that was a good month ago! Sorry to keep you all waiting but here it is... First off, here's a little background of how this all got started again! I had went with this little group before 2 years ago to the date! Before we did the whole orphanage experience but this time, it was going to be different! We were going this time to be more as a relief aid to the some of the villages there in Guatemala City and that is all about we knew! Everything was unexpected and we were going over pretty much blindsided of what we were suppose to do. We had an idea but we were going over on faith and guidance from the spirit alone. Marta had called me up a few months before going and asked if I would want to go, of course I wasn't going to say no! My dad was still out of job then and in my heart I knew he had to come with me! With everything he has been through this year, I just wanted to him to get out and leave all his cares and worries at home and get lost in giving! So with LOTS of work and saving I was able to take both myself and my dad over with the group! I'm so grateful for this experience and the chance I had to experience it with such wonderful people, and my father!! Okay... here it goes...
January 20th ---
*Time to fly! We pretty much spent the whole day flying! Stopping in Texas for a layover and then heading to Guatemala! My dad was smart and asked for an exit row on all our flights, and we got them all except for the one from Vegas to Texas! Hey, 3 out of 4 is pretty dang good when your flying that long!
Mikey, Kirstin, Kari Nash, & Marta Tyler
Guatemala City Airport... We made it!!
We weren't this happy after the miserable 3 hour drive!!
We got to Guatemala City and met up with Gorge, our driver who was going to take us up the mountain to Panajachel. We stopped at McDonald's for dinner where it was IMPOSSIBLE for me and my dad to order! If we couldn't even order off the 4 item menu at McDonalds, it's going to be a long week! Thank goodness Kari was there and could speak Spanish for us all! We grabbed our food and headed up the mountain... for 3 HOURS! It was the longest ride ever and we were all getting sick, unfortunately Mikey didn't last very long! We had to stop about 4 times so Mikey could get out and puke! Poor guy! In all my life, I have NEVER seen my dad that sick before! He never gets car sick or anything! I felt so bad and all we had to help was Kari's half bottle full of water. All he had to do was hit the driver and Gorge knew he had to pull over quick! Sorry daddy-o! We got into Panajachel about midnight or later and met up with Debbie at our little villa we would be staying in! It was so dang cute and definitely a home away from home!
Rancho Grande Inn
Mine and Dad's Villa! The biggest one there!!
January 21st ---
*Ate the most delicious breakfast ever! FRESH squeezed orange juice, black beans, eggs, and pancakes! I actually enjoyed eating breakfast every morning!
And yes, those are their pancakes!
*We checked out Pana and saw their amazing lake! Their lake is made from a crater and the lake is surrounded by 9 volcanoes, I think 4 of them are still active! Pretty sweet if ya ask me!
Me and my old man!
Alexis the Tuk Tuk
Pana Lake
Old Church Building there in Pana
Pana streets
Squished in a Tuk Tuk! Dad was a titch too big maybe?!
In a Micro Bus... with 20 other people!
Dude hanging outside the bus... crazy I tell ya!
Kari and I not sure how we feel about riding with 20 other people!
Another Micro Bus... again with 20 people!
*Went up to Los Robles to visit Vicki's property...
Marta and Kari funded the classes and books for these kids to continue their education. In Guatemala you are required to pay for all your schooling and if you miss a certain class along the way, you can't continue.
You can see where the mudslides occurred here.
Vicki and donations help the kids in the community come to her property for further education from Gill and also puts on a Mother Program where the mothers and her children can come once a week for a meal and feeding for their babies.
With Jose's Family
House made out of sticks and mud
Little kiddos!
Vicki's place and housing for Juan and his 2 boys
Our ride the 1st time I went over. They donated it to Vicki.
Marta and Kari playing Memory with the kids
Juan's son Irwin.. "Chiclet?"
Dad helping Juan build his rock dam. The mudslides cut right through the property so Juan is building a dam to help keep the water out for next time.
Juan made that fence with his 2 bare hands, no tools!
Even I put in a little work!
Gill is a teacher there at Vicki's. He was laughing so hard at my dad trying to get into his tiny little car, kinda like a Geo Metro!
Marta and her 11 day old baby, Marta's mother and brothers.
*Visited what we called Tent City because we couldn't pronounce the real name, Chutinimit, in San Andres. This city is ran ALL by women! Whoo! These people's homes were destroyed by the mudslides and were given land by the government to rebuild homes and their community. The land they are on now is only temporary and should start building their homes on their new land this summer. They get help from the government there in San Andres, but they are still left without a lot of things they once had! These people had nice homes and were very modern for their culture, with the damage done and what they have now been given, they know what poor is.
Meeting with the women of the community and city councilmen to see where their progress is and if there was anything we could do while we were there... they asked for food and tennis shoes for the kids.
Home until ones can be built for them this summer... one year later.
*After a long day of driving, riding, and walking, we had dinner with the City Engineer Gus and with Daniel... our lifesaver! We ate a full dinner and headed to bed... we knew tomorrow was going to be a much busier day than today!
January 22nd ---
Our sweet ride for the week! The biggest vehicle I ever saw over there!!
Marta, Pinky, and Me... so the Hummer was a little squishy!
Debbie always sitting in the middle... poor thing!
*Nueva Victoria is a very blessed community. They are very poor and have pretty much nothing, but they are a community that is very hopeful and they all have the eagerness to work hard in rebuilding a new life for them. They have been given the basic necessities to survive and make living for themselves, not using the people for what they can give them but to use the help to survive for themselves. One of their biggest help and asset to rebuilding that community is Daniel and Pinky! Pinky is Daniel's roommate. These 2 boys have taken it upon themselves to help change these people's lives. Pinky has taught the women of Nueva Victoria how to make bracelets. The bracelets will be sold for only $3, $1 going toward material use and the other $2 going towards the woman and her family that made the bracelet! As of right now, this is the only income this community is bringing in and it's the women who are whipping these out! They are very hard working women with a lot of heart! This is a start to something so great for them! I am very proud and excited I was able to purchase some of these bracelets and be apart of their 1st paycheck!!! I am sporting the bracelet as we speak!
*Pictures from the Christmas Party... it was kinda nice to be able to sit back and enjoy watching how excited all the kids got with the pinatas and presents. Usually I'm the one planning the party, but this, this was nice!
Kids lining up for the pinatas
Super cute girl with Marta. We all fell in love with her!
Pinata Fun
These girls had stuffed all their candy down their shirts, along with all the dirt and grass!
Poor kid was stuck on the bottom of the pinata dog-pile!
Mother standing by
This kid had the sweetest unprofessional mullet ever!
Brother carrying around mom's baby
*Pictures of Nueva Victoria
Their Schoolhouse
Homemade bricks made from clay
*After a long morning up in Nueva Victoria we headed back to Pana to get all our shopping done. On our way back we stopped at this Authentic One-Item Menu Restaurant that Debbie swore by it was the greatest Guatemalan meal!
Grilled Onions, Pork, Carne Asada, Cheese, Beans, Quesadillas, Sauce, and... a Fanta, from a bottle! Now, I don't know if I was just hungry or I really am not a picky eater, but I sure did tear that up! Delicious!!
Kari's Luck!!
The market was crazy and Marta had some mad money to spend! We split up and had a list of things we all had to get. Thank goodness for all the fund-raising Marta did cause this is everything we were able to get...
100 lbs - Incaparina
100 lbs - Milk
100 lbs - Rice
100 lbs - Sugar
400 lbs - Corn
50 lbs - Black Beans
Body Soap
Laundry Soap
Salt
33 pairs of Tennis Shoes
BIG box of Diapers
12 Cloth Diapers
1 case of Green Chili Sauce
1 pair of shoes for Juan Carlos (Juan's son)
Tool Box FULL of new tools for Juan
Wafer Cookies
&
Marshmellows
Dad and I even bought TWO Wood-burning Stoves with the money The Warehouse raised!!
It was a long day but having a generous amount of donation money came in handy and was definitely easy to spend! Good Work Marta!!
The Market
2 people and kids sitting on their hips... madness!
Getting the goods
Dogs Dogs and more Dogs EVERYWHERE!
Go Team!!
*After such a long busy day came a very uplifting night... That night we were all so tired, and beat, and so hungry, and we all just wanted to shower and go to bed but of course, we wanted some dinner before bed! We went somewhere close so we didn't have to walk too far! It was cute, fun, and kinda hippie-ish!
In Guatemala, no matter where you are at or who you are with, the people are always coming up to you wanting you to buy whatever they had. Everything was beautiful but when I'm eating, I'm eating! Not shopping so leave me alone! Anyways, you come to the point where you become rude and just ignore them. We were about done with dinner when this little old man shuffles his way to our table asking for money. Marta felt extra giving today and gave the old filthy man some change. He didn't leave. He was staring at Kari's plate with leftover pizza crust on it. Kari put it in a napkin and gave the leftover crust to him. He immediately put the crust in his mouth and starting gumming at it! (He didn't have very many teeth!) As the old man started to shuffle his way from us Marta made Kari go grab him. Marta wanted to buy him his own pizza! Kari sat with him at a table. She tried talking to him but he couldn't hear very well. Everyone was looking of course. The food took forever to get to him, he tried leaving twice having Kari catch him and bring him back to the table! He was so thirsty and the waitress hadn't been by to give him any water so Marta poured all our waters into one glass and gave it to him. He drank it faster than Marta could give it to him! Apparently he didn't wait any longer so he got up and started out the door. Kari looks at us as to what to do and just then we see the owner RUNNING out the door with pizza in hand to grab him, so then Kari and Marta both run after him as well to help the owner. By now everyone in the restaurant is looking and everyone on the street is staring as to why this little old man gets a free meal and none of them. They get him back to the table and he can't take his eyes off the pizza so he started eating right away... but it was too hot and he didn't like that! Marta gets him some more water and Kari starts to cut his pizza in little pieces so it will cool faster and will be easier to eat. By now me, dad, and Debbie are outside laughing at the sight of seeing the owner RUN after this guy WITH, pizza in hand but then we all look, at Kari, cutting up this little simple pizza for this man. Marta without a second thought, buying a meal for this man. It was an incredible feeling for such a small deed. Thank you Kari and Marta for acting on the promptings of the spirit and helping someone who was in need!!!
Look how cute Kari is!!
January 23rd ---
*Delivery Day... Daniel and Pinky came and got us and all our supplies to load up to take to Nuahala. We had food, clothing donations, and 2 stoves to take with us! Trying to get 2 stoves ON TOP of the Hummer was quite the task for the Guates! Ol' Mikey wasn't taking it very well... taking directions from someone else and not being to communicate with rest of the guys! Taught Mikey great patience!!!
The girls standing by supervising!
Good Job Little Guates... and Dad!!!
*After loading up the stoves we were off to Nahuala to see another little community called Parrashquim and deliver them some good stuff! This poor little community is out in the middle of nowhere! You think you've been in the middle of nowhere? Well, think of that place times a thousand!!! We had to drive slow because of the ton we had on top of the Hummer and then even slower because the food and stoves started to bend and shift the rack on top! It was more of a trail for 4 wheelers and horses, not a Hummer!
Pinky had to sit up there part of the way to keep the rack from moving!
*Parrashquim is a community of 8 families that were once part of Nahuala but after the mudslides the community had kicked them out to seriously... the middle of nowhere!! There was no answer as to why they got kicked out but our guess was they were probably the poorest of the poor, and they would have been more of a burden on the community than any help. They are absolutely by NOTHING and have NOTHING! There is no electricity and everyone lives in a shelter tent. They only thing the Mayor and government has done for these people is give them land in the worst place ever and water spigots. There was only one man who spoke Spanish and could translate with Daniel and Pinky. These people are more Mayan and speak a much different dialect than Spanish. Kari tried talking to them but they all just stood there and stared, barely speaking a word to each other!
*More pictures from Parrashquim...
Handing out the clothing donations... nice warm clothing!
Daniel, Marta, Kari, Pinky, and I
Our loaded Hummer full of goods!
Being so good and waiting in line for what's given to them
Hats and Gloves
Already sporting the warm hat
Cute big sister with the youngest baby there
Kari and I
Boys getting the stoves off the top
This kid had about 5 wafers while we were there! She couldn't get enough of them!
They were so happy to finally have sweaters and pants! He didn't even care that his pants had a hot pink streak down the side of them!
Not a single person complaining or fighting!!!
Running off with her loot!
Mmmm Marshmellows
The man in the blue sweater is their leader in the community and as we were leaving he asked Daniel in Spanish if he and his family could take a picture with us and when we come back, to bring it back for him to have. So sweet!
The Warehouse in St.George had a fundraiser where all proceeds from Zumba went to helping the people of Guatemala. With an entrance fee of $3 for everyone we ended up raising $330 to take over with me. It was so perfect! Big thanks to Andrea and The Warehouse for having the fundraiser and everyone that came and donated, Thank You! With that money we were able to buy this community TWO wood-burning stoves, better than building a fire, using less wood and producing less smoke. These stoves will serve 4 families each as a cooking tool and to give them warmth. I was very excited we could do this for these people. These stoves will be around for awhile helping many families to come! God Bless the people of Parrashquim!
We installed one to show the people how it works.
You can see where they were currently building their fires for cooking and warmth. That stove just changed their lives forever!
They LOVED seeing their picture! These people along with most of Guatemala have probably never seen what they look like. They do not have mirrors or anything where they could see themselves so taking their picture and then showing them was a big hit!
Dad didn't fit anywhere we went; cars, buses, buildings! He hit his head a good 5 times nice and hard!
They were so happy with the stove! They were all gathering around outside saying how warm it was. Brought all the girls a tear to the eye!
The little boy on the right was definitely my favorite. He was full of personality and always smiling! I could have easily brought him home with me!!
I have a deep love for these people. I pray that they can find some hope and know there is a better life for them. May God bless you and be with you until I see you again!
*Once we finally made it back to Pana, we got some dinner and all headed to bed!
Hard Rock gone Guatemalan!
Dad's MASSIVE Calzone! It was HUGE!
Good Work Pops!!
An actual Brick Oven!! Food was soooo good!
January 24th ---
*Last day of craziness! Daniel came and picked us up once again. We loaded everything up and it was time to delivery once again! We headed up to Tent City to deliver food and the tennis shoes for the kids.
Dad waiting for Daniel
The Tent City Women... not a man in sight!
As Marta and Kari were unloading the food out of the back of the Hummer one of the 25 lb bag of black beans got caught on a bolt and ripped the bag and about 2 cups of beans were dropped to the ground. Without hesitation the women fell to ground and started picking up every single bean. It touched us all to see how valuable food is to them, even one little bean!
Dad kept trying to make this little girl laugh. She was so cute in her little pigtails!
*After Tent City we headed to Los Robles to say our goodbyes to everyone at Vicki's place. Marta had a warm jacket for Juan and a box of tools just for him!
All of Juan's own personal tools
The girls were talking business so dad and I decided to play with the kids! All the kids just loved on dad! I have never seen him play with children like that... they LOVED it! Good work Daddy-O!
I loved this girl way too much! She definitely was loving the camera!
The kids trying to scare Daniel
Saying goodbye to Dominga, Gill, and Juan
Ah! Just love her!
They all loved Mikey!
*We had saved some food and bought some toys for Marta and the boys so we ran down real quick to give it to them and to say goodbye. The mother was so happy, smiling with a mouth of no teeth!
*It was a long morning full of goodbyes and emotions. Gorge picked us up at the hotel and we headed back into Guatemala City to stay the night since our flight was so early in the morning. We stayed at a very nice hotel there in Guatemala City and then once again, we were on a plane back home!
Looks comfortable but neither my dad or I could sleep that night!
*Random Pictures from the Trip...
Bridge made for people to cross during the mudslides
How many can you count??
Mudslide damage
Crops
Beautiful View
Packing something up the big hill
Mudslide
Chicken Bus
Mudslide
Cities built right on the mountains
The Guatemalan '11 Group
* This trip to Guatemala has been such a life-changing experience. I have learned there is much more to life than the materialistic things of the world, all you need is family, love, and faith to survive! I have learned so much from these people! A HUGE thank you to Daniel and Pinky! I absolutely love you boys! You both have such big hearts and real passion to serve your people! I wish there were more people like you... willing to serve the people than themselves! Thank you so much! It was a trip I will never forget and hopefully the many lessons learned over there I can instill in my every day life! Thank You Guatemala!!! Much Love Ü
0 comments:
Post a Comment