Hey all from the beautiful city of Xela!

We arrived safely on Saturday night and the group is awesome.  We spent the night in Guatemala City and prepared for the days to come.  Although hard to imagine not being at the CoOp Sunday morning, I was super excited to hop on that bus to Xela for a few hours.  On the bus for four hours, we could not have been more pleased with the scenery.  The road to Xela is beautiful while its surrounded by mountains and many colors.  I have been to Guatemala before but not this part. 

Arriving in Xela we got to walk around the plaza and soak a bit in before a beautiful welcoming ceremony where we were introduced to Habitat families ready to build with us.  What a blessing!  After some yummy postre and chatting, we got to hang out until dinner.

Monday morning we woke up early to head to our sites…ready to work!  My site is in Chantel with a beautiful family…a mom with two kiddos.  They came to meet us as we started to unload block. 

The only downside so far was my trip over an uneven step in the dirt.  Yes, I have sprained my right ankle within the first few days.  I am ok but it still sucks a bit…although the colors on my ankle are like  a sunset.  I am working on healing but still not willing to put aside work and culture. 🙂

Last night we wandered into a bar to watch the Oregon Auburn game.  Fun to be in Guatemala cheering for Oregon (although football isn´t always my thing). 

This morning we all piled into buses to go to the same site where we unload cinder blocks up a mountain.  It is definitely a wonderful moment (although hard work) to see 30 people working together in a line up a mountain….watching out for each other, cheering each other, chiding each other. As someone pointed out, each of us get to touch each brick of Dona Felicita´s house…how cool is that?!

This afternoon has been reserved for the ankle and internet…icing, elevation, and a bit of chatting.

More to come! Love to you all! Check out facebook for pics. 🙂