A map showing the location of Guatemala in Central America (picture from here)

 

 

 

We travelled to Rabinal, ~40 miles North of Guatemala City (though it took 4 hours on a VERY windy road to get there). Here is some of the poor housing that was outside of Guatemala City.

 

 

 

 

Our destination was a really nice school on the outskirts of Rabinal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Surrounding the school were lots of animals, including several playful dogs and newly born chicks.

 

 

 

 

 

This school was built by Jesus Tecu, a survivor of the Rio Negro massacre (more below), who founded the Fundacion Nueva Esperanza, an organization committed to educating indigenous students around Rabinal.

 

Currently, over 150 students attend this school (equilivent to the level of a middle school) - and yes, they always find time to play futbol (i.e. scoccer).

 

 

We were able to spend some time with the students to play games (including one I'm convinced would be considered sexual harassment if done in a US school).

 

 

 

 

Our main goal was to continue construction of a fence that will surround the entire school.

 

 

 

 

 

During our trip, we had the opportunity to travel into Rabinal - and there's only one way to travel in Guatemala (13 of us fit quite nicely in the back):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once there, we spent time in the central market (below), next to the main church (left).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While walking around the city, we passed a cemetery that looked like a minature residential street.

 

 

 

 

Jesus (pictured second from the left) gave us a private tour of several memorials that are tributes to massacres that occured during the Guatemala Civil War that led to the death of over 100,000 innocent people. On this one, faces of three military men involved in the massacres were defaced. 

 

 

The more memorable of these was the one for the Rio Negro massacre, which lists the names of the >180 women and children murdered, including three of Jesus' brothers.

This memorial showed some of the brutal acts inflicted upon the women and children during the massacres.

 

 

Back at the school, we had the first (and only) downpour of the week, and what better way to enjoy it than to get soaked and play in the rain! (From left to right: John, Mark, Seth, Jacob, Me, Jessica, Ilana, and Douglas.)

 

What better way to end the week than with a hike up a hill with no trail and very (VERY) slippery leaves (and no, the camera was not angeled, it really was that steep).

But it was all worth it, with the incredible panaramic view of Rabinal and the surrounding hills at the top.

 

 

 

 

 

Here's some of the group (from left to right: Dara, Seth, Rabbi Avi, Me, Rebecca, Lillia, Mark, Mickey, and Chana)