Well, things are underway here in Las Guázaras! We were greeted by a very warm and thoughtfully planned fiesta de bienvenida (welcoming party). It was truly great to be a part of it. Our respectful national anthems were sung, nice words were shared, and hopes and excitement were expressed on both ends.
Saturday was spent getting more organized and playing basketball and other games with locals after a very informative tour where we learned cool facts about Las Guázaras and its people. We are making friends really quickly, and our group is thriving in spite of language differences.
On Sunday we left our mountaintop town for a nearby beach called Playa Quemaito, which is a great beach for swimming as the water is really calm. The surrounding area is absolutely beautiful, and it was not too crowded.
On Sunday we left our mountaintop town for a nearby beach called Playa Quemaito, which is a great beach for swimming as the water is really calm. The surrounding area is absolutely beautiful, and it was not too crowded.
As far as the work goes, we are officially underway. While we prepare the last few details for our primary project, the group and some local Guazareros have been doing trash clean-ups around town and cleaning the school. We are set to begin work soon on our central construction project soon-- laying concrete foundations for the homes of several local families.
Monday afternoon, we went up to the Río Palomino and hung out there building dams to create swimming holes and splashing playfully with the other people that had gathered there that sunny afternoon. Then we hiked up a little further to the waterfall.
Monday afternoon, we went up to the Río Palomino and hung out there building dams to create swimming holes and splashing playfully with the other people that had gathered there that sunny afternoon. Then we hiked up a little further to the waterfall.
On a different note, I´ve got to mention that we are really proud of how our group is coming together. During our nightly meeting last night, the question was put out there by a student, "what is it that really makes you get up in the morning or what is it that keeps you going?" The answers were no less than inspiring. Without spending hours writing what all that was shared, I will just say that we have a very impressive group and we are proud to be leading them and learning from them!
That´s about it for now. We will be working the rest of this week and continuing to get to know the townspeople until this Friday, when we head off for our first weekend excursion, to Bahía Las Águilas y el Hotel Coralsol.
More soon,
Daniel y Scarlotta
Daniel y Scarlotta
