Hola padres! Today was another successful day in Guatemala. We woke up to Coach Hatch pounding us in the heads with a beach ball and the smell of Telma’s French Toast and watermelon breakfast buffet. We started off early and went to our first orphanage. All of the orphans were HIV positive and will not ever be adopted. Evans surprisingly got in touch with her maternal side and bonded with some of the toddlers. It was so adorable! We went on to play with some older kids; Georgia’s punching balloon bags were the favorite toy. So naturally all the boys decided not to play with them and opted instead to chase her around the playground until she felt like she was about to pass out. We tried to take a senior pic while at the orphanage, and the children that Laurel and Evans were holding started crying and tried to jump out of their arms. On the other hand, Maison’s child loved her! She has finally gotten to hold one of the Guatemalan babies that she has been stalking this entire trip. The kids had trouble accepting the reality that is Sarah’s blonde hair, blue eyes, and pale skin. Sadly we had to leave, but we know our time there was greatly appreciated.
We headed to the mall where we proceeded to eat the sack lunch that Telma had prepared for us. While there Maison, Keavy, Margaret, and Georgia discovered that you have to get the toilet paper BEFORE going into the stall. We also had another peculiar bathroom experience when we stopped at a small mart on the side of a cliff. One had to pay 2Q to use the restroom. Toilet paper was received prior to a short trek down a hill to get to the actual toilet. We headed back to the van and drove to the next orphanage (2hours away). Wild Betty’s driving took us through the storm, around the mudslides, and up the mountain. The orphanage was literally in a cloud. Due to the weather, a change of plans was necessitated. Instead of doing the clinic as planned today, we are going to stop back at the orphanage after doing the zip line tomorrow. Though visibility was limited, Betty managed to bring us safely off of the precipice and to the hotel. We did some pre-Antigua shopping in the town before a nice 4 course meal. Margaret and Georgia discovered that they really enjoy bargaining (or flirting) and Laurel got a great deal on a bag. Along the way we also learned that Morgan is a dog whisperer. 3 dogs literally followed her everywhere, and, when we got back to our room, she spent an hour outside petting a single mongrel.
Dinner was great. The large majority of people had beef tenderloin for their main course while the rest had lasagna. We all believed that the soup was a seafood bisque, but we later learned that it was actually a carrot and pumpkin soup. Either way, it was muy rico. We were all enjoying pleasant normal conversation when out of the blue Margaret and Georgia began to prattle off in their own made-up language. Coach Hatch claims they looked like Gorilla Soldiers in their headbands. We finished off the day with an ice cream dessert and we are now going to sleep.
Lots of love,
