Day 11

Today started off with breakfast at the Mission where we were on breakfast duty. We then rode on a boat across Lago de Atitlan to Panajachel, about 30 minutes away. 

Panajachel is a city that was more of a tourist area with several restaurants and places to shop. Once arriving in Panajachel, we rode in tuk-tuk’s to the Reserva Natural Atitlan where we went zip lining.

There were a total of eight zip lines and we all had a lot of fun. While we were there, we also met a monkey named Lula and were able to feed her bananas, which she loved. We also visited a butterfly sanctuary with hundreds of butterflies. Afterwards, we ate our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that we packed for lunch and went shopping for the next couple of hours.

We headed back to San Lucas Toliman at 3:30 on the same boat we arrived in. The water was significantly choppier then it had been in the morning. Before heading to dinner for the night, our hotel caretaker, Giovanni, showed us the other side of hotel that the owner stays in when he visits. It was absolutely beautiful, there was a formal dining area, an in-ground pool, and a courtyard. The style was similar to our hotel with many intricate details. We then headed to dinner for our last meal at the Mission where we had pasta, vegetables, and potatoes, which was great because many of us had been craving those foods throughout the day. Afterwards, Papa Rust brought us to a fancier restaurant for dessert to celebrate the success of our trip. The rest of the night mainly consisted of packing as we leave for the airport in Guatemala City at 6am tomorrow morning.

We are all sad to leave Guatemala. I think we can speak for everyone in saying that this experience has positively changed our perspective academically, professionally, and personally. This is not goodbye Guatemala, it’s see you later. 

-Kathleen and Jeannette