Weekend Adventures

This weekend was full of lots of fun and exploring. This place is growing on me quickly. I just love it!

I never get sick of this view!

Saturday morning I got to Skype with some of my wonderful family! So wonderful to hear their voices and get caught up on all the good news! (Side note to share some of the good news: My precious baby niece (ish) got a cochlear implant this week and will soon get to hear her parents voices for the first time. How badly I wish I could be there to watch this! My eyes are swelling up with tears just thinking about it. The many blessings in life that we take for granted!) After that I got to chat with my lovely Emily Jayne. (Side note: Isn't she beautiful!) Lots of catching up to be done with so many people!

My new friend Donna and I went to the Guatemalan market to find me some cheap and warm clothes and were completely successful! After lots of digging, I now have 3 long-sleeved shirts, 1 sweater and 2 pairs of pants for the small price of 70Q (~$9). Looks like the negotiating skills I learned in Beijing are paying off two-fold in Guatemala :) Next we hopped on the chicken bus and headed to the nearby town of Pastores which is lined with boot shops... literally 7 per block per side of the street. I had heard a rumor that you could get good boots for a great price, so I wanted to check it out for my dad and Tyler. Another side note: Sorry guys, no boots for you. Your gringo feet are too big and no one could quite decide the transfer of US sizing to Guatemalan.

Lots of impressive and intricate work!

These are the ones I picked for my Dad. They are SO his style ;)

 Then we met up with our other new (Canadian, eh Matt) friend Hannah and did a little market shopping. She is just the sweetest. Literally. She was the only one in the house smart enough to pack chocolate, so she has been my saving grace!

Saturday night was full of music and salsa dancing to celebrate the TEFL graduates from Maximo Nivel.

After a late night of fun, Donna and I woke up before sunrise to hike the beautiful volcano Pacaya at 5:30 am.

Sunrise from the balcony!

The large volcano is called Agua because it has a lake on the top from a collapse. The one behind with smoke coming out is the volcano which is still active: Fuego. I forget the name of the other one.

We climbed the mountain next to Pacaya (about an hour and a half up) and as we rounded the corner near the summit we could see where the lava had spilled down after the eruption.

Pacaya

It erupted over 2000 years ago but is still toasty!

We hiked up a bit further where there were hot spots for us to roast marshmallows :)

She's so cute!

Of course I couldn't just watch. I wanted to get in on the roasting action!

A little gooey

Pretty sure the bottom of my shoes were melting.

A little bit of life attempting to sprout after such a long time.

The "natural taxi" of the women who sold goods near the top.

Such a wonderful weekend in Guatemala. A rich culture and country full of beauty.