Unique Opportunities, Mistakes and Other Interesting Experiences

This is the Arch street as I call it. The entire street is blocked off so tourists can walk through the center of Antigua.

There are many indigenious people here. Most of them wear the color hand woven shirts and skirts. This is a family sitting outside of a market.This is a one of the many Catholic churches in Antigua. Much of Guatemala is Catholic. The church is ornate and very beautiful.

This is what a street in Antigua looks like.

Another Catholic church that dates back to when the Spaniard ruled Central America. This is in the main plaza of Antigua.

The Fountain in Central Park

Many people gather in the park to enjoy the cool weather and relax. There is usuallly a band playing. This little girl was having fun dancing away the afternoon in the park. She is 1 1/2 years old.

It is very common to see people selling blankets or trinkets in the streets. Some also beg in the streets.

Many of the indegenious people carry baskets on thier heads as a way to transport things around town. They put a sort of town on their head and then balance the basket on their heads. Its amazing how they do it.

One of the markets in Antigua that sell hand crafted items to the many tourists that visit Antigua.

This is the Hill of the Cross. This picture is taken from Antigua looking up at the cross. Don't let this picture fool you. It is something like 400 steps to get up to the cross which over looks Antigua and three volocanoes.

Over looking the city of Antigua from the Hill of the Cross The Cross of Antigua

I had to show this. This a bathrom "a la natural". Its an outhouse filled with plants, just like a green house except it is a working bathroom as well. Interesting, huh?

Today, I just went walking all over Antigua to take pictures. Antigua…it’s a very picturesque town that is somewhat unlike the rest of Guatemala. It’s more touristy. The town looks like something straight out of an old movie set. The concrete block buildings are painted bright colors like blue, red, orange, and yellow but with a slight worn look. You even walk along cobblestone streets. There are many old churches here but most are in ruins from a 1700’s earthquake. The churches are very ornate and some date back from the Spaniards when they ruled Central and South America. Like I said, it’s really picturesque. I went walking in Central Park to take some pictures. I will post some of my pictures here. They have a huge fountain and lots of trees throughout the park. The park was really crowded with people just enjoying the warm afternoon. They also have bands playing in the park. They play Guatemalan music but also some American love songs. It was quite funny to hear the song from Titanic being played in the middle of Guatemala. Later I walked up to the cross that is on the hillside overlooking Antigua. There is something like 400 steps to get up there but it was so worth it. The cross is very high up the side of a mountain. But, you have a wonderful view of all of Antigua and the three volcanoes (if it’s not cloudy). When you look down the cars and the people look like little toys in a big maze of streets and buildings. So I got my exercise and got some great pictures as well. And to top it off I got to practice my Spanish also.
Speaking of Spanish, I just finished my second week of language study. I’ll make no bones about it, learning Spanish is not easy. I have a new respect for people trying to learn another language like English. There are so many words, verbs, verb tenses and idiomatic phrases (stuff that just doesn’t translate to English literally). But I have to say I am learning a lot and enjoying it as well. It’s really rewarding to be able to (finally!) understand what people are saying or have someone understand you. As my teacher says, it will come poco y poco which means little by little.
But like any student of a new language, you will make mistakes. I really try to speak Spanish as much as possible and I don’t always get it right. Most of the time people will laugh and correct you. Or they will just laugh. But hey, you don’t learn if you don’t try. My teacher, Sonja, is really nice and has taught me a lot. I haven’t had any really funny mistakes…..yet. But my friend told me one that was pretty funny. My friend, Anna, is from Denmark and I met here at the boarding house where I am staying. She is also learning Spanish so she can help at a mission in Honduras. Anna told her teacher the other day that she was riding somewhere in a car. But she used the word “coche” which in most Spanish countries is car. But it’s different here. “Coche” here means pig. So she told her teacher that she rode to town on a pig. Needless to say, her teacher gave her a very funny look. Oh, the things that happen when you are learning a language.
While I’ve been here I have also had some really unique opportunities to witness. They were really unexpected but God gave me the words to say. One is with Anna, my friend from Denmark. Anna is volunteering to work at a Christian mission in Honduras. We, along with the other boarders in the house, have had many discussions about our beliefs, churches and many other things. Anna told us that the church in Denmark is state run and everyone there called themselves “Christians”. That was hard for me to understand. But I as I talked to Anna, I found that she had a heart for God and shared many of the same beliefs as I did. One night as we talked, we started discussing what we believed. Anna had never heard of some of our beliefs before. We talked for a long time about modesty, sin, and sanctification. She especially never heard of a second work of grace before. I was able to explain it to her and even remembered some verses that I learned. She asked a lot of questions and seemed to want to know more. She told me she was going to study the verses I gave here because no one had ever told her that she could live without sin. It was amazing to me how God seem to give me the words to say and how to explain it. I’m no theologian but God just directed to me. That was pretty awesome! I guess witnessing sometimes is not always about winning a person to Christ. But sometimes just being a light in their life. Please pray for Anna. I probably will never see here again but I pray that she will think about what we talked about.
I can’t believe how fast these past two weeks have flown by. It’s amazing! In another week, I will be heading back to Jalapa for about a month. Things have been pretty busy with studying, homework and such. Well, that’s all for now. Please keep praying for me! I would really appreciate it.