I’m excited to share a little bit about each place I’ll be living this coming year! As I studied each place, the people and their daily struggles touched my heart. I can’t wait to do life with them!
Without further ado, the first country I’ll be living in is Guatemala!
Some facts about this beautiful land.
- Jaguars are more abundant in Guatemala’s Petén Rainforest than anywhere else in Central America.
- 1996 marked the end of Guatemala’s 36 year civil war. During the war, over 200,000 people died.
- 3 in 100 children die before the age of three (compared to the US, that a 4.4 times higher chance of dying in infancy)
- While Spanish is the national language, it is spoken by only 60% of the population, the remaining 40% speak various Indian dialects.
- Despite its small size, Guatemala houses 28 volcanoes.
Next country up is Thailand!
I cannot wait to spend Christmas in this culture! At first, this was the country I was least excited for, but after learning more about it I am stoked to live here!
- Thailand means, “Land of the free,” it is the only Southeast Asian country to never be colonized by Europeans.
- Roughly 95% of the population is Buddhist
- Thai people smile a lot. A smile is used to express thanks or happiness, avoid a question, or hide embarrassment.
- In May 2014, a military coup occurred that took control of the government.
- According to the US, Thailand is one of the worst countries when it comes to human trafficking
For the last leg of my trip, I’ll be living in Botswana!
- Since the 1960’s, Botswana has become one of the largest diamond producers in the world.
- The native Bushmen lived as nomads in the Kalahari desert, recently there are reports of them being pushed out to make way for diamond mining.
- Wildlife in Botswana thrives, they have the highest population of elephants in Africa!
- Sorghum, maize, and meat are food staples.
- Roughly 70% of the population identifies themselves as Christian.
26 days til Launch!
