Home Sweet Home

     Here I am in Guatemala! It's a crazy thought that I live here now. When we landed we were all commenting about how we left home and arrived at home. It doesn't seem quite real yet. The flight went smoothly as did immigration and customs. Yay!

     Arriving at Magdalena was an adventure. We rode on a bus through Guatemala city and up into the mountainous area where the town of Magdalena lays. Will informed me that starting a manual on a hill is difficult. This is true. At one point we were halfway up a steep hill and had to stop. We then had to roll back down the hill in neutral (apparently there is no reverse on the bus...) and try again from the bottom of the hill. We also had to stop for a herd of cattle. Eventually we did make it :)

The cows :)

     We are definitely at high altitude here and breathing is difficult and not made easier by the steep roads! There are virtually no flat roads in Magdalena. You are always going either steeply uphill or down. Our house is really nice. Greta and I have a room with two beds and a table. There is a kitchen, two bathrooms (one for us and one for the family), a living room, the parents bedroom and a roof with a cooking school on it! The center hallway of the house where the stairs to the roof are is open to the sky - a design you wouldn't find in MN or WI!

Open ceiling with stairs to the roof. The bathroom is by the sink.

The black door straight ahead is our room. The kitchen is to the left of our room and the living room is to the right.

     My host family is great. I have four little brothers instead of four little sisters! The dad is Jose, the mom is Antonieta, and the boys are Wilmar, Kevin, Jeffrey, and Justin. The boys like sports (especially soccer) and playing cops and robbers. Antonieta teaches women how to bake cakes so they can help support their families. Jose works in agriculture. All the vegetables he grows are purchased by Wal-Mart and sold in the US. They are all really nice and welcoming. They ask Greta and I a lot of questions about home and school and our families!

     We had breakfast with our host families this morning - pancakes, bread, watermelon, and hot chocolate. We then went to church where we sang a lot (our group sang three songs in front of the congregation!) and attempted to follow a message in Spanish. Later today we are taking hike to the ecological park to see some of the beautiful nature in the area. I've heard it's a strenuous hike but worth it! Apparently there is a rope swing at the top! I'm excited to experience more of Magdalena!