Well, the "shelter" was quite incredible. Rather ghoulishly, the shelter is like a refugee camp built on top of the mudslide. It is constructed of rows of prefab corrugated steel building with EEC water purifiers providing rudimentary sanitation. They have a soccer field which is a volcanic ash/mudslide base and causes dust clouds when you play. The kids were really keen and obvioulsy difficult to organize but it worked OK with relay drills and things like sharks and minnows, soda fountain and cat and mouse and British Bulldog. The kids were very tactile and were hanging off us all the time. For some reason they thought it was really funny to pull leg hair!! Some were quite shy as they were afraid that TP would eat them. Erin almost lost the plot with some unruly youths but her experience with Ginger held in good stead dealing with slightly more mature people. We didn't take any photos as it was not the place to produce a camera but it was such a lesson for us all in the US. These kids had nothing and were just delighted to see us. Interestingly, the kids actually wanted to wear the pinnies, unlike our teams. The photo below shows the mudslide area from the volcano on the left.


After a while we were booted off the "soccer" field and sent to where the wild dogs hung out and played a game of 20 a-side on a trench-inundated field. We were fortunate to have local interpreters, without whom we would have been helpless. We are back tomorrow for more at the shelter.

The photo below is on the lake-shore (Lake Atitlan) of the fishing boats with the local women doing theor laundry on the rocks.


The next photo is of the transport we take every day. The "taxis" are pick-up trucks which you stop along the road and get off when you want. The roads are obviously dodgy but its never dull riding in the back with 20 other people.

Later...