Friday morning update

Good morning from beautiful downtown Santiago, Guatemala. After a reasonbly uneventful day's travel from Jutiapa we arrived here yesterday evening about 5. We had a little rain along the way, but it was a blessing in that it kept us cool. Of course it made the narrow winding mountain roads a little more entertaining, but our bus drivers are excellent and we arrived without incident.

We are staying at a hotel called Tiosh Abaj (www.tioshabaj.com if you want to check it out). It is a beautiful spot right on Lake Atitlan. Lots of birds and lush gardens and barking dogs and crowing roosters and everything else that makes Guatemala such an enchanting place.

Sorry I do not have any new pictures to post at the moment. We will add some over the day and get input from the students and post something later today as well.

I will take this opportunity to say that this group of students has been outstanding. They have encountered many things: new food, "interesting" living conditions, challenging service opportunities, and not-so-certain schedules. Through all of it they have not complained or given up or disengaged. I am truly impressed with their heart for service and for all the people we have encountered. Thank you for entrusting them to me and the rest of the leadership team.

Thank you for your support of and prayers for our team. We have seen God work in so many ways during these past two weeks, and you have been a big part of that. We will be sad to leave this country and these people, but I think we are all ready to be home. See you in a few more days!

Tim