Girls and Mountains

Utah has been great. I've been spending every second during the day with my adorable nieces, and every moment in the evening with Micheal Scofield as he runs from the law, you know...PB (Prison Break.)



Some of my adventures with my sister and her family, 'round town include the park, and David's Time to Talk T'ween Tunes concert at a local coffee shop, and the Cultural Arts Festival, at library square.

At the Park

Watching intently as Dave plays

The girls at bedtime

The Cultural Arts Festival

Surprisingly, today I ventured outside of my normal routine of going to the park in the morning and watching Prison Break in the afternoon, and headed for the mountains. I hiked the Pipeline at Millcreek canyon. with Solie, Sasha and Jean (Sasha's friend). It was a great change of pace, I love the mountains.

Salt Lake is so beautiful!

Road Trip

For the last few weeks I have been contemplating what to do with my life. I have made little progress considering everything from moving in with my parents until something comes along, to picking up and going to Bangladesh for the summer. So, when Sasha needed someone to drive with to Utah, I was open for the adventure.

First things first, we dolled up our feet and THEN hit road.

Cute!

Solie and Sasha. Solie FREAKED out and tried to climb in the front if Sasha ran over the "wakie-wakie grids" on the side road.

Me in the hotel...ready to go

A cotton CANDY cloud

UTAH!

Another successful adventure.

Home again

My sweet nephew made this welcome home sign for me

Well I made it home. It was so wonderful to see most of my family...although I wish that they could have all been there. We were missing this one...

Seppo

Of course, it was so fun to see my nieces and nephew

4 of my little angels

Here are some photos of my trip home.

Someone got a new car

Papa and Aila

Timo and Sofi

Sofia Annuka

Helena Satu

Unfortunately, I am still faced with the question "what next?" For the first time in my life, I have no idea what next month will bring. I don't even know where I'll be living. I am TOTALLY open for suggestions from Alaska to South Dakota (well maybe not South Dakota).

Ultimate Semana in Guatemala

I can't believe that my time in Guatemala has come and go, and now I am back home. It all feels like a dream. A really wonderful dream. The last week was just as amazing as the previous 12.

Karaoke. Sasha and I had gone to this club a few times. Thursday nights is Karaoke. I thought it would be fun to sing, I mentioned that to Sasha and she encouraged me to get up and sing. If I chose a song everyone knew people would sing a long.

From this experience, I learned that
1. When I am nervous I sing high and my voice cracks
2. Not many Latinos know the song Bridge Over Troubled Water
3. As Sasha told me later "that song was not a very good song to sing to."
















Dinner at the school














SCUBA diving. I certified while in Panama, and I wanted to dive one more time before I came back. So I made the trek to Lago Atitlan and dove in a high altitude volcanic lake. The site we dove at was named Agua Caliente (hot water). It is a deceptive name. I was hoping that the water would be warm...it wasn't, just the mud at the bottom. I could have left my hands in the mud all day.










Pedicures! Happy Birthday Sasha!










Now to figure out my next adventure...

Love in Guatemala

Sasha left this morning to go back to the states. I cant believe that my trip is almost over. I left wondering why I am heading home so soon. All of a sudden I dont feel ready to face the reality that I am homeless, jobless, and have no solid plans for the future. I would rather be in my pretend life in Guatemala going to school five hours a day, using my dictionary to read the newspaper, and crowding onto a chicken bus in order to go for an adventure for the weekend.

The difficulty of leaving is amplified by the realization that I have fallen in love with Guatemala. I think it may be one of the most wonderful places in the world. I cant wait to come back here...next year ;)

(Since I dont have a way to upload pictures (because sasha left with her connecter) Here is a glimpse into what I am seeing and listening to.

This song is playing in the internet cafe:



And when I look out the door of the internet cafe, I see something like this:



I hope I see all of you soon!

Holy Week and Not So Holy Weekend

(continued from last post)

Holy week in Antigua was amazing. We were fortunate to be there Wed, Thurs, and Good Friday. The streets were packed with tourists, processions, and alfombras (carpets) made from ...everything (colored saw dust, flowers, plants, eggs, corn husk dolls...there was even one that had a turtle in it.)

Mom and me in front of an alfombra

My dad waiting patiently while we shopped

Look how cute we are

Look how cute they are

Men carrying painting of saints

Roman Soldiers

Colored saw dust for the carpet

I was impressed

And so was Emily

Look, a turtle and chips

It is made from saw dust, if you can believe it

Jesus with silver lips

An alfombra with astramaria, my favorite flower

The Good Friday procession (yes that is a volcano in the back ground)

Sadly my parents had to leave on Friday. So, Emily and I decided to meet Sasha and Rudy at the beach (we didn´t have any other options because the country shuts down on Good Friday).

Although, the beach felt a little bit like spring break 1999, I had a good time riding horses and visiting the tortuga sanctuary.

Emily and Pollo

Kirsti and Pepe

Looking at aligators

Horseback riding on the beach

The car broke down. Rudy fixed with a paper clip. Emily felt very strongly about this
(sorry Emily, I had to post this photo)

Back in Xela the following day, Emily had a little easter surprise for Sasha and me.

Seriously, yum!

Yum

On Sunday we were watched a reenactment of the crucifixion and resurrection. It was definately interesting. At the end there was confetti and a rock band.

We went to the nearby graveyard you know, for a visit.

Sasha, Emily, and Me


Thanks for coming Mom, Dad, Timo and Emily!!