Overview of Guatemala Missions Trip

July 9 – 13 and July 9-16

As you consider and pray about your participation in the Guatemala missions trip, here are a few things to help you understand the country, the tasks we might participate in, and some general health and lodging items.

1. Purpose of the Trip: To reach people in the Chiquimula area of Guatemala with the gospel of Christ by enabling and supporting the work of Myra Smith and her church. Minister to the people and to Myra Smith, the single missionary working in Chiquimula.

2. Trip Dates: You will notice that you have two options for this trip. You can go 4 days and this will give you a feel for the area and people and what God is doing in Chiquimula without taking too much vacation or being away from your family for too long. I will be staying a full week and you are welcome to stay that long and serve.

3. Area: Guatemala is located in Central America; the capital, Guatemala City, is the arrival point and Chiquimula is located slightly north and west of the capital, which is about a 3-4 hour bus ride from the capital. In general, Guatemala is fairly safe—there are reports of petty crime (pick pocketing, etc.) to more violent crimes of thefts and hijacking of buses and cars. There is not an Anti-American sentiment in Guatemala and having traveled there four times in the last two years, I personally have never felt unsafe. There are armed guards (with very big guns) everywhere. They often make buses pull over for “checks.” There government is fairly stable, which helps to reduce violent crimes; however, poverty is rampant and the there are little to no social programs in Guatemala so crimes associated with poverty, drug use, etc. are plentiful.

Guatemala is a beautiful country – very mountainous and it has 22 volcanoes. To the far North of the capital is the jungle area; to the extreme south, beaches and water access. Chiquimula is a large, thriving town. A university is located there as well as a hospital and many business and open air markets. In July, Chiquimula will be hot. The walks up the mountains to visit families will be somewhat strenuous. If you walk regularly, you will be fine.

4. Getting there: We will take a major air carrier from Dulles to Guatemala City. Typically, the flight from here to Guatemala City is a little over 4 hours. It is possible on Taca to fly direct or fly into San Salvador and in 35 minutes, be in Guatemala City. From Guatemala City, we will take a private bus to Chiquimula. The bus ride has taken me anywhere from 3 hours to 6 hours (the 6 hours was due to a strike by teachers)!

5. Lodging and Food: We will stay in a small hotel near Myra’s house. The rooms are clean but spartan. They have running water—may or may not be hot. They are also air conditioned. The hotel costs about $20 per person per night based on double occupancy. The rooms have two double beds, so you can share with your family or friend or choose to have your own room.

We will have no problem getting bottled water. It is not advisable to drink any of the well water in Guatemala. Our stomachs are not usually equipped to deal with the different microbes in their water and some of the water systems are impaired. We will have breakfast daily at the hotel. They serve eggs, pancakes, coffee and typical Guatemalan breakfast (beans, eggs, coffee). Lunches will be served from Myra’s house and are usually chicken, chicken and chicken  Seriously, she makes great chicken vegetable soup and chicken chow mein! There is a “Texaco” across the street and it has a small cantina and store similar to a Texaco station here in the states. You can get sodas, water, snacks, candy etc. there. We will also likely order out pizza for dinner one night—yep, even in remote Guatemala, they have great pizza and it is delivered too! The pizza store in Chiquimula City proper trained in NYC! It is truly a small world. We will probably go out to dinner one night in town and have a “typical” Guatemala meal.

6. Passports, Visas, Immunizations: Everybody traveling to Guatemala needs a passport. Passports require at least 12 weeks to process. There is NO Immunizations required for the part of Guatemala that we will be going to. Visas are NOT required for trips to Guatemala. Will Line will offer a passport “class” for those that are preparing their applications.

7. What we will do in Chiquimula: pray with families, visit them in their homes, serve meals and prepare food, do basic medical assessments (if we have a nurse in our group), visit with sponsored kids and their families, arts and crafts workshop for the kids, if the building is constructed, we could paint murals.

8. Cost: The cost for the trip we estimate is approximately $1000. Flights will run between $400-$600; private bus transportation is $50 per person RT; food will be around $15 per day and hotel is $20-$40 per day (all these costs are USD). The ministry asks that we donate $100 per person in addition to bringing some items for the ministry. We will likely talk about some fundraisers to offset our costs per person.

We will have an informational meeting sometime around February 8-10 to answer your questions and talk more about the trip!

Thanks for your interest!

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