Stephanie's Update From Guatemala
hello everyone...
My father and i made it to guatemala city safely last night, although our journey was long, difficult, and at times frightneing. the trip usually is only about 2 1/2 hours, but it took us over 10 hours. yesterday and the day before the guatemalan gov´t was offering help for foreigners to get to guatemalan city and we were the last group to leave...we left lake atitlan with a military escort and drove a few miles until we couldn't pass because of mudslides.
We then hiked through dirt, rocks, etc. in the pouring rain with all of our bags for 2 miles up a mountain where other vechicles took us to our next stop and there with 100+ foreigners we waited for more transportation. they arrived and we drove thorugh rain and fog to guatemala city and drove through more mudslides, so we stopped often where the road only could allow one way; also there were parts of the road that had broken off and there was no road because it had fallen down a hill...we were also able to see the other most affected areas. we arrived to the central tourism office where all of the foreign embassies were waiting to assist their citizens. we will luckily leave on schedule tomorrow.
One village was buried by the mudslide from a volcano is across the lake from where we are staying...we were supposed to visit my artisians there on friday because it is where all of the women and men who bead coleccion luna jewelry live. i have had some contact with some of them and he is okay and his house is supringsly still there, but all of the women who work with him lost everything. i hope to hear more news soon on the fate of the rest of my artisians that live there. where we were staying in panajachel-a 5 minute walk from my hotel was where the river grew 10 xs its normal size and washed away hundreds of homes.
Idon´ t think i have really processed evrything i have experinced here; the images i have seen and stories i have heard. i feel blessed my dad and i are alive and safe and have a home to go to tomorrow...
My business Coleccion Luna will donate 10% of november sales to my artisians around lake atitlan and the money will go directly to them when i return in early december...not through any agency. i appreciate all of your offers to help and assist those who lost everything...
Stephanie
www.coleccionluna.com
My father and i made it to guatemala city safely last night, although our journey was long, difficult, and at times frightneing. the trip usually is only about 2 1/2 hours, but it took us over 10 hours. yesterday and the day before the guatemalan gov´t was offering help for foreigners to get to guatemalan city and we were the last group to leave...we left lake atitlan with a military escort and drove a few miles until we couldn't pass because of mudslides.
We then hiked through dirt, rocks, etc. in the pouring rain with all of our bags for 2 miles up a mountain where other vechicles took us to our next stop and there with 100+ foreigners we waited for more transportation. they arrived and we drove thorugh rain and fog to guatemala city and drove through more mudslides, so we stopped often where the road only could allow one way; also there were parts of the road that had broken off and there was no road because it had fallen down a hill...we were also able to see the other most affected areas. we arrived to the central tourism office where all of the foreign embassies were waiting to assist their citizens. we will luckily leave on schedule tomorrow.
One village was buried by the mudslide from a volcano is across the lake from where we are staying...we were supposed to visit my artisians there on friday because it is where all of the women and men who bead coleccion luna jewelry live. i have had some contact with some of them and he is okay and his house is supringsly still there, but all of the women who work with him lost everything. i hope to hear more news soon on the fate of the rest of my artisians that live there. where we were staying in panajachel-a 5 minute walk from my hotel was where the river grew 10 xs its normal size and washed away hundreds of homes.
Idon´ t think i have really processed evrything i have experinced here; the images i have seen and stories i have heard. i feel blessed my dad and i are alive and safe and have a home to go to tomorrow...
My business Coleccion Luna will donate 10% of november sales to my artisians around lake atitlan and the money will go directly to them when i return in early december...not through any agency. i appreciate all of your offers to help and assist those who lost everything...
Stephanie
www.coleccionluna.com
posted by Rpreiditsch at 8:37 PM
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