The Vermont Academy group and I were lucky enough to get to immerse ourselves in the culture of the rural village of Dolores, located in southern Belize. We stayed there for four days and three nights with the local families. My friend, Charlotte and I lived with a family that consisted of nine people excluding us. There were the mother and father, Manuel and Angelina, then the six daughters, Margarita, Magdalena, Dominga, Alicia, and Juana, and finally the son, Thomas. Charlotte and I (relatively tall, with fair skin and blond hair) contrasted quite a bit to the average height of our families, a mere 4”11, their tan skin and sleek black hair. However, regardless of the physical differences and the language barrier, we were able to connect intimately with our family.

While traveling in Belize on a Smaller World tour, we met many amazing people. The first was Mr. Nana Mensah. Nana is a husband, a father, a comedian, a storyteller, and the leader of Sustainable Harvest International Belize. He organized all of our work in the Mayan villages, helped with our travel arrangements, and showed us a great time in Punta Gorda town.

As members of United Church of Chapel Hill (UCCH) in North Carolina, we have been visiting SHI's work in the Subirana area of Yoro, Honduras since our first Smaller World trip in 2009. In lieu of a trip to Honduras this year, we decided to host SHI-Honduras Field Trainer, Lenin Bautista, for ten days in March.