Day 12

We are heading to the airport today, so instead of an end-of-day post, I thought I would share some photos from throughout the trip that didn't make it onto the blog. Enjoy!

-M. Rust

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

Day 10

Today’s adventure started bright and early at 6:30AM for breakfast duty. Breakfast was early in order for everyone to go to a mass dedicated to Father Greg, the man who founded the Mission, for the sixth anniversary of his death. The church was full of all the school kids and many locals. Whenever there was a song in mass, all the kids sang along; they knew every word and sang loudly and proudly. When mass ended we followed a procession to the San Lucas Toliman cemetery where we surrounded Father Greg’s grave site. 

A song that was written about Father Greg was presented for the congregation, and someone who had been close to him in life spoke of his generosity and passion for the community. The memorial ended with all the kids releasing yellow and white balloons in a chorus of cheers and singing. The celebration was very lighthearted and was more about life than about the passing of the late Padre. The mass and the memorial were vibrant and had upbeat songs and bright colors as opposed to the dismal dark coloring and low-key music associated with many funerals in the United States.

Next, we split off into pharmacy and engineering groups and went to our final day of work at the project sites. The engineers went to the school. More sand! The pharmacy students went to the clinic to help Edson in the pharmacy brainstorm ways to better monitor controlled medications and keep track of inventory in the storeroom. The real world application of their skills and helping in the clinic has provided an experience for them in the Global Health sphere never afforded to students on this trip before.

In the afternoon, we went to a presentation on the coffee roasting process used by the Mission. We also were able to try coffee prepared via french press. Delicioso!

It's hard to believe that this was our last work day. Definitely not ready to say goodbye to this beautiful country yet!

-Emily and Kayla

Day 9

Today our day started with prep for breakfast. We were assigned dish duty and were also responsible for bringing out the food. Breakfast today was oatmeal and beans. Our group was assigned to work at the school, and long-term volunteers Hannah and Cecelia joined us. We carried sand from the front of the school to the back. We were helping the contractors prepare to build the foundation for the new building. Lunch was rice, chili, pineapple and watermelon.

After lunch we returned to the hotel to freshen up and prepare to go to the Women’s Center. We piled into the back of the pick-up truck with the Marywood crew to get to there. At the Women’s Center we were taught how grind the mas and the corn mixture. 

We were then given the chance to make tortillas by hand from mixture that was previously made. Everyone in the group enjoyed hand-crafting the tortillas. The best part was being able to consume them fresh off the fire. 

We then made our way over to the wash stations. At the station we were taught how to properly wash clothing by hand. Everyone took their dirty article of clothing and got the chance to hand wash it. 

 After wringing out our clothing, we placed it in a bucket and went back down to center. The women showed us how to carry a bucket of clothing on our head. We all enjoyed watching each other try to balance the bucket and gained a greater appreciation for the women who can carry over 70 lbs. for many miles. 

Next we were taught how to carry firewood on our backs. Some of us attempted to carry the wood using the forehead strap. This was very difficult as the “small” load of wood weighed 75 lbs. 

We were also given the chance to shop in the store for goods made by the women. All the profit from each good goes to the woman that made it. Lastly we enjoyed dobladas prepared for us by the women at the center. Dobladas are tortillas filled with peppers, onion, and carrots then fried. They were served with red sauce and cilantro. We crammed back into the bed of the pick-up truck and returned to the Mission. We met up at 6 pm for a delicious dinner of rice, vegetables, chili, potato skins and chocolate chip cookies.

-Tyler and Alfonso