The Pierings Visit Guatemala

Jerry and LeAnn Piering were the first family visitors to see us here in Guatemala since our departure in February. We had a terrific visit with them. Everything went surprisingly smooth for planning a vacation in a developing country! The weather was very cooperative too, with 1 day of rain during this supposed "rainy" season.

We are very appreciative to Jerry and LeAnn for their generosity throughout the trip. They graciously brought 2 boxes worth of English videos, books, and magazines to help build our library of materials and resources for our classes. They also kindly brought us some of our favorite treats and snacks from the United States that we aren't able to get here in Guatemala. Paydays and pretzels...WOO HOO! Additionally, they funded much of our travel, food, and accomodations during the trip...in exhange for our tour guide, coordinating, and translating expertise.

Our travel agenda consisted of visiting quite a few locations in the country. We first spent a few days in the beautiful colonial Antigua. Here we were able to see ruins, take in the wonderful scenery, and eat at some great restaurants. From Antigua we headed to Flores on a 10 hour bus trip over to the Petén. We stayed the night in Flores and enjoyed the fresh breezes on the island in Lake Itzá. From Flores we headed up to the Parque Nacional Tikal to enjoy a few days in the park and exploring the ruins. After summiting temples and spying on spider monkeys we headed back on the bus to begin our trek to the Western Highlands.

After all our travel it was nice to be home in Quiché! Nieve appreciated having attention from all four of us. We enjoyed showing LeAnn and Jerry the Fiestas Elenas exploding all over our town....including 4 ferris wheels (a bit excessive) in the rides area. We took them to the local ruins of Gumarkaaj which aren't that impressive compared with Tikal, but nonetheless very interesting. We saw a couple excavations taking place in the grounds as well as the usual Mayan religious ceremonies taking place. In the largest cave we saw candles and chicken heads dotted throughout. Jerry even made friends with some local Mayan children.

Upon leaving the Western Highlands we swung through the famous Chichi market on Sunday to buy souvenirs and gifts for folks back home. We proudly did our best bargaining with the vendors to save LeAnn hundreds of quetzales on her purchases. Some may feel this is a bit harsh since they are trying to make a living here in a developing country, but When in Guatemala....do as the Guatemalans. Bargaining is pretty much expected here in the markets!

We spent a few more nights in Antigua before sending the Pierings back home to Oregon and heading back to Quiché ourselves. But, not before we had an incredible stay at the Quinta de Las Flores hotel (oasis) and an amazingly educational and fun tour of Finca La Azotea (organic coffee farm) given by the 4th generation owner.

Thanks again Jerry and LeAnn for such a fun trip! Keep on coming down friends and family, we love seeing familiar faces and showing off Guatemala.