With my schedule more established this past week, my days were occupied with studying Spanish in the mornings, followed by volunteer work in the afternoons. Evenings were relaxing with lots of time to read and study Spanish. Below are a few pictures from some of the work that was done with Common Hope. Two houses went up for two different families. I think everyone involved enjoyed the work and the families were certainly thrilled with their new space.

The first stop was to visit a family to repair a panel of the roof in one of the homes built last week. They lived atop a mountain where the views were amazing, making the drive beautiful.





Below is the path on the way to the home.





This house is almost double the standard size, as this family worked extremely hard, putting in many hours of social work.



The family was very excited about their new home!





Next, we loaded up the truck with everything needed to build the next house. We were ready to go.



On the way to our construction site....



This is the house the family was currently living in.



Below is the cement slab where we built their new home.



As the truck was unloaded, I enjoyed playing with the kids that began to appear.








These two ended up being huge fans of tootsie rolls...I always carry lots of candy with that being quite a treat for them!



The children below were part of the family receiving the new home. They all appeared dressed for the event and watched everything very intently.



We were building the house a few feet from the dog house. This dog was ferocious and barked incessantly the entire time we were there. We all kept waiting for him to break out of his space to have us for lunch! 





My pictures of the completed house were taken in the dark and did not come out. The family moved their belongings in immediately and the kids began playing with the doors and windows. As a kid, I remember working for hours to build snow forts with secret rooms and little windows, sometimes sunroofs!.....or other times, we made forts out of blankets that would consume our entire living room. Watching the kids reminded me of the fun we used to have exploring the secret details of our new creation once we had completed all the work. Their excitement was contagious. We were all in great spirits by time we left. Even the dog, now almost hoarse, appeared to realize something cool had just happened. Although, he still went nuts if you even looked at him! This had been another great day. 

At the hospital, the babies were hanging tight! Gaspar, the little boy with the harelip, already had surgery. He was very cranky from the pain, but even with his lip swollen and red, he looked so much better. I was very surprised to see him all fixed up. Because this hospital takes on some of the toughest cases, they also receive help from the US and other countries when it comes to surgeries and additional medical needs. From what I understood from the nurses, it sounds as though doctors/programs from around the world come here to help. I will look into the specific organizations that assist this hospital and pass on the information, as I think this would be money well spent.

Willemien and I left Friday for a weekend at Semuc Champay. The first taxi ride to Guatemala City we joined Ronan and Ray, two guys from Ireland. They too were going to Semuc, so we decided to travel together as that is always best. After the hour taxi ride to Guatemala City, we took a five hour bus ride north to Coban. We found a very nice hostel and shared a room with bunk-beds for the night at the cost of $4 per person. That evening, two other men from Denmark arrived that knew Ray and Ronan....now there were six of us making our way to Semuc, Willemien, myself and four cute guys! I was loving this trip already.



We left Coban at 7am the next morning and arrived in Lanquin at 12pm. The hotel we had planned on staying at was full. A man appeared, told us he worked for a new hotel right outside the National Park (Hotel Portal - a must if you ever make it to Semuc Champay). With that, we made our way into Semuc Champay via the back of a pick-up truck. The road is gravel making the ride through the mountains much like a roller coaster on ice. The views were spectacular.
 








When we finally arrived, we were all glad to see that the hotel was beautiful; primitive, but beautiful. Completely in the middle of no-where! The guys took the room on the bottom that had walls, while Willemien and I got the top space that had a tin roof and no door or walls. Two other girls from Holland ended up there with us as well. The day was spent swimming in the river, visiting gorgeous waterfalls, followed by a tour through the caves nearby. 









I had been to Semuc Champay before, but I had not been through the caves....what an experience! I definitely had my girly moments where I found myself screaming when I was sure I felt a rat in the water. I don't think there were rats, but the place just seemed to call for that. The six of us had to swim through parts of the caves holding a candle above the water in one hand while navigating the unknown below the water. There were ladders to climb, walls to scale, holes to fall through into a deep, dark abyss which ended up being deep pools of water (again lots of screaming)......for all of us, the tour was a two hour adrenalin rush! We came out with bloody knees and lots of bruises, but we all loved it. The caves were the highlight of our weekend.       

Ronan brought a camera, so if he sends me the photos from inside the cave via email, I will insert a few. They came out great!

That night, the hotel prepared a great dinner, we hung out in hammocks reading and had a party with the other 8 to 10 guests. Late in the evening, there were torrential downpours on the tin roof that was one foot from our heads as our beds came out from the roof. Between the rain and the fear of bugs, we didn't sleep very much. Ok, not really at all. In the morning we found a giant bug on our floor. We all just wondered where it had spent the night!











We were up early, had breakfast and headed for the national park to the pools of Semuc Champay. This place is breathtaking. The water is crisp, clear and refreshing. People travel from all over Guatemala to enjoy the beauty here. After a few hours swimming, Willemien and I caught a bus back to Coban that afternoon. "The boys" were moving on to Belieze and Nicaragua, so they did not accompany us further. We missed them on the trip back. After a night in Coban, the next morning we caught the bus back to Guatemala City and from there a taxi back to Antigua. Another great weekend!













I have friends in town this week and next. Martha Mahoney, her husband and brother Michael are here through Saturday on a "Buz Condor Adventure Trip" out of Orlando. We met up last night for dinner together. Annie, I told Buz you said hello and he said, "She has to be one of the nicest people I have ever met!" Yes, this is true. Then, my friend Marcia is allowing her husband Steve, to once again travel here with me! They have been coming here for over 10 years and Steve introduced me to Antigua two years ago. When I am here, having a wingman gives me so much more freedom! Steve arrives Sunday. I am looking forward to the familiar faces and lots of English!





Oh, one last thing...there was an earthquake here the other night. They call it a trembler, I call it an earthquake! I woke up in the middle of the night and my bed, the walls and floor were all moving. This didn't last long so I thought, well maybe I was dreaming I was falling or something. Nope, the entire family had felt it as well. Jennifer, it reminded me of the earthquake in Tokyo when I was staying with you and your pots and pans went crazy! 

Until next time,
cathy