Wednesday, August 12, 2009











Yesterday was Wayne's 60th birthday. At school, everyone sang happy birthday in Spanish. We shared some treats and then after class we traveled to Santa Cruz via launcha. We had a long hard walk up from the lake to town. We were rewarded with fantastic views of the lake and the volcanoes. It was a difficult walk but Janet made it all the way. We had dinner with our friends Jay and Carey and our new friend from Germany, Sabrina. We ate at a great restaurant and returned home for some fantastic chocolate cake.
We even made some real headway on our decision process. Janet committed to making the move happen. She decided that this was something that she really wanted to do. Wayne has been committed, not to an institution but to an idea, but has been waiting to hear from Janet once she had some experience here. So we are on to the next level of planning for next summer. All in All it was a birthday to remember!
Today was more of the same. School and then off by launcha all the way accorss the lake to Santiago Atitlan. We went to a special house just out of town, via pickup, to see the Mayan diety Maximón. He is a combination of Christianity and Mayan Gods. He is wooden all dressed up in hats and ties, smoking a cigar. Maximón or San Simón is in a small house with a statue of Jesus and some of the saints, there are mayans sitting there drinking beer and collecting money. Mayans bring money, or candles asking for good luck. He is moved once a year to a new house during holy week. It is an odd combination of pagan and christian symbols.
We visited the local church and the memorial to all those who died as part of the conflict that lasted some some thirty years but had a major affect on this town for over ten years ending in 1990.
We then did a little shopping in town. By the end of the day we were really tired! Tomorrow we have class in the afternoon and no activities, thank goodness.

2 comments:

  1. The vistas are beautiful. That birthday cake looks really good, too! It sounds like a momentous day in many ways. May you sense God's ever-present guidance and direction as your journey continues.

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  2. The cake was GREAT! Thanks for your thoughts.

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