This trip to Guatemala was the first time I’ve ever been out of the country. Actually, this trip held a lot of firsts for me so it was definitely exciting. When I found out about the trip, at first it seemed almost too good to be true, but I went ahead and contacted Judith Mallory, TCE International Coordinator, anyway. I wasn’t looking to satisfy any requirements, gain community service hours, find a resume builder, etc. I just wanted the experience. Turns out it was an amazing experience and so much more. I think I handled the culture shock pretty well considering I’ve never been out of the country before and this was entirely new to me, though I do wish I’d been able to speak better Spanish.

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Making the trip with me were, of course, Judith Mallory, our coordinator, three other girls and four guys. I was the only civil engineer in the group;  most of them I’d never met before besides Mary, whom I met throughout the year at various SWE (Society of Women Engineers) events. We didn’t stay strangers for very long since we spent two days traveling from Guatemala City to Antigua and then to Quetzaltenango where we stayed for three days for our project. For those three days, every morning, we would get up and eat breakfast before we rode for five to ten minutes to the school where we were working on a couple of rooms. Once there, we would split into two four- person teams for the different projects. Some would go measure a building which they hoped would be able to support a second story, while the others would construct a wall in between two rooms. Then, we mixed concrete to prep the brick walls for plaster and paint.

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For a bunch of people who just met, we worked together pretty well. We did mess up a little bit with the measuring, and some of the beams were not quite straight,  but it all worked out in the end. It was very rewarding to see just how much our work meant to all the students and teachers. The last day we were there they put on a little dance for us as a thank you for building a part of their school, and they gave us a certificate and even gave us a snack as well.

This was an entirely new experience and also a nice change of pace. Besides getting up early, and as it was the beginning of daylight savings time it felt a lot earlier, the difference between Guatemala and the U.S. was evident. I must admit, though, I think the mountains and volcanoes of Guatemala are more beautiful than our Smokey Mountains. Just as a comparison, where we stayed was about 7,733 feet above sea level, and our own Clingman’s Dome is just 6,644’. We stayed around 6,000-7,000’ the entire trip, getting up to a max altitude of 10,000’ going to Quetzaltenango from Antigua.

This was by far the best trip I have ever been on, and I am so very thankful for the opportunity to explore another country and the culture of the people who live there. It is one thing to read about other cultures, but it’s another to actually have the chance to go to those other countries and experience it yourself.