That's a wrap....

My thirteen months in Guatemala have come and gone faster then lightening. I am now sitting in the Houston airport and realizing that I am back in the States...not just for vacation, but to stay. Everyone is speaking English, I have to pay with dollars, there is not any Gallo to order at the bar and no one feels the need to say buenas tardes/good afternoon when they walk by each other. I can't even begin to describe or sum up the past year that I have spent in Guatemala...but what I can say is that it was for sure the time of my life.

I went into this year not knowing exactly what to expect, but everything that I experienced, everything that I saw and everyone that I have met were above and beyond my expectations. I had the opportunity to come to a beautiful country, learn about and experience another culture, speak another language, teach and spend time with some amazing children and live/travel/work/laugh/cry/dance/sing with the craziest group of friends a girl could try and find.

As I got on to the airplane today (crying my eyes out like a baby) I looked out the window and I could not help but think about all the experiences I have had this year. I have spent many a night with a group of girls that I have grown to love...acting like a 13 year old again, dancing around to pop music, braiding hair, making friendship bracelets, gossiping about boys and just hanging out. I have worked my butt off to try and teach kids English and come up with creative lesson plans to finally in the end of the year start to see things click. I have traveled to the most beautiful places I could have ever imagined....from Lake Atitlan, to Semuc Champey, to El Salvador and the islands of Honduras. I have met the most amazing people with genuine personalities, big hearts, crazy dance moves and a great sense of humor.

I can't believe it is time for this chapter of my life to come to an end, but I know that the memories I have made and the people that I have met will be in my heart forever.

#1.

#1. I don't know if I am going to have time to update my blog tomorrow with the last thing that I am going to miss so I am going to finish it off today. What I am going to miss most are the friends I have made here over the past year. I never imagined that I would come to Guatemala and find myself immediately a part of one large family--I never imagined I would meet/make such good friends in the course of a year.

As volunteers you really get to see each other at one's best and one's worst....we have lived together, traveled together, worked together, laughed together, cried together and the list goes on. I could not have made it through this year without the amazing people that surrounded me.

"Bendito dios por encontrarnos en el camino."

Lentes

Interruption from the things I am going to miss.....

The babies (Wilson mostly) are in love with my brightly colored sunglasses. They are always trying them on and asking to keep them. Hannah sent me a package with a bunch of neon sunglasses a while back and I thought who better to give them to then these little rascals. I told Wilson I had lentes (glasses) for him a few days ago and he has been asking every day when I am going to give them to him. Yesterday I want down to the babies house and dropped of the glasses and they could not have been more excited. Some of them were eating snack and others were getting ready to take a bath.....yet all with sunglasses. The pictures are too cute.

#2.

#2. Camioneta/Chicken Bus

I am going to miss riding the jam packed chicken buses with three people to a seat and at least twenty or more standing in the aisle. I am going to miss running to catch the bus or hoping that one passes by NPH so we don't have to walk to Parramos. I am going to miss driving through the hills of Parramos and the bumpy roads of Pastores to get to Antigua. Riding in a school bus will never be the same.

#3.

#3. Hamaca

I am going to miss sitting outside of house 4 in the hammock. It has been my favorite place to read, talk on skype, do English work, drink coffee, take a nap and just enjoy the view. It is not a bad place to start off the day!

#4.

#4. Fiestas/Celebrations

I am going to miss school being canceled and not having work so that we can CELEBRATE! Whether it be the biggest party of the year when all the girls in the house turn 15, Semana Santa when we did not have work/school for a week so we could celebrate the easter season, the anniversary of the NPH where we practiced for over a month and celebrated for two days straight or Carnival when we all dressed up like fools and had a confetti fight and a costume competition. I am going to miss celebrating in style!

Anniversary of NPH--game day/covered in mud

Anniversary--opening night/flags of each team

Semana Santa--processions with my girls 

Semana Santa--walking over the alfombras 

Quinceñeras--the group with Moll, Erika and I

Carnival--being covered in pica-pica (confetti)

#5.

#5. My Girls - Fatima

I am going to miss my section of girls that have been the highlight of my year here at NPH. I knew coming into the year that I was going to become close to some of the kids here, but I had no idea that I would fall in love with 18 girls. We have been through everything this year from laughing until we think we are going to pee our pants, dancing to Britney Spears and Justin Bieber, braiding each others hair, sharing stories and photos, having pajama parties, watching scary movies cuddled together on one mattress, drying each others tears, sitting around the radio listening to high school musical songs, hours of looking through teen magazines and cutting out photos to put on the walls of their room and laying side by side talking until the lights went out. I can't even begin to express how much I am going to miss the girls in my section. They all have their moments like any other 12-15 year old girl, but they are the cutest, sweetest, funniest, most loving group of girls. They made my experience in Guatemala and at NPH better then I could have ever imagined. I am going to miss going up to the comedor and being greeted by their screams, how they can't say my name, walking hand in hand to the section at night talking about the funniest things, their visits in the English office to chat and look at magazines and seeing their smiling faces every day. 

Graduation with Lourdes, Juana, Celeste and Esme!

Just a bunch of crazy girls!

So excited to be reunited after the Christmas break!

#6.

#6. The Lake

Lago Atitlan is one of the most beautiful places in Guatemala and probably one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. The lake is surrounded by volcanoes, hills, deep green mountains and breathtaking views. I am going to miss going to Miguel's house (thank you Miguel and Karla) and spending the weekends hanging out on the dock, laughing with friends and enjoying the amazing vistas. I am going to miss going to Casa del Mundo and jumping off the balconies into the freezing yet refreshing water. I am going to miss the air, the boat rides, the memories and the beauty.

#7.

#7. Mari

Laying outside the house/protecting us!

I am going to miss Mari, the loyal street dog that has taken residence at the volunteers house for the past year and maybe even longer.  She sleeps on a chair that we have outside, she eats our left over food, she greets us outside the house in the morning and when we come back from work at night. She has now taken to following us (Yvonne and I) to school in the morning and standing with us while the kids have formation/line up in the morning. Mari has been such a fun/loving addition to our living experience here at NPH and I am going to miss seeing her jumping up and down as I walk down the stairs from work or following me to the back of the house when I wash my dishes to see if there is anything left over for her.

In formation...standing infront of Yvonne and I

#8.

#8. Los Colores

I am going to miss the vibrant colors of Guatemala. Whether you are walking to the market to buy fruits and vegetables,  watching a sunset or passing by a woman in traditional dress...the streets of Guatemala are always alive with color. The traditional dress of the men, women and children range from every color in the rainbow and the markets are always bursting with fresh fruit in yellows, greens and reds. I am going to miss the vibrance and the warmth of these colors that I have grown so accustomed to over the last year.

#9.

#9. Esme

Esme is one of the girls in my section who has greeted me with hugs and giggles from the beginning. She is pint size, but has the personality of a giant. Esme is always yelling, laughing, telling jokes, running around the section, talking about how much she loves Jaden Smith and singing High School Musical songs at the top of her lungs. I am going to miss her bubbly personality, her hugs, our talks laying in her bed at night, pausing the radio every two seconds so we can write down the lyrics to her favorite songs, her teaching me crazy dance moves and just spending time together.

Modeling photo shoot....

Hanging in the section with Lupe.

Looking at magazines from the states......very excited!

Turkey hands in English!

Things I am going to miss....

Over the past few days it has hit me that I am only going to be leaving Guatemala soon and heading back to the states. It wasn't until today when I was looking at my calendar that I realized that I only have 10 more days and I can't stop thinking of all the things I am going to miss about being here. Over the next ten days I am going to share with you/show you all the things I am going to miss.
( Idea stolen from Molly Malone.)

#10. The babies! I am going to miss my daily intake of hanging out with the babies section (a group of eight boys between the ages of 2 and 4). They have the amazing talent of always making me smile and laugh. I am going to miss their hugs, their kisses, their loud voices, their pronunciation of my name, their love for my colored sun glasses and seeing their smiling faces every day.

So long, farewell....

It is a tradition here at NPH to have a despedida (farewell party) with the section of boys/girls that you have been spending time with all year. Spending time with my section of girls was by far the best part of my NPH experience. We spent many a night laughing, telling stories, braiding each others hair, reading magazines, playing cards, breaking out hilarious dance moves and singing to the newest pop songs. This past month the sections all changed so we decided to have a despedida for the whole girls house..around 100 girls. We had a afternoon full of water, screaming, laughing, ice cream and fun music. The other volunteers in the girls house and I set up a home made slip and slide, we had water balloons, the girls bobbed for apples and everyone got a kick out of spraying one another with the hose. 

Being sprayed with the hose!

Slipping and sliding....

Don't let the water balloon break...

Ice cream!

Group shot- Me, Nanna, Sam, Nika, Carrie, Erika
and the gaggle of girls!

Somos muy buenos amigos....(buenas amigas)

This past weekend it hit me that my time at NPH is coming to an end and my time with my amazing friends that I have made here is also coming to an end. I know that the relationships I have formed here are friends that I will have forever, but we will no longer be living together, laughing until we are basically peeing our pants, drinking way too much Gallo around the kitchen table, sharing secrets, traveling to crazy beautiful places, working together, crying together.....it will be different.

What did we do to celebrate our time together and despidir Molly (the first to head off) we went to a concert of a local Guatemalan band,La Gran Calabaza in Antigua and danced and sung the night away. It was a blast.

Dinner/Garden party before the concert at Alejandro's house!

Donations

NPH Guatemala has recently finished constructing a  Montessori school, which serves kids from preschool through kindergarten. The Montessori school consists of seven rainbow colored buildings, which hold the main classrooms, therapy offices, a recreation center and an English classroom. 

A few months ago I had asked if anyone was interested in donating supplies or money to help me create a positive and constructive learning environment for the kids. I can't believe the amount of people who were willing to donate and help set up the classroom. Some generously offered money to build all of the furniture needed for the classroom and others sent amazing materials.

Due to the generosity of your donations these kids now have what they need to learn and all the materials to make learning fun! Thank you.

Check out all the donations...