Hola!
Sorry we haven't blogged for the last couple of days. We have been busy seeing the beautiful things that God has created here. After arriving in Guatemala we drove up to Antigua and spent the night in a wonderful hotel with very hard beds and a live turtle according to Ali! Ashley Jill and I woke up to the boys enjoying the morning sun on the top of our roof. After a VERY cold shower and a delicious breakfast we set out to explore the cobble stone streets of Antigua. We walked around the city and learned about the many churches, convents and volcano's. We spent some time in Los Cappucinos which is a nunnery. There Les led us to this dome shaped room and asked us to just listen and let God speak to us. We spent time in thought, worshiped and shared scripture! The coolest part of this was when we were singing our theme song "Living for your Glory." When singing this song, there was a light that shone through the tiny window and it felt like God was right there with us. Les also shared something really important with our team. He said " don't let your past define your future. As long as you let God into your present, you will do great things." I thought this message was so important because I find personally I worry about my past a lot and it stops me from living for God. I know I need to live for God and this is the start of a new begining as a better person. After Los Cappucinos we spent some time shopping! Many of us bargained our little hearts out (Aunt G would be proud) and spent some money on gifts and are excited to share them with you back home! We then got on the buses and began our journey to Tac Tic, which by the way is a five hour drive with little or no air conditioning. I think many of the adults heard one too many songs by the end of that trip! After arriving at the guest house in Tac Tic we headed to a local youth group to sing songs, play games and eat a wonderful snack prepared for us by the people of Guatemala. After an over all wonderful day we headed home to our bunk beds to get some much needed rest.
The ladies woke up to some interesting stories from the boys who stayed at the hotel. Apparently there were one too many cockroaches at the hotel! But you don't have to worry because Brent used his man powers to squish them. After breakfast we headed off to do some home visits. We visited many sponsor children and had a great time taking pictures, giving piggy back rides, sharing laughs, singing songs and just experiencing the overall joy in each one of them. I'm sure each student has their own favorite story to tell about the day! After lunch 11A headed out to a school to help dig out a soccer field for the children to play on. It was cool to see that Bearspaw was the first missions team to get their hand on that piece of property and to this very day we still are using our hands and talents to developed the land. Jill recieved a nice flower from a little Guatemalan boy name Renaldo and we all spent the last few minutes of the work ministry interacting with the little ones and playing soccer! We then came home and enjoyed a nice meal and some wonderful worship/reflection time. What a wonderful third day eh? Anyways off to bed!
Nighty night
Dont let the cu ka rachas bite!
God Bless
Cat
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Day 2 - Travel to Tactic
Hello All: Mike Stacey here with 11-B again. We didn't have internet until this morning, so I will post twice to update you on yesterday's events and today's events.
Yesterday (Friday), we went to the market in Antigua after touring around a little bit. We first visited the cathedral (central church) and walked the streets of Antigua, taking in the sights one by one. We walked all around Antigua until we came to a church where many previous Bearspaw groups have set foot. We walked down underneath the church itself, and sat down in a large underground room that has perfect acoustics for talking and singing. We had a semi-brief period of worship in the room, and as we were singing, the light in the underground room went from dark to shining bright. It was as if God was listening to our worship, and parted the clouds to let the sun shine through for our time of worship to Him. It was quite an experience. People commented that the sound of the person sitting across from them in the room reflected so that it sounded like that person was right behind them singing. Definitely a highlight among the group.
We then ventured to the central market in Antigua, and we were introduced to the concept of "haggling" and "bargaining". The leaders told us that in Guatemala, if you can't lower the price offered by the vendor to you on an item that you want, your shopping experience was unsuccessful. =P People had items originally priced as high as 400 "quetzals" (dollars) and managed to haggle the price down to 90 "quetzals." It became a bit of a contest between people to see who could haggle the greatest price difference. All in all, fun was had in great amounts.
The drive to Tactic was a grand adventure to say the least. We stopped at a fast food restaurant called "Pollo Campero." It served fried chicken and french fries, and everyone loved the food! Sam Hogman (11B) commented that KFC could take lessons on how to cook chicken from this restaurant, so that might give you an idea on how good the chicken tasted.
We then proceeded on the drive to Tactic. In Guatemala, the dividing lines on the road we were told were mere "suggestions", and every driver in this country does not obey the lines or road signs. We had a couple of close calls on the 2 lane highway leading to Tactic, as crazy drivers passing in the other direction did not care about whether we were heading directly towards them in our one lane. Large buses even pulled out to pass people. Quite the crazy experience, but we were kept safe by the skills of my van's driver - "Israel." In my van, we sang songs such as Journey's "Don't Stop Believin", and worship songs. The whole trip was filled with songs and car-ride games, but no one once complained.
Once we got to Tactic, we quickly settled in and were invited to a youth event put on by the community. We got to worship with the local youth, and we then had wide games such as Tug of War. We also had eating contests, and Leah Verburg won for the girls, and Sam Hogman won for the guys. We were then served " bean tamales", little pastries with bean and jelly inside of them. They were really good!! The group also formed a soccer team and played a little 5 v 5 match with the teens of the community. Brina Martens, Samantha Temple, Emma Pedersen, Ali Oliverio, and myself consisted of "Team Canada", and we ended up winning 3-2 in "overtime." Fun again was had by all, as all of Bearspaw was cheering on Team Canada, while the Guatemalans were cheering on their boys in the game. It was an atmosphere of fellowship, friendship, and tons of fun.
Today's events, which included home visits to sponsor kids, and manual labor at the local school (moving rocks by wheelbarrow and shovel) will be included in the next blog.
God Bless,
Mike Stacey 11 - B
Yesterday (Friday), we went to the market in Antigua after touring around a little bit. We first visited the cathedral (central church) and walked the streets of Antigua, taking in the sights one by one. We walked all around Antigua until we came to a church where many previous Bearspaw groups have set foot. We walked down underneath the church itself, and sat down in a large underground room that has perfect acoustics for talking and singing. We had a semi-brief period of worship in the room, and as we were singing, the light in the underground room went from dark to shining bright. It was as if God was listening to our worship, and parted the clouds to let the sun shine through for our time of worship to Him. It was quite an experience. People commented that the sound of the person sitting across from them in the room reflected so that it sounded like that person was right behind them singing. Definitely a highlight among the group.
We then ventured to the central market in Antigua, and we were introduced to the concept of "haggling" and "bargaining". The leaders told us that in Guatemala, if you can't lower the price offered by the vendor to you on an item that you want, your shopping experience was unsuccessful. =P People had items originally priced as high as 400 "quetzals" (dollars) and managed to haggle the price down to 90 "quetzals." It became a bit of a contest between people to see who could haggle the greatest price difference. All in all, fun was had in great amounts.
The drive to Tactic was a grand adventure to say the least. We stopped at a fast food restaurant called "Pollo Campero." It served fried chicken and french fries, and everyone loved the food! Sam Hogman (11B) commented that KFC could take lessons on how to cook chicken from this restaurant, so that might give you an idea on how good the chicken tasted.
We then proceeded on the drive to Tactic. In Guatemala, the dividing lines on the road we were told were mere "suggestions", and every driver in this country does not obey the lines or road signs. We had a couple of close calls on the 2 lane highway leading to Tactic, as crazy drivers passing in the other direction did not care about whether we were heading directly towards them in our one lane. Large buses even pulled out to pass people. Quite the crazy experience, but we were kept safe by the skills of my van's driver - "Israel." In my van, we sang songs such as Journey's "Don't Stop Believin", and worship songs. The whole trip was filled with songs and car-ride games, but no one once complained.
Once we got to Tactic, we quickly settled in and were invited to a youth event put on by the community. We got to worship with the local youth, and we then had wide games such as Tug of War. We also had eating contests, and Leah Verburg won for the girls, and Sam Hogman won for the guys. We were then served " bean tamales", little pastries with bean and jelly inside of them. They were really good!! The group also formed a soccer team and played a little 5 v 5 match with the teens of the community. Brina Martens, Samantha Temple, Emma Pedersen, Ali Oliverio, and myself consisted of "Team Canada", and we ended up winning 3-2 in "overtime." Fun again was had by all, as all of Bearspaw was cheering on Team Canada, while the Guatemalans were cheering on their boys in the game. It was an atmosphere of fellowship, friendship, and tons of fun.
Today's events, which included home visits to sponsor kids, and manual labor at the local school (moving rocks by wheelbarrow and shovel) will be included in the next blog.
God Bless,
Mike Stacey 11 - B
Friday, March 26, 2010
El Dia Dos (Day 2) -- Mike Stacey
Hey everybody. Mike Stacey from 11B here. After a long day of traveling, and a somewhat unexpected delay on the highway, everyone made it here safe and sound. We are in a little town outside of Guatemala City called "La Antigua." Not sure how far outside it is, or even what direction. Most of the boys in my van lost their sense of direction once they left the airport, and winding mountain roads (on the way to the hotel I am writing from) didn't exactly help that.
After a horrendously long delay at Houston International, everyone was glad to get on the plane to Guatemala and rest. Everyone knows how boring some airports can be, and sometimes how exciting others are, and unfortunately due to the lack of variety of stores in the terminal some people began to resort to "crazy" games by about mid-afternoon. Fun was had by all though, and some slept, while others played cards. Mr. Peterson held a somewhat impromptu Spanish lesson throughout the 7 hours, and most left with more knowledge of Spanish than they came with.
After reaching Guatemala Airport, the cultural experience began. Hot, humid gates with no air conditioning reminded everyone that they weren't in the USA or Canada anymore. As we picked up our bags from the terminal (all 86 of them), the boys loaded ALL the bags into the vans, while the girls laid back in the vans and watched. (Apparently it is a cultural norm here for the males to do all the hard labor.) =P
Excitement was beginning to build, and singing contests were beginning to develop between the vans. The girls would have won if it was judged on harmonious melodies, but the guys would have won if it was judged on pure effort. =P Famous songs such as "Don't Stop Believin" and "John Jacob JingleHeimerSchmidt" were painfully sung off-key by my van, all the way through the winding mountain roads.
Reaching the hotel was a welcome reprieve from the long ride, as the journey here was slowed up by a procession on the highway. Our driver in our van told us that the procession was made up of boys from Guatemala City marching to Antigua on foot, which is apparently a tradition here.
The hotel we stayed at overnight is an old colonial house that was obviously influence by Old Spanish architecture. There are mini-courtyards with fountains all over the hotel, and you can climb up on the roof and overlook the entire "city" and see the dormant volcanoes in the distance. The rooms are quite quaint, and there are vines and ferns climbing all over the walls.
One of the abnormalities of the hotel is there are random holes in the walls in some of the rooms at head height, so every room gets to shower with a breeze from the outside. There is no invasion of privacy however, it is a nice relief from the humidity that is present here in Guatemala.
As everyone has rested up quite nicely, we are all ready to go touring in Antigua, the old colonial city. Instead of going the last day of our trip, we get to go touring the central market and practice the art of "bargaining" today.
Signing off from "La Antigua", on behalf of homeroom 11-B,
Mike Stacey
After a horrendously long delay at Houston International, everyone was glad to get on the plane to Guatemala and rest. Everyone knows how boring some airports can be, and sometimes how exciting others are, and unfortunately due to the lack of variety of stores in the terminal some people began to resort to "crazy" games by about mid-afternoon. Fun was had by all though, and some slept, while others played cards. Mr. Peterson held a somewhat impromptu Spanish lesson throughout the 7 hours, and most left with more knowledge of Spanish than they came with.
After reaching Guatemala Airport, the cultural experience began. Hot, humid gates with no air conditioning reminded everyone that they weren't in the USA or Canada anymore. As we picked up our bags from the terminal (all 86 of them), the boys loaded ALL the bags into the vans, while the girls laid back in the vans and watched. (Apparently it is a cultural norm here for the males to do all the hard labor.) =P
Excitement was beginning to build, and singing contests were beginning to develop between the vans. The girls would have won if it was judged on harmonious melodies, but the guys would have won if it was judged on pure effort. =P Famous songs such as "Don't Stop Believin" and "John Jacob JingleHeimerSchmidt" were painfully sung off-key by my van, all the way through the winding mountain roads.
Reaching the hotel was a welcome reprieve from the long ride, as the journey here was slowed up by a procession on the highway. Our driver in our van told us that the procession was made up of boys from Guatemala City marching to Antigua on foot, which is apparently a tradition here.
The hotel we stayed at overnight is an old colonial house that was obviously influence by Old Spanish architecture. There are mini-courtyards with fountains all over the hotel, and you can climb up on the roof and overlook the entire "city" and see the dormant volcanoes in the distance. The rooms are quite quaint, and there are vines and ferns climbing all over the walls.
One of the abnormalities of the hotel is there are random holes in the walls in some of the rooms at head height, so every room gets to shower with a breeze from the outside. There is no invasion of privacy however, it is a nice relief from the humidity that is present here in Guatemala.
As everyone has rested up quite nicely, we are all ready to go touring in Antigua, the old colonial city. Instead of going the last day of our trip, we get to go touring the central market and practice the art of "bargaining" today.
Signing off from "La Antigua", on behalf of homeroom 11-B,
Mike Stacey
Day 2
Well... we made it to Antigua, Guatemala! It was a very long day, but we are here safely.
This morning has started with lot's of sunshine & birds of all varieties greeting the day. The team will soon be up. We are staying in a hotel (Los Bucaros) that has been renovated out of an old Spanish villa. The hotel has two courtyards with fountains & trees. Outside, cobble stone streets surround the hotel, running up & down other villas turned into hotels and restaurants.
We will be touring the Antigua ruins today & the journeying north to Tactic (4-5 hours in vans).
Tonight, if internet access is set up, we will blog about the events of the day.
Hasta luego!
This morning has started with lot's of sunshine & birds of all varieties greeting the day. The team will soon be up. We are staying in a hotel (Los Bucaros) that has been renovated out of an old Spanish villa. The hotel has two courtyards with fountains & trees. Outside, cobble stone streets surround the hotel, running up & down other villas turned into hotels and restaurants.
We will be touring the Antigua ruins today & the journeying north to Tactic (4-5 hours in vans).
Tonight, if internet access is set up, we will blog about the events of the day.
Hasta luego!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Houston Airport (Cat)
We have arrived in Houston! and I am pleased to say we have all made it here alive! Our flight consisted of many games of uno, switching seats, watching movies, dutch blitz, random Spanish lessons from Emma, and lots of turbulence. It it now 3:51 pm in the Houston Airport and Micheal is snoring, Brina is trying to kick butt at cards, Mr.Peterson is rocking out to his Ipod/ correcting Emma and Camille's attempts at Spanish phrases, others are chatting or trying to track down that last bite of American fast food and we are all enjoying our last moments flushing down toilet paper. Well our flight leaves soon so we will talk to y'all later as the Texans would say!
God Bless
Cat
God Bless
Cat
Travelling to Guatemala City - Day 1
I am standing in the Calgary airport @ 3:40 AM. Part of me is wondering how the night got so short! The other part of me is wondering if the students & chaperones will actually show up @ 4:00 AM. Then, people start showing up in droves! By 4:15 AM Continental starts moving us through the ticketing process. By 4:30 AM everybody (all 43 team members) have been processed & we're standing in line for customs & security. Things are looking good!
Customs opens @ 5:00 AM & we begin the "slow shuffle" through a very long line to the customs officers. Almost everyone moved through quickly & went on to security. All except for Mr. Werth, who had be checked for levels of radioactivity due to a recent Thalium stress test (where a radioactive isotope is inject into one's blood & then observed as it moves through the heart). The good news is... I have a heart! The bad news is...customs is worried I am carrying radioactive materials (which I am now presuming are illegal to take into the US).
After confirming that Mr. Werth is non-lethal, he moves quickly to security where he is detained for almost 25 minutes while security officials look for a metal "knife-shaped" object in his carry-on (spotted on x-ray). After emptying the entire contents of his carry-on (and not finding the mysterious device, but exposing his underwear & such to the other travelers in the airport) Mr. Werth runs to board the plane...after the last boarding call...after Mr. Blake came looking for him! No time for a Timmie's for Mr. Werth!
All has gone well since. We are sitting in the Houston airport passing the 7 hour lay-over until our flight leaves this evening for Guatemala City. Time now is 3:35 PM. Time left till we travel, 3 and a half hours. Airports are not very entertaining! Good things teenagers know how to entertain themselves...and everybody else!
Talk later!
Customs opens @ 5:00 AM & we begin the "slow shuffle" through a very long line to the customs officers. Almost everyone moved through quickly & went on to security. All except for Mr. Werth, who had be checked for levels of radioactivity due to a recent Thalium stress test (where a radioactive isotope is inject into one's blood & then observed as it moves through the heart). The good news is... I have a heart! The bad news is...customs is worried I am carrying radioactive materials (which I am now presuming are illegal to take into the US).
After confirming that Mr. Werth is non-lethal, he moves quickly to security where he is detained for almost 25 minutes while security officials look for a metal "knife-shaped" object in his carry-on (spotted on x-ray). After emptying the entire contents of his carry-on (and not finding the mysterious device, but exposing his underwear & such to the other travelers in the airport) Mr. Werth runs to board the plane...after the last boarding call...after Mr. Blake came looking for him! No time for a Timmie's for Mr. Werth!
All has gone well since. We are sitting in the Houston airport passing the 7 hour lay-over until our flight leaves this evening for Guatemala City. Time now is 3:35 PM. Time left till we travel, 3 and a half hours. Airports are not very entertaining! Good things teenagers know how to entertain themselves...and everybody else!
Talk later!
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Pack 'N Pray - March 20th
On Saturday, all the Gr. 11 team members & chaperones arrived at BCS to find the gymnasium full of donated items to take to Guatemala. The job ahead was to pack as much as we could into travel bags. Here are some images of the action!
Approximately 1,700 pounds of clothing, toys, shoes & blankets were packed into our travel bags!
No more than 45 pounds per person, so we had to check it once & check it twice.
We concluded the event in a time of prayer.
We want to continue to pray for safety as we travel, for health while we are away, for unity of the team, openness to hear God's voice & hearts that will be filled with the compassion of Christ. We also pray for the individuals we will meet while in Guatemala, that they will not only be blessed by the gifts we bring, but that they will come to know the God who compels us to bring them.
Keep checking back to this blog over the next two weeks & follow our stories as we travel to the city of Tactic, Guatemala!
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