coolest week ever

Last week might be the coolest week ever. I didn't blog about the coffee farm, cause the pics explain what was important really. So last week was the usual week, volunteering, not volunteering, class, missing class...BUT, Thursday at volunteering they taught us how to draw blood! So, Jill drew from Amy, Amy drew from Jill, Greg drew from a patient, I drew from Greg! We all got in the vain well, drew the blood, effortless. Though Greg's vain wasn't as easy...it was hard to see cause the nurse cast a shadow over it and it wasn't bulging much anyways, but it worked! I luckily didn't have to get poked. THEN, I made a decision early last week: I was going to move out of my house and into the school. Reasoning: I need to speak Spanish more than just in class, and I don't at home and knew I would at school, second, I am always at the school, I only go home to eat and sleep. SO, Friday morning, I told my family I was moving out, that morning, had Jill and Greg come over and help me pack my stuff up, and I moved to the school! It's so great here, I love it already! There's unlimited water to drink, and I can fill up water bottles, I don't have to walk outside to shower or brush my teeth, the bed is way more comfy and warmer, I have 2 big windows that look out to the mountains and open up for fresh air, friends can always hang out in here, internet constantly, there is a cat sleeping in my lap right now, always hot water for tea, family talks to me a lot and corrects me...it should be great. Though we're really only in Xela for like a month more since this weekend we go to Oaxaca, Mexico for a week, then we get back and leave Wednesday to travel to Coban, Guatemala (just Jill, Amy, Greg and I) where we can white water raft, float through caves, see waterfalls, then we get back and leave for El Salvador for 2 weeks where hopefully we'll get to surf! Anyway, so Friday Jill, Greg and I left for Antigua to climb one of the 36 volcanos in Guatemala and one of the 2 active ones. We left late of course from Xela so got into Antigua late, not knowing if there was room at the hostel or if we could sign up to hike that late, but it all worked out. Got rooms at Jungle Party again, and signed up for the hike, leaving at 6am. Took it easy in Antigua and got up early for the 45 bus ride up to the volcano. We got there, rented hiking sticks for Q3, and the hike began. At first it was just through the normal brush of a mountain, then onto the side of the mountain that was exposed showing us how high we really were up, we could see 2 other volcanos and dried lava from a huge explosion years ago. Finally, after about 45 minutes, we turned the corner to see Pacaya...a giant mountain, but black, smoking from the top and along parts of the sides from the lava beneath. There was an option to ride horses up, or catch one if you got tired on the way, which some people did. So after a pause to take pics of Pacaya, the group continued...though our guide asked us if we wanted to go skiing! So of course, we did, so we ran up above the path a ways to another path. The volcanic rock was like sand dune/ski hill consistency so off we went, skiing down the side of the volcano (more like jumping side to side with out feet together and sliding down), until we got to the lower path.....it was sooooo much fun! There wasn't lava on that side of the volcano so we continued to hike through the volcanic rocks, of all sizes, until we go to a part of the volcano where the volcano had spewed fresh lava a few days earlier. Apparently it hardens in like a day. Anyway, this part was crazy, it looked like we were in mars really. The rocks looked like they were flowing, but they were hard. It was a sea of hardened lava. But up to this point it had been quite cold...where as now, we were walking over and next to freshly hardened earth puke which was hot at times. The main point of the walking sticks was to poke at the rocks really hard to make sure you didn't step into a weak spot and fall through to the molten lava. So we continued up next to the hard lava and then made our way into it, to where we saw flowing, gurgling, red hot, molten lava. It was kinda hard to get to see it cause it was really hot at spots and there was also really toxic smelling gas coming out that made you cough and feel like if you breathed in too much you may pass out, as well as making sure you were walking on solid lava, and getting around all the other people who wanted to see it up close. One guy did fall through the rock, but luckily, there was just more rock underneath. Got some pics, just you wait. It was amazing. OH, and I ran 4 miles straight. What the hell I forgot something HUGE! I WAS IN MY FIRST EARTHQUAKE! I was sitting in my (old) room reading when the fucking earth starting moving. My brain kinda went blank until I was like, uh, I think this is an earthquake! It lasted quite a while, like 13 seconds or so, and afterwards my towels which were hanging, were still swaying and I felt super nauseaus (sp?). Then a few seconds later there was another, shorter one. It was the weirdest thing ever. You never know how much you trust the solid ground until it starts moving. I can't imagine eating mushrooms and feeling an earthquake, that would really really suck. The epicenter was in Mexico. I really didn't want to eat lunch afterwards, I felt so weird, like I was still moving. I wouldn't say I'd like to feel that ever again. SO. EARTHQUAKE, LAVA, DRAWING BLOOD, 4 MILES, MOVED.