It's Almost Over

Hey everyone!
Well, I’m in Mexico right now. And it’s raining. And it’s supposed to rain for a while. So much for coming home tan . No, but we’ve had a lot of fun. The last email I sent I wrote from our house in Guatemala, but it took me a while to send it. Since then we’ve had a lot of adventures. We picked up our friends that Thursday and then Friday went to the temple in Guatemala City. We took them to Antigua and then Saturday headed down to Lake Atitlan.

We took a boat over to Santiago, near one of the volcanoes. It is so pretty down there, but so touristy. Sunday we went to church in Solola where one of the missionaries I taught is serving. It was neat to see him. The church building was one of the prettiest I’ve ever seen and it had a great view of the lake and volcano. We headed back up to Chimaltenango and then Luis drove us up to Flores. Monday we took everyone to see Tikal. This time we got a guide and it was really cool to hear all the history. We were also able to give him a book of Mormon so that was neat. That afternoon we headed to Belize. Just minutes after crossing the boarder there was a night and day difference in everything. You could tell that Belize hasn’t been a war-torn country and that their government for the most part takes care of the people. The standard of living was so different there. We made our way to san Ignacio and on Tuesday we went on the most amazing adventure. We went to Actun Caves. We hiked for about 45 minutes, crossing a river three times. Then to enter the cave we had to swim in. We spent about 3 and a half hours swimming, hiking, and climbing around inside. We made our way to an open cavern where the Maya had done rituals and sacrifices. It’s all still in tact. Ill try to send pictures later, but you should all get on the internet and look up Actun cave in Belize to see it. Wednesday morning we got up early, took a bus to Belize City, and then a boat taxi out to Caye Caulker, one of the keys off the coast. We spent 3 days out there and had amazing weather.

Thursday we went sailing and snorkeling all day.......and during our snorkeling we swam with sharks and stingrays. I’m not kidding. They were some descent sized sharks too. The guides through some food into the water to attract oh....I’d say around 30...and then they told us to jump in. So we did. It was pretty sweet.

We spent all day Saturday traveling up here to Playa del Carmen. I’m excited for the beach if it will stop raining. Yesterday we went to church and another elder that I taught was there too. It has been so neat to run into missionaries I’ve taught and to see them in action. We went to Tulum, some Mayan ruins on the coast. If I had been a Mayan, I definitely would have liked to live there. Tomorrow we are going to Cancun, and then Wednesday we fly out in the afternoon. I think I’m ready to be done. I miss Guatemala, but I’m tired of traveling and doing the whole tourist thing. I miss talking with the native people and working with them. Right now feel like we are in Las Vegas on the beach. But I can’t complain too much......the toilet paper in our hotel is scented. That’s pretty swanky if you ask me. Well, thank you all again for your support. See you in a few days.
Love Kirsti

Santiago was a fun little city. Really touristy, but fun. We paid our little friend Pedro to take us to see Maximo, some Mayan idol that they do rituals around every day. It was kind of weird but kind of cool too. We also went to the catholic church. They had some memorial cites inside for those that were killed during the civil war. We went back to Panajachel for dinner and to sleep. Jeff got really sick, so in the morning only 7 of us went to Solola for church. Elder Reeder and his companion met us at the bus stop and we all went up together. They have one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. Nicer than a lot of the ones in the states. And the view overlooks the Lake and a volcano. Elder Reeder is such a solid missionary. It was neat to be able to see him in the field. After sacrament meeting we went back to Pana to see if Jeff was ready to make the trek back to Chimalt. We got back a little after noon and at 1:00 Luis came to take us up to Flores. We slept there and got up early to go to Tikal. We git a guide and it was worth it. It was seriously so cool to learn all about Tikal. Around 2:00 Luis dropped us off at the bus station and we headed for Belize. One more stamp in the passport. There was such an immediate difference in the two countries. It was amazing to see what civil wars and corrupt governments do to countries. Belize was so much cleaner and safer. We spent the night in San Ignacio and Tuesday morning went on a tour of Actun Cave. What a cool experience!!! We hiked up to a mountain with an opening to a cave that you had to swim through. We then hiked/swam through the cave until we climbed up a ladder to chambers that the Maya used for sacrifices and rituals. There were intact skeletons and so much history. I've never done or seen anything like it. We stayed the night in San Ignacio again in a cute little boarding house. Then got up early and headed out to Caye Cauker. It is so beautiful here. We are on a tiny little white-sand beach island. Our hotel is right on the beach. Yesterday we did a full day snorkeling tour that was awesome!! We swam with sharks and sting rays and got to sail the Caribbean Sea. It was amazing!