Bible studies

On Monday and Tuesday evenings there are Bible study groups which meet here at the house. Here's a picture of the Tuesday night group which is studying The Purpose Driven Life in Spanish. At the end of the study we have a meal together which different people provide each week.

Mission Ladies

Here's a picture of some of the other Baptist missionaries in the Guatemala City area. Just a clarification the baby belongs to the lady in the pink sweater not Janet who is holding the baby...

Prayer Tea

I had the opportunity to go to a tea time to pray for Muslim ladies. It was a good reminder of how in some cultures other ladies don't have the freedom that I have as an American lady. As Americans we have many freedoms in our lives. Take a minute to thank God for the freedom which we have as Americans and also ask Him to be with other cultures in which the people (especially the ladies) don't have freedom as we do. Pray that their eyes would be open to His love and truth.

Various pictures from the tour

Carol at the National Palace

Church in Guatemala City which was built in the 1940's.

The "king's seat" is what it looks like but it is a confessional seat which was inside a Catholic church.

Notice McDonalds in the background.

Carol and Esther. Esther is from South Africa. It's interesting that I have been to South Africa and enjoyed it. Talking with her has reminded me of different things and places in South Africa.

American meal

I didn't try it but if you want you can get a hotdog, hamburger and Coke on the street. Sounds like a truly American meal to me.

Goat milk

If you are out and decide you need or want some goat milk just look for the guy with the herd of goats. Ask him for some goat milk and he will be glad to sell you some fresh!

National Palace

I took a half day tour of Guatemala City and it was interesting. One of the places we went was to the National Palace. In front of the National Palace is a star. The star is where all the kilometers are measured from in Guatemala. For instance if a town is 100 kilometers away then that means from the star in Guatemala City.

Selling her handmade goods

What a life...This Mayan lady spends everyday just hoping for people to make purchases from her. I find out something interesting. If you can see on the white cloth there are designs which look like lightning. What does lightning bring? It brings rain. The rain is signified at the bottom of the cloth where it is "frayed".

Pineapples anyone?

How about this for a choice of pineapples? Good selection.

Lunch with friends

I haven't been in Guatemala City that long but it's already been long enough for me to have to say goodbye to a new friend. Juanita and her husband will be leaving Guatemala and going to a new assignment in Asia. I feel like I have a special connection with them because they took me to church my first Sunday here in Guatemala. Also she introduced me to other people and places here. As you can tell she has a bowl full of salad which she is looking forward to enjoying.

Making tortillas

I "helped" Lucilla make tortillas. I would make one for every three that she made. She kept saying the equivalent of more or less the ones you are making are okay. When I saw that she was making tortillas I washed my hands and said do you want to see my talent?? Of course I was joking because making tortillas is not something that comes natural for me like it does for her. She has been making them since she was a young child, her mom taught her. It was a fun thing to do and she enjoyed laughing with me.

Guarding the drinks

I don't think I would bother the driver of this truck.

Park pictures

I didn't do the ziplining at the park but I did get to enjoy walking around a really pretty park and seeing waterfalls and walking across swinging bridges. We even saw a monkey.

Pepsi in a bag & taxis

Toot Toots are the name of the small taxis like the red one below. It is like a modified golf cart. They are fun to ride in. The taxi driver is preparing his Pepsi in a bag to drink.

Fish

For those of you who have been regular readers of my blog you know how much I like a complete fried fish. Here's a picture of the one I had at a restaurant at the lake. Of course I enjoyed it but no I didn't eat the eyes like some of you have asked..

My traveling buddies

I traveled to the lake with David and Glynis Miller and their daughter, Debra, and son in law Chris. While we were in Panajachel we saw the largest piles of avocadoes. It was amazing how many there were, Debra was excited. Now if they would have been cantaloupes or bananas I would have been a lot more excited. But it was neat to see her excitement over all the avocadoes.

Literacy parade

It was really neat to see a parade advertising the literacy program in the Panajachel area. They had a band and different groups from the area. I found it especially interesting since I worked with the literacy program in Mozambique.

People pictures

Nuts

How about some cashews or macadamia nuts? That is my size of a bag. You can never have too many nuts, that is until you have a stomach ache from eating too many at one time...haha

A trip to the Lake

The other week I was able to go to Lake Panajachel with friends of mine. The last time I was there was 1999. It has changed alot since then but the beauty of the area remains the same. There are more boat docks, restaurants and stores now but the street vendors still know the phrase, "Hey lady special price for you.".

Happy Kitty

I think it is just a natural instinct of cats to want to sleep in any bag/suitcase that you might be packing. The dog could only look in the door and wish..

Birthday party

Today I had the opportunity to go to a birthday party for a 2 year old Guatemalan whose name is Samuel. It was alot of fun. He even had two pinatas for his party. There was also a puppet show which was really cute. That was the first time I had seen a puppet show at a birthday party, that was a neat idea. I think the adults enjoyed the puppets as much as the kids did. We feasted on sandwiches, jello, and cake. It was alot of fun.