Last day at La Selva

Today has been really emotional as we spent our last day at the school.

The children spent the whole of the morning session finishing their posters on the ozone layer, deforestation, water pollution, litter, noise pollution and smog. They were so brilliant, and really enjoyed it. Once again I had to fight back the urge to train as a primary school teacher when I get home!!!!

At the end of the day, T and I received little pressies with a terribly formal speech given by 2 of the children. We were really touched, and will keep our pressies for ever! I always feel so strange when I see children here. It's that knowledge that I won't ever see them again, and I'll never know what happened to them and how their lives turned out. The future of Guatemala is uncertain, although I hope that the atrocities of the civil war will never be repeated, it's hard to know what exactly will happen. There are so many challenges here, and I wonder how they will be overcome. But then, I mustn't underestimate the power of the human spirit.

In the meantime, strikes are continuing to protest against the Central American Free Trade Agreement, and our teacher Olga, is becoming concerned about money as the strikes go on next week.

With only 5 days left in Xela, wandering around the streets has also become an emotional experience. Xela feels like a comfy jumper that I don't want to take off. There's so much here to love, especially the people. I love the people on my bus in the morning to La Selva. There are the man and woman that sit at the back, giggling as though they are lovestruck teenagers, and the man that shouts out every time we go over a bump, there are the other 2 teachers at the school - they were profuse in their thanks for our help today, and promised us that the door of the school will always be open for us. Then there's the driver with his big smile and even bigger leather hat, and his assistant, the guy that's always running up and down the ladder and carrying peoples luggage and livestock onto the roof while the bus is moving! And all the people in the villages that wave at us as the bus chuggs up the dirt road, turning up clouds of dust into the sunshine.

It's going to be really odd to be back in the UK, although part of me is really looking forward to it. I love going away, but I always love coming home too. But before that, we have a week and a half of doing terribly tourist things with T's brother and his pal that are coming to visit us. They will arrive on Sunday, and it will be so lovely to see them. A confusing part of our other lives thrusting into this one! On Tuesday we're doing a 3 day hike to Lake Atitlan, one of the most beautiful places in the world I'm told. After this we are travelling to Antigua, and then flying to Tikal to see the Mayan ruins. After this it's back to Antigua, and then flying home on 14th April. We'll arrive, dazed and confused and very short on sleep on 15th.

Six months gone!