¡Adios Antigua!

Well, it´s our last night in civilization. Tomorrow, we hop on a bus for a 4-hour ride to the middle of nowhere. Today, we had our last morning Spanish class and spent the afternoon shopping and buying school supplies for la finca (the farm.) I think we are in for a rude awakening. We have been spoiled here in this beautiful and affluent city. Tomorrow, we will be eating beans and rice, taking cold showers and shovelling cow shit. Our other tasks at the finca include tree planting, trail maintenece and cow milking! (This is a new one. Apparently, the dairy man needs a vacation.) Something tells me that the novelty will wear off after the first cow or two... I think the finca will be interesting, for the simple fact that they are completely self-sufficient. They make their own food and electricity and have everything they need to survive off the land.

Today, we got to spend a small fortune ($150.00) on school supplies that we will be taking to the students. We also spent an additional $250 on books. I can´t wait to show up with all our things for them! I am a bit trepeditious about this part of our trip. I think it is going to be hard, but rewarding. I am hoping it will help me to have some new insight into what is really important in life. We will see.

So this will be my last post for at least a week. No computer where we are going (I don´t think.) Antigua is crazy tonight. The Guatemalan government just passed a law which forced companies and bosses to double their employees´ salaries and today was payday! I have never seen such long line ups outside the banks before. Security guards with machine guns are everywhere. The streets are teaming with people. It is going to be a party tonight, for sure! We are going out for a team dinner. It has been an interesting week: one of our team members nearly got robbed and is still shaken up about it. (She´s young and doesn´t have much life or travel experience.)Another one feinted last night because she is hypoglycemic. Others are going through life crises and discovering new things about themselves for the very first time. Me, I´m just chillin with my coffee and my Spanish classes and soaking up the ambiance.

So send your good vibes my way next week and have a warm shower and a cold drink with some non-parasitic ice for me!