Day Trip to San Marcos

Dear Moms and Dads,

Today was awesome!  We travelled to San Marcos.  We took a boat and picked up one of our tour guides, Jesse.  Next we went to the town.

First, we visited a Nutrition Centre, Kono Jel.  Everything was a short distance away.  When we arrived there were baking ingredients laid out, and cookies as well.  The women at the centre explained to us that they fed 60 kids every lunch during the week.  These kids are considered to be the most at-risk in the community.  They were very generous women.  After we explored the back of the centre.  There wasn’t much to explore, although there was an oven that only used sunlight to cook.  Next we came back to the front and made cookies.  We had to shave PANELA (a giant block of sugar cane).  They only used pure ingredients.  The women served us lunch – beans, rice, and tortillas.

Second, we hiked to a different yoga sanctuary – The Yoga Forest.  The sanctuary was high up the mountain.  The hike was around 20 minutes.  Climbing up we passed a beautiful waterfall.  When we arrived we moved into a hall overlooking the lake; the view was fantastic.  The purpose of the visit was to take part in a cacao ceremony.  I believe that the cacao was based on the Mayan tradition.  The cacao drink was awful, although that may be because I’m used to sweet candies. Our guide explained to us the story of the 20-day Mayan calendar.  Each day was represented by a different ceremony.  The cacao drink was placed in the centre of the circle and groups of three went at a given time to prevent an accident.  Honey was put out to make the drink sweeter; nothing happened.  We all drank at our own pace.  After we relaxed in Shavasana pose (resting pose) for at least an hour.  The pose uplifted me and only brought out positive energy.

The walk and boat ride back felt much shorter.  The group seems very relaxed now.  Dinner was as usual and now I am telling you the tale of our day.  There are many more inquiring and interesting days to come.

Regards, Imran

Thank you so much, Imran!  I was again impressed with all of our students participating with open minds and hearts and showing curiosity and respect for the people teaching them new things.  Tonight, Robert, the director of the yoga farm, is showing them some team games by candlelight.  It was cloudy today, so the solar recharging stations were not much help!  We have no power beyond batteries tonight.  Also, you should know that they don’t do Daylight Savings Time here in Guatemala, so we are now only an hour ahead of you at home.  Love and Hugs!

Miss Payne