Guatemala hasn't really changed all that much, has it?

Country star Reba McEntire traveled to Guatemala in 1996 to shoot a video for her song And Still.

When Reba McEntire ventured into the Guatemalan jungle to shoot her new video, “And Still,” she defied warnings of confrontations with banditos, hijackers and guerrillas.

Instead the flame-haired superstar walked into the welcoming arms of a hardworking people and beautiful children.

She came back, she says, changed forever.

“It got kind of scary, pretty hairy,” she told Country Weekly, which is presenting an exclusive look at her visit to Central America. “But we had a really, really good time. They are such beautiful people, the scenery was so fantastic and we’ll have a real unique video because of that.”

Before she left for the Central American country last month, Reba was warned of the perils she might encounter. But she faced them, defying U.S. travel advisories and endless rumors of bandits, kidnappings, hijackings, a brutal military and armed renegades.

Instead she discovered a rugged country of industrious people and curious, innocent children living in remote villages. 

Whether 1996 or today, we all have our hair-raising experiences in Guatemala but, in the end, we leave with having had tremendously rewarding trips.