Friday, December 30, 2016

Kingswoods First Day in Guatemala!

15 hours later...

After dinner we celebrated Kaylee's birthday, here's the result:





We're pretty wiped.  Stay tuned for more after our visit to the coffee plantation tomorrow!

Friday, March 18, 2016

RHPC Day 7

We started off our day by visiting the school built by our church in San Gregorio. There were 3 different classrooms in use each filled with kids and they loved having us visit. We also got a chance to see the church being built there as well before heading off to work

Sadly in was our last day in Tierra Santa but we made it a good one! We all got to work shortly after arriving and were able to finish almost all of the stove before lunch. After lunch we played with the kids and made bracelets out of duck tape which they all really liked. We then went back to work and finished our second stove! All groups finished totalling 10 stoves made for the trip!

After work we had the closing ceremony with the town. There was a lot of dancing and we all had a chance to exchange gifts with the families we had made the stoves for. It was a very special time that was well put together by the community and we all shared a snack for the end. We also had a change to give gifts to the masons we worked with which included a royals tshirt and a baseball cap. Our day was finished off by some beautiful singing by marbilla before dinner

Although we were sad it was the last day we made it a really good one!

Thursday, March 17, 2016

RHPC Day 6

Today we get back to work on the stoves! We all went to our new houses and quickly got to work. Although we had to start the process over we had experience this time so we were able to move a little more quickly this time around. At lunch we had our usual game of soccer with the kids around the area which was very fun. All of the groups made solid progress on their stoves and should be able to finish tomorrow afternoon.

When we got home we went straight down to the lake for our canoeing experience. All of those who wanted got a chance to try and paddle the canoe on the lake. None of us were very good so there was a lot of spinning which was very funny to watch for those on land.

Tomorrow we will sadly wrap up our time in Tierra Santa but we are all excited for one more day!

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

RHPC Day 5

Today was the boat trip! After breakfast we walked down to the lake where we hopped on the boat and took a 30 min ride to our first town, San Juan la Laguna. In San Juan we stopped in a store where we learned about the use of natural dyes in the their products. They also taught us how they go about making their chocolate and we got a taste. Everyone then visited a handful of stores where we got a chance to shop.

We then moved on to the next city Panajachel. Our first objective was lunch. The restaurant we ate in gave us the largest plates we had ever seen. They were so huge! We then got a large portion of time to walk the main street and shop so more. Everyone got some cool and unique items from many different stores.

Our last stop was San Antonio Palopo. Here we went to another store where they taught us about pedal looming. They also dressed Katie and Molly in traditional clothing which was very fun. Then we walked to the church on the top of the hill and we're treated to some great views. On our way down the hill we stopped in a ceramic shop and saw some beautiful pottery.

To finish of the day we helped Marbilla make our dinner. Overall a very eventful fun day!

RHPC Day 4

We were back at work on the stoves today in Tierra Santa. All of the groups were completing the final steps which included filling the inside of the stove, adding the stove top, and covering the product with cement. All of the groups were able to finish their stove by the end of the day! We also found time around lunch to play with the children and today we read books with them. We read books such as Brown Bear Brown Bear and 5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed and had the kids act them out as we read. There was a lot of silliness and laughing through the whole process.

After work we made a stop for ice cream. There were 4 flavors for us to choose from and everyone had a sweet treat after a hard day of work. We then went to the swinging bridge and all walked across for fun. Then we went home and later watched Poverty Inc to wind down for the night. Can't wait for our boat trip tomorrow!

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

RHPC Day 3

Today was our first full day working on the stoves. When we arrived in Tierra Santa we all split into our groups and quickly got to work. The stoves are constructed layer by layer and all of the groups were able to construct all 4 layers! Some groups even moved on with other parts of the stove moving closer to a finished product. Although we worked hard all day we did find some time to play soccer with the kids after lunch. Can't wait to go back tomorrow!

For our night activity we went to the house of one of the masons we are working with, Santiago, where his wife, Leticia, taught us how to make corn tortillas, a food staple here in Guatemala. None of our tortillas were as good as Leticia's but it was a fun experience. We also learned all about the technology of the stoves we are building and just how efficient they are. It's great to see just how big of an impact this one appliance is making on the families!