We made it! Our team arrived in Guatemala City a little after 7pm Guatemala time (6pm PDT, 8pm CDT). Jorge and Jen, who work with MTI in Guatemala, met us at the airport and will be with us the whole week. We all piled in a nice air-conditioned van and checked into the Radisson Hotel in the Zona Viva ("lively zone") in Guatemala City where there are many businesses and restaurants.
So, what are my first impressions of Guatemala? As I sit here with my laptop in my comfy hotel bed, I honestly feel like I'm just staying at a hotel in any city in America. Besides the fact that we're not supposed to flush toilet paper down any of the toilets due to smaller sewage pipes and that we are advised to brush our teeth with clean bottled water and that English is not the primary language here, I really don't feel too far from home. But then again we arrived late at night and have only seen about 5 miles of this country in the dark. So my first impressions are few, but will be more developed tomorrow.
Our day of travel has been a great time to get to know our fellow team members, though. We are quite the diverse group. Here's a little snapshot of who we are:
Judy, Amy, Evan, Howard, Cassie, Becca, Megan, Greta, Charley, West, Mary, Ryan
new friends who are about to become really close!
Not much to report yet, but we are all excited about what the week has in store for us! Tomorrow we will travel to Coban. Let the adventures begin!