Trip to Chichi and the Temple in Xela

I'm afraid that our wonderful, information packed two weeks are about to end but what a wonderful ending it was.  There is a Guatemalan couple who work in the temple who basically have no money.  I was told that they sold their car so that they could come and serve.  I had heard that she had served a mission as a single sister a long time ago in Xela and I thought it would be wonderful to let her and her husband join us for the trip.  I was trying to invite her one morning and she doesn't understand me any better than I understand her.  As a blessing from on high a sister from the ward that we attend walked in at that moment.  She is a graduate of BYU, the wife of a past mission president in Mexico and speaks English fluently.  Little did I know that she had also invited the sister of this couple to live at her home years ago when the family that she was living with moved away.  

I asked Sister Mijangos if she would please tell Sister Reyna that I wanted to treat her and her husband on a trip to Xela.  Sister Mijangos said that she wanted to come, too, and I thought that was great. She knows the Reynas and can interpret.  I invited her to invite another sister to join her for a companion in the travel.  Sister Mijangos ended up being a life saver with the Reyna's.  I had no way of contacting them and neither did President Norman.  They had not returned from their home town to the temple housing.  I only had a email address for Sister Mijangos but thankfully she saw my message of concern and called me.  She was able to contact them and they caught a bus at 4:30 AM and were ready to leave with us at 6 AM.  

The other missionary couple who were traveling with us also split the cost and Sister Mijangos paid the expenses for the sister she invited so the five of us each paid about $92 for the nine (we included the LDS bus driver in everything) for two full days travel and a night in the temple housing.  What a wonderful deal that was.  

There were three more spots that I wanted to see if I didn't get any more travel in Guatemala. The first was Chichicastenango.  I'll quote here what Lonely Planet says about it:

"Surrounded by valleys with mountains serrating the horizons, Chichicastenango can seem isolated in time and space from the rest of Guatemala. When its narrow cobbled streets and red-tiled roofs are enveloped in mist, it's downright magical. The crowds of crafts vendors and tour groups who flock in for the huge Thursday and Sunday markets lend it a much worldlier, more commercial atmosphere, but Chichi retains its mystery. Masheños (citizens of Chichicastenango) are famous for their adherence to pre-Christian beliefs and ceremonies, and the town's various cofradías (religious brotherhoods) hold processions in observance of their saints around the church of Santo Tomás."

I was warned to take Dramamine because of the winding road, which I did and it helped.  We stopped for breakfast about two hours out of town and then began the winding and climbing road to Chichi.  

The first vendor that I passed was selling chickens.  I had already taken a picture before she waved me off. 

I put my camera away and the rest of the pictures that you see here were taken from the internet.  Mike bought a very expensive wool hooded cape which he claims that he will wear outside when it is cold and wet.  I hope he will use it.  It is very classy looking.  I teased him that he has spent far more on his items that I have even dreamed of spending and many of mine are to give away.  

 They had by far the best collection of nativities I have seen at any of the markets but I have purchased many and don't know for sure how many I want to replace from the others that I have bought.  Because they are clay and have weight I will only bring the ones I need.

There were wonderful painted animals, masks and I almost bought a beautifully made jacket with their traditional weave and lined but the colors didn't "sing" to me. 

 

We had agreed to meet in one hour and that helped me to keep from spending more.   When I talked to Chris Norman this morning she said that Chichi made her claustrophobic.  I felt that it was more open that many places that we have visited and then it dawned on me that we went straight there after breakfast and were part way there when we stopped for breakfast.  I had read about the horrible crowds, now that I think about it but we got there just as most shops were opening, thus no crowds.  

If I were to get to go shopping at only one place in Guatemala this would be the spot.  I would start early on a Thursday morning (the market is open on Thursday and Saturday) and beat the crowds but enjoy the unbelievable amount of lovely items.Quetzaltenango led Xela after a Mayan chief who had saved the town. It is the second largest city in the country.  It has a totally different feeling than the capital city.  It is cooler, less crowded and the temple was built in 2011 and is much larger and more spacious than the Guatemala City temple.  We stopped at a mall near the temple and had okay food court food. It was amazing to drive out of that parking lot and start up a hill that overlooked the whole city and there sat the temple.

 

I had started getting a cold, no doubt from the changing temperatures and no regular sleep and so we decided to attend a later session and I took a nap.  The four Guatemalans got into the afternoon session and we got in the 7 PM session with our bus driver.  I took this picture of the temple as we left the temple housing to walk over. 

The next morning we had breakfast at the temple housing, took some pictures and left to see the town. 

It was Friday, the day of President Monson's funeral, thus the flag at half mast. 

 We had lovely rooms.  Ours had two sets of bunks and a twin, a nice bathroom with separate shower, toilet and double sink areas.  I guess that there are some temple missionaries who live in one part of the building and the distribution center is under this end of the building.  They cost us about $7 per person for the night. 

This is Elder Holman chatting with a temple gardener.  He was a returned missionary and spoke a bit of English. 

  This is one of many shots that we took of the whole group with the temple in the background. 

 Hector Gutierrez our driver, Elder Holman, Sister Silvana de Mijangos,  Sister Gloria Garcia, Sister Holman, Elder Renya, Mike, Sister Renya and me. Sylvia is the one who went to BYU and her husband was a mission president in Mexico.  He passed away from diabetes.  Sister Garcia is 79 and spends Friday morning from 9 until 9 PM working at the temple.  No one puts in longer shifts.  Sister Mijangos paid her way and the Holman's and we paid the rest.  It worked out great.  

 Downtown by the square.

 

We drove across the city and wound up and and up a mountain until we reached this park and monument.  This group was obviously studying about the leader that the monument was made in honor of.  There were many pick-up trucks that were obviously the means of transportation for all of them and there was one speaker or leader.

We stopped part way down and took some pictures of the valley and the city. 

You can see the temple across the valley.

 We asked Sister Renya if things were like they were when she served there on her mission.  She said, "not at all" it has been 35 years and all of this is new."

When we got back downtown we stopped at a bakery.  Each person got a basket with a pair of tongs and put what they wanted in their basket and then took it up to the counter to pay.  Here are just a few pictures of the treats. 

From Xela we headed to Solola'.  It is supposed to have a famous Friday morning market. It is famous not so much for tourist shopping but for the Mayans and others shopping from and with each other.  Mike and I mentioned even before we were told that the shops along the street seemed to be filled with native shoppers rather than with tourists. We stopped at the town square and got some of the pictures that we wanted but really didn't go to a market. This area is famous for people wearing the more traditional clothing yet you will also see a mix. 

The one girl is totally traditional while the other is half and half. 

This is probably one of my favorite pictures from the whole trip.

We headed home after visiting Solola' and we stopped for dinner at the Swiss place that we ate at on our first trip.  

I may be a slow learner but I do learn.  Before my meal I had a nutella, cream, strawberry crepe'.  I shared it with my table and then sent tastes to the remainder when I realized I hadn't shared.  It was SO worth it.  

It is Saturday and I am still in my PJ's at 7 PM.  I finally called the doctor to get some help with my hands.  More Benedril and Cortozone cream.  Cold is appreciating the rest.

I may add more pictures at some point but you have a pretty good summary.