Guatemala 2019: Monday and Tuesday

Apologies for the delay, the internet was not consistent enough to blog and the location was too beautiful to be bothered to stay in the room :)

On Monday and Tuesday I was on the team building stoves. We built 4 of the 6 stoves for the week in a community called Esperanza, which means hope.

Monday our stove teams were divided by a good walking distance and were only together for lunch and the beginning and end of the day. This meant that our translator had to go between sites leaving us to figure out our communication with pointing, gesturing, laughing, and "poquito espanol" for good chunks of the day.

Felipa and Luis

The family I worked with is a single mother, Felipa, with one son, Luis, who is in school. We worked alongside her and members of the community. She was even kind enough to sew up a bag of a team member while we worked.

The stoves this year were a little different than my first. The blocks were smaller (and lighter) but more difficult to cut with a machete. I was so bad at it that our very funny and smiley helper, Clemente, took away my machete and sent me inside to do the mortar. Another change to the stoves was an extension for wood storage right in front as well as a ramp that is built of cement that is right under the plancha/stovetop and allows for better usage of wood. These changes are a great help and cost savings to the families.

Clemente

At the end of the day we gathered with our families and they cried tears of joy for the gift their family received that day. It may seem a small thing, but to them it is life changing! 

Felipa's home, a Habitat Guatemala home

That evening we soaked in the beauty of the lake when we returned to the hotel and ate dinner at Circus, a pizza place in town.

Tuesday we headed to another site to build stoves while the other half of the team continued work at the house site. This stove site was a shared lot. We built one stove for Florencia, Enma, and their son Gamamiel and another for their older son who would soon be married, Jose. This was a fun experience because both stove teams worked as one to complete the two stoves that were separated by a wall.

Florencia, Enma, and Gamamiel

Heather and I were able to trick Domingo, Habitat Guate staff, into telling us we were beautiful just in time for Valentine's day by teaching him English phrases and we had a great time speeding through the build with Gabriel, another Habitat Guate staff member.

For lunch that day we had pepian, a traditional Guatemalan food, and it was just as delicious as I remember!

Though we were distracted by the adorable puppy on this site, we finished our stoves in record time and had time to explore a little in Pana that afternoon. This meant paying an ice cream debt I had incurred months before at my favorite Guatemalan ice cream stop, Saritas. (If you are ever there I recommend the waffle galleta capuchino.)

That evening we had dinner at the hotel and prepared for our next day of learning about the culture of the lake region.

I love building the stoves, maybe more than the work we do on the houses. The stoves welcome us into the homes of hardworking families trying to make a better life. The joy on their faces and which they express makes a short day of work worth more than words can say. I am always amazed at how much can be done and communicated even with a communication barrier of language. Through smiles, laughter, broken English and Spanish, and a lot of pointing and gesturing we are able to accomplish life change. 

before and after

Guatemala 2019: Saturday and Sunday

We made it to Guate! (a couple days ago...)

Early on Saturday morning most of the team arrived at GSP to make our first flight of the trip. We met up with the rest of the team at MIA and anxiously awaited our flight to GUA. As team leader, once everyone is on the plane headed to Guatemala a lot of the weight is lifted. We made it. It is no longer up to us if we get to our destination. The majority of the trip we rely on transportation provided and approved by Habitat Guatemala.

Once at the airport we exchange money and get our bags and head to ground transportation to be greeted by Habitat Guatemala staff. The bus is loaded and we are off to our destination for the night.

The first night of most Habitat Guatemala Global Village trips is spent in beautiful Antigua. It is a colorful city full of shops and good eating and high population of tourists and ex-pats.

After arriving at our hotel, most of the team went exploring before dinner. I, however, chose to take a nap. As team leader and someone who is mostly introvert, I have learned on the last two trips I need to manage my energy and time spent with the large group. I think being team leader must be something like being a parent.

We enjoyed our first team dinner at Fridas, a restaurant we have been to on both trips prior. This year the team enjoyed live music and their first tastes of Guatemala.

On Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel and packed up before making our way to Panajachel. As is often the case, we shared the hotel with a team departing from their Habitat trip. We got to share some stories well wishes for our travels before parting ways.

The bus ride took a few hours and we arrived safely at our hotel. No one is disappointed in the location of the hotel. It is right on the lake. We can watch sunset over the mountains and volcanoes. The main street in town is walking distance. And for our first night there was a wedding and an elaborate proposal on the dock.

On Sunday we also got to meet affiliate staff with the Solola Department Habitat affiliate and in Guatemalan style they greeted us with cake and cola. We learned a little more about our projects for the week and made our way back to the hotel to enjoy an evening relaxing before getting to work.

This week we will work on one home and build 6 smokeless stoves.

The team this year is a little larger, but all are having a great time and enjoying getting to know one another and the culture of Guatemala.

Until the internet allows again...


(the internet is not being agreeable for uploading photos to the blog...check instagram for visuals. usernames: hlwick and habitatgvl)

To Guatemala We Go (a third time)!

As it turns out, that snow day I wrote a blog was a fluke...but I still hope to get those other blogs written eventually!

January flew by this year and here I sit, my last day in the office before heading back to the beautiful country of Guatemala. This will be my third trip to Guatemala with Habitat Global Village. Our team this year is 15 people and a unique variety to say the least!

Coming in for landing

I am excited to be returning and getting to stay on the lake in Panajachel. We have visited Lake Atitlan on both our previous trips, but this year our hotel is right on the lake, with waterfront property! I can hardly wait to get there.

On the team again this year, are Steve and Heather. This will be the third trip for the three of us, and I don't think I would enjoy the trip nearly as much without them. They are always giggling and having a great time and I love getting to spend this week with them each year. (we are considering trying out somewhere new on an open team together next year) This will be Steve's 7th Global Village trip! He has the goal of a trip on all continents where Habitat works and the last he has left now is Australia. I can only hope to be as well traveled and active as he is when I reach my 70th year.

I'm sure they will be glad I added this photo

Others on the team are Karen and Stephanie. This will be the second trip for both of them. We have all worked together at Habitat Greenville for a little over 4 years now and all completed our AmeriCorps terms within a year or two of each other back around 2008. Getting to spend time outside of the office with coworkers always makes our working relationships better and of course, they are just fun gals to have around!

We also have a Habitat Greenville AmeriCorps Alum, Chris, joining us all the way from Texas!

A few of our task leaders are joining us (AnnLee, John P, Bruce, Karen G, and Ted) and I love getting this time with our volunteers and building even better relationships with them!

We have two more parent/child sets. One staff member and his mom (Alex and Laura) and a board member and her daughter (Glenda and Meagan). For Alex's mom, Laura, it is a life goal to go on a mission trip abroad and I am so excited they get this opportunity together! And for Glenda and Meagan, Glenda has told us how Meagan pushes and challenges her to do things she wouldn't do on her own and I can't wait to see the fun they bring to the team.

Our week will be spent working on a home and some healthy home projects (stoves and latrines). We will also enjoy cultural activities like touring a coffee farm and weaving cooperative. Some of us even plan to hike a volcano! (Hopefully it won't be cloudy this time.)

I will do my best to post updates here and photos to Instagram (username: hlwick) pending the quality of our wifi connections.

Now off to pack and finish preparations for the trip...

Hasta luego!