First Day at a Guatemala Orphanage


The warm sun shone through the hostel's curtains and onto my face as I woke up reminding me I wasn't in Canada anymore. The night before we had arrived in Rio Dulce at about 10 o'clock after a 5 hour bus ride. My gut tightened with anticipation as I wondered what the first day of volunteering at Casa Guatemala would be like. After packing up and grabbing a quick bite to eat at Hotel Backpackers, the hostel we were staying at, we got into the small motorboat that was going to take us to the orphanage.

Climbing aboard I thought I saw something glinting on the captain's belt. Looking closer I...

I just thought i'd inform you on what an average week is like for us on Tanna, Vanuatu:

Monday- We wake up somewhere between 6:30 and 7:30 - sometimes as early as 4 if a cow is having a baby, the roosters have congregated outside our window, or the boys are chasing the chickens, trying to catch them for eggs. I don't think they quite understand that a chicken has to lay the eggs first. (My brother says, "First I gotta catch the chicken, then I gotta SQWEEEZE it till an egg pops out!")

Monday is when three girls are on food detail. Monday can sometimes be an adventure. (Blind-mans kamala will never be forgotten. Especially since the kamala was actually a giant yam.) This happens to also be market day, so...