The pandemic has already robbed us of one trip to Guatemala this year. Many people might be concerned that it is too early to return to Guatemala, despite the airports having reopened last month. We’re going, and we are taking every precaution to keep ourselves and others safe!

RESTRICTIONS AND GUIDELINES

The government of Guatemala currently has restrictions on who can enter Guatemala at the airport. Tourists must come with a negative covid test result that was tested within 72 hours of entry. Tourists also fill out a Health Pass (questionnaire) before arrival, and are subject to being turned away at the airport if they show symptoms, such as fever.

But, if those criteria are met, you’re in! Once “in” of course there are still mask mandates, social distancing, a limit of 10 people in your group, and transportation providers operating at 50% capacity.

PRECAUTIONS WE ARE TAKING

We have limited our group size to six people. We have vowed to wear our masks at all times (unless we are in our Airbnb) and we will be packing plenty of sanitizer, disinfectant, a contactless forehead thermometer, an oximeter and dozens and dozens of face masks.

We have decided not to frequent any public market, national tourist attraction, or visit any schools while children are present.

WHAT WILL WE BE DOING?

Thankfully, there are still many things that we can do and that we plan to accomplish during our 10-day trip! We will:

• deliver chickens through our 10 Bucks a Cluck project to provide a protein source for malnourished families.
• donate and deliver water filters so that families can purify the water they collect from the river or closest water supply.
• hold activities with the sponsored students, in small batches.
• provide new chalkboards to the elementary school in Xabillagauch that were funded thanks to Tammi Poe’s Retirement fundraiser.
• drop off eyeglasses to a clinic, feminine hygiene to women’s groups, and first aid supplies to the bomberos!
• deliver vitamins and line the shelves of the bookcases at our two newest libraries in the Panimaches!!!

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And, intermingled with the service work, we will enjoy the opportunity to sprinkle in some cultural appreciation! Every trip we take we are eager and excited to learn more about Maya culture and traditions and customs celebrated by the people of Guatemala that we support.

On this trip, we will learn how wooden ceremonial masks are made and how they are worn during festivals and in traditional dances. We will also see a marimba performance and see a demonstration of the backstrap loom and foot loom!

We’re also looking forward to a painting class and a Mayan fire ceremony as well as lots of quiet, simple socially-distanced gatherings of friends and community leaders we’ve treasured over the years.

And yes! There will be games in the hotel lobby. What better game than UNO Guatemala. We sold almost a 1000 decks of this game throughout the year, and we still have about 250 decks left if you’d still like to buy one! (This link takes you to ChristmasInGuatemala.com, a sister site that we use for selling items from Guatemala. All proceeds benefit our projects!)

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?

Since we decided to donate two libraries at once (they are in the neighboring communities of Panimache Quinto Alto and Panimache Quinto Bajo) we are in need of a lot of children’s Spanish books! We are going to take all the books we’ve collected, but we’re still hoping for about 600 more between the two. If you can donate funds, shop on Amazon, or collect books to supplement what we already have, that would be great. This link shows several options for helping us out! https://www.guatsp.org/libraries/

A huge thank you goes to Peter Kaes and his family whose donation provided for the construction of ALL library furniture for both schools, mural paintings in both libraries, and a selection of books in K’iche’ — the Mayan language spoken in the homes of families living in those communities.

It is a privilege to provide a selection of books in their first language! Although children transition to Spanish when they start school, one of the most important ways to keep their culture alive is to maintain their language.

We look forward to sharing updates from Guatemala! The blog is underutilized the rest of the year, but we try to publish content every day while we are in Guatemala. Stay tuned!