Semana Santa

Well, I've now seen the Pacific. Check one more thing off my list. The leaders of the church had a retreat/conference at the church's (very primitive, yet homey) retreat center in Monte Rico. They did a lot of training stuff, basically getting everybody on the same page theologically. I didn't attend these "platicas" (talks, more or less) but I spent some time helping in the kitchen. Me and another gringo, Allen, a firefighter/privately contracted government security agent serving in Iraq (read: Blackwater employee) helped out in the kitchen, washing dishes, going to the store for supplies (and Cokes)... lazing about, really, helping when we were needed. Allen was pretty cool, good to hear another American voice. We also got to swim a bit, which was excellent. Pacific waves will rock your world. I body surfed on the biggest waves I've ever seen. I'm pretty sore today from getting slammed about, and also pretty burned because I forgot to put on sunscreen. Where were you, mom? I had a good time, got to enjoy the coast, and felt decently helpful. It was a good few days.

Well, it's Holy Week (you know, the one preceding Easter) and they're pretty serious about it here. All the schools are out, and pretty much everybody with a non-touristy job has the week off. This includes me. I was looking ahead to a week of doing, well, nothing really, when it occurred to me that maybe I should find something to do. So, like any good missionary, I decided to go on vacation. I'm leaving tomorrow morning for Belize. I'll come back Saturday or Sunday to the city. I'll take a bus to the border tomorrow, cross over then take another bus to San Ignacio, about 10 miles from the border. There's cool outdoorsy stuff to do there on Tuesday, then I'll head a couple hours towards the coast and stop at a nature reserve that has rooms for rent. Poke around there for about half a day, then head all the way to the coast. Hopefully I can make it out to Caye Caulker (an island off the coast) by Wednesday night, but if not I'll sleep in Belize City then head out in the morning. Thursday night and Friday night will be in either Caye Caulker or San Pedro, one island up. I'll get to enjoy the Caribbean and hopefully do a little SCUBA diving in the reputedly spectacular barrier reef there. And then I'll come back to Guate to come back to work, like the rest of the Guatemalans. Well, I'm gonna get to packing and then to sleeping... it's a long (and I'm sure tiring) journey to the border, and it'll be a busy few days. I think it'll all be worth it in the end... and hey, at least I'll get another stamp in my passport.
As always, hope things are going well. Hope everybody's Easter is fantastic, enlightening, and points you to the cross.