Written by Central America Students, Ari Cochrane & Jess Solit
Greetings from our team’s latest adventure! We ventured to Comalapa to collaborate with Long Way Home (LWH), an organization dedicated to sustainable living and community development. Here’s a glimpse of what we’ve been up to:
- Learned about sustainable living practices
- Worked on a retaining wall made out of tires
- Helped build houses out of cob (dirt, sand, water, pine needles)
- Explored Mayan ruins, attended a ceremony, and experienced the lasting indigenous culture
- Walked around the city, learning about Comalapa’s history through its 600-foot mural and during culture night led by the community and wonderful students of Escuela de Heroes.
Our Top Highlights of the Week:
🍲 Nico’s incredible, unique food and expert teaching skills. We loved every meal, and we were so surprised by the variety he provided each day.
🎶 Culture night, the students teaching us dances to go with their amazing marimba playing and the tasty homemade tostadas.
🎨 Observing all the incredible art in this town built on artistry and creativity.
🤝 Befriending the wonderful staff and volunteers at Long Way Home.
What’s been challenging this week?
- Building the tire wall definitely pushed us to our limits of strength and endurance, but the real challenge here was taking cold showers every night.
What are you most grateful for this week?
- The Community
- New skills and growth we experienced
- The beautiful environment that we learned to appreciate
