My Final Week
My evening out with Luis and Marcario began a little strange...Oh yeah, it was because Marcario never showed up...ˇLástima! (I later found out that he got there about 5 minutes after we left). We ordered sandwiches at Guajimbos in Panajachel and then carried them off to the shore of the lake where we sat and drank beer and watched the sunset. We joked about Don Chema selling everything that people give him, about the well that Don, the American gave $3000 to build (Water costs, at most, $50 per YEAR in Guatemala), and about how mad Larry was going to be when he got back and found out that the pressure washer had a faulty power cable. I had probably the most surreal moment there when I realized that I had so much invested in this country that I was never going to live in again. All I can say is that Guatemala is a part of me and I will never be able to get it out of me.
The next week I worked in the soccer field moving dirt around and readying it for the team that is going to come in April (yeah, we need a lot of lead-time). They brought in a back-hoe so that it could level out the field and that was about the funniest thing I have ever seen. What happened is that there is already a gigantic trench that goes all around the field and the tractor had to get across it. Well, Chema felt that the 2X8's that we had would be sufficient. And, you know what, the tractor made it...about two inches...and then broke the boards and fell into the trench. They then decided to inchworm the beast across and that then replaced the previous story as the funniest thing I have ever seen, but it did make it this time.
On my birthday I had TWO parties...I know, I am a big deal. The first was a barbecue that I had with the guys at lunch. It was awesome and the food was amazing. Chemita and Javier know what they are doing when they grill nine pounds of steak and pork, cook a huge pot of noodles, and bring nearly 200 tortillas. I hope all of my birthday parties taste this great. Then for dinner I went with all of the ladies in the home and had a pinata, a giant cake, hundreds of paches, and an amazing home brewed cinnamon tea. That was a ton of fun and the kids loved it as well. I will never be able to forget this day.
The next day was my last full day here and it was really pretty sad. I worked a little to remember what it is like...just kidding, I worked because I had nothing better to do. I then went into town to do some final things on the internet and got all packed. I wrote some good-bye notes to the three older kids and went to bed, planning on getting up really early and leaving.
I got up really early, but didn't leave until 8 O'Clock since that was when Dona Luce was going into town with the girls to school in a taxi. That also gave me time to get some pictures of all of my little friends and do all of the necessary good-bye-ing. The trip to Guatemala City was uneventful and I got to my dad around two. From there Dad and I flew up to Flores and were picked up by Jimmy and Shelly. They were awesome and set us up in a nice hotel and then we went out to eat with them and had a great time chatting. We went to bed early because we were going to get up for the sunrise tour of Tikal the next day.
3 a.m. rolls around and we were all ready to face the day...We get out to Tikal and it really is amazing. There are the most incredible temples and buildings and plazas and they are all thousands of years old. It was incredible. Our guide was good and he really did a good job at giving life to the old stone buildings. We saw monkeys and toucans and all sorts of wildlife. After the tour we napped for a while and then went out to eat. We ate on the lake and then went to the market.
Sunday we chilled for a lot of the day. We went to mass in the morning at the local church. Then we went to the caves outside of town. Dad really liked the tuc-tucs that we rode in. Then we just found a nice restaurant and ate a cheap meal and got ready for the flight back. We landed and got checked into the Marriott. That night we ate with Larry and Claire (they were there to do some business in the city) and said our last good-byes. I really enjoyed seeing them a final time but I know that I will be able to see them soon.
I got up early Monday and got to the airport in time to wait for another hour and a half to board the plane. The flights were uneventful and I made it home to my family in tact. I really enjoyed seeing them (Mark and Jenna have grown so much in just two and a half months!)
Thanks a ton for listening to the whole travel blog and I really appreciate all of your prayers and support the whole time.
Andy
Guatemala's Flag
Map of Guatemala