Matt Riley May 5th

First full day in the beautiful city of Antigua, Guatemala. We started the day with breakfast: eggs, fruit and bread. It is very different living in Antigua than back home. I am in a room with two others that is not connected to the main house. Our windows have bars over them, but some of the glass is not there, so many bugs can come in. There was a spider in my bed last night and I nearly had a panic attack when I saw it. After breakfast we went to the site where we would be volunteering. We are volunteering doing construction at a place for kids to come after school who do not always have the best home life. There is a problem at the building because there is water underneath of the building causing sand to erode and the building to crack. This could lead to the building falling apart. One of the project we are helping is to build a trench that will help remove the water from underneath the building when it rains. We are also helping expanding the building using cement and bricks to add on to the building. We met the man in charge today Juan. Juan is an amazing person. He told us his story (speaking only in Spanish). I understood most of what he was saying, but the people who were fluent in Spanish helped to translate.  Juan works a different job aside from working at the school. He does not get paid for the work he does for the kids. They do not get money from the government to help. He is doing this all on his own with the help of Maximo Nivel (The group we are volunteering with) and other volunteers. Truly an exemplary person. After hearing from Juan we toured the place and started on our projects. Today I helped dig the trench so piping could be put down that will help remove the water. Not being fluent in Spanish can sometimes be overwhelming. Most of the other workers speak Spanish and not very few know English. It is helpful that some people on the trip know Spanish though. I can understand some Spanish, but with lots of people and everyone talking very quickly it is difficult to understand. I was excited when one of the kids helping with the project came over and talked to me and I was able to have a short conversation with him. The work these people do is hard labor. Guatemala has lots of hills moving dirt, cement and bricks around can be somewhat tiresome. I know I am going to be sore tomorrow. Water was given to us in bags, since the water from the faucet is not safe to drink. Very different from what we are used to in the United States, something I think many people take for granted. America would be a lot different if everyone had the work ethic of these people.

After volunteering today we went to a restaurant in the city. The food was very cheap and delicious. I had this meat plate (I do not remember what it was called) that was very good. The restaurants are very different from what we are used to. There are lots of animals around including birds and lots of bugs. There was a plate with some kind of liquid on it that would trap and kill the bugs that were around. Next we came here to Maximo Nivel where I am writing this blog. We are exploring the city more after. I am excited to try more Guatemalan food and try to practice more Spanish. I hope to feel more comfortable using, well trying to use Spanish by the end of this trip. I really like the group we have on this trip. Everyone is supportive and a lot of fun. This is my first time being in a situation where I am in a town where majority of the people do not speak English. I have never been out of the United States, except for vacation. It is very different than vacation. I get to see the culture and how Guatemalans live there lives. Looking forward to the rest of the week. Will hopefully have pictures later.