Day 2 work recap

Day 1 work recap

La Despedida (The Goodbye Party)!

On Sunday night we all met up at La Union (the Spanish School in Antigua) for a goodbye party with the families. It was a particularly rainy day so many people could not attend (especially the Spanish teachers), but we tried to have fun anyway! There was a yummy potluck dinner, then we danced and gave speeches about our experiences here in Guatemala. The students were presented with certificates of achievement in language and we were recognized for our service efforts in El Hato.

Macadamia Nut Plantation

On Sunday morning we got to sleep in a little bit! We met at 9:30 at the gasolinera (our usual morning meeting spot: the gas station in Ciudad Vieja). We drove to another small town to visit a macadamia nut plantation and hear about their mission and operation. According to their website the Valhalla Project is "a Guatemala-based organization that seeks to reverse global warming, assist indigenous people in developing self-sustaining agriculture, and educate the public about the nvironment. We accomplish this mission by planting trees. The Valhalla project introduces ungrafted macadamia seedlings to indigenous people as an alternative to slash and burn agriculture, which contributes to global warming." They have donated more than 200,00 trees to indigenous communities in Guatemala and offer a variety of products at their plantation including chocolates, oils, cremes, flour and butter. After we received a tour of the facility we were given facials and massages with their products! They also claim to have the most photographed bathroom  in the world (in which Sammy posed for us)!

 

Volcan de Pacaya

Saturday morning we headed southwest of the capital (Guatemala City) to climb one of the country's active vocanoes! There wasn't any lava to see like in years past, but the students enjoyed exploring all the steamy crevices, volcanic rocks and solid lava formations. Here are some pictures from the hike:

More salsa!! (video)

More Merengue!! (video)

Museums of Coffee, Mayan Music & Mayan Dress

This morning we took a camioneta into Antigua and then took a minibus to the town of Jocotenango where we visited 3 museums (all on the same grounds). At the coffee museum La Azotea we were walked through the production of coffee, from planting to consumption. We learned about the different types of coffee as well as the different stages of cultivation and production. We had a guided tour of the nursery, coffee fields and the machinery used to process, dry and roast the beans. Then we went to the museum of Mayan music where we saw and listened to an explanation about pre-Columbian instruments as well modern-day ones. That tour ended with a 20 minute video of traditional Mayan music and ceremonies. The last place we visited was a room dedicated to traditional Mayan dress. The woman wears a huipil, a hand-woven shirt that is embroidered with designs that represent her town, as well as a corte (skirt) and faja (belt). There are only a few areas left where the men still wear the traditional clothing.

A coffee plant

And then there were 8... (Amy left this rnorning)

Community bath-time!!

They'll be doing the salsa all the way to the States...

A typical Guatemalan house

More salsa & merengue!!

After another afternoon of Spanish classes we headed back to Salsa Dreams, a dance studio here in Antigua. We reviewed the salsa and merengue steps from last week and then learned some more. Despite being exhausted from all the physical labor during the service project our students did a great job dancing! Here are some pix:

 

The sign on the bathroom door at Salsa Dreams!

On the ride home after dance classes we passed through San Pedro Las Huertas, a small town outside Antigua. They were having a feria and we decided to stop for a while and take a look around. Izzie, Lauri, Gabe & Phebe went on one of the rides and managed to attract quite a crowd of spectators. Apparently four gringos screaming their heads off for the duration of the ride was entertaining!

Our last day of work in El Hato

Today was our last day of work up in the aldea (small town) of El Hato. There were a handful of kids around to talk to and who helped us with our work. We completed about 40 meters of the wall that surrounds the sports court and also repaired the pole and fence on one end as well as sections of the floor that had eroded. Before we left today we swept the whole court to get rid of all the leaves and dirt. Many blisters and sore muscles were earned in the process these past two weeks! Our Guatemalan work buddy/leader Maco said that Berwick sent a great group of workers and that we accomplished a lot!

Melvin!

Melvin wearing Erica's sunglasses

The whole group with our Guatemalan project manager!

Bringing the sand down with help from Erick

Izzie & Lauri repairing the side of the court

Phebe, Amy & Rachel mixing cement

Gabe playing soccer with some of the local kids

Cam repairing the side of the court

Rachel getting some help from Erick, a student at the school

Melvin supervising the work!