I recently saw an interesting documentary on Netflix about Guatemala, where many people are still living on one dollar a day. It is still amazing what a dollar could do in some places.

http://livingonone.org/

I've also seen it. Good mind expanding stuff.

Well we got the doller menu. Lol

Neat documentary. It is amazing, especially considering what a dollar can buy today compared to 20 years ago, inflation etc....

I was in Jalapa Guatemala about 12 years ago. When shopping at the outdoor market I spotted a woman selling earthen platters. The platters go directly on coals and that is where they cook their tortillas. My Spanish is poor to say the least. When I asked how much they were I thought she said $30.00. I thought it was a little steep but I wanted it so I thought ok. However, she corrected me and said "no 30 cents". I bought quite a few things that day.

There are many parts of the world where the dollar can go far. I've been to a few of them. I can tell you that you can spend a month in the Amazon Jungle of Peru for $20/day.

If you figure out your end game correctly, you can buy a small house, sell your car, ride a bicycle for most errands, and live in a vacation destination for a few dollars per day.

My wife and I sponsor three children and their families in Nicaragua, with the oldest being since 1998 (she graduated from high school recently).  Our first mission trip to visit her was in 2009 and that's when we met the other two children and their families after seeing their great need.  It's common for the father to earn only $30-$35 per month and work is not always available, so it's understandable how it's hard to support a family.  Rice, beans, and tortillas are the main staples there.  We've gone back several times to visit the families and I tried to teach the father of our oldest girl how to root fig cuttings but that failed for some reason (but I will try again!).  One thing that especially struck us during our 2009 trip was how all of the children were so happy and excited when we came to visit despite their poverty.  These experiences gave us a great appreciation for what we have.  We last visited with the co-founder of Unbound in July 2013 on our last mission trip.  He was a tireless worker showing unity with the poor, even taking a 8,000 mile "walk" over the course of 16 months back around 2010-2011, as I recall, when he was about 75 years old!  A few months after our last visit with him he died unexpectedly from natural causes in his home in Guatelmala (he was originally from Kansas).  What a difference he helped make for so many people.

My wife donates to a charity of some kind.
I don't know where the money goes.

Harvey
Now we really have to teach them root figs.
Seems they go well with some perscuitto and tortilla.

I've travelled to Guatemala many times, amazing landscapes, people, culture.  A sad legacy of civil war, USA meddling.   Great place to travel on a budget!   I participated with Masons on a Mission, helping to build cook stoves to replace the open 'three stone' fires many folks there use for cooking and heating inside their houses.   From our perspective, these subsistence farmers are 'dirt poor'- but I saw many examples of amazing family bonds and togetherness, something which seems fragmented in our culture.   More than $ determines happiness and life-satisfaction(but I guess it helps).

Here's a peak at the volunteer group I travelled with on my last trip to Guate(wish I was going this year, too!):

https://www.facebook.com/MasonsOnAMission

Jesse, was Pat Manley with you on your trip?  I know he was heavily involved with Masons on a Mission for several years.  I "know" him from the Brick Oven forum. Don't you live up in his neck of the woods?

For those of you who are unfamiliar with "Masons on a Mission", it is a group of STONE masons, not the Mason organization.  They do incredible work that benefits local health, economy and the environment, and they do it on their own dime.  It takes "econtourism" to a different level.

C.J.