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There are many places to go in this big place we call Earth. Many people to meet, and fantastic memories to make, but frankly, you can’t go wrong, wherever you end up. I can honestly say that going to Guatemala was one of the best decisions of my life.

I was at first very hesitant to volunteer in Guatemala. Questions started arising in my head, such as, where am I going to sleep? How am I going to fit in Guatemalan culture? But after taking the brave leap and participating, it turned out to be a life-changing experience. Once arriving there we met our house parents. They were perfect in every way and so polite and welcoming. They spoke broken English, so I had to learn a little Spanish, which was easy considering how my house parents were willing to teach me. The food they fed us was really good and it amazed me how much smaller the portion size was compared to traditional American-sized portions. After walking around the house and taking it all in, my roommates and I reminisced on our first day in a foreign place.

We woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed waiting for our task of the week, which was to build six stoves in four days! This was the best part of the trip, considering that we would affect people for years to come by our project. Building the stoves took about four hours each, but with friends and our supervisor, it was a very rewarding task. Every day after we built the stoves, we had free time to visit the city of Quetzaltenango and take in every part of the culture, which was fascinating. Living in Guatemala is completely different than in the States. It seemed that everyone was so appreciative of what they had.

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The architecture of the houses was quite different than at home, and so was the quality of the roads. Just taking a stroll down the street you could often see a vendor selling fresh fruit to anyone who was willing to pay. This was probably one of my favorite parts of the city because you could walk anywhere and you could buy personal hand made items that couldn’t be purchased anywhere else. The mountains and the views were also amazing. We were situated in a bit of a valley that was surrounded by huge mountains. Donkeys and cattle were just some of the animals that I saw daily. I even saw native people of Mayan descent. The rich culture and heritage visible in the streets of Guatemala is something that I will never forget.

Looking back, Guatemala was an awesome trip, but what really touched me the most was being able to influence the lives of people who are less unfortunate than I am. I definitely recommend that anyone go abroad because you are instantly immersed in the culture. Ironically, we built stoves to change their lives, but being in a different country has changed my world perspective and the way I will live forever.