home... not quite yet!

After stepping out into the 20 degree Boise weather for just 10 short hours we were thrown back into a bus and on our way to Salt Lake City....

We stepped off the plan to our mothers, sister and niece's sweetest warmest welcoming faces. It felt SO good to be back in America, to be home. To be welcomed home so sweetly. Big warm hugs. We were ready to get back into our reality... not knowing what was in store for us. We stayed up late into the night talking with our families about the amazing 4 weeks we had just experienced. Complaining about the abrupt change 90* weather to this blizzard snow storm just short of 20*. We were excited to start settling down and getting ready for the holidays... Finally crawled into bed at 2 am... only to wake at 6 am to a phone call. "Kodiak, we need you for an oil spill!!"

Kar " What??? NO WAY, NOT GOING!!"

Aust "Awesome when do we leave?"

after a few minutes of contemplation, thought and arguing.. we were BOTH headed to salt lake city (thanks to my sweet mother for waking so early to drive us to the company car!)

after 10 long, FREEZING days, 130 hours of work later, I finally convinved austin to head back to boise with me, to celebrate the holidays right!! Replacements were sent to fill our spots on the spill, and we are finally home at last!

Guatemala

Ah at last we arrived in Guatemala. We enjoyed our time on the beach but it was really neat to get back into the jungles and history of Guatemala. We met an amazing Canadian women who held our hand across the border, took us to a neat hostel, run by orphans, and then helped us continue on our way to Florres. We woke early and headed to the Tikal National Park. Here were able to walk and be amongst the Mayan ruins. This is the sort of place that almost drives you crazy, with so many questions running through our heads. Why? Who? When did they? How!? We had a little local Mayan tour guide take us through the park. The temples and architecture were truly amazing. The massive size, the technique and layout were incredible. We were able to climb the steps of many temples, sit in the central plaza and look out over a city that once existed. Our experience here is indeed one we will not forget. Next we headed south, to Antigua. This was a Spanish colonial influenced town, the streets lined with neat architecture, fun colors and the most amazing food and treats. We walked through miles of markets and were able to see more of the Mayan culture. We would sit in the central park and just watch. the short women walk by in their bright vibrant traditional Mayan outfits, the young boys running around offering to shine your shoes, or the horse drawn carriages gallop by. It was a perfect way to end our trip. We spent the day walking, soaking up the 90 degree sun, perfect clear blue sky and Spanish jabber. We reflected on everything we had recently seen, learned, and experiences that have humbled us. We feel SO blessed to have had the chance to take this trip. We will forever be grateful to everyone who helped and supported us. We will never forget and always love the way this trip has changed us, helped us grow closer together, and change for the better. now back to the reality.... bitter sweet.