Bucket List: Climb a Volcano... Check

So it wasn't really on my bucket list, but this past Sunday my teammates and I did in fact hike up an active volcano (Volcano Pacaya). If I stop to really think about that it is really pretty amazing and frankly a little terrifying since in reality it could have erupted again at any moment. The entire scene reminded me of the scene in the movie “The Lion King” where Simba is in the elephant graveyard with the hyenas hauntingly singing “be prepared”. That said it was also highly unlikely since we've been told that since the last eruption (about 5 years ago) the lava has all dried up and stopped flowing.

It took us about 2 hours with a guide to reach the “top”. No one is allowed (as far as I understand) to actually go to the very top/the crater because (or so my teacher says) some guy fell into the crater a while back. I'll be posting pictures and hopefully a couple short videos soon. The pictures don't quite do it justice though. The morning we were at the top there were a lot of clouds (some of it was steam too) so it was not possible to even see the summit. The lava field is really interesting. It's basically a wasteland of black lava rocks or various sizes from a fine sand up to massive boulders however, there is a lot of random green growth too because the soil is incredibly nutrient rich. At the top our guide gave us marshmallows to roast in a vent where steam was coming out. There was also this small vent that we could stand in and it felt like a sauna.

Right now I am sitting in one of the many cafes/ice cream shops near the central park. I have just noticed they can make a “chocolate mint frost” drink. It may be the closest thing to a “mint condition cooler” from Caribou Coffee I can find. I think this will definitely be one of my new places to study.

Speaking of studying I finally have “a lot” of homework. The first week my teacher never gave me any. Last week I learned the word for homework so I could finally ask for things to be assigned but most the time she would just tell me to study. While most people would be glad to not have homework I feel like it at least gives me some direction with studying. So now this week she has actually assigned me 4 worksheets. It's encouraging since my teammates (who all speak much better Spanish than I) have all been getting homework. I feel like maybe I now at the point where I've learned enough that she feels I'm capable of doing homework.

This morning for the 2^nd half of class my teacher, Laura, Laura's teacher and I all hiked up to this area called Cerro del la Cruz. It's basically an open park area on one of the small nearby mountains (more like a large hill). It over looks Antigua and directly faces Volcano Agua with 2 other volcanoes to the right.

All this week my teammates and I are volunteering as translators at a clinic. I don't go until Friday and I really don't know that I'll be of much assistance. Kiddissa is volunteering there Monday-Friday, Kevin is assisting Mon, Tuesday and Thursday. Laura is there for Monday and with me and Kiddissa on Friday. It should be very beneficial for Laura who is a nurse practitioner and will be our nurse at La Finca. I expect that I'll be simply pointing many various body parts and then pointing to words in my dictionary. It should be a good experience though and hopefully there are no emergencies.

Our team of 5 becomes complete this week as well. Emily arrives Wednesday from Colorado. She waited a couple weeks since she speaks more Spanish. I'm excited to meet her and complete our little family.

That's all for now :)

Make today your best one yet!
~ Katherine