Since we had finished all the jobs we could do, we took off for Quetzaltenango...3 hours drive one way...to get more supplies. Sister Liz stayed home as the drive is over horrid, steep & curvy roads which is tough on her. We had terrific views of Volcano Tujumulco...the tallest mountain in Central America...and all the villages nestled in the valleys & on the mountain sides. We also saw slivers of the daily lives: girl with 3 grazing sheep on ropes; men working on leveling land with hoes; women scrubbing clothes in the pilas (washing sinks); young kids using a forehead strap to carry loads of split woods as big as they were; women walking with baby on her back, baskets on her head & holding the hand of a small toddler; man making adobe bricks; pickup with 5 or 6 in front seat & mound of corn stalks in back; man leading horses laden with logs; young man studying next to tethered cow on the side of the road; odd assortment of jugs filled with gas or diesel usually diluted with water for sale on the side of the road; many Auto Hotels where men drive their cars into a hidden garage & then pay for a room & girl in the hotel above the garage; kids rolling tires; Grandma wearing traditional clothing walking arm and arm with granddaughter dressed in tight jeans & Tshirt with American wording; piles of branches in the middle of the road which was a warning that something was in the road right around the switchback. As we got close to town, the scenery changes quickly: nicer & bigger homes, gas stations & stores; wider & better roads; parking lots & sidewalks; playgrounds; American chain restaurants like McD built to look like a Happy Meal complete with a McD delivery motorcycle; lots of security guards with shotguns. We shopped at Walmart (one year old) & Ace Hardware and then got a delicious steak meal...after 5 years & many trips here, the Sisters have located the best places to shop & eat! As we traveled, we of course passed and were passed by many overloaded chicken buses that put out huge clouds of black smoke every time they shifted gears. We have heard that the reason they crowd so many on and drive so fast is because the drivers get a percent of the fare. We felt very safe with our seat belts on & Sister Annie driving...and because we had a clean windshield that was washed for just a few quetzels while we waited at a red light. We called Sister Liz from Concepcion Tutuapa around 5 pm and asked her to open the gate. We were glad to get back to our little village of Llano Grande and Clinica San Jose!
