We are now officially living in Antigua, Guatemala! And we have officially completed our last long bus trip of the World Race! It wasn’t the worst by far but it did lend itself to some interesting stories.
We were in Jinotepe (pronounced Kinotepe) Nicaragua for a few days last week for debrief. We had to get to Managua, which is the capital of Nicaragua, to catch our bus to Guatemala. Jinotepe is about an hour away from Managua. Our bus left Managua at 5am on Thursday so we scheduled a taxi to come and pick us up and take up to Managua at 3am. Yes, you are reading those hours correctly AM.
Well, the taxi never came and we found out that the van had broken down. So by God’s grace our hotel worker found us another taxi for us at 4am to take us to Managua. Well, it was a whirlwind race (literally) to Managua. The ride included packing up all our bags for the ride and then switching taxis about 10 minutes in, then we picked up another “friend” for the ride and driving through someone’s yard and the driver claimed we needed gas… So as you can imagine we arrived in Managua a little late – only 5 minutes. The bus had already left! Nothing, and I mean nothing, happens on time in Central America. Except the bus from Managua to Guatemala! So we figured it out and we were able to get tickets on a bus that was coming from Costa Rica on its way to El Salvador and it left at 11am. So we pulled out the sleeping bags and plopped ourselves down on the floor and slept until 9:30am.
Allison making space between chairs Lauren – sleeping away on the floor
We woke up and ate a snack and waited for our bus to arrive. The bus did arrive (of course late) and we hopped on and made our way to El Salvador. We spent the night in El Salvador and got up in the wee hours of the morning and got on our original bus and headed to Guatemala.
We arrived here safely and in one piece with all our luggage. God has provided for us in over abundantly! We have a house this month. A real home with a kitchen, a table, a couch, beds with real bedding, a yard, etc… It is amazing and such a blessing. It is our haven. At the end of the busy days in the city we can come together and share a meal together. We are praying that God will use this place not only to be a ministry to us but to others. We hope to meet friends and neighbors and invite them to share a meal with us in this home and over that table share the gospel.
Our home for the month The view from our bedroom! Amazing…
Please pray for us this month. That God will open the doors for ministry in this amazing and beautiful city of Antigua.
