La Sequia...The Drought

In the area where we work (Teustepe) normally the rainy season is from May/June-October/November. However, we have had a drought since August in an area that is already located in a drier zone. During the summer, December-May, the majority of the leaves fall off the trees, everything turns brown and there are no streams. The communities we work in are all agricultural based, so they only have work in the winter (May/June-October/November). Due to the drought most farmers did not make any money this past year and to make it worse they were unable to store up food for the dry months (summer). So if you don't have enough food saved up and no money because you had no harvest to sell...what do you eat? We know several families that only eat once a day or twice a day but they only have corn tortillas and rice trying to stretch out the food they have until their next harvest. Hearing these stories makes my heart ache because all of my needs are met and how I never worry about if I will have enough food for my family. To add to this when we visit people they always give us food or a drink because that is their culture, but I think to myself save this food or your money for your family, but I can't say that because I would offend them. As you can imagine it is hard to figure out how I can help when there are so many people suffering. One thing the government has done is a work program for food. The may be working on roads or other city buildings and instead of being payed they are given bags of rice, beans, corn for their families.

Bramadero, the community we lived in part of our first year, is having issues with their well...it is drying up. The water project was completed November 2007, when we arrived. This community has struggled more then other communities when it comes to water. Before AsoFenix installed the water system the community had hand dug 18 wells that never filled with water or dried up after one season, so they had to walk 45 minutes to another community for water. Usually, it was women and children that carried the 5 gallon buckets on their heads. Now we are seeing that due to the drought the level of water in the well is dropping. We have had to lower the pump twice, but it takes the pump 4-5 days to fill the 5, 000 gallon tank that feeds the village, so the community only has access to water every 4-5 days. AsoFenix is concerned about whether there will be enough water for the rest of the dry season and looking for funding to dig another well. Since the water level is dropping we have encouraged the other communities we work in to conserve their water to prevent being caught in the same situation.

In fact, the drought has been so bad that it has caught national attention, on the front page of the national newspaper (La Prensa) there was an article of the severity of the situation in Boaco and how Teustepe has been hit the hardest. The drought has been so bad that people's cattle are dying because there is not enough food or water. People do not have enough food and in some cases there is not enough water for drinking. We are now entering the hottest time of the dry season with hopes that the well in Bramadero will not dry up, their will be enough food for families and that the winter begins on time and brings with it plenty of rain.

A Different World

We meet up with Seth's parents in Guatemala for a vacation in January. Seth and I had been to Guatemala 10 years ago, but it was with our study abroad program, so we did not get to do much exploring. Mike and Dee had never been there, so it was an adventure for all of us. We rented a car so that made traveling much easier....we ended up driving a total of 900 miles. Guatemala is the size of New Jersey, which is smaller than Nicaragua.


We started from Guatemala city and headed northeast towards Tikal. We stayed at a nice finca (farm) about two hours south of Tikal, called Finca Ixobel. We had time to hike up a very steep hill called the pyramid, enjoying the scenery and taking a refreshing dip in the lagoon. From there we headed further north to El Remate, located on lake Peten Itza, which was where we based out of to go to Tikal. We did enjoy a cool dip in the lake before we headed to see the Mayan ruins. We spent one late afternoon at Tikal and then got up to see sunrise from the highest temple in the park...however it was too foggy to ever see the sunrise or even a view at all. The temples were fascinating to see and climb, as well as to hear about the Mayan history.

We then headed south towards Flores, an island on lake Peten Itza, that looks like it should belong in Europe. The buildings were tall and close together, something I picture in Europe. We continued heading south towards Coban, which was the starting point for our next adventure. The road to Semuc Champey was a steep, winding dirt road that was a little scarry at times and longer then we anticipated, but it was well worth it. Swimming in the limestone pools was incredible, as well as seeing the forceful river go under ground into a cave, which is what the limestone pools were on top of. We had the opportunity to see our friend, Jenny, from ECHO while we were in Semuc Champey and Coban. it was great to see her and find out how she enjoys living in Guatemala. She is working with Food for the Hungry there and is planning on continuing her work there for as long as needed.


We stayed in a town called Panajachal located at Lake Atitlan. However, there were several towns scattered around the lake, each with their own cultural aspect. There are many Mayan people groups that live throughout Guatemala and there were several different groups living around the lake. The women in the different groups have their own dress that is distinctive to their people group, so one could look at their dress and know what people group they are from (of course we could not). We saw women through out Guatemala in their traditional clothing, but we did not see any men until we went to some of the towns around lake Atitlan. I was so intrigued by the traditional dress of both the men and the women and I think it was because it is so different than Nicaragua.


While at the Lake we hiked in a small natural reserve and Seth and Mike had a little adventure of their own...zip lining. Dee and I actually finished our hike before they reached the bottom. The hike was not very long, but they both also said it was the longest zip line course they had ever done...who would have thought Guatemala would have that. We also took a boat tour of the lake and visited three other towns on the lake where we saw more men dressed in traditional clothing. We of course enjoyed eating breakfast at lake side cafes, the gorgeous sunsets behind the volcanoes and a little shopping.

We also really enjoyed the climate, it was cooler than what we are used to in Nicaragua, so it was a welcomed changed. Guatemala is a beautiful country with so much diversity. It was a wonderful time to spend with Mike and Dee and share a new experience in another country.