a day of adventure...

we journeyed to a place called samuc champey on friday. it was a staff end of the year party...since rachel will be leaving in just a few weeks to go to school. the vistas are just breathtaking... along the rolling highlands lightly dusted with mist hanging gently billowed in areas, the huts are scattered among the loosely patchworked fields of corn, cabbages, banana trees, wild natural brush all rolling with the terrain as well. after our 4 hours of driving we arrived just as the rain finished up with a sprinkle. we enjoyed refacciones -coffee, tea, sweet rolls and tostadas. Then hiked up to the Mirador, the look-out. The trail was fabulously rugged and steep though there were some steps built to make the more muddy sketchy areas easier. The turquoise green pools below along the river basin were gorgeous. When hiked down the trail we found where the roaring river falls down the rapids and down into a huge tunnel. the roaring powerful energy contrasted the gently bubbling water on the land above the tunnel. That is where the turquoise pools terraced down with clear water where we enjoyed some good swimming and diving. Our visit finished with a barbeque and as we finished that the rain began again as we climbed in the microbus for our 4 hr journey home. It was fabulous. Other fabulous news is that Ricardo is continuing to do well and that the 8 or9 witnesses to the accident that Bill and Linda picked up - very strongly testified to what they saw which was aligned to what we had heard was true. They had been approached with bribe money and threats but they were all one big family with several men so they weren´t scared. Yay! But unfortunately the legal work is a process and so the saga will continue on indefinitely. And now we begin our fifth week here...time is flyin...