- I went to Xela for a weekend and major highlights include (but are not limited to):
- A RIDE THERE FROM ABEL - I cannot stress how AMAZING it was to work this out (Miss Indigina was headed there for a conference/competition, the muni offered her a ride, and I got to tag along)
- FINALLY celebrating Waleska's birthday (which happened 2 weeks ago...) with a concert at a bar that was hosting the aniversary party for another bar... not sure why, but it was a blast (they were a cumbia/rock band and played a cover of Pink Floyd's "The Wall"which sounded a little like this if you start at 1:20min). We also had a lovely cook out at her and Steve's house and I got to hang out with Gabe, their 6-year-old son who reminds me A LOT of Jimbalia Johnson (aka my brother Jimmy...) and watch "How to Train Your Dragon 2" - very good times
- Time at the house of Dona Yoli, my host mom from classes
- so nice to see the family and pass out some tokens of appreciation my mom sent down such as a Dora the Explorer coloring book and a blue, MKE pint glass for Yoli and her family
- Coffee/cheese cake/conversation with my Spanish teacher, Dora
- we had a lovely chat and I got to visit her house - this happened to be the day the "Monsanto Law" was thrown out, so we had an interesting chat about that. I also introduced her to the group Anonymous because of their apparent hand in the sudden change of congressional heart - very interesting business
- Dinners with NGO friends (from Spanish school)
- Great company and great food - went to a wonderful Italian restaurant (hole in the wall that's only been open 1-month, so I'm still in the process of tracking it down again...) and an awesome dim sum Chinese restaurant (owned and operated by two guys from New Orleans - go figure) that I HIGHLY recommend
- I had to take a chicken bus home, left my food (a pumpkin, mushrooms, and cheese) on the bus (VERY sad), realized this about 2 minutes later, then FOUND THE BUS as it was passing back through the center of town and GOT MY FOOD
- It was rolling slowly down main street headed back for Xela and I went sprinting across the central plaza, pounded on the driver's side, and jumped in to grab the bag of food much to the amusement of all Guatemalans present (aka a lot), especially the driver and ayudante
- this was a very big moment for me
- Work
- 53/140 communities down and I really feel like I'm hitting a groove. My infraestructura y desarollo vocab is very good at this point, though I still face plenty of linguistic struggles with some of the more remote communities - not all vis alcaldes are great at interpreting, and more than a few communities have leadership committees that barely speak Spanish. It's certainly kept things interesting and has forced me to constantly work on reevaluating how I present and request information to meet the communities where they are but still get relatively comparable information across the board.
- There have been a few frustrating moments, but in general, it's been a blast. Between riding around with Abel all day, constantly meeting new people and seeing new places, and getting to have very interesting conversations that's to inquisitive vis alcaldes which include (but are not limited to):
- What is the patron saint of the USA?
- Followed by: If you don't have a patron saint for the country, what about for each state/city?
- Do your parents/friends speak any other languages?
- Do you have children? (VERY common)
- Are you paid for your work? How much?
- How much does (insert any personal item from boots to pencils to cameras) cost?
- This culture may be very passive when it comes to telling you things they think you don't want to hear, but they have no problem asking questions a US citizen would find incredibly forward (particularly related to money/income)
- What is a university like? How much does that cost?
- What's the difference between an engineer and an architect?
- How tall are the towers in your city?
- Followed by: isn't it dangerous to have buildings that tall?
- Do people eat bread from bakeries in the US?
- Do people get drunk in the US?
- How many kinds of cheeses do you have in the US?
- This one was asked by my host mom, prompted by the various cheese varieties and ensuing cheese dishes that we are constantly cooking... Once again, HUGE shout out to my mom who still manages to feed me despite the distance
- ALSO (and my 10-year-old self is kicking me inside for even thinking this), I'm starting to get a little exhausted by all of the holidays... I know my estadounidense-self is really showing, but holy cow. I've stopped asking "when is the next holiday" and instead switched to "when will the holiday end?" as each holiday apparently includes at least 1-3 days of pre and post activities/celebrations. Given that most men go to other parts of the country/to the US for concentrated periods of time to earn money, then spend the rest of their time tending their own land for subsistence farming, all of the partying doesn't necessarily mean less work for them, but it certainly makes my work a bit more cumbersome/difficult to schedule. Include the cultural aspect of "tell la ingeniera what she wants to hear" and this results in many last-minute (or 3hrs past the last-minute...) plan changes for site visits when a community finally tells the Vis. Alcalde (who then has to work up the nerve to tell me) that a site visit isn't possible due to holiday celebrations. All very interesting to be a part of and to navigate. A little exhausting and irritating at times, but all-in-all just interesting to experience a new culture and how they balance work and play - it's VERY different that my cultural idea of work and play, but I certainly can't say it's worse. Just interesting
- Working out
- I can definitely call zumba a habit now, and I'm starting to get in the swing of 5am runs followed by some quick yoga for stretching. While I completely balked at the idea of waking up at 5am for runs when Lauren first offered, it really is a lovely way to start the day, and it's the only part of the day that's nice and chilly (aka 50-60 degrees) and feels like Fall back home. The girls (both the ones at zumba and the running group in the morning) are a lot of fun to talk to as well
- More bonding over cooking
- Nothing quite as dramatic as the jalapeno incident has occurred, but there has been plenty of cooking happening still, particularly quinoa (and wine) nights as well as an Italian night with Lauren which included CHICKEN - spaghetti with a homemade sauce that consisted of chunky tomato, tiny chunks of huiquoi (aka squash), onions, garlic, balsamic, sun-dried tomato pesto, chicken, and Spice House Italian spice along with some steamed broccoli - no pictures of this exist, it was too delicious for time to be wasted on photography
- In other news:
- yesterday was el Dia de la Independencia (el 15) meaning no work and lost of pre/post partying happening, parades, and la torcha where, on the night ot the 14th, all of the school kids meet in the center of the city, sing the national anthem and have some speeches, then they all take turns carrying a torch (a tin can mounted onto a stick filled will a blazing gasoline-soaked rag) back to their school (which, in this municipio, could be as far as 24km away) - exciting times obviously filled with lots of marimba, LOTS of bombas (fireworks that are basically just shells filled with gun powder), and many parades
- it was Angelica's birthday this past weekend so I went to visit for a bit - the whole family was there for el Dia de la Independencia festivities, so it was quite the rowdy house
- my computer/google/Microsoft Office products have started asking me if I want to switch to Spanish versions at start-up
Those are the main events (as I remember them), so here are some pictures!
Recycling in Samabaj Chocolonquij - when I asked the Cocode what he was doing, he looked at me like I was a bit slow and said "they pay for these..."
The final resting place(ish) of my camera - the Pamixa campo de futbol where I dropped it in a spring... I can currently access the memory when I plug it into my computer, but it does not currently function as a camera... Thank goodness for phone cameras!
A vehicle bridge built by an EWB-USA group a year ago in Muculinquiaj
Some creative recycling/school projects/planters at the Xeabaj school
Part of the "road" leading into San Antonio Ixoc - not Abel in the distance walking down the sand bar trying to find another crossing...
Supplies from the muni for estufas mejoradas in Tio Xeabaj
The school in Chocruz - they need a building (as you can see)
The recycling project of a teacher at the La Cruz de Palibatz school
The school at Achiote - not how 5 of the higher grades can fit in one room and first and second in the other (drop out is a big issue throughout the municipio)
The view from Don Maco's house (he's one of the Vis Alcaldes I worked with)
On the road to Xeabaj
and to Xioj
For kicks, here's my little brother on a motorcycle trip right now in South Carolina with my dad - he is just so gosh darn cute, glad I could get this picture from my parents!
Oh, and my PCV roommate, Lauren (aka Lorena aka Judith) who left this gem on my phone...
