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Guatemala Trip (March 13)
I wake up feeling like someone just shot me up with epinephrine. That didn’t actually happen, but I was very sick the day before. I went to bed with a fever, thinking I would not be able to work the next morning. However, the fever is gone when I wake up. Since I was doubtful that I would be feeling better today, I did not set an alarm. I check the clock and it is 8:05, so I am unsure if the team has left or not. I message Ray at 8:06, in which he tells me they are about to head to breakfast. I get ready in exactly 5 minutes and go down for breakfast.

We decide to go out to breakfast to a restaurant called Atlantis, where we will be eating dinner tonight. This seems to be a slight mistake because it is taking long, and one thing we do not have today is time. So, we decide to get it to go and head down to the dock.

It is our last time seeing the breathtaking views of Lake Atitlán in the morning time. We take a ferry to Santiago, about a 15-minute boat ride. One memory from this boat ride I will never forget is listening to funky town and eating breakfast tacos. I don’t know how to explain it, but life felt surreal in that moment.

After arriving in Santiago, we walk up through the colorful town to Otto’s truck. Otto is the representative from Earth University, who we collaborated with for this project. I feel sad that this would be the last day spent working with Otto. Otto is like Yoda, all knowing mastermind and speaks a different language but you still understand him through vibes. Basically, we are very thankful to have him here.

All emotions are put to the side once we arrive at the site, as we must focus on getting the project done. This project is a testament to time, so we always have the stress of that on our minds. We have each part of the system done on its own, so today we have to focus on connecting everything. The main components of our system are the tanks, first flush, and conveyance piping. We start off the day by finishing up the first flush system, which we later attach to the wall using brackets. Next, we have to put up support brackets for the conveyance piping going from the first flush to the tanks. Following this, we are putting up the pipe, ensuring that the slope is exactly 1 degree since we don’t have a lot of height to work with. We also are connecting the pipe to the calm inlets. In doing so, Ray has to go inside the tank to put the sealant on which is providing me lots of entertainment.

The last thing we have to do is connect the grid system to the tanks, which is slightly challenging considering we have to move around all the tanks to complete this task. During the time we are working, Otto and his team of workers are working on getting the gutter hung up and connecting the conveyance piping to the gutter, which they complete by the end of the workday. Also, during this Olivia is putting together our presentation that we will share later today with Natun and the rest of the groups.

I am feeling so accomplished and excited once we complete our work. When the tanks were delivered on the first workday, I felt nervous. I’ve never been part of a project done at this large of a scale, and I am so grateful I got to be part of it. I am also so proud of and grateful for the team we have including Adithya, Ray, Payton, Otto, Pablo, and the workers.

There are still some remaining tasks that Otto and the team will complete once we leave country including connecting downspouts, setting up a pump, and adding support to the first flush.

Following the completion of the project, we are going to sit down and have a meal called Ka’kik, a tomato-based stew dish traditionally containing turkey, but today contains chicken. It is the community’s way of thanking us for the work we have done. It is a wonderful meal, and everyone is elated to have finished the project. It is a bittersweet moment because once we finish the meal, we get ready to say our goodbyes.

The most important goodbye is to my fur babies. As you can see, they are so adorable, and I am going to miss them so much. I want to bring them home with me, but I don’t think Adithya or the US government will approve of this.

The women of the co-op thank us again by giving us keychains that they sell. I can tell they are so grateful for our help. I am really going to miss their welcoming warmth and kindness. We get in Otto’s truck and drive back down to the same spot we got picked up in. Feeling really sad that this is going to be our last time here. The sadness continues when we have our last boat ride from Santiago to Panajachel. But as you can see, we are very tired and take a little nap.

Once we arrive in Panajachel, we rush to get to the Natun office for the presentations. The Natun staff start off the meeting by discussing their mission and past work, which is all amazing. Next, all the groups present their projects, and it is really cool to see what the rest of the groups did during the week. During this, Nina is running around and being a menace. She is so cute, but she is not having it today.

The Natun staff invites us to go play soccer after the meeting. Unfortunately, I do not see me enjoying physical activity in the near future, so I am going shopping instead. A group of us wonder around, stopping at different shops. We are also being brave and bartering with the shop owners. Thankfully, Olivia M. is there with us because I have to ask her how to say, “How much does this cost?”, in Spanish every 5 minutes. It is a great time, and I am getting goodies for my family, friends, and myself.

After shopping, we head back to the hotel to get ready for dinner where we get to salsa dance! Salsa dancing is a great time, but I am really bad at the turns. The best part of this dinner is Otto sweeping Olivia S. off her feet to salsa. Absolutely unreal, probably a top three moment for me of the whole trip. Overall, our last dinner is a great end to the trip, and it is nice to get together with the Natun staff one last time.

Following dinner, I pray with some friends for a little while. It was great.

Okay, bye!

March 14th, 2025 

Today started in the most perfect way, soaking up the sun at the Lake Atitlán Nature Reserve. Getting to the lake was a bit of a trek, with way too many bridges in my humble opinion, but it was worth it. It was a great treat after a week of hard work. Not to mention, it was prime sunbathing time for me. After drying off, and witnessing Ray get his bald head kissed by random kids, we wandered into the butterfly garden. It was like a sauna in there, but seeing the beautiful colors was worth the heat. Don’t be fooled by my and Logan’s faces, we were having a great time 🙂 

We then went on a mission to spot monkeys, but they must not have liked us, because we didn’t see any. Instead, we saw another animal—some curious coatis sniffing around. I think they’re kind of odd looking, if I’m being honest, but Adithya thinks they’re super cute. Whether you think they’re cute or not, don’t be fooled by their unassuming face and body. These girls are fierce. 

Then, it was time to travel. I am like a dog; I love long car rides where I can have wind in my face and music in my ears. While this drive was no exception, it was hard to hype myself up since I was so tired. The long drive to Guatemala City had one true saving grace: an empanada stop. I really enjoyed the cheese and spinach ones! But, this was when we had to start saying goodbye to our Natun friends. It was a sad time 🙁 

With time to kill before the airport, we strolled through a mall and did some window shopping. Then came a milestone for me: my first Guatemalan Taco Bell experience with Heather, the Taco Bell Enthusiast. The verdict? The meat was… different. Not bad, just different. Ray thinks it’s because the meat is fresher in Guatemala. The world may never know.  

At the airport, I had a small victory. I nailed the bag weight at 48.9 lbs! No frantic repacking required! From there, it was just a matter of boarding, settling in, and heading home, wrapping up an unforgettable trip filled with good work, adventure, food, and, believe it or not, no sunburns. 

This morning, I woke up around 8 a.m., opting to sleep in and skip the yoga session on the hotel lawn. After getting cleaned up, I dressed for the day ahead since my group, the solar team, was heading into the forest to assist the forest monitoring team. I chose clothes suitable for the hike, then went downstairs for breakfast. I enjoyed oatmeal, scrambled eggs, and fresh fruit, paired with a cup of coffee and some freshly squeezed orange juice. At about 9 a.m., we walked over to the Natun office.

Once we arrived at Natun, I made two turkey and cheese sandwiches and packed them in the cooler for lunch later. We then piled into a van and set off for the mountains of Panca. When we arrived, we applied sunscreen and started up a paved trail that wound deeper into the mountains. Along the way, we spotted a family of dogs, including a few playful new puppies. The parents were barking and growling, clearly territorial and protective of their little ones.

      As we ascended, our guide pointed out old wells that no longer function. She explained that to access water now, they’d need to install a new well at a higher elevation. At the top, we unpacked, setting down the cooler and our other belongings. Our group split into two teams. The first was tasked with digging a hole to collect soil samples and examine the different layers. The second group, which I was part of, went around the mountain to measure elevation using an old-fashioned technique. We used a 2-meter-wide A-frame with a marked middle bar and a rope hanging from the top, acting like a pendulum. We’d position the device over an incline, ensure the middle bar was perfectly level, and then measure the distance from the ground to the hanging leg.

After a while, the groups switched tasks, giving us a chance to try the other activity. Once our work was done, we sat down for lunch. Over sandwiches, we had a conversation about waste management and the challenges cities like Panajachel face in creating a cost-effective system. We learned that many communities resort to burning their trash or dumping it down mountainsides because they lack better alternatives.

Afterward, the solar team hiked back down the mountain and returned to the van. We drove back to Natun, where our team continued working on a presentation for Natun about our efforts at the solar site. Once all the groups had returned, we left Natun and headed back to the hotel to freshen up for dinner. On our way we stopped at a local church where I said a prayer for the trip and the communities were working with. We looked around and took beautiful photos of the church before continuing on.

Later, on our walk to the restaurant, we passed several street dogs. At one point, we saw a dog wander into the wrong territory and get attacked by a group of others—a reminder that at night the dogs run the streets. We arrived at “Jardines Del Lago,” which translates to “Gardens of the Lake” in English. While waiting for our food, we played a game called Flinch Ball to pass the time—a game Professor Adithya had been hyping up for days.

Woke up around 6:00 AM today to get ready for morning sunrise yoga right outside on the hotel’s gorgeous flower lawn. While my lack of balancing skills certainly put a damper on my experience, getting a nice stretch after two days of hiking was so nice! Then, I ate breakfast at the hotel and got ready to leave for the Natun office around 9:00 AM.

 

It had been revealed earlier that day that the solar power team would be assisting us on the forest monitoring trip today, which was so much fun! I was a little bit scared on the bus ride to Panca as I did not know what was in store for me that day. Luckily, the hikes were trails my group had already been on. I was starting to feel like I knew the forest better everyday I was there. 

   

We started on a quick hike to where the community tests for well water next to a cliff, a location I like to call “home base”. Benjamin told us that we had three goals that day: soil testing, overall incline measuring, and gathering the trail cams we placed on day one. For soil testing, we dug a 40 cm x 60 cm x  1 m hole into the ground near the well (This is when the solar power team came in handy) and then collected the soil at the bottom in a jar of water. After 12 hours had passed, we would be able to measure the contents that we found. To find the incline, we used a 2-meter wide A-frame with a pendulum for adjustment to get 8 separate inclines from different areas around home base. This was very tedious, especially around the off-trail sections of the forest. After a nice lunch, the solar power team left, which left the forest monitoring team time to collect all the trail cams. The hike was long, but it had such beautiful scenery that it was impossible to complain. As we approached the first trail cam, we were all so excited to see what creatures were lurking in the forest. Unfortunately, all we captured was 130 short videos of the same leaf brushing in front of the camera. Similarly, for camera 2, the only videos recorded were the team setting up and picking up the camera. We had almost given up when we reached the top of the hike to grab camera 3. To our surprise, MULTIPLE animals were spotted. The group went ecstatic!!! All of our hiking had been worth it!! 

It was a sad goodbye to the mountain forest, but after taking many photos, the forest monitoring group finally descended on their last hike down this trail.

Overall, this past week was an enriching, eye-opening, and educational experience. The sights, sounds, and smells of the few cities in Guatemala that we visited were incredible. After this wonderful week, it truly feels like I have left part of my heart with Guatemala and the amazing people I met there. Some of my favorite memories are from the smallest scenes. We had huddles after dinner to talk about the next day’s agenda before dispersing to our hotel rooms for the night. To end the huddle, we would cheer one word that was based on the memories we had already made. Another memorable moment is from Sunday. We got the chance to see so many cities around the lake that day. I hope I never forget the breathtaking sights of the mountains, volcanoes, blue skies, and clear water as we took a boat around the lake and got to see it all. That day, we also were allowed to go swimming in that beautiful water. Each of us jumped or dove in, one of my classmates was singing on the rocks while my teacher played his Ukulele next to him, and we had a contest to see who could tread the longest without their hands! Also that day, we went to a large marketplace that was basically one long street uphill filled with color. There were paintings on the ground, the walls, and even the air as colorful umbrellas were strung up over us. The various sights I got to see that weekend were beyond anything I had ever imagined, and it was a fantastic way to start out the week.

During the week, I enjoyed the routine we had. I woke up around 7 am each day, ate at 8, and left for the Natun office by 8:30. My roommate sometimes had a different schedule as we were in two different projects and her project was for her Global Capstone so she usually had a longer schedule than I did. I would sometimes be a bit tired waking up that early, but I was so excited for the day that I never paid much attention and would be energized for what was to come.

I had the opportunity of working in the Forest Monitoring group. The overall task for us was to collect data on the slope of the mountain, the quality of the soil, the type and health of trees in the mountains, and what other insects and animals lived in those mountains. Each day we would take a hike on one of two mountains. We got to work with some very intelligent people from Natun and the village of Panca as we tried to collect this data. These moments on the mountains were when I realized just how extraordinary this trip was as I learned so much while understanding the importance of our group. In these communities, pollution and deforestation have such a large impact on the overall health of the ecosystem. Learning about how the water supply can lessen substantially over a couple years really opened my eyes to what these communities are going through. I am so appreciative of the people who helped us understand that and also showed us what we could do in hopes of assisting them towards their goals of reforestation and sustainability. I loved every hike we went on as they were adventurous, informative, and remarkable.

After working for the four days, we made a presentation of our finds, and the reactions from everyone seeing the animals we found on our trail cameras was so refreshing and adorable. Later, we ended the trip off with some more moments I hope I never forget. A really long soccer game that I actually was decent at, celebrating with all the groups and alumni for our last night there, and then being able to swim in Lake Atitlán one more time before leaving the country. I knew I would be sad to leave, but as soon as the plane landed back in Columbus, the entire week felt like a fever dream I wish I could go back to. I feel like saying “this was the best week of my life” is an understatement as I would go back to it as many times as I could, which I do plan on coming back for either my capstone project or as an alumni! That is how fantastic this trip was. I am really excited to see how far the forest monitoring project, as well as the others, improve in the future. Some of them were fairly new so coming back to fully prepared design and implementation stages would be neat! I am so grateful for this trip and the people who worked with us and made this trip happen. Until next time Guatemala!

This trip has been such an unforgettable experience. For the first time, I travelled internationally, immersed myself in a new culture, and tried so many new things! From swimming in Lake Atitlan to hiking a mountain, this trip certainly did not fall short of amazing. I got to try many new foods, including traditional Guatemalan cuisine, Thai, Chinese, and papaya. I also had the chance to explore Guatemalan coffee at two different coffee shops in Panajachel, one in San Marcos, a coffee co-op in San Juan, and lastly at the coffee co-op where our rainwater harvesting project is taking place. I have to say, Cafe Loco was my favorite, but all of the coffee was delicious, I even took some home with me. I also went on many adventures and admired the natural beauty of Guatemala. My favorite being when we swam in the natural reserve in San Marcos. The water was so blue and honestly it felt pretty surreal. We also met some fellow Buckeyes while we were there! It was crazy to find other OSU students all the way in rural Guatemala.

Exploring a new culture certainly comes with highs and lows. I can say that culture shock is certainly real, and I have experienced the effects pretty heavily in the few days after returning to the states. Traveling abroad has opened my eyes to not only a new culture but has given me the opportunity to reflect on my own. I think one of the most beautiful things about culture is that some traditions last hundreds of years, while at the same time new traditions are made through cross-cultural interactions. Culture is always evolving. I think my personal culture is not only about where I’m from, but also where I’ve been, and the things I have picked up along the way.

This trip would not have been possible without all of the hard work from myself, my peers, Adithya and Ray, our partners at Natun, and the many community members we interacted with. I learned so many new things from all of these people and have greatly expanded my knowledge of engineering through this trip. My team got very lucky to not only work on our own project but had the opportunity to spend a day with each of the other project groups. The first day of work we got to hike in Sololá with the forest monitoring team, the second day we got to travel to Santa Maria with the solar team, and the next day we got to help the rainwater harvesting capstone team in Santiago. Looking back, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. This gave me the opportunity to experience every project, expand my knowledge, and travel to new places.

The most breathtaking moment of the entire trip was walking towards Lake Atitlan in Panajachel through a narrow street of mom-and-pop shops, walking closer and closer to the docks as the Lake began to reveal itself, until reaching the end and seeing the lake for the first time. Lake Atitlan was BEAUTIFUL, and for a moment I thought to myself, I could stay here forever.

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to travel to Guatemala, take on a real-world engineering project, and work closely with local community partners. I will forever cherish the memories I have made, the friendships I have built, and the knowledge I have learned. I am already looking forward to returning someday, but until then, Guatemala, Natun, and Maya culture, will always hold a special place in my heart.

Guatemala Travel Day 0,

                  My day start at 1:45 am. I woke up showered then packed up my car to carpool 3 other girls to the airport. We arrived at the parking lot just in time to catch a shuttle. The bag check and TSA process went fast. When we were waiting at our gat many people joined in to play crazy 8. After we boarded, I passed out before the plane even took off, I was so tired. When we got to Huston, Texas at 8:30 am nine of us students decided to get panda express! It was so good. This layover was 6 hours long… Once we boarded for our final flight, I watched a short movie then stared out the window taking in the mountainous landscape of Guatemala. It was beautiful. Before going into customs, you must scan a QR code and fill out a form however you need data or wife which I didn’t have. I was really stressed at first, but it all worked out and I just used someone else’s phone. Once we found Pablo we split into two groups to bus to the hotel and I went in the first bus because I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and wanted to call home to let my family know I made it safe. After we checked in, we walked to diner in Guatemala City, and I ordered papain de carne which is a traditional dish. Typically, it is made with pollo, but I switched it up. The restaurant ended up having live karaoke which turned out to be a great experience and started the trip off right. Though I was tired and exhausted I believe everyone enjoyed the day.

Guatemala Day 1,

                  Last night I slept okay but I’m a light sleeper when it comes to traveling. At around 5am one of my friends and hotel roommate gave me quite the scare but it turned out to be a funny story. I slightly woke up and just saw a black shadow above me then as I was processing that I yelled my friends name then said “Jesus, I think you just took my soul” her bed didn’t have any blankets, and she was freezing so she was trying to ask if it was ok for her to share blankets with me. We ate at the hotel, and it was so good I ate three plates and had so many coffees. This was buffet style, so it was a great place to try all different types of foods. We then went to a museum and saw so many cool artifacts. I was in awe. While we were there, we also meant most of the alum in person and did an ice breaker. The next three hours were spent in a bus traveling to Antigua. We got lunch and explored around the town. The views where amazing from a cool town square area to the amazing architecture on a church with a view of a volcano in the background. We then loaded back up into the bus and went to pana. This drive was filled with staring at the views, singing, and talking. We went to dinner at a pizza place that had a band playing live music which kept us all entertained. Once we got back to the hotel it was pretty late and I was fast to go to sleep.

 

JOURNAL DAY 3/11

Breakfast was delicious, oatmeal, omelette with ham and cheese, potatoes and bread.

Made sandwiches at natün to pack, there were also fried chicken flavored chips that were delicious. We hopped on the bus by 9:45

 

We got to the site and split into two groups one going up and one down the mountain, Jenia, Tyler, Keevyn, and I went up with Benjamin and Valeria

The hike up was treacherous and slippery and high, it was kinda scary but really really fun and beautiful.

Basically the format of the study is to center around one large tree and take a survey within a 20 meter radius of the tree, noting all other trees, bushes, and flowering plants. Additionally, within that radius we were noting any insects, mammals, birds, and reptiles/amphibians but unfortunately we couldn’t find too many.

We found some larger trees to measure their diameter, some of them were difficult to reach around, we had to have two to three people working on them to get one measurement so we didn’t get too many but it was still very interesting. 

Benjamin was so helpful in tree identification and height estimation, very thankful to have been able to get work with him and learn about the plants of the region. 

We took a break for lunch and ate the sandwiches we made, keevyn got some cool drone footage and we learned about the recent changes in water resources in the region.

5 years ago the site we were working on had large amounts of flowing water but since the land use has been changing and agricultural land is expanding it’s now necessary to dig wells for water. 

After lunch we went back up the mountain with everyone, this time we went up a different route through an avocado field. It was a little easier but still pretty steep.

We went up higher than before and Benjamin found some animal prints so we decided to put our two remaining in those spots. The second of which was in a pretty precarious and steep location and i was holding myself up with a rope to confirm the settings, felt very adventurous. 

(Backpacks hung on our machetes)

While we were up there struggling to hike an older mayan couple in sandals hiked by us with all of their dirty laundry because there was supposedly water at the top. Very impressive and admirable, definitely humbling.

On the way down we did a lot of sliding on our butts and holding on to a rope. It was pretty fun.

We had some extra time so Valeria took us to see the market, it was specifically market day so there were more stalls than usual it was cool to see, lots of produce and clothing and things like that. 

Valeria saw a stall selling baby chickens and she got really excited and bought two of them. They’re so cute.

(Rrada left, Champu right)

In class, Jordan and I made Champurradas (Guatemalan cookies) for our cultural presentation so when I brought it up, Valeria insisted we stop at a bakery and get some for everyone and they were delicious and way better than the ones we made.

Also Valeria then named her two chickens Champu and Rrada. 

Afterwards I went with some of the group to get coffee to dip my champurradas in which was great and we walked around the market a little before dinner.

For dinner we went to a Chinese place called las Chinitas and i got steak chow min which was delicious.

Everyone went around saying their rose, bud and thorn of the trip which felt very sentimental and then a lot of us started playing this game where two people say a word at the same time and keep saying words that relate the two until you say the same one. Might be the most frustrating game in the world but it was really funny.

 

The day was so much fun, I was exhausted afterwards but felt very satisfied in our work and learned so much.

 

Matyox!