The Last Supper-Pizza with the 12

13 August 2008

We got up in the morning and headed into Guatemala City. It was a 4+ hour ride, but we made a stop at a “rest area” that we had stopped at ages ago on our way to Coban. It had nice, clean restrooms, which was a bonus because many of our group were having intestinal problems. Tara and David had a meeting with Heifer in GC, so they rode along with us and we dropped them off.

When we got to the Seminary Guest House in GC, we dropped off our stuff and headed into the market. We all had last minute shopping to do and had not had very much time during the trip. We took the city bus and the new rapid transit across the city. It was nice to see things along the way. We went into a restaurant for lunch, just as the afternoon rain was starting, but it wasn’t quite over by the time we were done, so we got wet. We went to the central market and had a little over an hour to get all our last minute things done. I had a fair amount of success, but it felt very rushed.

We headed back to the Guest House via taxi because of injured ankles and one person feeling quite sick. When we got back, we hung out together, checked in for our flights home, slept, played cards, and, eventually, got pizza and ate together. Our group decided to have a mini-debriefing just to check in before we left the country. One person was not from California and we wanted time to talk all together. We shared our favorite parts and it was clear we had connected as a group. Every person on the trip was a wonderful addition.

God's Waterpark-Day 10

12 August 2008

We went into Semuc Champey today. They kept referring to it as “God’s Waterpark” and that’s exactly what it was. We had to do some hiking in, but there were many good trails and someone had installed boardwalks over some of the trickier spots. More people are finding it an enjoying it, which is good for revenue to keep it up, but it makes you wonder if it will get overrun.

We swam in wonderfully clear pools that run over the rocks. Many were quite deep and some of the people in our group climbed up cliffs and trees to jump in from the top. About 80% of this major river actually runs under the rocks we were playing on, but the 20% that goes over the top makes it calm enough to enjoy the mini waterfalls and the cool, refreshing water.

It’s difficult to describe the beauty of the place. Lisa had talked about “spa” fish that were supposed to be there. Apparently, at some spas, they have you put your feet in water with these fish and they eat off the dead skin. As I was sitting on the edge with my feet in the shallow water, about 25 of these fish came up and began nibbling on my feet (which had a LOT of dead skin from the days of hiking). It was a strange and sort of cool feeling, but after a while, I got a little weirded out by it.

In the early afternoon, we headed back to catch our bus back to Coban. When the bus came, it was very full. We had called for a bus, but this one was packed. We crowded on anyway and took off with 37 people in a 22 passenger bus. One of the problems with this is that we couldn’t make it up some of the hills, so the driver would stop and about 8 people would get out and walk up the hill and then get back in at the top. We started dropping folks off as we went and, eventually, we each actually had a real seat for the last 2 hour home.

At night, we went out to a nice restaurant to enjoy each other’s company and get ready to depart the next day.

Day 9

11 August 2008

We all slept well last night, but not long. As Gwen asid this morning, "It's impossible to sleep in a room with 6 women." We had arranged for a late breakfast (8am), but we could have eaten at the regular time of 7 because we were all awake anyway. We packed up and were ready to roll at 9am when the microbus pulled up. Tara and 2 of their kids came to hang out with us and pulled up in a taxi moments after the bus arrived. We all loaded up and took off when we realized that the owner had told the driver to make it a private bus to Semuc Champey. We all stretched out and got comfortable for the 2 1/2 hour ride.

We drove through a market and I jumped out with Tara to buy some fruit for our lunch. There were some women she ran into that were part of the project they did for Heifer International with rabbits. Tara said that was one of the most successful villages for Heifer in Guatemala. We bought red bananas and green oranges!

We arrived at our hostel by the river at 11:30am and hung out before lunch. After lunch 4 people went to meet up with the hikers and tube down the river. Those of us who were left went for a walk up the river to the waterfall and to see part of Semuc Champey from a distance. Tomorrow we're going to explore the caves there.

Expect the unexpected-Day 8

10 August 2008

We woke up in our beautiful bedroom with 5ft windows facing the cloud forest and the sun rising over the mountain. I dozed off and on as the sun rose higher, but I was completely unmotivated to get up. I could hear the others moving around on the third floor above, but I was not ready to face the day. Around 7:30am, I got up and went upstairs. Several folks were sitting around the open windows with cameras, telescopes, and binoculars watching the hummingbirds and other birds.

A couple of the adults were talking about times their kids or themselves had said certain words. One of the parents said that their child had said something like, "It's OK. I already heard it on the bus." The stories went on and then they realized that Rob and Tara's kids had been listening. The adult said to Peter in a kidding voice, "Don't tell your mom and dad what we've been saying." Without missing a beat he replied, " 'It's OK. I already heard it on the bus.' " It cracked everybody up!!

We had an amazing European style breakfast with homemade plum jam, fresh baked bread, cheese, and homemade oatmeal. We also had fresh juice and tea/coffee. There was the thought that we would also have eggs, but it wasn't necessary after everything else.

After breakfast, the small group that was still hiking on to the next village took off. Rob's son John went along with Ty, Wendy, and Rob. They were going to hike about 5 hours to the Mennonite village in the cloud forest. The rest of us had an hour or so to get ready to go down by truck. We headed down to the waiting area at 10:15 to be ready by 10:30. We waited until 11:00 for the truck and it didn't come. The kids went down to find the truck, but discovered it couldn't make it up because of the heavy rain the night before and the fact that it was empty. We hiked down to the truck (even Lisa on her bad ankle) and once we were loaded in, he drove right up to where we were in order to turn around!! We were about 30-45 minutes from the village of Tucuru when the truck got stuck in the mud. We off loaded people, we push, we hiked up to have lunch and get out of the way, and, in the end, decided to abandon the vehicle and walk when the whole transmission failed and the driver only had neutral left for a gear!! We started walking about 3:30pm. I was really hoping it wouldn't rain and it didn't so I was happy about that. We eventually caught up with our driver who had also walked up the hill in order to find cell reception and call for help. I was in NO way the slowest one today, but I guess if I couldn't at least keep up with someone on crutches, I would really be a sad case. When we got to the intersection of the 2 roads, we waited while Tara and a couple others walked ahead to get reception and confirm we had a ride coming. We just hung out and played cards and waited. Around 5:30, the even SMALLER, 2-wheeled drive truck came to rescue us. We climbed in and sat on our bags for the journey. When we finally got to Tucuru, we stopped again at the owner's mom's store, though now he was also our rescue driver.

We got back on a mini-bus quite easily after that and were back by 8:00pm, so again a 5 hour journey took 10 hour, but this was not really anyone's fault. It worked out OK, though, because Lisa REALLY wanted to hike, and now she got her chance.!!!

A little Heaven on earth-Day 7

9 August 2008

Erik and Jamie stayed at our accommodations in Coban because of illness, but the rest of us took off by 9am. The 4 of us driving up with Rob got a taxi to the bus center because of Lisa’s injured ankle. She got a pair of crutches that will hopefully help take some pressure off. We also got some ice. We actually had missed the transport, but Rob arranged for us to hire one, so we had lots of room. It took about an hour and a half to get to Tucuru where we would meet the 4-wheeled drive truck to take us the 3+ hours up the mountain to the beautiful swiss chalet we would be staying in. The ride up was good. We had room to sit in the back of the truck and it wasn’t very muddy because it hadn’t rained in a couple days. Our driver did not have second gear, however, which made some parts a bit jerky. There were some beautiful views and we were singing a Q’eqchi’ kids song about the things we saw on the road. In some of the small towns, the kids would yell “gringo” (white person) to us. Rob would yell back the Q’eqchi’ word for “Guatemalan.”

When we arrived we were stunned by how beautiful this place is. Check out their website for even more photos. (http://www.chelemha.org) If you click on the tourism link, you see pictures of the lodge. We had hot showers that were better than the best shower in the states. The water was warmed by the fireplace throughout the house. There were 2 amazing balconies and there were literally thousands of hummingbirds. Apparently, there are 20 species of hummingbirds that you can see from the balcony. I saw at least 7. We could face the hill that the rest of our group would hike down. The entire lodge is made from carved wood, including the furniture and everything was lit by candlelight for the evening. Rob and others called it Elron’s house, which I guess is some Lord of the Rings reference:-)

We saw them come down the mountain and went out to meet them. The arrived just as it was getting dark and they were exhausted. It had been about 5 ½ hours and 2 of them over the mountain were incredibly strenuous. The mountain was over 2000 meters. After everyone was showered and rested we sat down to dinner. We had homemade bread and a huge bowl of soup. It was delicious…then we realized that this was just the soup course. We had another plate with potatoes, squash, greens, and something like a cubed Salisbury steak. After that we had a European style apple tart. Everything was local and delicious. The manager is a wonderful chef and he’s Swiss.

After that day and all the unexpected comforts, everyone slept very well.

Rest, Restaurant, and Restoration-Day 6

8 August 2008

We slept in and had a slow start. We were adjusting to the safety. It was a bit overwhelming for me after the anxiety of the day before. Now that everyone was safe, I realized how worried I had been the day before. Hearing some of their stories didn’t help the feeling that they were in danger, but hearing other stories reassured me that they really had been fairly safe.

After breakfast, we walked up to the Dominican Monastery about a ¼ mile up the road. There was an amazing mural with the history of the Maya peoples and Christianity. While in that chapel, we had a devotion led by Jen on giving and receiving. It was a meditation from Henry Nouwen and it was the perfect framework to discuss the events of the day before. While folks were talking about the 6 hour detainment, it was a strange mix for me of being there, but being apart. Both Ty and I are still equally a part of the whole group, but we experienced this mutual event from the outside. It had its own level of fear for me and yet, even though it was a shared experience, we experienced it differently from the rest of the group. The conversation was rich and meaningful and some extra information was brought forward in an attempt to help us understand the context. A night of good rest had helped everyone be ready to focus on what was ahead, with the understanding that this was an event we would be processing together for quite a while.

We went into town for lunch and then had a bit of time to hang out in town or head back to rest. We met up about 5:30 in the afternoon to discuss our next few days and what the options would be. Lisa is now on crutches and her ankle is badly sprained, though not broken. This limits the hiking she will be doing. That means that there are vehicle options for anyone who doesn’t want to hike. The first 2 days of out next trek will be combined into a 5 hour hike. I opt out because I’m tired of fighting being the slow one. I also realize that I can’t keep up the pace we’ve had and have anything left when I return. I opt to take the truck with Lisa, Wendy, Amanda, and Rob up to Chelemha and meet the group there. Tara and the kids will hike with the group.

In the evening we all go to David’s house for a party and a feast. There was delicious food that had taken hours to prepare. We bought a bottle of rum to take to the party that is aged for 23 years. It was quite delicious. There was some dancing and a chance to thank our porters for everything they did, including carrying Lisa out after she hurt her ankle.

I've been voted off the island-Day 5

7 August 2008

Today has been yet another and different adventure in our time in Guatemala. When I got up this morning I felt much better, though still incredibly stiff and sore. My feet were so sore the sheet on top of them made them hurt. We went to breakfast and I ended up eating with Rob and David (We were eating in shifts of 5-6.) and David said, "So are you going to take the plane out?" Rob said we hadn't discussed options yet. I was mostly finished anyway, so I got up to leave. We were set to have a pow-wow meeting about yesterday this morning anyway.

After breakfast our group gathered with Rob (Minus David and the Germans). It was not an easy conversation for me, but it was undeniable that those of us who finished in the dark together had a new bond and that the whole group was solidly together and committed to each other!! What a blessing to be able to wake to a new day and be open enough to share our real feelings. The conversation ended with me making the decision to take a plane out and not hold up the group just for the sake of "making a point" that I could do it. I know the group would have supported either decision and that was a good feeling. I felt like I would have more energy for the next 4 day trek if I took a break.

By 10am, the group was heading off to cross the river behind the finca. David and Rob had arranged a motor boat to help with the crossing. The village on the other side had sent over representatives the morning because they were under the impression that our group might be spies for the company that wants to build a dam and flood this whole valley. The family of the finca has lived here for over 100 years and the Q'eqchi' have been here for over 1500. The government insists that it is an "uninhabited valley" so the dam is planned. The village asked that those from our group sign a statement that they were not spies and that they opposed the dam. Rob told them that we’d be happy to and, if it would help, we would even be willing to sign something that said we were OPPOSED to the dam.

Rob went over with the second group on the boat and said goodbye to everyone and then came back to wait with Ty and I for our plane. The plane still hadn't come by lunch so our host’s wife fixed us lunch. We had that amazing chicken soup, rice, chicken (including the heart and liver--not my choice), and lemonade. We were still waiting for the plane, which normally comes in 30 minutes, when one of our host’s sons came back with the kids from school. He told Rob that the other group was still in the village across the river. When Rob asked him why, he said they had all been detained in one room and the village was waiting for someone to come verify who they were. Rob said he had no idea how they would do that because whomever they would call wouldn't know them. The son also said that the village had called to cancel our plane and that was why we hadn't been picked up. Another son had run up the mountain for the second time to call the plane again, so we waited for him to come back. When he returned, he said the pilot had told him he would come if the weather cleared up in a 1/2 hour. We talked about whether or not Rob should go over to that village but he said he would just be put in the same situation as the others and in Coban he would be able to work on getting them out without running up a mountain every time he needed to make a call.

We decided to just keep waiting for the plane and then head back to Coban. I spent the afternoon in prayer for the group detained. For each one, over and over in Taize fashion, I prayed, "Lord, be with (Name). Keep him/her safe. Guard his/her heart, mind, and spirit. In your Son's name. Amen." For each of the 10 members of our group there was constant rhythm. Every time I would start to talk to Ty he would reply with something like, "Nothing has changed." After 3pm, when I checked back in with Ty he said, "Rob went up the mountain to call the plane." When no plane had come by 5pm, Ty and I discussed the probability that we would be spending the night at the finca. Rob still hadn't returned and we knew our window of opportunity for daylight was quickly disappearing. I had just switched my mindset to the fact that we wouldn't be leaving when we heard a motor and all the children of the finca ran up out to the airstrip in front of us yelling, "Avion." ("Airplane") It was like a scene from Fantasy Island where Tatoo says, "Da plane, Boss. Da plane."

In under 5 minutes, we saw Rob come running down the hill, were told to hurry, grabbed all out gear, ran over to meet Rob at the plane, threw in our gear, and were seated on the floor of a bush plane ready to take off. I was seated on the floor facing backwards between the pilot and the door, which was only secured with a handle with the strength of an outhouse latch. It was designed to keep it closed with no pressure or force. Within 30 seconds of the door closing, we had turned around and were taking off. It was the smoothest takeoff I had ever been in. Once we were up, the pilot indicated that I could turn around on my knees and look out the front.

It was a truly amazing ride on the plane. He flew up over the village where the others were being held and we flew over twice to see if we could see them and took lots of pictures. Then our pilot flew us up through the canyon we had hike down through last night. We also flew over a huge waterfall at the mouth of the river we tubed down. When we went past the waterfall, he felt like we didn't see it well enough so he opened the window on the side and flew around again so we could get the shots. At one point the pilot took his hands off the controls and motioned that I should take a picture of Ty and Rob in the back. I quickly assured him that I would because I felt that holding the control to get us OVER the mountain we were heading towards was mor important than the photo!! The landing in Coban involved landing on a road with bike riders and two young men sitting on the edge of the runway and leaning back when the plane went by.

We pulled up to the hanger and the plane was pushed in. The reason the pilot hadn't stopped the plane on the finca was because he had left the battery with his assistant in Coban. There were two big dogs in the hanger--Coban TSA airport security-- and the hanger was locked while we waited for Tara to pick us up. Ty and I went back to Casa Domasco to get cleaned up and change and then we all went out to dinner together at a Cuban restaurant to wait for news from the others. David had gotten a message to Tara that indicated he thought they’d be out by 6:30, but when we headed home at 9pm, there was still no indication that they had gotten released.

After we were back from dinner, Tara called us at 9:45pm to let us know that they had gotten out and were heading back. We thought it might be by 2am or so. About 5 minutes later, Rob showed up to ask if we wanted to go meet them in the city square because they were almost here. This was much better for me because I'm not a patient wait-er. They arrived at the city square at 10:15pm to much rejoicing!!! After greeting each other with hugs, we began to hear their stories, get them food, get them back to Casa Domasco, get folks cleaned up, and tend to mental/spiritual/physical (sprained ankle) wounds. We all went to bed relieved to be together again and at least physically safe, though emotionally rattled from the day’s events.