Day 7 (3/2)

Greetings,

After breakfast we spent the next few hours traveling to Antigua for another day of R&R.  It was a scenic ride, but it did have a lot of twists, turns and hills to endure along the way.  We went in and out of the clouds and finally we made it to Antigua.  We enjoyed a quick stop at a coffee plantation.  We were able to sample different coffee's and buy some fresh bags for home.

We spent the afternoon going into our own groups and taking in sites or shopping.  The roads were very bumpy, as they were made of stones and made walking challenging at times.  The architecture of Antigua was very historic, as the buildings were built in the 1600's, when Antigua was the capital of Guatemala.

We were able to check into our rooms and by evening meal, many of us decided to wear our jackets, as the temperature was in the 50's and had a little breeze that contained a light rain.  The hotel, like the one in Panajachel was centrally located near shops and restaurants was convenient for walking.  We enjoyed a nice meal at the restaurant called the Arch.  Betty joined us for dinner and we got to enjoy her testimonies and sharing once again.  The team was truly blessed to have Betty with us, as we served many of her ministries in Guatemala.  The team was also blessed to have Davis along with us to help with the service team and do all the driving of the van.

The mission trip was truly a blessing, as we served a widow and her family, the children of the HIV orphanage, the school that needed repairs and the children had some of their needs met.  We could have easily spent much more time there serving at each place.  God worked in our hearts this past week in many ways and our hearts will continue to be open, even when we get home and share our experiences with our family and friends.  Thanks for following our mission trip and next year, we'll save a seat for you.

Dios Bendiga!
Terry

Day 6 (3/1)

Greetings,

We enjoyed sleeping in a little this morning and then having a nice breakfast at the hotel.  After breakfast, we took a walk down to the boat launch and enjoyed a nice boat ride across Lake Atitilan over to Santiago.  We had some team time near the lake in a pavilion and then had lunch at the Posada.  It was a traditional fajita meal with corn tortillas, beans, chicken and beef.  The meals were designed with adding to your own taste/tolerance of pain, spice or heat, however you may term the burning sensation in your mouth.

After lunch we took tuk-tuk's back into town and did a little more negotiating for goods with the local merchants.  Some of the merchants were very aggressive and followed us down the street, relentlessly at times, to try and get us to accept an offer for their goods.

We then took the boat ride back to Panajachel and spent some time relaxing in a pool or resting on a recliner chair basting in the warm afternoon sun by the pool.

Of course, all this exhaustion led to an evening fish dinner at the hotel.  After the evening meal, some of the team members went down the street for more shopping or just taking in the sites.  We did spend some time at the local coffee shops reflecting on the mission trip and what each of us experienced and how it has changed our world views.

Dios Bendiga!

Terry