We were a very energetic group of Canadian medical/dental professionals that walked off the plane yesterday in Guatemala City. Feed The Children Guatemalan staff welcomed us with hugs and two buses to transport us and all of our luggage. Twelve returning members were busily becoming reacquainted and laughing about memories from their Honduras trip, while welcoming six new team members and the exciting addition of a dental team.
The team was quickly settled into the hotel and spent the remainder of the day discussing logistics and sorting through the items that will be distributed to the visiting families at the clinics each day.
Today,(Sunday) we took a bus ride to the historical city of Antigua. Cobblestone streets still welcomed guests to this quaint city which was built in 1543.
As I stood on a rooftop overlooking the town, I could see hundreds of clay tiles on every roof – a sea of wavy terracotta baking in the hot sun. Warmly painted, connected homes lined the streets in every imaginable shade of gold, orange and rust. Ornate wrought iron decorated the windows that flourished with exotic flowers in reds and purples.
Along with us, many tourists wander through old cathedrals and abandoned convents wondering about the stories that the old stone walls would undoubtedly tell if only they could.
A fruit vendor stands beside a small cart preparing bags of papaya and pineapple which he sells to feed his family. Women hold hands with their little brown eyed daughters in typical dress making their way to the huge cathedral, while other women pass by our team carrying bundles of wood on their heads in order to cook their next meal.
Today we are tourists in this warm colorful city, but tomorrow at the first clinic in San Pedro Ayampuc, we become God’s hands and feet – doing His work with the use of stethoscopes and dental tools – a team of caring Canadians sharing God’s love with these beautiful people who really do need the hope that we have come to bestow.
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