Guatemala and Father´s Day

There has been a lot going on in the last ten days or so. Besides the day to day happenings of NPH and continuing to get used to life here, there have been some special events too. First, Fr. Ron (the director of NPH Central America) invited me to go to the NPH house in Guatemala to celebrate their Quinceañera last weekend.  The five hour ride to Guatemala went by in flash. The beautiful, green mountains kept my attention and we climbed in altitude towards our destination. We also went through Guatemala City (aka ¨Guat¨), the most developed city in Central America. I never thought I would see a Taco Bell here, but I was proven wrong in Guat. Upon arriving at the house in Guatemala we got a warm welcome and a full tour of the place. They have fewer children than in El Salvador (about 350), but they seem to have a much bigger operation. All of their workshops (bakery, woodshop, metal fabrication, sewing) are up and running and have teachers so the kids can learn a trade while they are there. Also, there is a couple from Spain who is helping to develop a farm where they grow their own vegetables for food. They also have livestock. All of these things are still in the process of getting done in El Salvador. One of my goals for the summer is to at least put the woodshop in order before I go. Right now it looks like someone just backed up a dump truck to the door and dropped in a ton of stuff.

On Saturday morning Fr. Ron took a group of us to Antigua, which is a pretty popular tourist destination because of its nice, colonial buildings and parks.   (To the left you´ll see me standing under ¨El Arco¨.)  It really is a very beautiful city that thrives off of tourism.  I spent most of the morning just walking around the city and checking out its two churches and the open air market.  The whole group met up for an awesome Italian lunch and then we hit the road back to the orphanage to get ready for Mass.

The Quinceañera is a tradition that exists mainly in Mexico and Central America, from what I understand.  Basically, it consists of a Mass to bless a girl on her fifteenth birthday, the age considered to be the threshold to adulthood.  At the Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos houses they celebrate one such Mass each year for all the girls who turn 15 in that year.  There were 18 girls for the Mass in Guatemala and it was celebrated by the bishop of the diocese.  Fr. Ron gave the homily and did a great job.  Afterwards, all the girls did a special dance, and then we had a big old feast.  

On Sunday morning we headed back to El Salvador in a smooth four hour drive.  It was a great trip to Guatemala.  Sunday was also Father's Day in the US, and I was able to call both my Dad and my Grandad.  In El Salvador, Father's Day is always celebrated in June 17, regardless of what day of the week in falls on.  So, all the male staff at NPH (including me) went out to this awesome restaurant on a pier at Lake Coatepeque.  It's surrounded by mountains, including a volcano that I hope to climb before I'm out of this country.  I also discovered a new drink, called the "Michelada", which is basically a beer mixed with a fair bit of lime juice, Worcester sauce, salt, pepper, and ice.  It may sound gross, but it was a tasty treat.  Just so you're all ready, I'm making some of these when I get back.

In the evening, the kids put on Father's Day skits for everyone and then we had a big old dinner outside on the soccer field.  We finished up just in time to avoid the latest Salvadoran deluge too.

Being here this summer is an amazing opportunity for which I am thankful.  I will be the first to say that I do not find it easy to live and work in a different language, but I feel that I get a little better at it each day.  I miss everyone at home and look forward to writing some more (hopefully) interesting bits about my time here.