.....this picture was taken right after we all jumped from the waterfall.

-We had a day hike trip up to the Mayan Ruins.....amazing!

-This is taken at an orphanage for children who lost family members during the 30 year civil war or just really do not have a family. We went in and spent the day with them singing songs, playing, and teaching.

-Catholicism is the dominant religion in South America. We just happened to run into a an ancient convent.....I forgot that my hair was so long!

-Lets talk about the cuisine for a moment. When we were in the Indigenous region we are only black beans, homemade curds, and tortilla. However, in the city there were many other special treats to try...like iguana eggs, guacamole, rice dishes, and pig tongue!

-This is their "capital" building. On our second day in Guatemala a woman was shot for stealing from an open market, which happened to be right infront of us. The army came flying from around the corner....we were all on the ground...it was very scary, but we made it through and had an eye opener.

-10,000 families live in the dump in the city of Guatemala.....this is a picture of the dump. (we did go visit families who lived here...it was brutal).