I love so many things about this country, but at the same time I am constantly aware of the amount of problems the people of this country suffer on a day to day basis.
-50% of Guatemala is iliterate.
That sort of a figure is so hard for us to comprehend. At first it seems so archaic, but at the same time, in a 3rd world country literacy isn't always necessary. Generation after generation of Guatemaltecos grow up in families in extremely rural areas. Education isn't necessary. In general people in the mountains are born, married, and die all within the same town. However, as time passes jobs are harder and harder to find, the land is farmed down to useless dirt, and people are forced to look elsewhere for their way of life. One of the so-called reforms the Guatemalan government has made lately is to require a literacy test for many jobs but they haven't set up any kind of programs to aid the iliterate. Thus, thousands of people are without jobs and are unable to get them because they aren't literate, but they are unable to attend school because they don't have a job to get money to pay for books.
People here also remain largely uneducated in health matters as well. Sex, health, and education for mother's is nonexistant. For the most part these things are taboo subjects. However by the time a rural girl here reaches the age of 18 it is likly that she has been pregnant 3-4 times and probably has at least 2 children. Here, in a country where malnutrition and starvation runs rampant, breastfeeding is seen as more of a snack. A baby's first food is often tortilla soaked in instant coffee. Even if people know about good nutrition, vegetables are hard to grow and expensive to buy.
Vegetables are another thing. When a farmer gathers his crops he divides it into 3 parts. The first is the best of the best; these are shipped north to the United States. The second part goes to the markets. The last, the so-called "bad" vegetables stay within the family or are given to the poor through charitable organizations. The trickle down is slim for the majority of Guatemalans.
I was so hurt when I saw on CNN that a woman had been trampled on Black Friday at a Wal-Mart. Was that really worth it for cheap Hannah Montana t-shirts? In Guatemala people work themselves to death in order to keep their families alive. What does it say about our society that someone died shopping?
I don't want to start ripping down America as a whole. We are an incredibly blessed nation and there is nothing wrong with that. Personally I have learned so much here. God gives us blessings and he wants us to use and enjoy them, but at the same time it is so worth it to stop and realize the enormity of our blessings.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
East meets West
The other night, Pablo and I walked down the street to the night market for a late night snack. The staple food in El Salvador is called a papoosa. It is basically a tortilla omelette. It's a tortilla with cheese and meat on the inside. They are amazing! They also put avocado, chile, and spiced cabbage on top. Anyhow we were sitting at the stall eating and all of the sudden the power goes out in the entire city. The power goes out a lot but usually not for so long and not the entire city. At first no one could figure out what to do. The woman cooking our food has this huge open grill where she makes everything and all you could see were shadows. She couldn't figure out how to continue cooking. However, east met west, as it so often tends to do and about a dozen people pulled out their cell phones and used them as lights over a cooking set up that dates back hundreds of years.
It is amazing how the east and the west, the old and the new, and probably most importantly, America and Guatemala meet here everyday. Antigua is a colonial city and is preserved by the government as such but regulations can't stop change. In Antigua and the cities surrounding it, gas stations provide both gasoline and are often the site of the municipal well. On any given day, an ordinary ladino(of Euro descent) Guatemalteco and a Maya might be at the gas station at the same time. The Ladino puts gas in his motorcycle, picks up a jug of pure water, and grabs bread (yes very often at the gas station) for his family's dinner. The Mayan fills his family's water jar from the well, buys the family's bread, and maybe grabs himself a soda. They never look at eachother, never acknowledge the other's presence, but all the same they are doing the same thing. Same age, same religion, same country, they are so different yet so alike. Bringing home the bread, taking care of their families, they are just living.
Things for the most part have settled down here. I just graduated out of Grado D. Grado E is huge! My goal is to get through E by the end of my classes in a couple weeks.
Socially things are changing here. There is quite a crew of friends going home this week because of Thanksgiving. It is definately a really sad thing. I don't think anybody really realized coming down as individuals that we would all find such incredible friends. However, just as quickly as we came, we go home. Thank God for Facebook!
I am coming into my last few weeks here in Guatemala. There have definately been a lot of adventures. I'm sure there are more to come.
It is amazing how the east and the west, the old and the new, and probably most importantly, America and Guatemala meet here everyday. Antigua is a colonial city and is preserved by the government as such but regulations can't stop change. In Antigua and the cities surrounding it, gas stations provide both gasoline and are often the site of the municipal well. On any given day, an ordinary ladino(of Euro descent) Guatemalteco and a Maya might be at the gas station at the same time. The Ladino puts gas in his motorcycle, picks up a jug of pure water, and grabs bread (yes very often at the gas station) for his family's dinner. The Mayan fills his family's water jar from the well, buys the family's bread, and maybe grabs himself a soda. They never look at eachother, never acknowledge the other's presence, but all the same they are doing the same thing. Same age, same religion, same country, they are so different yet so alike. Bringing home the bread, taking care of their families, they are just living.
Things for the most part have settled down here. I just graduated out of Grado D. Grado E is huge! My goal is to get through E by the end of my classes in a couple weeks.
Socially things are changing here. There is quite a crew of friends going home this week because of Thanksgiving. It is definately a really sad thing. I don't think anybody really realized coming down as individuals that we would all find such incredible friends. However, just as quickly as we came, we go home. Thank God for Facebook!
I am coming into my last few weeks here in Guatemala. There have definately been a lot of adventures. I'm sure there are more to come.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Safe and Loved
In all of my life I have always had this trust in people. It isn't as if I would share my entire life story with them, but on the whole, I believe strongly in the goodness of the world. In the last two days that trust has been challenged beyond any measure I could have imagined.
The long and short of it is that I was attacked. I have always been so careful here about where and when I walk, especially when I am by myself. I was on my way to work about 5 minutes outside of Antigua just before 2:00 in the afternoon. There were two men walking in front of me for quite some time. I was aware of them and was keeping my distance. About a minute from work, not even there is a row of stores and repair shops. In the afternoon they don't get much business so there were probably around 20 people standing around and talking. At this spot the two men in front of me turned around and immediately attacked me. This is highly unusual because normally thieves ask for your things before they attack you. Had they done this I would have handed it over. However, this was not the case. One of them held my arms back while the other took my bag. My bag crosses over my arms so because the other guy was holding my arms the one couldn't get the bag off of me. So, he started to hit me. It probably wasn't smart but my self-defense kicked in at this point, literally, and I kicked the man who was taking my bag where the sun doesn't shine (sorry for a lack of a better term). He definately let up a little at this point long enough for me to get my bag off my arm and give it to him. The bad part was that he also kicked me in the gut and sidearm punched me in the left eye. The really hard part for me is that even though they had my things they continued to grab at my clothes and sexually harass me. At this point one of the people watching this all happen finallly stepped in and said "Aye no mas", basically, "hey, that's enough". The two men finally took my things, got into a parked car, and drove off.
It is amazing how an altrication that didn't last more than a minute and a half can seem to stretch on for hours. I distinctly remember watching the man's hand come across towards my face in slow motion. However, after they ran away I immediately lost my sense of calm. I walked the minute or so to Nuestro Ajilados. Thinking back on it two days later I am amazed at the reaction I got at work. Immediately I was sent to the clinic, police were called, the embassy was contacted with a full report, and a number of crucial phone calls were made. I had some really serious post traumatic stress syndrome. My blood pressure spiked, I couldn't think or breath, and I was light headed. However, the doctors and nurses at the clinic took care of everything and a counselor was brought in immediately. I am so blessed to have had her there. If not for the things she said and the amount of quick processing she was able to work me through in the first 30 minutes after the attack, my reaction now would have been very different.
Brandon was there from the beginning. After the clinic I was sent to the National Hospital for monitoring, X-rays of my head, and a surgeon looked at my stomach. Brandon stayed the entire day as well as Hector, one of the directors at Nuestro Ajiados who translated for me when I couldn't. So many friends and family were there so that I was never alone. I am just so overwhelmed by the outpouring of kindness and support. So many Guatemaltecos apologized to me saying how there are good people in Guatemala and how they were so ashamed of their countrymen. This doesn't really change anything. I love this country and I have from the first day I got here. Where two people hurt me, hundreds made sure I was okay. I may have lost possessions, my camera being the hardest one to deal with, I have my life and my integrity.
Now for the serious ironies in this whole situation. First of all, I was robbed on my way to my job at an organization that is working to end poverty. Secondly, those poor thieves, only got a camera that hadn't been working, Q3 (less than 50 cents), and a credit card with $15 on it (which is now cancelled). So little for all of that work and risk.
I am okay. I have a black eye, broken finger, sore stomach, headache, and a definate sense of violation and fear, but all of these things pass. I am supported, loved, and already on my way to healing. It would be such a blesing if you all could pray, not only for me but for the men who felt that this was their only option. Lastly, thank God for all of the amazing people who have helped me through these last couple of days. Brandon who stayed in the hospital for hours, Sarah who was the first to call my parents and who let me sleep in her room the last couple of nights, Hector who somehow got me into the emergency room at Antigua Nacional in less than 10 minutes, Pablo and Carlos brought my meds, my coat, talked to doctors, arranged transportation for all of these people, talked with me, and a lot of other stuff, and also for doctors, nurses, Charlie, Luke, Angel, Neto, and Ana Lucia at Nuestro Ajijados. God gave me an army of angels to get me through one of the hardest days of my life.
I am here to stay. While it is going to be a struggle to work through these things and to regain my sense of safety, going home wouldn't change anything that has happened.
I am safe. I am loved.
The long and short of it is that I was attacked. I have always been so careful here about where and when I walk, especially when I am by myself. I was on my way to work about 5 minutes outside of Antigua just before 2:00 in the afternoon. There were two men walking in front of me for quite some time. I was aware of them and was keeping my distance. About a minute from work, not even there is a row of stores and repair shops. In the afternoon they don't get much business so there were probably around 20 people standing around and talking. At this spot the two men in front of me turned around and immediately attacked me. This is highly unusual because normally thieves ask for your things before they attack you. Had they done this I would have handed it over. However, this was not the case. One of them held my arms back while the other took my bag. My bag crosses over my arms so because the other guy was holding my arms the one couldn't get the bag off of me. So, he started to hit me. It probably wasn't smart but my self-defense kicked in at this point, literally, and I kicked the man who was taking my bag where the sun doesn't shine (sorry for a lack of a better term). He definately let up a little at this point long enough for me to get my bag off my arm and give it to him. The bad part was that he also kicked me in the gut and sidearm punched me in the left eye. The really hard part for me is that even though they had my things they continued to grab at my clothes and sexually harass me. At this point one of the people watching this all happen finallly stepped in and said "Aye no mas", basically, "hey, that's enough". The two men finally took my things, got into a parked car, and drove off.
It is amazing how an altrication that didn't last more than a minute and a half can seem to stretch on for hours. I distinctly remember watching the man's hand come across towards my face in slow motion. However, after they ran away I immediately lost my sense of calm. I walked the minute or so to Nuestro Ajilados. Thinking back on it two days later I am amazed at the reaction I got at work. Immediately I was sent to the clinic, police were called, the embassy was contacted with a full report, and a number of crucial phone calls were made. I had some really serious post traumatic stress syndrome. My blood pressure spiked, I couldn't think or breath, and I was light headed. However, the doctors and nurses at the clinic took care of everything and a counselor was brought in immediately. I am so blessed to have had her there. If not for the things she said and the amount of quick processing she was able to work me through in the first 30 minutes after the attack, my reaction now would have been very different.
Brandon was there from the beginning. After the clinic I was sent to the National Hospital for monitoring, X-rays of my head, and a surgeon looked at my stomach. Brandon stayed the entire day as well as Hector, one of the directors at Nuestro Ajiados who translated for me when I couldn't. So many friends and family were there so that I was never alone. I am just so overwhelmed by the outpouring of kindness and support. So many Guatemaltecos apologized to me saying how there are good people in Guatemala and how they were so ashamed of their countrymen. This doesn't really change anything. I love this country and I have from the first day I got here. Where two people hurt me, hundreds made sure I was okay. I may have lost possessions, my camera being the hardest one to deal with, I have my life and my integrity.
Now for the serious ironies in this whole situation. First of all, I was robbed on my way to my job at an organization that is working to end poverty. Secondly, those poor thieves, only got a camera that hadn't been working, Q3 (less than 50 cents), and a credit card with $15 on it (which is now cancelled). So little for all of that work and risk.
I am okay. I have a black eye, broken finger, sore stomach, headache, and a definate sense of violation and fear, but all of these things pass. I am supported, loved, and already on my way to healing. It would be such a blesing if you all could pray, not only for me but for the men who felt that this was their only option. Lastly, thank God for all of the amazing people who have helped me through these last couple of days. Brandon who stayed in the hospital for hours, Sarah who was the first to call my parents and who let me sleep in her room the last couple of nights, Hector who somehow got me into the emergency room at Antigua Nacional in less than 10 minutes, Pablo and Carlos brought my meds, my coat, talked to doctors, arranged transportation for all of these people, talked with me, and a lot of other stuff, and also for doctors, nurses, Charlie, Luke, Angel, Neto, and Ana Lucia at Nuestro Ajijados. God gave me an army of angels to get me through one of the hardest days of my life.
I am here to stay. While it is going to be a struggle to work through these things and to regain my sense of safety, going home wouldn't change anything that has happened.
I am safe. I am loved.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Just to much to tell
Wow, ya´ll, I am here to say that I have been hopelessly remiss in keeping up on my blogging. It has gotten to the point where if I tell everything that has happened this will turn into the worlds biggest blog post. Therefore, I will just give the highlights, and put up all kinds of pictures to fill in the rest.
The weekend of Halloween was an absolute blast. Things are celebrated a lot differently here. The whole thing is a three day festival starting Friday and going into Sunday. Friday night was the Halloween party at Kasbah, a club here. My two brothers, Carlos and Pablo, dressed up as smirfs. It is really hard to dance with a blue man. There costumes were great and I got to spend a lot of time with Andréa, who I had not seen in quite some time. Saturday is a day with more celebration. People from all the towns in Guatemala gather in large fields in their various cities and fly bariletes, kites. I went in the afternoon with Pablo and Brayan to buy my own kite, a mariposa, and we all went out and flew them. This whole thing made me miss my mom, because she would have loved to see them all out there. This is yet another thing you can do in Guatemala and not in the US. There were probably around 50 kites caught in the power lines by the end of the day, complete with people trying to climb up and pull them off. Dinner that night was a special food here called fiambre. It is made with all different kinds of meat, beans, vegetables, and all kinds of things. It costs a lot to make so they only eat it one day a year here, but it was absolutely fantastic. Sunday there is a religious parade in the street with this huge altar carried through the streets of the city by women. There is also a band (there were baritones!), priests, and incense carriers. It was a very different kind of thing to see.
A few nights later we went to a birthday party for our friend Joel at a hookah bar called, Gaya. It is a very Persian kind of feeling place, pillows, canopies, the whole nine yards.
Every day I am surprised by what I wake up to. I eat refried beans and tortillas for breakfast (amazing). Then I hop in the shower and hope it is going to be a hot water day and then I rush off to four hard hours of Spanish class. Class is so important to me. It gets really hard sometimes as my teacher tries to make the things the things I am learning on paper become part of my every day conversation. I have no idea how she comes up with the patience she has every day. I can get really frustrated but she always figures out how to keep me going. I probably have not talked about her much. Her name is Olga Perez. She is 27 and has been a spanish language teacher for five years. She really loves what she does and it definately shows. At the same time, it is not easy being a language teacher. The work is inconsistent. If you dont have a student during a certain week, you dont get paid. Also, I may have said this before, but CSA has a continuing education program for their teachers that rivals most schools in the US. Thus, at the end of our class, Olga goes to her class. After school I am home for lunch and a quick nap. Most days I then go to Nuestro Ahijados. Brandon and I have made some huge leaps in our last couple of days of work. Today we finally got together all of the department heads at Nuestro Ahijados. We talked with all of them for two and a half hours about how we can make their jobs easier, implement an effective database, and make sure everyone can keep up with it. We finally have some really concrete plans about what to do next. It is so exciting to see exactly how all the work we do will help people. I definately do a lot of on the job training. It is really rewarding work. It is an awesome thing to be a part of.
This past weekend I went on a tour through a bunch of different places in Guatemala. The idea of the tour was to expose the participants to the reality of Guatemalan life as it is today. This includes both the bad and the good. I will be updating you all on the details of that trip in my next post, but just to keep you on the edge of your seat, here are a few of the topics... live chicken sacrifice, strawberries, puppies, and a cozy night. Oh, did I mention live chicken sacrifice.
The weekend of Halloween was an absolute blast. Things are celebrated a lot differently here. The whole thing is a three day festival starting Friday and going into Sunday. Friday night was the Halloween party at Kasbah, a club here. My two brothers, Carlos and Pablo, dressed up as smirfs. It is really hard to dance with a blue man. There costumes were great and I got to spend a lot of time with Andréa, who I had not seen in quite some time. Saturday is a day with more celebration. People from all the towns in Guatemala gather in large fields in their various cities and fly bariletes, kites. I went in the afternoon with Pablo and Brayan to buy my own kite, a mariposa, and we all went out and flew them. This whole thing made me miss my mom, because she would have loved to see them all out there. This is yet another thing you can do in Guatemala and not in the US. There were probably around 50 kites caught in the power lines by the end of the day, complete with people trying to climb up and pull them off. Dinner that night was a special food here called fiambre. It is made with all different kinds of meat, beans, vegetables, and all kinds of things. It costs a lot to make so they only eat it one day a year here, but it was absolutely fantastic. Sunday there is a religious parade in the street with this huge altar carried through the streets of the city by women. There is also a band (there were baritones!), priests, and incense carriers. It was a very different kind of thing to see.
A few nights later we went to a birthday party for our friend Joel at a hookah bar called, Gaya. It is a very Persian kind of feeling place, pillows, canopies, the whole nine yards.
Every day I am surprised by what I wake up to. I eat refried beans and tortillas for breakfast (amazing). Then I hop in the shower and hope it is going to be a hot water day and then I rush off to four hard hours of Spanish class. Class is so important to me. It gets really hard sometimes as my teacher tries to make the things the things I am learning on paper become part of my every day conversation. I have no idea how she comes up with the patience she has every day. I can get really frustrated but she always figures out how to keep me going. I probably have not talked about her much. Her name is Olga Perez. She is 27 and has been a spanish language teacher for five years. She really loves what she does and it definately shows. At the same time, it is not easy being a language teacher. The work is inconsistent. If you dont have a student during a certain week, you dont get paid. Also, I may have said this before, but CSA has a continuing education program for their teachers that rivals most schools in the US. Thus, at the end of our class, Olga goes to her class. After school I am home for lunch and a quick nap. Most days I then go to Nuestro Ahijados. Brandon and I have made some huge leaps in our last couple of days of work. Today we finally got together all of the department heads at Nuestro Ahijados. We talked with all of them for two and a half hours about how we can make their jobs easier, implement an effective database, and make sure everyone can keep up with it. We finally have some really concrete plans about what to do next. It is so exciting to see exactly how all the work we do will help people. I definately do a lot of on the job training. It is really rewarding work. It is an awesome thing to be a part of.
This past weekend I went on a tour through a bunch of different places in Guatemala. The idea of the tour was to expose the participants to the reality of Guatemalan life as it is today. This includes both the bad and the good. I will be updating you all on the details of that trip in my next post, but just to keep you on the edge of your seat, here are a few of the topics... live chicken sacrifice, strawberries, puppies, and a cozy night. Oh, did I mention live chicken sacrifice.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Nada mas.
I have been doing a lot of thinking in the last few days and I will admit, quite a lot of worrying. However, whenever I get to worrying all I need to do is take a walk just outside of town and go into one of the barios. These are the poor towns on the outskirts of town. Out there, children play in the dirt in the streets next to the garbage they took out that morning. Garbage, dirt, it does not matter, they are happy. It does not mean that they are healthy or that they will have by US standards, "a good life." It just means that in that moment, they have found the ray of light that God in his astounding grace has sent from heaven.
If I do not want to walk as far, all I have to do is go to the house for teenaged girls at the end of town. Nuestro Aliados, the organization I will be working for, just discovered that at night police have been conducting so called "interviews" with the girls for several years. In my narrow-minded view, all I can think about is how hard it is that I do not have very much money. In reality, I am so blessed to have enough of a concept of money that I can worry about it. Those girls, who are my age, do not worry about money or what they are going to go to college next semester. They just hope that someone will give them the respect that they as simple children of God deserve.
The world is not about money or school or any of the things that the world gets caught up in. It is about simple, pure, inexplainable, undescribable grace.
If I do not want to walk as far, all I have to do is go to the house for teenaged girls at the end of town. Nuestro Aliados, the organization I will be working for, just discovered that at night police have been conducting so called "interviews" with the girls for several years. In my narrow-minded view, all I can think about is how hard it is that I do not have very much money. In reality, I am so blessed to have enough of a concept of money that I can worry about it. Those girls, who are my age, do not worry about money or what they are going to go to college next semester. They just hope that someone will give them the respect that they as simple children of God deserve.
The world is not about money or school or any of the things that the world gets caught up in. It is about simple, pure, inexplainable, undescribable grace.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
...because you are youung.
I had such a full weekend I have no idea where to start. There were so many people leaving and birthdays and just a ton of good stuff happened.
To start out Thurday night was my birthday party with my friends from school. We had dinner for those who wanted it at 7:00 and the gathering at 8:00. For the dinner I think about 6 people came and for the gathering I think there were probably 20 people total but lots of people could only make it for parts of it. Kafka, the restaurant where we at has this really cool area over the bar that you have to go over this little bridge thing to get to. They have a big long table that you eat Roman style around. It was really great for talking. My friends bought me a card and a really delicious birthday brownie, complete with ice cream and a candle.
Friday night was 80s night at Hotel Antigua. We were invited back last time we went by the hotel manager so we got in free and we had to pay for almost nothing and they kept sending us free food. It is so fun because everywhere I go with my group of friends people love having us. We love dancing and karaoke and we are always as polite and friendly as we can be. 80s night this week was really fun becaus Carlos, my big brother, came along. I was surprised about how mamy songs he knew.
Saturday I stayed at home most of the day. It was a much needed rest and I got a lot of studying done.
Sunday we ate breakfast at the cafe down the street and went to mass. It was really cool because the service was all about the Lord´s Prayer which I am really familiar with from going to Spanish service in Watertown back home. In the afternoon we had a party for Kelley, who has been such an amazing friends during the time I have been here. She left yesterday morning and it was tough to say goodbye. We ate cake in the park and we celebrated in the McDonald´s courtyard with a piñata. At first the McDonald´s employees did not look so excited about having us there so Doug went in and bought like 15 cheeseburgers, or quesoburguesas, as they are called here. We invited all of the kids in the courtyard to come and play as well. It didn´t take much for the McDonald´s people to get excited about what we were doing. They brought us out an actually piñata stick instead of the tennis racket we had been using. Unfortunately, Jenny accidentally broke the stick by wacking it into a tree. I was delegated to go and apologize to the staff. They pretty much thought that this was the funniest thing that had ever happened. I mean really, some of them laughed so hard they cried. We must have looked pretty funny, 4 adults coming up to the counter with this sad broken piñata stick, asking if we can pay for it. It was a very fun afternoon and I definately got some beautiful pictures.
After Jenny, Sarah, Kelley, and I spent some time in the sun on Jenny´s roof. Mostly I studied, but I did tan up a little bit. The sun did a lot to boost my mood. Sunday night we went out to eat. It was also Kelley´s birthday, so in the Guatemalan tradition, we set off a lot of Black Cats in the street. The staff at the restaurant loved us so they set off even more Black Cats. It was really, really loud, but equally fun.
Yesterday I took my exam and passed it. Thus I am now in Grado D. I feel pretty good about the score I got and I am excited for the new material.
In spite of all of these fun events, the highlight of my weekend was definately visiting the organization that I am going to be working for. They have a gorgeous campus and it was so amazing to start meeting the kids that I am going to be helping. The staff is young, but passionate. The director of the new infant malnutrition center is 19, my age. At first I was really shocked by this and even a little skeptical, but I had the opportunity to talk to him and it is obvious that his passion for what he is doing has led him to build up an amazing center that is going to save the lives of hundreds of children. He also told me that the most important part of everything he does is God. He credited God with all of his abilities. He used the example of Timothy and quoted some of the things Paul says to encourages him.
"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity."
To start out Thurday night was my birthday party with my friends from school. We had dinner for those who wanted it at 7:00 and the gathering at 8:00. For the dinner I think about 6 people came and for the gathering I think there were probably 20 people total but lots of people could only make it for parts of it. Kafka, the restaurant where we at has this really cool area over the bar that you have to go over this little bridge thing to get to. They have a big long table that you eat Roman style around. It was really great for talking. My friends bought me a card and a really delicious birthday brownie, complete with ice cream and a candle.
Friday night was 80s night at Hotel Antigua. We were invited back last time we went by the hotel manager so we got in free and we had to pay for almost nothing and they kept sending us free food. It is so fun because everywhere I go with my group of friends people love having us. We love dancing and karaoke and we are always as polite and friendly as we can be. 80s night this week was really fun becaus Carlos, my big brother, came along. I was surprised about how mamy songs he knew.
Saturday I stayed at home most of the day. It was a much needed rest and I got a lot of studying done.
Sunday we ate breakfast at the cafe down the street and went to mass. It was really cool because the service was all about the Lord´s Prayer which I am really familiar with from going to Spanish service in Watertown back home. In the afternoon we had a party for Kelley, who has been such an amazing friends during the time I have been here. She left yesterday morning and it was tough to say goodbye. We ate cake in the park and we celebrated in the McDonald´s courtyard with a piñata. At first the McDonald´s employees did not look so excited about having us there so Doug went in and bought like 15 cheeseburgers, or quesoburguesas, as they are called here. We invited all of the kids in the courtyard to come and play as well. It didn´t take much for the McDonald´s people to get excited about what we were doing. They brought us out an actually piñata stick instead of the tennis racket we had been using. Unfortunately, Jenny accidentally broke the stick by wacking it into a tree. I was delegated to go and apologize to the staff. They pretty much thought that this was the funniest thing that had ever happened. I mean really, some of them laughed so hard they cried. We must have looked pretty funny, 4 adults coming up to the counter with this sad broken piñata stick, asking if we can pay for it. It was a very fun afternoon and I definately got some beautiful pictures.
After Jenny, Sarah, Kelley, and I spent some time in the sun on Jenny´s roof. Mostly I studied, but I did tan up a little bit. The sun did a lot to boost my mood. Sunday night we went out to eat. It was also Kelley´s birthday, so in the Guatemalan tradition, we set off a lot of Black Cats in the street. The staff at the restaurant loved us so they set off even more Black Cats. It was really, really loud, but equally fun.
Yesterday I took my exam and passed it. Thus I am now in Grado D. I feel pretty good about the score I got and I am excited for the new material.
In spite of all of these fun events, the highlight of my weekend was definately visiting the organization that I am going to be working for. They have a gorgeous campus and it was so amazing to start meeting the kids that I am going to be helping. The staff is young, but passionate. The director of the new infant malnutrition center is 19, my age. At first I was really shocked by this and even a little skeptical, but I had the opportunity to talk to him and it is obvious that his passion for what he is doing has led him to build up an amazing center that is going to save the lives of hundreds of children. He also told me that the most important part of everything he does is God. He credited God with all of his abilities. He used the example of Timothy and quoted some of the things Paul says to encourages him.
"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity."
Thursday, October 23, 2008
When opportunity knocks...
Hey everyone, this is just a quick update to tell you what is going on here. I am super busy with school. My exam to pass into the next grade will be on Monday. I am confident that I will pass, but I really want to get a good score so that I know that I really have learned all of these new things. I am thinking about going 5 hours instead of 4 hours every other week. That will probably all depend on cost and whether or not that will really help me more.
Tonight friends from school are taking me out to one of my favorite restuarants for my birthday. A lot of people are coming so I am really excited and I feel really honored that they have set this all up for me. This weekend brings 80s night and Pablo and Carlos are also taking me out for my birthday.
My other big news is that I have been offered a temporary position at a non-profit organization down here. They are working to help prevent human trafficing here in Guatemala. They are based out of Antigua so I would be able to work after school. The organization cracks down on child trafficing in stone quarries and the trafficing of women mostly in the sex and slave trades. When they find them they pull the women and children out and get them into homes where they are taken care of and can learn trades. The organization is basically a stepping stone into their new lives. My job would be to help set up the database that keeps track of the women and children and links them to their parents, their former locations, their new locations, etc. My friends Brandon and Doug from school work there and they mentioned that they need another hand with this. I have been looking for a place to volunteer and I think this could be a really good fit for me. I would work with Brandon to create the system and then I would be able to make lists and input data, which I love doing! and also work with the children. It just feels like I am being directed towards this opportunity. I do not think it is just chance.
Other than that, life goes on down here.
Tonight friends from school are taking me out to one of my favorite restuarants for my birthday. A lot of people are coming so I am really excited and I feel really honored that they have set this all up for me. This weekend brings 80s night and Pablo and Carlos are also taking me out for my birthday.
My other big news is that I have been offered a temporary position at a non-profit organization down here. They are working to help prevent human trafficing here in Guatemala. They are based out of Antigua so I would be able to work after school. The organization cracks down on child trafficing in stone quarries and the trafficing of women mostly in the sex and slave trades. When they find them they pull the women and children out and get them into homes where they are taken care of and can learn trades. The organization is basically a stepping stone into their new lives. My job would be to help set up the database that keeps track of the women and children and links them to their parents, their former locations, their new locations, etc. My friends Brandon and Doug from school work there and they mentioned that they need another hand with this. I have been looking for a place to volunteer and I think this could be a really good fit for me. I would work with Brandon to create the system and then I would be able to make lists and input data, which I love doing! and also work with the children. It just feels like I am being directed towards this opportunity. I do not think it is just chance.
Other than that, life goes on down here.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Carne Asada
My birthday was most definately a birthday to remember. This was my first birthday away from home and that was definately a big step for me. I really missed my family and friends but at the same time I had a really great day.
My day started out with Pati bringing me breakfast in bed. I had melon and actual, cold milk which is a ginormous luxury. I also had chocolate corn flakes. Before you think to yourself Oh wow, corn flakes... let me explain. These were not chocolate corn flakes that just came out of a box. The flakes came out of a box but the chocolate was amazing rich Guatemalan chocolate that Pati melted down, cooled a little and then poured all over my corn flakes. Entonces, when I put milk in them I also got chocolate milk. This was a very good thing and definately started the day out right. In the morning as a present to myself I paid Q30 to visit two different ruins and a museum. The first ruin is actually down the street from my house. It was a school started by monks in the 1700s. The really beautiful part about it is that the caretakers have built a garden in and around the ruins. It was really interesting. The museum I went to was a textile museum. It was really cool because I had my own tour guide so I got to ask all kinds of questions and go at my own pace. I learned a lot about the clothes that I see every day and admire. Now I have a whole new respect and admiration fot the clothes and the people who make them. My third stop was at the ruins of this ginormous Catholic monastery. Going there is like walking into the apocalypse. It also sort of reminded me of Planet of the Apes when he sees the Statue of Liberty all buried in the sand. Very little restoration has been done on it. It was destroyed in the same earthquake in the 1700s. There are piles of stone everywhere and huge ornate chuncks of the building just lying around. It was really fun to be climbing around it. The weirdest part was that when I stood next to the wall, so much dirt and rubble had fallen in that I was almost to the top of these massive walls.
After my morning excursions I went home to help and watch my big birthday meal be cooked. This was pretty much a banquet. They cooked chicken and beef carne asada. This is meat marinated in pineapple, really thinly sliced and them grilled. Amazing! We had churritzos which are Guatemalan meat balls, also grill, and also amazing. There was grilled corn and grilled onions. They made beans and pico de gallo, my favorite beverage, Tampico, and fresh tortillas. The whole family was there including Dr. Lopez who is such an interesting and kind man. I really like talking to him. Before we ate, the family sang this rather long and rowdy medley of birthday songs. It was really fun. They clapped and shouted and jumped around. Then we ate... and ate... and ate. Sometimes when you make a really good meal and it takes two hours to cook but only twenty minutes to eat it is sort of frustrating, but this was no such thing. We ate and talked for an entire hour. Afterwards there were hugs and naps.
During the evening I played piano and read and walked through the town with Pablo. Antigua is really beautiful at night. Carlos, Andrea, Pablo, and I were going to go out dancing last night but all of us were sick in one way or another. Mostly, I was just stuffed. So we postponed the dancing util next Saturday or Friday night, or if Carlos gets his way, both.
I really enjoyed yesterday. I am so richly blessed that I live with a family who genuinely cares about me and wants me to make the most of every day I am here.
My day started out with Pati bringing me breakfast in bed. I had melon and actual, cold milk which is a ginormous luxury. I also had chocolate corn flakes. Before you think to yourself Oh wow, corn flakes... let me explain. These were not chocolate corn flakes that just came out of a box. The flakes came out of a box but the chocolate was amazing rich Guatemalan chocolate that Pati melted down, cooled a little and then poured all over my corn flakes. Entonces, when I put milk in them I also got chocolate milk. This was a very good thing and definately started the day out right. In the morning as a present to myself I paid Q30 to visit two different ruins and a museum. The first ruin is actually down the street from my house. It was a school started by monks in the 1700s. The really beautiful part about it is that the caretakers have built a garden in and around the ruins. It was really interesting. The museum I went to was a textile museum. It was really cool because I had my own tour guide so I got to ask all kinds of questions and go at my own pace. I learned a lot about the clothes that I see every day and admire. Now I have a whole new respect and admiration fot the clothes and the people who make them. My third stop was at the ruins of this ginormous Catholic monastery. Going there is like walking into the apocalypse. It also sort of reminded me of Planet of the Apes when he sees the Statue of Liberty all buried in the sand. Very little restoration has been done on it. It was destroyed in the same earthquake in the 1700s. There are piles of stone everywhere and huge ornate chuncks of the building just lying around. It was really fun to be climbing around it. The weirdest part was that when I stood next to the wall, so much dirt and rubble had fallen in that I was almost to the top of these massive walls.
After my morning excursions I went home to help and watch my big birthday meal be cooked. This was pretty much a banquet. They cooked chicken and beef carne asada. This is meat marinated in pineapple, really thinly sliced and them grilled. Amazing! We had churritzos which are Guatemalan meat balls, also grill, and also amazing. There was grilled corn and grilled onions. They made beans and pico de gallo, my favorite beverage, Tampico, and fresh tortillas. The whole family was there including Dr. Lopez who is such an interesting and kind man. I really like talking to him. Before we ate, the family sang this rather long and rowdy medley of birthday songs. It was really fun. They clapped and shouted and jumped around. Then we ate... and ate... and ate. Sometimes when you make a really good meal and it takes two hours to cook but only twenty minutes to eat it is sort of frustrating, but this was no such thing. We ate and talked for an entire hour. Afterwards there were hugs and naps.
During the evening I played piano and read and walked through the town with Pablo. Antigua is really beautiful at night. Carlos, Andrea, Pablo, and I were going to go out dancing last night but all of us were sick in one way or another. Mostly, I was just stuffed. So we postponed the dancing util next Saturday or Friday night, or if Carlos gets his way, both.
I really enjoyed yesterday. I am so richly blessed that I live with a family who genuinely cares about me and wants me to make the most of every day I am here.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Earthquakes and Parties
Yesterday I had a new experience. We had an earthquake. I was sleeping in the afternoon before lunch and then my bed started shaking. At first I thought I was still dreaming but it just kept going so I got up and went outside of my room. Pablo comes running over and tells me we have to go out into the courtyard. It was a very weird feeling. It was sort of like trying to stand still in a bouncy castle. To be honest, I thought it was fun. However, apparently it was rather large and pretty serious. Somebody told me the number on the scale but I forgot what it was. I guess earthquakes are fairly common after the rainy season. I honestly did not know they had them in Guate, but now I know.
Other than that, things are pretty laid back for the weekend. Tomorrow is my birthday. The family was going to throw a party but Adita´s mom is really sick. The family is leaving early in the morning to go see her. They are all really worried and upset. I really hope everything is okay. When they told me about postponing the party they were so incredibly sweet about it. Adita basically said that they were so sorry and she felt as if she had broken a promise to me. She told me that if I wanted to have it on the same day, they would stay and we would have it. Obviously I told them they should go. They are still going to give me the party, but it has just been moved to Monday. I told them they didn´t need to worry about it at all but they just dismissed that idea completely.
My group of friends are in Coban for the weekend so it is going to be a quiet birthday, which I am actually kind of excited about. All of the parties that people want to give me have been moved to next week so it is not as if I do not get to share it with friends. Tomorrow morning I am going to sleep in. Then I am going to help Pati, the maid (although I hate using the word maid, she is really more of a friend) clean the house. Normally the family and she does it on Saturday but since they will be gone, she would have to do it all by herself and it is a big house. I usually help out anyways so tomorrow she and I are going to clean together. Sarah and Kristen are gone for the weekend so it is just me and the family. Saturday afternoon I am planning to go to the ruins of this monastery in town. Someone, I don´t know who offhand has created all of these flower gardens in and around the ruins. It is apparently really beautiful. I am excited to go. After that I am not sure, but I am sure something will come up. I did get my first birthday present today. Yesterday in our conversation time my teacher asked me what my favorite color was, and I said that it was red. Then I asked what her favorites are and she said, brown and pink. I didn´t think anything of it until this morning there was this really pretty red bag on my chair. It was a really nice surprise.
Of course I miss my family and friends. It really hit me today that I was going to be away from my family for my birthday for the first time. I don´t really know how I feel about it, definately a little lonely. I suppose it had to happen sometime. Another year, new adventures.
Love,
Anna
Other than that, things are pretty laid back for the weekend. Tomorrow is my birthday. The family was going to throw a party but Adita´s mom is really sick. The family is leaving early in the morning to go see her. They are all really worried and upset. I really hope everything is okay. When they told me about postponing the party they were so incredibly sweet about it. Adita basically said that they were so sorry and she felt as if she had broken a promise to me. She told me that if I wanted to have it on the same day, they would stay and we would have it. Obviously I told them they should go. They are still going to give me the party, but it has just been moved to Monday. I told them they didn´t need to worry about it at all but they just dismissed that idea completely.
My group of friends are in Coban for the weekend so it is going to be a quiet birthday, which I am actually kind of excited about. All of the parties that people want to give me have been moved to next week so it is not as if I do not get to share it with friends. Tomorrow morning I am going to sleep in. Then I am going to help Pati, the maid (although I hate using the word maid, she is really more of a friend) clean the house. Normally the family and she does it on Saturday but since they will be gone, she would have to do it all by herself and it is a big house. I usually help out anyways so tomorrow she and I are going to clean together. Sarah and Kristen are gone for the weekend so it is just me and the family. Saturday afternoon I am planning to go to the ruins of this monastery in town. Someone, I don´t know who offhand has created all of these flower gardens in and around the ruins. It is apparently really beautiful. I am excited to go. After that I am not sure, but I am sure something will come up. I did get my first birthday present today. Yesterday in our conversation time my teacher asked me what my favorite color was, and I said that it was red. Then I asked what her favorites are and she said, brown and pink. I didn´t think anything of it until this morning there was this really pretty red bag on my chair. It was a really nice surprise.
Of course I miss my family and friends. It really hit me today that I was going to be away from my family for my birthday for the first time. I don´t really know how I feel about it, definately a little lonely. I suppose it had to happen sometime. Another year, new adventures.
Love,
Anna
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
American Gladiator
I just had to throw this in here because it is one of the coolest things ever. My friend Brandon who I go to school with and hang out with, he is also a good friend to have because he walks me home when it is dark, anyhow, he is my friend. We went to get carrot cake at Higher Grounds (an American run Christian cafe that has carrot cake that will change your life). While were there somehow it came up in conversation that his sister had been on American Gladiator. At first I said something about how it was cool that she had gone to tryouts. He sort of chuckled and said, "No, Anna, she won." Is that not so completely awesome. Jeff and Allie Davisson are his sister and brother-in-law. I watched almost the entire season and I they were my favorite. When he gets back they are using some of the million they won to take the entire family on a vacation. Seriously, that is super cool.
I am putting up a few new pictures, mostly of flowers and friends.
Peace ya´ll
I am putting up a few new pictures, mostly of flowers and friends.
Peace ya´ll
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Weekend Update Live with Anna Kanter
I had one of the greatest weekends I think I have ever had. So many amazing things happened and my love for Antigua and Guatemala and the world for that matter has been renewed.
Friday, instead of class, a group of students including myself went to the Corn Festival in San Antitenango. It is a town about 30 minutes from Guatemala and is just a little larger. At first I had thought we were going to the city. Guate has a celebration but the original cultural celebration is in San Antitenango. The festival started out with a play done by the school in town. Each graade level performed a different traditional dance. In between the dances a narator read the history of corn in Guatemala. The Mayans believed that God created corn on the same day we believe God created plants. The difference is that they believe instead of the dust of the ground, God created them out of corn. So, obviously, corn is very important to them. The narator also explained the various changes of corn throughout the centuries. One of my favorite parts was when he explained how every man, woman, and child is tied to the corn. It was really fascinating. I love learning about the culture, the history, etc. so this was defiantely a treat for me. My favorite dance was performed by children who were probably 11 or 12. They performed an interperative dance showing bullfighting in the country. Bullfighting in Guatemala was and still is more of a sensible need for food than a form of entertainment. The really cool part about it was that the had a kid dressed up in a cardboard bull costume and he was running around the stage with a toreador, or as people in the states know it, a matador. As the bull was running around, kids from the class were following him with candles trying to light firecrackers that were attached to his costume. This would never fly at schools in the US, I have no idea why. It really did create a very powerful effect of this raging bull being slowly brought down by the toreador. However, his cardboard costume did start on fire, but he kept dancing through till the end. It was really cool. After the play we went out into the streets for all kinds of food made with corn for really cheap prices. I am really glad that I have a strong stomach because I got to try everything. Things cost Q2 or less. That is around a fourth of a penny.
On Friday night a group of 5 of my closer friends here and myself went to 80s night at the Hotel Antigua. It is a gourgeous hotel. They had a man there who travels all over central America performing. It was supposed to be sort of a sit and listen cocktail event, but we wanted to dance, so we made it a dance party. It was so super fun. The DJ got into the dancing and started taking requests, we 2-stepped, salsa danced, rocked out, and grooved for several hours. We got the whole lounge into it. Then we found out that the DJ had 4000 karaoke songs on his computer. W had such a good time. The manager of the hotel and the DJ asked us to come back the next Friday. He offered us half price drinks and a good table. Unfortunately a bunch of people are going to Copan next weekend so there would only be 2 of us, but the week after, we will be there.
Saturday was the big Guatemala v. Trinidad and Tobego game. We went to Mono Loco to watch. I love watching soccer and the rest of the group likes it to but the really fun part is watching people, watch the game. It gets really crazy and fun. The game ended in a tie, 0-0, both teams are really good. That was a lot of fun as well.
Oh, Saturday afternoon I was invited to go to the opening of an art show in Antigua. This was such an incredible honor. It was invitation only. I was one of only 2 Americans there. Dr. Lopez translated and annotated the only Mayan text uninfluenced by any outside source. It is a huge history of a Mayan town and the wars, struggles, and good things they go through. It is unknown for certain in the text is a true story or not, but because of its descriptiveness and sometimes extremely mundane daily life sort of reports, most believe it is true. The text is in poetic form much like the Odyssey or the Iliad. It is beautiful. Anyhow, he was reading from the book at this opening and I was invited by the family to attend. Dr. Lopez read wonerfully. He was very involving. I understood most of what he was saying and I was just glued. The art exhibit is a collection of paintings by an artist from each of the countries in Central Americans. These artists are master sculpturists and painters. It was so amazing to get to meet them and hear them talk about their work in their native language. The director came over and introduced himself to me before the show opening. This is also apparently a great honor. It was such an amzazing experience and every time I think about it I just feel so honored to have been able to attend. I am so glad that my wonderful Mother takes me to museums so that I could enjoy seeing the differences between modern artists in Central America and modern artists in the US and Europe. Also, there was free food and wine, but that is somewhat beside the point.
Just a couple hours ago I had lunch with a huge group of people at Cafe Gringos. Gringo means Yankee in Spanish. The Cafe is run by an American man who generally markets for students. It is a very different dining experience. You dont order any food. You sit down and they give you Jamaica, a tea like drink, and set out place settings. Then they serve you whatever they have made for the day. Today it was roast chicken, yellow rice, cucumbers, and tomatoes. They also, of course, give you tortillas. This whole meal costs only Q25 which is about $4. It was really good. The group we had was also very diverse.
I have gotten to meet so many interesting people. Last night we met to men from Israel who are traveling the world to find themselves. Today I talked to the owner of Gringos, a new friend from Texas, a girl from England, a couple of guys from Australia, and a couple from Greece. Often if it is meal time and if you see someone on the street looking for a restuarant, you invite them to come along. That is how we end up with groups of 20-30 people for cheap lunch.
It was an all around fabulous weekend and I still have Sunday night dinner to go to.
However, the truly worst part of this entire trip is that I have run out of money. It is so frustrating to really realize that money can and does hold me back from the things I really want to do. It is hard to have to ask new friends to spot me for lunch or breakfast until I can come up with more money. I was hoping to find a job here but businesses only hire people who are staying at least 12 weeks. I love being here, and I will hopefully figure something out soon, but it really has been a wake up call. I cant predict some expenses that come up. I cant control my health or the weather. I am finding out the hard way that the only thing I can control is how I react to the setbacks. I really didnt realize that I was going to be learning things like that in the few months that I am here.
I am missing you all and I hope everyone is doing well.
Friday, instead of class, a group of students including myself went to the Corn Festival in San Antitenango. It is a town about 30 minutes from Guatemala and is just a little larger. At first I had thought we were going to the city. Guate has a celebration but the original cultural celebration is in San Antitenango. The festival started out with a play done by the school in town. Each graade level performed a different traditional dance. In between the dances a narator read the history of corn in Guatemala. The Mayans believed that God created corn on the same day we believe God created plants. The difference is that they believe instead of the dust of the ground, God created them out of corn. So, obviously, corn is very important to them. The narator also explained the various changes of corn throughout the centuries. One of my favorite parts was when he explained how every man, woman, and child is tied to the corn. It was really fascinating. I love learning about the culture, the history, etc. so this was defiantely a treat for me. My favorite dance was performed by children who were probably 11 or 12. They performed an interperative dance showing bullfighting in the country. Bullfighting in Guatemala was and still is more of a sensible need for food than a form of entertainment. The really cool part about it was that the had a kid dressed up in a cardboard bull costume and he was running around the stage with a toreador, or as people in the states know it, a matador. As the bull was running around, kids from the class were following him with candles trying to light firecrackers that were attached to his costume. This would never fly at schools in the US, I have no idea why. It really did create a very powerful effect of this raging bull being slowly brought down by the toreador. However, his cardboard costume did start on fire, but he kept dancing through till the end. It was really cool. After the play we went out into the streets for all kinds of food made with corn for really cheap prices. I am really glad that I have a strong stomach because I got to try everything. Things cost Q2 or less. That is around a fourth of a penny.
On Friday night a group of 5 of my closer friends here and myself went to 80s night at the Hotel Antigua. It is a gourgeous hotel. They had a man there who travels all over central America performing. It was supposed to be sort of a sit and listen cocktail event, but we wanted to dance, so we made it a dance party. It was so super fun. The DJ got into the dancing and started taking requests, we 2-stepped, salsa danced, rocked out, and grooved for several hours. We got the whole lounge into it. Then we found out that the DJ had 4000 karaoke songs on his computer. W had such a good time. The manager of the hotel and the DJ asked us to come back the next Friday. He offered us half price drinks and a good table. Unfortunately a bunch of people are going to Copan next weekend so there would only be 2 of us, but the week after, we will be there.
Saturday was the big Guatemala v. Trinidad and Tobego game. We went to Mono Loco to watch. I love watching soccer and the rest of the group likes it to but the really fun part is watching people, watch the game. It gets really crazy and fun. The game ended in a tie, 0-0, both teams are really good. That was a lot of fun as well.
Oh, Saturday afternoon I was invited to go to the opening of an art show in Antigua. This was such an incredible honor. It was invitation only. I was one of only 2 Americans there. Dr. Lopez translated and annotated the only Mayan text uninfluenced by any outside source. It is a huge history of a Mayan town and the wars, struggles, and good things they go through. It is unknown for certain in the text is a true story or not, but because of its descriptiveness and sometimes extremely mundane daily life sort of reports, most believe it is true. The text is in poetic form much like the Odyssey or the Iliad. It is beautiful. Anyhow, he was reading from the book at this opening and I was invited by the family to attend. Dr. Lopez read wonerfully. He was very involving. I understood most of what he was saying and I was just glued. The art exhibit is a collection of paintings by an artist from each of the countries in Central Americans. These artists are master sculpturists and painters. It was so amazing to get to meet them and hear them talk about their work in their native language. The director came over and introduced himself to me before the show opening. This is also apparently a great honor. It was such an amzazing experience and every time I think about it I just feel so honored to have been able to attend. I am so glad that my wonderful Mother takes me to museums so that I could enjoy seeing the differences between modern artists in Central America and modern artists in the US and Europe. Also, there was free food and wine, but that is somewhat beside the point.
Just a couple hours ago I had lunch with a huge group of people at Cafe Gringos. Gringo means Yankee in Spanish. The Cafe is run by an American man who generally markets for students. It is a very different dining experience. You dont order any food. You sit down and they give you Jamaica, a tea like drink, and set out place settings. Then they serve you whatever they have made for the day. Today it was roast chicken, yellow rice, cucumbers, and tomatoes. They also, of course, give you tortillas. This whole meal costs only Q25 which is about $4. It was really good. The group we had was also very diverse.
I have gotten to meet so many interesting people. Last night we met to men from Israel who are traveling the world to find themselves. Today I talked to the owner of Gringos, a new friend from Texas, a girl from England, a couple of guys from Australia, and a couple from Greece. Often if it is meal time and if you see someone on the street looking for a restuarant, you invite them to come along. That is how we end up with groups of 20-30 people for cheap lunch.
It was an all around fabulous weekend and I still have Sunday night dinner to go to.
However, the truly worst part of this entire trip is that I have run out of money. It is so frustrating to really realize that money can and does hold me back from the things I really want to do. It is hard to have to ask new friends to spot me for lunch or breakfast until I can come up with more money. I was hoping to find a job here but businesses only hire people who are staying at least 12 weeks. I love being here, and I will hopefully figure something out soon, but it really has been a wake up call. I cant predict some expenses that come up. I cant control my health or the weather. I am finding out the hard way that the only thing I can control is how I react to the setbacks. I really didnt realize that I was going to be learning things like that in the few months that I am here.
I am missing you all and I hope everyone is doing well.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Drip, Drip, Drop
I am so incredibly sick of rain. It is the rainy season and they are not kidding around with that name. Almost all day, every day it rains. It is also almost always cloudy so there is no way to predict when the rain will start and when it is going to stop. It can go from an ordinary slightly cloudy day to a complete downpour in 5 seconds. The laundry is all line dried on the balcony and none of it will dry. My towels have been perpetually damp for a week. No umbrella is large enough to keep a person dry. I am so thankful for covered streets and people who let you drip in their stores while you wait for the rain to slack off at least a little. My internet cafe guys let me sit in here even when I am not actually using a computer.
There are a few positives to the rain. The first is that it washes the poop off of the alley and into the drainage ditch. As long as it is raining you also cant smell it. Another benefit would be that everything is an amazing color. The plants look like they are glowing. The other thing I can think of is that even though people are really nice here for the most part, they are even nicer when it is raining because we are all soaked and cold. It doesnt matter what language you speak to know that it is no fun being wet. Something that really amuses me is that when you greet someone on the street as you pass them, they often say things like, "It is a beautiful day" or "Isnt it nice to be outside" and then they laugh as they walk away. Gotta love sarcasm in spanish.
There is a shop on the way to parque central that I like to stop in from time to time. It is just a little clothing store and I rarely buy anything but the shopkeeper is a sweetheart and she always shows me what is new. Anyhow every day there is a police guard standing at the door to the shop. Police guards are really common. They wear uniforms really similar to police in the US only subtract the hat and add a really big rifle. They wander through town, guard banks, and direct traffic, normal police things. For a week I have been wondering why this tiny store needs a police guard every single day. Yesterday I found out the reason and it is a very important one. The police guard is the shop girls boyfriend. He spends his entire day keeping the peace by hanging out with his girlfriend. Talk about serving the people.
Lets see what have I been up to recently. On the night of the presidential debate Sarah and I went over to Doug and Brandens. Sarah is one of my roommates and Doug and Branden are two students from CSA. We all sat around, watched the debate, and talked a little. This other man who lives in the same complex as the guys was watching with us too. He thought all of the really dry debate jokes were the funniest things ever. He actually fell out of his chair when John McCain said something about trying to nail jello to the wall. I mean, dont get me wrong, that is sort of funny, but seriously, the guy fell out of his chair! That was pretty much my biggest amusement for the week. Afterwards when Sarah and I got back to the house we bought pizza from Dominoes with Pablo. Dominoes has 2 for 1 nights so we got 2 pizzas. We ate 1 of them and I think Pablo ate a piece off of the other. We put the leftovers in the fridge and went to bed. The next afternoon Adita marches Bryan upstairs and into my room. She says to him, Bryan, what do you have to say to Anna. He looks at me and says, "Lo siento much Ana porque yo tuvi much hambre y you comi su pizza, todos de tu pizza." This translates out to, sorry Anna I was hungry so I ate your entire pizza. The kid is seven! It was a large pizza. The whole situation made me laugh. His dad bought us a new pizza. I didnt really care, mostly it just amazes me that he ate a whole pizza in between meals. You probably had to be there, but its the little things that keep you going.
School is going well. Tomorrow we are going on a field trip sort of thing to the city for the Corn Festival. A whole bunch of students and teachers are going. I am really excited, should be some good photo taking opps.
I hope this finds everyone well.
There are a few positives to the rain. The first is that it washes the poop off of the alley and into the drainage ditch. As long as it is raining you also cant smell it. Another benefit would be that everything is an amazing color. The plants look like they are glowing. The other thing I can think of is that even though people are really nice here for the most part, they are even nicer when it is raining because we are all soaked and cold. It doesnt matter what language you speak to know that it is no fun being wet. Something that really amuses me is that when you greet someone on the street as you pass them, they often say things like, "It is a beautiful day" or "Isnt it nice to be outside" and then they laugh as they walk away. Gotta love sarcasm in spanish.
There is a shop on the way to parque central that I like to stop in from time to time. It is just a little clothing store and I rarely buy anything but the shopkeeper is a sweetheart and she always shows me what is new. Anyhow every day there is a police guard standing at the door to the shop. Police guards are really common. They wear uniforms really similar to police in the US only subtract the hat and add a really big rifle. They wander through town, guard banks, and direct traffic, normal police things. For a week I have been wondering why this tiny store needs a police guard every single day. Yesterday I found out the reason and it is a very important one. The police guard is the shop girls boyfriend. He spends his entire day keeping the peace by hanging out with his girlfriend. Talk about serving the people.
Lets see what have I been up to recently. On the night of the presidential debate Sarah and I went over to Doug and Brandens. Sarah is one of my roommates and Doug and Branden are two students from CSA. We all sat around, watched the debate, and talked a little. This other man who lives in the same complex as the guys was watching with us too. He thought all of the really dry debate jokes were the funniest things ever. He actually fell out of his chair when John McCain said something about trying to nail jello to the wall. I mean, dont get me wrong, that is sort of funny, but seriously, the guy fell out of his chair! That was pretty much my biggest amusement for the week. Afterwards when Sarah and I got back to the house we bought pizza from Dominoes with Pablo. Dominoes has 2 for 1 nights so we got 2 pizzas. We ate 1 of them and I think Pablo ate a piece off of the other. We put the leftovers in the fridge and went to bed. The next afternoon Adita marches Bryan upstairs and into my room. She says to him, Bryan, what do you have to say to Anna. He looks at me and says, "Lo siento much Ana porque yo tuvi much hambre y you comi su pizza, todos de tu pizza." This translates out to, sorry Anna I was hungry so I ate your entire pizza. The kid is seven! It was a large pizza. The whole situation made me laugh. His dad bought us a new pizza. I didnt really care, mostly it just amazes me that he ate a whole pizza in between meals. You probably had to be there, but its the little things that keep you going.
School is going well. Tomorrow we are going on a field trip sort of thing to the city for the Corn Festival. A whole bunch of students and teachers are going. I am really excited, should be some good photo taking opps.
I hope this finds everyone well.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Look both ways when you cross the street
I have learned a few really usefeul skills this past week. The first is that I can now walk on the sidewalks here without tripping and without looking down at my feet all the time. It is hard to understand how useful that ability is until you have walked around here. The one thing that I will never be able to do is walk here in heels. To me, that is a superpower. There women here who walk around in these tiny stilletos and their foot always lands on the cobblestone rather that the big hole in the street next to it. In all seriousness I have watched women doing this and I do not think it would even be safe for me to try.
Another thing that women can do here is ride side saddle on motorcycles and mopeds. They dont even appear to be hanging on. I think people have been just been using the same kinds of transportation with in their families so the adapt and learn ways to get by. People ride two to a bike. It is not uncommon to see 3-4 or more people on a moped. There are cars, but I think the majority of the cars are tourist vans, took tooks, and taxis. Rarely do you see just one person in a car. There are always people out walking. While I know that cities in the US are larger and people commute greater distances ,and we have winter, I still often think about how things could change in the US if we followed the same principles
I have also gotten pretty good at crossing the street here. In the US, pedestrians have the right of way, but in Guatemala and most other countries in the world, it is the other way around. Bikes, mopeds, motorcycles, took tooks and cars all have the right of way before people. The trick is to walk into the street 4-5 feet so cars see you and when they back up at a stop sign you walk through them. Sometimes a person is nice and lets you go in front of them, but this is very rare. It is not because people are not nice here or are impatient, well some are. It is actually becasue in lots of streets there are not any stop signs so if you stop for a pedestrian you are really likely to get a bumper crash. It is actually kind of fun working your way around town. It is a different kind of experience.
This post is turning out to be all about things in the street so I guess I will tell a few more things about the streets and sidewalks here. Very different from sidewalks in the US is the friendliness. People say hello and how are you doing to eachother as they pass by on the street. There is a better feeling of community then I think we have in the states. Often hello can turn into a small conversation, where did you get that bag, you have a beautiful child, what are you up to today. If this happened on the street at home, it might be considered a little odd or to forward. Here it is very common and I love it. I love people so getting to meet maybe ten new ones on the way to school in the morning is nice. Also people have the same routine so I see some of the same people at the same time everyday.
Guatemala used to have a serious problem with garbage in the streets which then gets into the water. They also had an unemployment problem. Thus, the street sweeper was born. In the morning before any one is out, there are people who come out and pick up the streets, make sure they are clear if it has rained and report back if any repairs are needed. They are assigned an area that they take care of. It makes the streets really pleasant to walk around on. You arent in danger of stepping in someone elses gum or old food. However, street sweepers do not take care of alleys. Thus the alley to our house is full of garbage, food, etc. I really need to get a picture of the alley so you can see what I am talking about. Unfortunately I will not be able to duplicate the smell, oh darn.
I have gotten to know my way around town really well. I dont know the street names but I just sort of know where I am by where the volcano is, where the church is, etc. This seems to be a common way of getting around for people here.
I hope this post on roads and sidewalks has not been to boring. I am just fascinated by all the little and some big difference between home and here. I think that part of why I am here.
Another thing that women can do here is ride side saddle on motorcycles and mopeds. They dont even appear to be hanging on. I think people have been just been using the same kinds of transportation with in their families so the adapt and learn ways to get by. People ride two to a bike. It is not uncommon to see 3-4 or more people on a moped. There are cars, but I think the majority of the cars are tourist vans, took tooks, and taxis. Rarely do you see just one person in a car. There are always people out walking. While I know that cities in the US are larger and people commute greater distances ,and we have winter, I still often think about how things could change in the US if we followed the same principles
I have also gotten pretty good at crossing the street here. In the US, pedestrians have the right of way, but in Guatemala and most other countries in the world, it is the other way around. Bikes, mopeds, motorcycles, took tooks and cars all have the right of way before people. The trick is to walk into the street 4-5 feet so cars see you and when they back up at a stop sign you walk through them. Sometimes a person is nice and lets you go in front of them, but this is very rare. It is not because people are not nice here or are impatient, well some are. It is actually becasue in lots of streets there are not any stop signs so if you stop for a pedestrian you are really likely to get a bumper crash. It is actually kind of fun working your way around town. It is a different kind of experience.
This post is turning out to be all about things in the street so I guess I will tell a few more things about the streets and sidewalks here. Very different from sidewalks in the US is the friendliness. People say hello and how are you doing to eachother as they pass by on the street. There is a better feeling of community then I think we have in the states. Often hello can turn into a small conversation, where did you get that bag, you have a beautiful child, what are you up to today. If this happened on the street at home, it might be considered a little odd or to forward. Here it is very common and I love it. I love people so getting to meet maybe ten new ones on the way to school in the morning is nice. Also people have the same routine so I see some of the same people at the same time everyday.
Guatemala used to have a serious problem with garbage in the streets which then gets into the water. They also had an unemployment problem. Thus, the street sweeper was born. In the morning before any one is out, there are people who come out and pick up the streets, make sure they are clear if it has rained and report back if any repairs are needed. They are assigned an area that they take care of. It makes the streets really pleasant to walk around on. You arent in danger of stepping in someone elses gum or old food. However, street sweepers do not take care of alleys. Thus the alley to our house is full of garbage, food, etc. I really need to get a picture of the alley so you can see what I am talking about. Unfortunately I will not be able to duplicate the smell, oh darn.
I have gotten to know my way around town really well. I dont know the street names but I just sort of know where I am by where the volcano is, where the church is, etc. This seems to be a common way of getting around for people here.
I hope this post on roads and sidewalks has not been to boring. I am just fascinated by all the little and some big difference between home and here. I think that part of why I am here.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Salud, Amor, Dinero
In Antigua there is a woman who wanders through the city day in and day out. Nobody seems to remember her name, but her life story is almost a legend. As a young women she was apparently quite beautiful. She married young and lived in relative wealth. However, only a couple years after her marriage she began to show signs of insanity. Her husband took her to doctor after doctor but no one was able to help. As she drifted farther and farther from reality her husband felt the embarrasement of a man of his station having such a wife. He also feared that his children would be the same. He left her and their two children in the large house they lived in and moved to Guatemala City. At first the people of Antigua thought the husband had done such a generous thing by giving his wife their beautiful house. In reality the woman in her weakening condition was unable to care for the house. It became filthy and infested with insects. Her children, a son and a daughter, were not taken care of. Not even a year after her husband had left, the womans children were taken away from her and placed in an orphanage. This was the final straw for the woman. She totally lost her touch with reality. Today she begs on the streets. Some days she is calm and sits in her corner of the street, but on other days she flies at people in the streets screaming that they give her something or begging for her children. While I have only seen her on her better days, several other students have been chased down the street or had things thrown at them by her. Dr. Lopez thinks she probably has some form of dimensia or schitzophrenia. It is just such a sad story with a hopeless end. She is one of those people you would do anything to help but cant even come up with a clue as to what to do.
Sorry to have dropped off the map for awhile. I was fighting the flue. I have a much better outlook on school as I go into the weekend. I think I was just so surprised by the whole situation that I didnt know how to react. I have figured out better ways to study and talked to other students about how they handle things. I have a group of friends from school who are fun to hang out with. We have regular Sunday night dinners set up. I really do love Olga, my teacher. I am glad that I got a younger teacher, although I am sure I could have been just as fine with someone else, I dont feel like I have to act so serious about learning. Olga knows how much I want to learn this language and the culture but she can also really indentify with my shall we say, less focused side. At the same time even in our first week we have had some really deep and thoughtful conversations about religion, crime, the world as a whole, etc.
One of the funnier things about CSA is the table game. The school is set up around a central courtyard. All around the courtyard are tables where each students works with their teacher. Different tables are better than others. Do they get good light, are they in a place that is warm but not hot, is there a breeze, is their lots of space around it, is it upstairs or downstairs, the list goes on. Each week the principl comes around and talks with each student, sees if they need anything and one of the options is to ask for a different table. It is sort of a risk asking for a new one. You dont know if you will move up in the table world or down. I am not going anywhere because my table is pretty much prime real estate. The perfect amount of sun, gets a good breeze, is dry when it rains, on the second floor, lots of room around it, yeah it is table heaven.
I put up some new pictures. There are photos of my house and my room, some more general pictures of Guatemala, and pictures of the Childrens party. I pulled a few others out to make room and to keep things new and interesting.
This morning for breakfast we had the perfect example of a traditional Guatemala breakfast. This consists of scrambled eggs, beans, tortillas, coffee, and cream. The cream tastes sort of like a cross between yougurt and cream cheese. I really like it. This seems like a really odd breakfast compared to an American one. I actually really love it. It is lots of carbs to get you going and it is a bunch of different tastes all in a freshly made tortilla. Kristen, another student, really does not like the beans for breakfast thing which is understandable. However it is really funny watching her try to politely eat them.
Pablo and Jessica are both studying pretty much all day for their upcoming medical exams. School in Guatemala ends in Oct/Nov and then picks up again in Feb/Mar. They are both in their first year of university. Doing well on each final exam as gets you into better and better classes. Jessica has a son so it is harder for her to focus but she still gets in a couple hours a day. On the other hand, Pablo, who is my age, has been studying almost every hour of every day since I got here. He stops only to eat (sometimes not), get more coffee, and to sleep maybe two hours a night. He told me at supper yesterday that I could do the sleeping for him. I really dont have any objections to that. I honestly have never met or heard of anyone who can study like he does. It is incredible. He will probably be a lot more fun after this upcoming week.
That is about all I have for you today. Oh, an interesting little thought for you. In Guatemala the first time a person sneezes you say "salud", health. In responce to the second sneeze, you say "amor" (love). If they sneeze yet another time, you say "dinero", money or wealth. So, salud, amor, dinero, that is a winning combination.
Sorry to have dropped off the map for awhile. I was fighting the flue. I have a much better outlook on school as I go into the weekend. I think I was just so surprised by the whole situation that I didnt know how to react. I have figured out better ways to study and talked to other students about how they handle things. I have a group of friends from school who are fun to hang out with. We have regular Sunday night dinners set up. I really do love Olga, my teacher. I am glad that I got a younger teacher, although I am sure I could have been just as fine with someone else, I dont feel like I have to act so serious about learning. Olga knows how much I want to learn this language and the culture but she can also really indentify with my shall we say, less focused side. At the same time even in our first week we have had some really deep and thoughtful conversations about religion, crime, the world as a whole, etc.
One of the funnier things about CSA is the table game. The school is set up around a central courtyard. All around the courtyard are tables where each students works with their teacher. Different tables are better than others. Do they get good light, are they in a place that is warm but not hot, is there a breeze, is their lots of space around it, is it upstairs or downstairs, the list goes on. Each week the principl comes around and talks with each student, sees if they need anything and one of the options is to ask for a different table. It is sort of a risk asking for a new one. You dont know if you will move up in the table world or down. I am not going anywhere because my table is pretty much prime real estate. The perfect amount of sun, gets a good breeze, is dry when it rains, on the second floor, lots of room around it, yeah it is table heaven.
I put up some new pictures. There are photos of my house and my room, some more general pictures of Guatemala, and pictures of the Childrens party. I pulled a few others out to make room and to keep things new and interesting.
This morning for breakfast we had the perfect example of a traditional Guatemala breakfast. This consists of scrambled eggs, beans, tortillas, coffee, and cream. The cream tastes sort of like a cross between yougurt and cream cheese. I really like it. This seems like a really odd breakfast compared to an American one. I actually really love it. It is lots of carbs to get you going and it is a bunch of different tastes all in a freshly made tortilla. Kristen, another student, really does not like the beans for breakfast thing which is understandable. However it is really funny watching her try to politely eat them.
Pablo and Jessica are both studying pretty much all day for their upcoming medical exams. School in Guatemala ends in Oct/Nov and then picks up again in Feb/Mar. They are both in their first year of university. Doing well on each final exam as gets you into better and better classes. Jessica has a son so it is harder for her to focus but she still gets in a couple hours a day. On the other hand, Pablo, who is my age, has been studying almost every hour of every day since I got here. He stops only to eat (sometimes not), get more coffee, and to sleep maybe two hours a night. He told me at supper yesterday that I could do the sleeping for him. I really dont have any objections to that. I honestly have never met or heard of anyone who can study like he does. It is incredible. He will probably be a lot more fun after this upcoming week.
That is about all I have for you today. Oh, an interesting little thought for you. In Guatemala the first time a person sneezes you say "salud", health. In responce to the second sneeze, you say "amor" (love). If they sneeze yet another time, you say "dinero", money or wealth. So, salud, amor, dinero, that is a winning combination.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
6 Different Things About Antigua and Guatemala
1. In Guatemala, flushing toilet paper down the toilet is a criminal offence. It is punishable by fines and jail time. A basket is provided for the paper. If an inspector finds that an establishment does not have a basket, the establishment is fined. This is because the pipes in Guatemala are very narrow. One clog can back up an entire block of houses.
2. On October 1, Guatemala celebrates El Dia Del Niños, the day of the children. Bryan was super excited about this day. At school kids have a special mean and a party. Bryan had his face painted. Along the streets, stores set out huge baskets of candy and little toys. There is a childrens parade, a party in the central park, and fireworks pretty much all day all over the city. If only we had this in the states.
3. I actually just found this out yesterday. The library in Antigua houses the most complete collection of books in South America. It also countains over 6,000 photos and pieces of art from Guatemalan history. I will hopefully be going there this weekend.
4. Another thing about Guatemalan libraries. All of the books stay in the library. They are not lended out like they are in America. In fact, stealing a book is also a criminal offense.
5. If I remember correctly, Guatemala is the 3rd largest producer of coffee in the world or at least in the top 10. However, the average household has instant coffee imported from Mexico on their tables.
6. In the spanish language there is no apostrophe, only accents. So, if you see me writing contractions with out apostrophes, it is not my fault. It drives me crazy.
2. On October 1, Guatemala celebrates El Dia Del Niños, the day of the children. Bryan was super excited about this day. At school kids have a special mean and a party. Bryan had his face painted. Along the streets, stores set out huge baskets of candy and little toys. There is a childrens parade, a party in the central park, and fireworks pretty much all day all over the city. If only we had this in the states.
3. I actually just found this out yesterday. The library in Antigua houses the most complete collection of books in South America. It also countains over 6,000 photos and pieces of art from Guatemalan history. I will hopefully be going there this weekend.
4. Another thing about Guatemalan libraries. All of the books stay in the library. They are not lended out like they are in America. In fact, stealing a book is also a criminal offense.
5. If I remember correctly, Guatemala is the 3rd largest producer of coffee in the world or at least in the top 10. However, the average household has instant coffee imported from Mexico on their tables.
6. In the spanish language there is no apostrophe, only accents. So, if you see me writing contractions with out apostrophes, it is not my fault. It drives me crazy.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
An Ordinary Day
School has started for me. Monday was my first day of classes. Classes at CSA are a lot different than any kind of school situation I have ever been in. Everything is one on one. When I first got to the school I took a test to evaluate my learning style. This was then matched to an available teacher. I love my teacher! Her name is Oliga, basically Olga. Breakfast with the family is at 7:00. I get to school around 7:45ish, sometimes sooner. That gives me time to talk with my new friends. Also, the school gives us free coffee, tea, and water. I love that part. At 8:00 I head upstairs to mine and Oliga's table. The school is set around a central courtyard. Basically it is just columns and and open walls facing out to the courtyard. It's really beautiful. All of the students and teachers have tables around the courtyard, there are two stories to the school. Each table has a white board. At first I thought that would be really distracting but it actually really helps to have the constant sound of Spanish around you. Class starts out with a half hour/45 minutes of talking with Oliga. We talk about my afternoon the day before, upcoming plans, family, friends, etc. The hardest part of the conversation is that I have to ask her some questions. So far I have no idea what to ask her. It's nice because Oliga is 28. Most of the other teachers are a lot older. I makes the conversation a little bit easier. Also, we have a very similar sense of humor. We are both sort of quirky, sarcastic. Anyhow, after conversation we review verbs until 10:00. At 10:00 we get a half hour break. So far I love that break. It gives all of us time to go to the bathroom, get more tea or coffee and talk. It is so amazing to talk to the other students here. Everyone here is here for a really good reason. There are future missionaries, teachers, activists, and people who know they want to do big things, but aren't quite sure what. People here have so much purpose. It is a reminder for me everyday that God is good and there are good people in the world.
All of the students are put into different levels based on a test they take before they start classes. The levels are A, the beginner, through G, the most advanced. I tested into level C. So far it has been a really good fit for me. It's a challenge but not undoable. I really won't know if it is a fit until the end of this week into next week. Right now Oliga is taking me through the verbs from level B as a good base before I go into more advanced things in level C. It really is a challenge. I'm definately not slacking off down here. There is lots and lots of memorizing, writing, and I'm really not used to doing that anymore. I hope that I'll get better at it as I go. The memorizing is especially hard. I was never all that good at memory work or spanish word lists in high school. Here I'm just going to have to get good at it and fast.
After break we do a mix of conversation, phrases, vocabulary, and verbs. The last hour and a half flies by. I'm done at noon. I usually come home after school and relax for a half hour or so. Before lunch at 2:00 I go to the internet cafe, blog, check e-mail, and all that good stuff. If I need to I go to the market, supermarket, or some other store I do that as well. After lunch I usually hang out with Carlos, Bryan, Kristen, Sarah, or sometimes Pablo. Bryan and I have been doing a lot of pintando lately. We color. The old Peeps coloring book is coming in handy. Pablo and I usually talk about books or our futures, family, things like that. Carlos and I talk about all kinds of things. Sometime in there I start my homework.
So far that is how my week days have been. More pictures should be up soon. I should have some of the house in my next batch.
All of the students are put into different levels based on a test they take before they start classes. The levels are A, the beginner, through G, the most advanced. I tested into level C. So far it has been a really good fit for me. It's a challenge but not undoable. I really won't know if it is a fit until the end of this week into next week. Right now Oliga is taking me through the verbs from level B as a good base before I go into more advanced things in level C. It really is a challenge. I'm definately not slacking off down here. There is lots and lots of memorizing, writing, and I'm really not used to doing that anymore. I hope that I'll get better at it as I go. The memorizing is especially hard. I was never all that good at memory work or spanish word lists in high school. Here I'm just going to have to get good at it and fast.
After break we do a mix of conversation, phrases, vocabulary, and verbs. The last hour and a half flies by. I'm done at noon. I usually come home after school and relax for a half hour or so. Before lunch at 2:00 I go to the internet cafe, blog, check e-mail, and all that good stuff. If I need to I go to the market, supermarket, or some other store I do that as well. After lunch I usually hang out with Carlos, Bryan, Kristen, Sarah, or sometimes Pablo. Bryan and I have been doing a lot of pintando lately. We color. The old Peeps coloring book is coming in handy. Pablo and I usually talk about books or our futures, family, things like that. Carlos and I talk about all kinds of things. Sometime in there I start my homework.
So far that is how my week days have been. More pictures should be up soon. I should have some of the house in my next batch.
Monday, September 29, 2008
New Photos
Just to let you know, the slideshow on the right side of the screen now has photos taken on this trip, not from my July trip. I know they are kind of tiny. If you want to see them larger, click on the photo and it will open them in a larger slide show. The larger slide show also has captions.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Problem...
Most of you probably don't know but I sort of like shoes! (That was sarcasm) I loooooooove shoes. However, I have size 10/11 feet. This size doesn't exist in Guatemala. That size is a 41/42, really big. This place is the perfect place to buy shoes. Guatemala has a fairly large market for shoes. They don't mass produce shoes as much as we do in the USA, so the chances are if you buy a pair, you will be the only one who has them. The problem is everytime I walk into a store and ask for size 42 shoes, it is immediately followed with laughter. I actually really do need a pair of tennis shoes for jogging so I went out looking for them today. I'm about ready to cut my toes off. I suppose that in hind sight, this is probably a good sort of problem. It means I won't be able to add any more shoes to my collection. Muy triste. :-(
My other adventure of the day was going to church. One of the other students found some kind of Protestant something church. So a bunch of us decided to check it out. It was a really different experience. It is called Iglesia del Camino, church of the road. It was all very contemporary. One of the really neat parts about it was that everything was said or sung in both Spanish and English. The sound of two languages being sung at the same time is really beautiful. It is impossible to describe. You just have to hear it. The service was very simple. It opened with 4 or 5 praise songs, the kids left, and the pastor had a message type thing. Basically he told a Max Lucado story. So, Pastor Davisson says that I tend to over-analyze biblical things so I did my best to recognize the differences but look for the positives. Their really wasn't any Bible readings. The songs were definately full of the love of God and praise for salvation through Jesus. I think all that praise is going to be really good for me. I've spent so much time questioning God, praise is going to be different. Sometimes it felt like they were putting on a little bit of the show. One of the singers did this weird whispering thing in between every song. That really bothered me, it was really distracting. Overall, there wasn't a lot of substance, but the singing and praising was really uplifting and I think was probably really good for me.
Other than that, not much to report. It's been raining all day today, so Kristen and Sarah, the other two girls in the house, and I are just hanging out in the house. Everything is wet and soggy.
Oh, I have to mention this. This morning on the way to church in our alley, oh we have an alley that goes from the main street down to our house. There are a few houses along it. At night there are often guys out their urinating. This is sort of okay because there is a drainage ditch out there and that is generally where they go. I'm just careful to avoid the puddles. Anyhow, we were walking down the alley and a man was out their taking a dump, pants down and everything. The realization of what was actually happening was reallyy startling. Sometimes this trip can feel like a bit of a vacation. I live with a fairly wealthy family and I am surrounded by beautiful mountains and warm weather. It's things like seeing a homeless man in the alley in the middle of the day with his pants down that truly reminds me of the reality of life down here.
So now I am going to sign out and relax. Buenos dias!
My other adventure of the day was going to church. One of the other students found some kind of Protestant something church. So a bunch of us decided to check it out. It was a really different experience. It is called Iglesia del Camino, church of the road. It was all very contemporary. One of the really neat parts about it was that everything was said or sung in both Spanish and English. The sound of two languages being sung at the same time is really beautiful. It is impossible to describe. You just have to hear it. The service was very simple. It opened with 4 or 5 praise songs, the kids left, and the pastor had a message type thing. Basically he told a Max Lucado story. So, Pastor Davisson says that I tend to over-analyze biblical things so I did my best to recognize the differences but look for the positives. Their really wasn't any Bible readings. The songs were definately full of the love of God and praise for salvation through Jesus. I think all that praise is going to be really good for me. I've spent so much time questioning God, praise is going to be different. Sometimes it felt like they were putting on a little bit of the show. One of the singers did this weird whispering thing in between every song. That really bothered me, it was really distracting. Overall, there wasn't a lot of substance, but the singing and praising was really uplifting and I think was probably really good for me.
Other than that, not much to report. It's been raining all day today, so Kristen and Sarah, the other two girls in the house, and I are just hanging out in the house. Everything is wet and soggy.
Oh, I have to mention this. This morning on the way to church in our alley, oh we have an alley that goes from the main street down to our house. There are a few houses along it. At night there are often guys out their urinating. This is sort of okay because there is a drainage ditch out there and that is generally where they go. I'm just careful to avoid the puddles. Anyhow, we were walking down the alley and a man was out their taking a dump, pants down and everything. The realization of what was actually happening was reallyy startling. Sometimes this trip can feel like a bit of a vacation. I live with a fairly wealthy family and I am surrounded by beautiful mountains and warm weather. It's things like seeing a homeless man in the alley in the middle of the day with his pants down that truly reminds me of the reality of life down here.
So now I am going to sign out and relax. Buenos dias!
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Bryan
I think it is important to tell about all the interesting people that I live with. Bryan is the youngest sibling in the Lopez family. He is seven years old. Adita, his mom, calls him una sorpresa, a surprise. His next oldest brother is 20.
Bryan has absolutely non stop energy. He literally bounces off the wall. Not kidding on that one, Bryan runs into everything. It is a good thing his dad is a doctor. However, Bryan is after my own heart. He plays piano, loves soccer, he talks non stop, and he loves to read. Yesterday we spent an hour running up and down the stairs throwing a giant ball into their basketball hoop. This was actually really fun because we had to throw it over the roses and the laundry that was hanging off the balcony. Everytime we got a basket Bryan ran around telling every single person in the house about it.
It is fun to have a little brother, un herrmanito. He keeps me on my toes.
Today I am still just hanging out and relaxing. I have my morning coffee and I am going to go to the park and people watch, oh and I need to run to the supermarket for a few things. The supermarked is a hit or miss kind of place. You never really know if they are going to have what you need that day. It is still fun to walk around and see what they do have. After the store I will probably read, maybe draw, photo walk, I have no idea. On the weekends, Antigua turns into one giant fiesta. Tonight the girls and I might go out dancing or something fun.
It is a beautiful day here. I hope that all of you are well and having as good of weather as I am.
All my love.
Bryan has absolutely non stop energy. He literally bounces off the wall. Not kidding on that one, Bryan runs into everything. It is a good thing his dad is a doctor. However, Bryan is after my own heart. He plays piano, loves soccer, he talks non stop, and he loves to read. Yesterday we spent an hour running up and down the stairs throwing a giant ball into their basketball hoop. This was actually really fun because we had to throw it over the roses and the laundry that was hanging off the balcony. Everytime we got a basket Bryan ran around telling every single person in the house about it.
It is fun to have a little brother, un herrmanito. He keeps me on my toes.
Today I am still just hanging out and relaxing. I have my morning coffee and I am going to go to the park and people watch, oh and I need to run to the supermarket for a few things. The supermarked is a hit or miss kind of place. You never really know if they are going to have what you need that day. It is still fun to walk around and see what they do have. After the store I will probably read, maybe draw, photo walk, I have no idea. On the weekends, Antigua turns into one giant fiesta. Tonight the girls and I might go out dancing or something fun.
It is a beautiful day here. I hope that all of you are well and having as good of weather as I am.
All my love.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Shrimp and Chicken
My adventure has finally begun. It is hard to believe that after a month of frantic planning I am here.
Yesterday my day was very long. In the morning my mom drove me to OHare. I checked in, said bye to my mom and went through security. My first flight was from Chicago to Houston. I said next to a man who was playing Sims 2 the entire flight and looked like he was going to hit me every time I shifted in my seat, must have been a good game. The plane arrived in Houston about 15 minutes early which was not any help at all because I already had a five and a half hour layover there. I shopped, went to this ridiculously expensive but tasty fish restaurant in the airport. I really do not know why that was where I went but the place was nice and did not look like an airport so that was nice. I had shrimp and chicken! Silly, but worth it. After the layover I flew to Guatemala and got there at 9:00.
The minute I got out of the airport I started seeing familiar things. The man who carried my bags was the same guy who had played the clapping game with us in July. My driver took us down the same streets we went down and I saw all the huge American restaurants. No lie, three story Taco Bell. Yuck. My drivers name was Eric. He was really nice and he was good at filling all the awkward silences. Also I did not fall asleep on him like I did the driver we had in July. Driving into Antigua was sort of like coming home. Things are familiar here. This place is sort of like Brigadoon. It seems frozen in time. I am staying with Carlos and his family in their other house. In July I stayed with Carlos at his own house but he is refurbishing that house right now. He knew that a student was coming but he had no idea it was me. It was so fun to see his surprise when he opened the door. That definately felt like a homecoming. After greeting me he said, "Since it is you I need to give you the better room!" I definately did not argue with that. This house is beautiful. Ornate tiles cover the floors and walls. There are beautiful carved wood windows with frosted glass. All of the doors face out to a garden courtyard. It always feels like you are outside. One of my favorite parts is that in the bathroom the plunger we gave Carlos and Andrea is right next to the toilet. Carlos made sure that I saw it even before I saw my room. When he showed it to me he goes, "We do not use it, we have a different one, this is part of our decoration." I definately traded up for a really amazing room. Queen sized bed with an armoir and a dresser. There is also a desk, TV, and stereo. One of my favorite parts is that they have a really nice cat who I have already made friends with. Nobody tell Orla.
Today I am just walking around finding my favorite shops and places. I went to the infamous ATM, I am at my favorite internet cafe, and I have been mawing down on pan dulce since 7:00. Classes do not start until Monday so I have this weekend to settle in and have some fun.
Everything about this trip feels so perfect and so right. I am so comfortable here. While right now I do not really know many people and that makes it a little lonely I still have this sense of calm mixed with excitement.
Please send me e mails, leave comments, and facebook. me. I love all of you.
Yesterday my day was very long. In the morning my mom drove me to OHare. I checked in, said bye to my mom and went through security. My first flight was from Chicago to Houston. I said next to a man who was playing Sims 2 the entire flight and looked like he was going to hit me every time I shifted in my seat, must have been a good game. The plane arrived in Houston about 15 minutes early which was not any help at all because I already had a five and a half hour layover there. I shopped, went to this ridiculously expensive but tasty fish restaurant in the airport. I really do not know why that was where I went but the place was nice and did not look like an airport so that was nice. I had shrimp and chicken! Silly, but worth it. After the layover I flew to Guatemala and got there at 9:00.
The minute I got out of the airport I started seeing familiar things. The man who carried my bags was the same guy who had played the clapping game with us in July. My driver took us down the same streets we went down and I saw all the huge American restaurants. No lie, three story Taco Bell. Yuck. My drivers name was Eric. He was really nice and he was good at filling all the awkward silences. Also I did not fall asleep on him like I did the driver we had in July. Driving into Antigua was sort of like coming home. Things are familiar here. This place is sort of like Brigadoon. It seems frozen in time. I am staying with Carlos and his family in their other house. In July I stayed with Carlos at his own house but he is refurbishing that house right now. He knew that a student was coming but he had no idea it was me. It was so fun to see his surprise when he opened the door. That definately felt like a homecoming. After greeting me he said, "Since it is you I need to give you the better room!" I definately did not argue with that. This house is beautiful. Ornate tiles cover the floors and walls. There are beautiful carved wood windows with frosted glass. All of the doors face out to a garden courtyard. It always feels like you are outside. One of my favorite parts is that in the bathroom the plunger we gave Carlos and Andrea is right next to the toilet. Carlos made sure that I saw it even before I saw my room. When he showed it to me he goes, "We do not use it, we have a different one, this is part of our decoration." I definately traded up for a really amazing room. Queen sized bed with an armoir and a dresser. There is also a desk, TV, and stereo. One of my favorite parts is that they have a really nice cat who I have already made friends with. Nobody tell Orla.
Today I am just walking around finding my favorite shops and places. I went to the infamous ATM, I am at my favorite internet cafe, and I have been mawing down on pan dulce since 7:00. Classes do not start until Monday so I have this weekend to settle in and have some fun.
Everything about this trip feels so perfect and so right. I am so comfortable here. While right now I do not really know many people and that makes it a little lonely I still have this sense of calm mixed with excitement.
Please send me e mails, leave comments, and facebook. me. I love all of you.
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