So, what does "looking for land" in Chichicastenango look like? Well, good question. So far it goes something like this: Ask EVERYONE you talk to if they know of any land for sale... the pastors, the stove technician, the lady selling vegetables, the dentist, etc. So far the answer has been, "I don't know right now, but I'll look into it for you."
There has been one exception: the dental assistant Ana said her grandfather actually has land for sale! But when we went to look at it (with Ana, her grandfather, and one of her cousins in our car), it was on a very steep mountainside. Michael and I had an adventurous hike down the beautiful mountainside following Grandpa (who we thought might be part mountain goat), but it was just too steep to build on. So we will keep looking.
We have also been going out and driving around (for hours on bumpy dirt roads) to get a feel for the land, since most of it is too mountainous to build on. We're not just talking steep hillsides, we're talking sheer cliffs. Usually there are little houses perched up on top of the edges, but we need more land for more buildings, NOT on the edge of a cliff. We would at least like room for a house with a yard for us, as well as a ministry area including a soccer field, a pavilion, a few class rooms, a sports court, and a playground.
We've found a few nice "rolling hills" areas, but only God knows who owns the land and if they might want to sell or not! I'm thinking we might take a Guatemalan out with us and start asking around those areas in person.
That's our method for now anyway. We haven't found the Real Estate office yet!