More of Nolan's and Jenny's questions

Yes, the lectures in spanish and I can get the take home message I mean I definitely don't understand every word. Also, I have a difficult time when someone talks fast, which is usually outside of the classroom. However, my family makes an effort to talk slower around me. Josefine usually speaks to Catarino, her hubby, in K'iche though. I learned two words in that language so far. I think only a handful are good enough, don't have a desire to learn a whole bunch of it right now.

I want to do stuff with QT, but I've been getting sick every freaking weekend! I'm glad I'm here for much longer so I can do some of the stuff I want to do that you don't want to do. I know we're going to see a lot when you get here. We'll just have to pump ourselves full of pepto!

I'm on level III and think I'll be cruzing to level IV next week. I've learned all the rules of present regular and irregular verbs, future popular, rules of past tense using reg and irreg verbs. however, there are millions of verbs so i'm just learning the most popular i guess. i can't believe how much vocab i learn no a daily basis. i also learned imperfect tense, which is super easy, it's another past tense, but the way to use it is different so i have 13 rules for it. i also learned a crap load of prepositions and have more to go on that. my teachers say it's really great that i'm taking it seriously and staying for 3 months because people think they can come for 2 or 3 weeks and miracuously speak spanish! geez, i feel like i can't do it sometimes and i've been here for nearly 5 weeks.

no, we used the stove top to make the ziti.

Sick AGAIN!

Why must I constantly get sick on a freaking Friday? Why not a Monday so I can actually have my weekend plans come to fruition. Geez! I have bad luck right now! I'm glad I have 7 more weeks left! I was suppossed to go rock climbing on Saturday and then go to the largest market in Guatemala, Chichicastenango.

Last Friday, I got sick from the patchetes, everyone who ate the vegetarian patchetes go sick. It was either from the pig lard or olives used to make them. Josefina said it's probably from the olives because she got sick from it once before. I slept all day on Saturday and started to feel OK on Saturday night. I was planning on going to Chichi, but I woke up on Sunday a.m. and I had a fever, chills, sore throat, and my body was achy. I stayed home and hung out with my family. We went shopping at a few local markets here. It was nice to go around town to see how the buses work here so it makes me a little more prepared for when Nolan arrives in 7 weeks.

I haven't done anything except go to school and then sleep from 3 to 6 or 7 get up and study or do home work and then go back to bed around 8 or 9. Josefina made dinner early the past few nights since I was feeling ill and I took Theraflu Nighttime and it would knock me out. I felt like I was drunk when I woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. I was so scared someone would come out on the patio and say something to me because I wouldn't know what would come out of my mouth. Josefina took me to pharmacy that she goes to and she knows the pharmacists there pretty well. It's a pharmacy for poor people and it's owned by a certain organization that provides medicine at a cheaper cost. I bought a box of Theraflu for 8Q, a little over $1. There were about 50 people crammed in a room a little larger than my bathroom waiting for the number to be called. The pharmacist yelled across the room and asked me where I was from. Josefina said, she's talking to you. I was so out of it on Monday. I was just so realived to get some meds. I told her the probs I was having and she recommended Theraflu, which is fine with me. I must tell ya that I spoke in spanish the whole time! However, I get so nervous when I don't know the people that I'm speaking to and get a bit choked up at times. LOL! I've gotta build up my confidence a little more. Josefina and Carlos said my spanish is much, much better. I'm on the III level right now and I think I'll move onto the the IV level next week. I didn't like my teacher in the beginning, but she's grown on me and I like here a lot. However, the guy was better, I'm going to try to get him again next week. The prepositions and kicking my ass still! Damn it por and para! LOL!

What else, so I haven't gone on any excursions or any dance classes this week. I'm really excited because I just signed up for private classes with a new teacher and he speak English. I saw his work on one of my classmates for about 30 minutes today and I was blown away. She's been going to him for only a few weeks and she's amazing. I'm stoked! I'd rather go to dance than excursions right now, at least for this next week because I'm obsessed with salsa. I haven't gone to any of the salsa bars yet either. I'm too nervous about being out late at night due to the couple of rapes and attacks that have happened. I know I could always cab it home, but...I can always go out when Nolan gets home. I feel bad sometimes because my classmates want me to go and I feel like a fuddy duddy. I have no problem going out when I'm at home late at night even by myself to meet others. Anway, I hope my girls will join me on the salsa dancing floor when I return this fall! Nolan, get ready to shake your groove thang! I finally ventured out today so I could register for my classes next week and then look for a cute pair of salsa shoes. I guess I'll do more shopping tomorrow. It should be interesting as I've only danced in sneaks and I think it's essential to dance in heels. Anway, I'm sure I'm boring everyone about my fixation on Salsa.

Jen, yes, all the lectures I attend are in Spanish. I really love going to them. I'm so pissed because I missed a really good one last night. The next one is on July 4th. I can't wait!

Nolan, the internet cafes have people from all over the world and from Xela using the pcs.

The black beans are just as tasty as La Terrisita, except a bit on the salty side. They love their salt here. She makes them as refritos most of the time as her children don't like the whole bean. Don't worry I'll be making those along with guac, salsa, and tortillas when I return! LOL! I gotta get a pressure cooker though.

Yeah, they eat white rice she flavors it with spices and sautees some veggies too. It's good stuff! I'm definitely enjoying the food here. She's really an amazing cook. I'm glad you get to spend 4 nights and 3 days with them. They are really great! I'm going to ask her if we can make the beet dish the night you arrive. LOL! I'll help her make it as it's tough to make. ..it's all day affair.

I haven't decided where I'm going to volunteer yet. I can't decided if I want to volunteer for an orphanage or for the health clinic. I'll have to take afternoon classes and then dance classes in the a.m. I just can't decide what to do. I think I'm going to give myself one more week to decide. Plus, I need to talk to Olga about the clinic. I think it would be an amazing experience going to villages and providing healthcare. God, I can't wait until I'm a pharamcist already! However, it may be a little while longer if I don't do AGO. Decisons, decisions, decisions...which I'm never very good at making anyway.

I hope to have more exciting news for you next time! I miss you and love you all!

Talks

i also went to many talks this week, one about the civil war and one about situations women face here in guatemala. the later i found very compelling. the civil war talk was very difficult for me to undertand plus i was incredibly tired because i had my dance class and hadn't eaten yet. i didn't eat until 930 p.m. yesterday because the talk ran 2 hours. I need to read a book about it which Nolan's on the hunt for a good one about the civil war for me so I can understand more. anway, going back to the talk about women here. It was very shocking! The women here have no rights if their husbands let them get a card to vote then they can do vote during elections. However, it's up to the husband to decide. It's an extremely machisimo society. Many male politicians trick women into voting for them by promising they will work to improve the situation for women if they are elected into office, but once they are there they do absolutely nothing. The two women that spoke were from a battered womens shelter in Xela. It's the only one of its kind in the country. There are some shelters soley for children, but none for abused women. They have many programs such as allowing children and women to live there, teach the women trades, help them get a divorce, day care and school for children too. They rely soley on volunteers and donations. They have been in existence for 17 years and right now is the toughest time they've had and are probably going to have to close a lot of the departments as they aren't receiving donations from other countries anymore. They said they have never received a penny from the Guatemalan government. There are only about 10 female politicans here and hundreds of male politicians.

Women are only given one chance to divorce and if they don't go through with it they can't divorce their husband. It's a way of punishing the her. Many women put up with the sexist, abusive, and unequal society and relationships. The roles of female submission and male domination are taught when children are very, very young. I've been told it's worse in the smaller pueblos. Women aren't educated about birth control so they often have babies and multiple babies at very young ages. The only time the women received medical care is when she's in her reproductive prime and pregnant.

The medical care here isn't the best anyway. For example, Josefina took Jeremy to the pediatricians office last week and they told her they only see 20 patients so that's 10 in the a.m. and 10 in the afternoon. Another time she went to anothe roffice office and the doctor said he wouldn't see Jeremy because he was seen by another doctor he is fueding with. They quickly recommend expensive unnecessary procudures as well.

Anyway, I wish I was a pharmacist so I could write a check and give them a donation to keep their wonderful organization alive.

I'm going to about three more talks in the upcoming weeks. One of them is one 4th of July by the lawyer that I saw at school last week I believe. He's doing a fundraiser with an organiziation across the street from Sakribal. He's going to talk about the relationship with America that day. I really like learning about the culture and problems they face here. Plus, I work on my understanding the language too.

Nolan's questions

What about the quetzal trekers? That's the company that I'm going to do 3 treks with, I hope. One of them fell through this weekend. I was going to go rock climbing. I think I explained why it fell through, it's not a big deal though they do it every friday and saturday.

So can you now speak in past tense at school? yes, there are so many irregular verbs it's quite overwhelming.

how is your new teacher? i don't really care for her and i hope that i can have luis next week. she's nice, but i don't know...luis is my favorite.

Are you on level II? i started level III this week. i'm progressing slowly.

Did you make the ziti in the oven? no, we made it on the stove as it's too expensive to use the oven. plus, i just learned last weekend that she uses a wood burning oven down the street to bake stuff. she used the rest of my cheese to make a differet pasta dish. it was funny eating it with tortillas.

was this hike tougher than the one in st kitts? yes, i feel this trek and st kitts weren't even comparable this was much more difficult. i'm looking forward to going on the two day hike in a week or two. yippee!! i was sore on sunday, but i took some ibuprofen, napped, and relaxed. i've been dancing so that worked the soreness out pretty quickly.

yes, i went to fuentes georginas this week. i can't even begin to describe the beauty that surround us. the water was luke warm, it was really cold the day we went so. however, it's not very warm anyway due to some electric plant being erected nearby many years ago. i wish i could have the surrounding of fuentes georginas with the water from aguas amargas. it was a tropical paridise with lush vegetation and mountains surrounding us. the water was flowing down off the mountains. there were some hot spots which was cool we all flocked to them. it is definitely the most beautiful place i've been too. oneday, maybe i'll get to post pics, but i definitely feel they won't do it any justice.

Side notes

I think it's really funny how I go into internet cafes and guys blantantly are looking a porn websites. Sometimes, they are sitting right next to the window and all the passersby can seem them looking at the porno sites. I was at my favorite cafe and this guy forgot to plug in the ear phones and you heard very loudly a women moaning. It was really funny!

I'm still taking salsa classes. I think I'm going to switch to another studio for private lessons because it's cheaper and it's with a man. I think I'd learn a lot from a man. I'm still going to go to the group classes every Mon through Fri at 6 p.m. Yesterday, my partner sucked, but the day before the old man and I were dancing all of the place. I hope I'm paired with someone better tonight. I had 5 private lessons and this will be my 3rd group lesson. I plan on going to them until Nolan gets here.

I was going to go rock climbing today, but the guy who does it wasn't going to have an instructional class this afternoon and I don't want to go with out him giving me tips. I got his ph# so I'm going to set up a time next week to met met. There's a simulated wall in a gym here that he has people practice on. I guess the people that are signed up are experts and don't need tips. I saw the pics of the place and it's freaking beautiful. I doubt I'll be able to climb the the top, but I want to go anyway. Besides it's cheap. I'm still planning on going on a two day hike soon. The one I wanted to go on is not offered during the rainy season which is now beause you walk through the rain forrest and it's too slippery and dangerous.

I bought Josefina a pressure cooker today. She's been without one for about 2 weeks now. She tried to get the one she had for over 25 years fixed, but was unsuccessful. It was too expensive for her to buy a new one. It's been tough too because she hasn't been able to make frijoles and she's been buying them from a store and doctoring them up, it's just not the same. I and her family missed them so much. I told my teacher I wanted to buy one for her and she offered to walk me around to shops nearby. My teacher and I walked around to different stores here so we could find the best deal. It was a nice field trip. She also asked for the prices so they wouldn't rip me off because she said they would increase the price of a gringo was going to by it. I was walkign home with a classmate and we past by a little store that sells wrapping paper. I bought two sheets and wrapped it up in the store. The lady helped me as it was an irregular shaped box as I had the guy in the kitchen supply store assemble the pressure cooker for me. It was sticking out of the box and I didn't want Josefina to see it when I walked in. I ran into my room put my stuff down and ran buy her as she was washing clothes in the pila. I then came back out and Jeremy of course was tagging behind me to see what I had. I told Josefina I have a present for her. She couldn't believe it and she gave me a big, warm hug and started crying. She opened it up and said she couldn't believe it. She said words can't express the emotions she's feeling and she loved it! She was over whelmed. She was going to read the instruction book so she knows how to use it. She said she can read, but not write spanish. She said she's keeping the box and going to put the date and my name on it to always remember the day I gave it to her. She put the box and pot on the kitchen table to display it and show her family today. She said she can't wait to make frijoles again! I can't either...they are the freaking best. I'm going to have her show me how to make them. I think I'll buy a pressure cooker too when I get home as I make beans all the time. However, I must admit she uses a lot of salt when she cooks as I don't use any. Jenny, you would love her cooking as you dump in a bunch of salt too.

I need to go to a market to get some cake mixes so I can make pastel tres leches with her soon. I would like to make this weekend, but the grocery store is across town and you have to take a few buses to get to it. I'd prefer to go with someone else.

Day after Father's Day

The next a.m., Josefina made a yummy cake. It tasted similar to bread pudding! She mixed various types of bread with milk, egg, flour, cinnamon, and butter. I helped her carry the cake pans to a house nearby that has a large, industrial size wood burning stove. You can pay to use the oven to bake your food as it's too costly to use her gas oven in her house plus it'll cook faster in the wood burning stove. The stove is in a families house. We also took some black corn to a business and we ground it up using a machine so she could make tomales and tortillas. She soley uses corn and the mineral, calcium, which the latter is collect in the mountains and she buys it at the market.

After the errands, Josefina, Carlos, Jeremy, and I sat down to eat breakfast. Jeremy sat on Carlos's lap and fed him an egg. I was amazed as Jeremy was eating, which he hasn't been doing much of because he had some amoebas and gastric problems for the past few months. All of a sudden, he takes a deep breath and looks over at me. I thought he was about to choke on a piece of egg. Jeremy started barfing all over the place, on himself, the floor, Carlos, Josefina, and in the patio on the path to the bathroom. Josefina apologized, but I told her it was no problem. It doesn't bother me too much as I've cleaned up after Bernie plenty of times. I felt like I was watching the exorcist I've never seen puke expelled with such force. She disinfected the entire path with chlorox and the smell of chlorine was nauseating as we finished our breakfast.

I didn't realize it but I had my shirt inside out for a few hours. I looked down my chest for some reason and saw my shirt was backwards and inside out. When I woke up Josefina asked me to help her so I quickly go dressed. Josefina said she noticed it and thought about saying something, but she didn't want to offend nor was she sure if it was a way that I liked wearing my shirt. We were cracking up so hard. She said one time she rushed Nilda to the doctors office because she suffered from bronchitis during her childhood. She noticed that people were staring at her in the office and she looked down at her feet and noticed she had on two different styles of shoe that where two diffferent colors. Also, one time she put her skirt on backwards.

Father's Day

I learned of Josefina's hard life. Of course, I'm not going to post the details out of respect of her confidence in me. I was really was one of the most heartwrenching stories I've heard in my life. It really could be a movie. I want to find out more about her personal experiences with the Civil War as well as racism and descrimination she faces since she's indigenous. We were both crying by the end of it. All I did was ask her about her family and their traditions on Father's day, which opened up into other experiences. I was really shocked at what she endured and how much she divulged so much personal and emotional experiences.

I ate the oddest meal of my life! Josefina was preparing a special Guatemalan meal to celebrate Father's Day. I saw her cutting and cleaning beets. I thought to myself, oh my god, I'm going to have to eat beets. I stayed away from them for so many years, I had a horrible experience with them during my childhood. She diced them, added garlic and onion and sauteed them in a pot. I though, oh god, I'm going to have to eat this and pretend I have to like it! She put the veggie mixture on top of a tostada, it's interesting because the call a tostada an enchilada here, which is not how people reference it in other contries, for example in Mexico. She topped the veggies with raw onion, jalepenos, and get this she drizzeled mayo and ketchup on top. She asked, do you like mayo? I said no, but she put it on mine anyway. She said, if I don't like it with mayo she would make me a new one and she won't be offended. I looked around at the dinner table and her family was chowing down. I was petrified because I really hate beets and I definitely this mayo is one of the nastiest substances, I don't know what to call mayo, condiment or what. I closed my eyes and took a bite and let the flavors meld in my mouth. Guess what happened next?
a. I spit it up on my plate in disgust!
b. I ran to the bathroom and barfed it up.
c. I told Josefina it was fantastic and thought it was vile but ate it out of respect!
d. I told her I didn't like it and will just eat a plain tostada.
e. I told Josefina it was fantastic and I really liked it!

And the answer is.......


















LOL! I thought it was freaking awesome! I tried just the veggie mixture in her large pot and I thought, hmmm, it ain't so bad. I ate 3 tostadas! I was so freaking stuffed!!! Nolan, Josefina said she's going to make this dish when you arrive! Get ready!!!

Chicabal

On Saturday at 7 a.m., I went on my first hike! It's a tiny inactive volcanoe about 45 minutes outside of Xela. We started walking through tiny puebloes and say people working in the plots of land, children begging for money, or curious to greet us and have us talk to them. I finally saw a Mayan man in the traditional clothing while I was in the mountains. Usually it's the women that wear the tradional clothing. I saw a little boy pass us during our trek he must have been about 7 years old. He had a machete in hand and was going out in mountains to work. The children don't receive an education unless they are in the city and even then it's quite difficult. They immediately have to work out on the land with their families. The families about 10 or more children to help out with the chores.

I can't believe how difficult it was. My legs were shaking by the end of the trek, all of us were huffing and puffing all the way up to the top. It was such a good feeling of accomplishment. Once we were at the top we could see to other volcanoes in the distance and a lagoon not too far below us. We had to walk down about 400 stairs to get to the lagoon after we soaked in the sites from above. I tried to get pics, but the white, puffy clouds quickly came rolling in. I really enjoyed walking with new students and getting to know them and why there here and what they do in their respective countries. No one is permitted to swim in the lagoon or bath in the lagoon. The lagoon is sacred to the Myans and is used for various Mayan rituals. People visit the lagoon to drink the water in hopes of having good luck and their prays answered. They deemed it holy, pure and safe to drink. My friend Leslie and I poaked our fingers in it and it was freezing. We didn't dare drink it! The water was crystal clear though. The lagoon is protected and very spiritually connected to the Mayans. We relaxed on the beached, soaked up the sun, and ate lunch. I coudn't have asked for a more beautiful day. The rain has been soley in the late or all evening. I hope this trend continues when Nolan arrives because my first 2 weeks here it rained all day long. It was so great just lying on the beach listening to the wildlife around and watching the clouds roll into the lagoon. We were the only ones there.

It was scary because one of the look outs was a bit unsturdy and it started shaking when there were a few too many people looking out at the cloud covered volcanoes in the distance. I preferred the decent down vs. up, which I was in the minority. I really couldn't believe how steep it was it doesn't even compare to the dormant volcanoe Nolan and I hiked in St. Kitts about 5 years ago. 6 hours later we were back down at are starting point. I collapsed on a grassy mound on the side of the rode and dozed while we waited for our private, microbus to arrive. I can't wait to hike some more!

We don't have an activity this Saturday, it's on Friday a.m. at 6 a.m. so I've decided to forego getting up that early. I'd rather have class anyway. It's to a coffee farm, which I'm going to visit one when Nolan's here as he's obsessed with coffee. LOL! I may go to on a 2 day hike this weekend or go to the beach with my friend from school. We'll see or I may just chill in Xela. It's hard to keep with all of the Spanish I'm learning everyday.

Conference

I went to a talk by a lawyer in Guatemala who is a former professor at a university in Xela at my school. He talked of the current political situation in Guatemala. He was very good, personable, and spoke clearly and slowly so I could understand the majority of it. I wish my speaking abilities were half as good as my comprehension and writing abilities. Very frustrating at times. Fortunately, some of the students at school translated something if I was unclear about what he said. I want to read more about the tumultous history of Guatemala.He is giving some more conferences at a charitable organization across from my school so I am going to try to attend them trough out the month of june. The professor said that 60 percent of Guatemala is indigenous and of those 70 percent are poverty stricken. He said about 10 to 15 percent of the wealth in Guatemala is affiliated with a few groups of people. There isnt a gradient like we have in the US of poverty, middle class, upper middle class, etc. It is complety polarized. A majority of those people living in rural areas are starving. There are a lot of people who dont have electricity, clean water, access to medical, dental, or pharmaceutical care. Also, the indigenous people are subjected to racism. I find it very behooving how the Guatemaltecos are racist against the Indigenous, by now, their bloodlines are mixed. The Guatamaltecos say they are from Spanish decent and the Indigenous are from Mayan decent. It is really odd how the tables have turned. The indigenous and Mayans used to be thriving and highly respected long, long ago. Oh, I found it very interesting how he talked of the Latin American countries that rely on trade with the US arent progressing economically or socially, they have the lowest literacy rates for instance. Its really a viscous cycle. For instance, China is starting to improve and puts pressure on the US and then the US puts pressure on Latin American countries. Also, Boliva and Venezuela dont interact with the US much and Venezuala has finally confirmed 100 percent literacy rate, Boliva is trying to reach that goal in 2008. Its very interesting. Im going to more talks later this month for sure. Plus, it helps me work on understanding spanish too.

Its really hard from me to see such wide spread poverty. I see people sleep on the side of the road, on the side walk, benches, walking around drunk, collapes and rest on the edge of the street where it meets the narrow streets. I know, I know when I tell people of this that you are thinking that I see stuff like this in Chicago or the States too. Some times I dont realize how much of a bubble I live in or how well my life is going.I live in a bubble in quaint, yuppy, preppy, pretty Lakeview.

I dont want it to come across as its atrocious because it is not. There is so much beauty here and the people are so nice. I walk down the street and people say, Buenos dias, tardes, noches, etc. How often do people do that in the US. People try to avoid each others eye contact at all costs. I had a wonderful conversation with a man at the bank this afternoon while I was exchanging travellers cheques. He was curious about my experiences here thus far.People arent as warm in the US. By the way, its weird going to the bank and there are 4 to 5 men standing around this tiny room with their hands on the trigger of the biggest gun I have ever seen. I think its a rifle of some sort. Also, the police walk around with this huge rifles, some of them look automatic, but what the hell do I know about guns. As I have said before there are so many wondeful things about Guatemala too.

Its nice because Im finally starting to understand stuff when people are passing by now. A guy yelled some pretty sexual stuff at me when I was walking to the bank this a.m. I was so happy because I knew what he said.I wouldnt have had any clue what he said 3 weeks ago. LOL. I told my teacher about it and he looked at me like I was crazy. I have a new teacher, Luis Fernando, he is a student at a private universtity in Xela. He is only 21, he is just a baby. Hes very good. Olga, the director, screwed up so I wont have him again for my second week. Im going to have some other lady. We had a lot of fun. He speaks much faster than the other teacher I had. Spanish is getting harder and harder. I suck at grammar in English so its hard for me to get it right in another language. He is strict so he tries to drill things into my head and he assigns a shitload of homework. I have to write essays or 50 sentences, etc. Im so freaking determined to be fluent though. I know its impossible to do in 3 and a half months and I will have to work on it for a long, long time.

I guess that is about it. Im going to my weekly cena, dinner, tonight. Tomorrow bright and early at 7 a.m. I have to meet in front of my school to go hiking. I am so excited to finally go hiking. I dont care if I wake up in pain or not tomorrow I am going hiking.

Oh. I finally resumed my salsa dancing lessons. I asked my teacher to review all the stuff I learned from my previous two classes so that I could be OK. Its so freaking hard to understand her and dance at the same time. She said I remembered quite a bit from not having danced for an entire week and hfrom having only two classes. It is really hard because its all about paying attention to the postion of your partners hands. Im taking private lessons so, but I may start going to group classes soon as I get a few free with the package I bought. Im not ready to attend the group classes yet. Im nervous about it. Shes really nice and very positive when I stumbleover a step or shell make me repeat it until I get it. Its hard to tell by the movemnt of her thumb, or pressure she places on my harm or position of her body or feet that Im suppossed to turn, twist, do basic steps, dip, etc. Its a nice work out though. I look forward to doing more and more. Ill keep you posted on my progress, which is very slow.

Aguas Amargas

On Tuesday, I went to a hot springs nearby Xela, its called Aguas Amargas. Its really surreal, serene, and amazing experience. I love leaving the city and driving through the winding roads, mountains, and seeing the lush vegetation, waterfalls, and unpolluted areas. Its sometimes sad that I experience such wonderful things alone. I cant believe how hot the water is, they have quarantined off some private rooms and we asked the guy to have the water flow in and it was scorching hot. I mean its unbearably hot. Its not even comparable to a hot tub. The water flows down from the volcanoes. People created a large pool outside so that the water is cooler, its about the temperature of a hot tub, or a bit cooler as its so cool here anyway. It was truly amazing to soakand relaxwith the lush vegetation surrounding me. The clouds and mist started rolling it and a women dressed in colorful indigenous attire walked up through the mist and was looking at us swimming around the pool. It was really surreal. She has this beatiful woven sheet covering her body to protect herself from the mist. They carved out a rectangular shaped pool from the early, its really crude and can be sharp in some spots. I cut my foot while i was there. There was a snack bar and the bar tender showed us pictures before and after hurricane Stan. He said some areas of the hot springs are irrepairable and the vegetation will take many, many years to return. A lot of people lost their homes. It was unbelievable to see how much destruction it caused. The snack bar was flipped over and pushed many, many feet away from its original spot. I took a few pictures of the springs before the rain started. Of course, to me, the pictures dont do it justice. I think Ill post them when I return since Ive tried again without sucess of posting pics. I was in the water for 2 hours, it took my hands all night to deprune. LOL. Is that even a word.

Nolan, Im going to Fuentes Georgina, another hot springs nearby Xela, next week so I think itll be best if we go there too. Ive heard its even more beautiful there and the water is cooler. I cant even imagine a more beautiful place than what Ive just seen.

Also, im sorry for the poor punctuation and grammer, but I dont know how to change the settings on the computer so I cant get it to work like an English keyboard.

No sense of direction!

As you all know I have no sense of direction or come sense for that matter. So it mustn't come to any suprise that I get lost on a regular basis. I was trying to find an office to a place that does hikes so I could get their monthly schedule. It took me an hour and half and asking 5 people where it is! People here keep telling me I need a compass! I said, that's what my friends and family tell me when I'm at home.

I kept passing these to caucasian men, I finally decided to ask them if they spoke english because I wansn't having much sucess when the Guatemaltecos I asked. They were from Australia and said they were lost, but they were trying to find the place that I was looking for too. So we wandered a bit and we found it. The guys let me in because the office is located in the back of a hostel. They are staying at the hostel. Well, immediately I walk in and they guy tells me that I should ask the owner of the hostel and she'll direct me to where I need to go b/c he didn't know where it was. Also, he said she may have the literature I need. I walk in and turn immediately to go into this lady's office and see her nearly necked in her bra and underware. Let me tell you it wasn't pleasing to see this lady in her near birthday suit. She saw me and didn't even mind. She took her dear sweet time getting dressed. I immediately ran out of there and asked the guy what the hell kind of place is this. He said, you know, I really shouldn't be standing here as I'm a man. I said, I shouldn't be standing here either and I don't want to wait around for this lady to get dressed. Apparently, her bedroom is connected to her office. Why in the hell doesn't she have a curtain to her office closed? She had absolutely no qualms about taking her dear sweet time. I kept peaking back and she was still not fully clothed. I was about to run out of there and she finally said can I help you. She pointed me in the direction to the office.

I wasn't sure if I was going in the right place, then I asked this old hippy dude if I'm going in the righ place. Ick! He started to hit on me! I finally got to the travel company and there was a guy sleeping on the couch. I meekly said, excuse me, can i please have a brochure. I looked at it and one of the hikes I'm interested in is only during the evening. I asked if they will offer it in the day time and he said no. He pointed in the air and said the volcanoe is that way and you can easily hike it during the day. Excuse me, asshole! I'm not a hiker for a living! Anway, I was having to walk by the creepy old hippy dude and the exhibitionist.

On Sunday, it took me 45 minutes and asking 3 people where a grocery store was. I wanted to buy some stuff to make dinner for my family. I wanted to make baked ziti! I was in the store forever. It wasn't the best place to go as it was quite small. I lucked out because they actually had ricotta, mozzerella, and parmesean. I got the last ricotta in the fridge! I made sure it was still good though. They don't sell tomatoe sauce in a can here so I asked Josefina if she would help me make the sauce because she makes salsa and she makes tomotoe sauce for pasta she's made me in the past. I remember before my departure Nolan showed me how to make it, but I couldn't remember. It turned otu really good. Most of her family liked it! We ate it with corn tortillas and drank pinapple soda! I love pinapple soda!


Needless to say, I can find both places with my eyes closed now. I'm really trying to find my way around as Nolan's going to depend on me when he's here. I need to impress! Everyone is very friendly and willing to help point you in the right direction!

Great conversations!

I've been having great conversations with Josefina on a daily basis. I think I was placed with the appropriate family. I found out she's 47 so she must of started having children about 14 or 15, that sounds about right for the indigenous women. Usually younger women marry older men, I guessed on her age as her hubby is quite old. I've learned a lot about how the healthcare system works for families in her lower to middle class bracket. She refuses to go to the doctor at all costs to have $ for her children and grandchildren to go if necessary. She told me a story about how on Mother's Day she had some sharp pains in her chest and it radiated down her arm. She said she cried silently when her family wasn't around. She said she saw on TV that aspirina and garlic are good for the heart so she took them constantly. It sounded to me as though she may have had a hard attack. She said she had pain for a few days. You can have another heart attack, right? She said her family finally picked up that something wasn't right, but she down played. She kept praying and wanted her family to live for the sake of her family. Anyway, I feel guilty about posting this as it's quite personal. I've learned more about her family too over the weeks and I'm not going to post it. It's just a prime example why people come here on medical missions. Not only here, but in the US we need to help people who don't have access to medical care due to restricted finances. That's what I'm destined to do!


I asked her if I could have Nolan stay with me in August or if she recommends we stay in a hotel. She looks at me and she stays, of course you need to stay in a hotel! I said, ok no problem I completely understand. I know cultures are different and may not approve of an unmarried couple sleeping in the same bed. Anyway, she busted out laughing and said she tricked me again! She said she's looking forward to meeting Nolan and he's more than welcome to stay and we can stay as long as we want. Tricked again! She's looking forward to cooking him some food.

She tells me some wild stories of students she's hosted in the past. She says that she and her family really like me because I like to laugh, joke, talk, study, and party all the time. She told me stories of times where she was frightened of some of the students. I won't go into it because it's really creepy. She said she worries about them as if they are her children when the go out boozing it up. She's seen women come down and have boyfriends and get a new boyfriend while their down here! She's had students leave their keys in the door, run into the doors and walls of her house drunk. I can't believe people are so disrespectful. She loves that I'm so devoted to my fiance too. Here children ask her if I'm happy, but I think they can tell that I am.

Yesterday, her sister in law, come from another pueblo to tell her that her daughter is getting married in november. I saw she was in a deep conversation so I distracted Jeremy and babysat him for a bit. Man, he's wild! He reminds me of Nolan's cousin Eric when he was child. He's adorable, but so mischevious and devious! We have fun together. He always points to stuff or runs out of my bedroom with my things. He wants me to tell him what each object in my room is in spanish.

Tomorrow, I'm going to the hot springs to chill with my school. I can't wait to wear my new tankini bathing suit! Thanks again, Deb, for suggesting that I purchase my suit at Marshall Fields.

I'm going to work on the picture thing. The married couple I befriended is going to try to help me shrink some pics. In the next few weeks. Or at least show me how to do it. I hope it's successful because I want to share these beautiful images with you.

I miss everyone so much! I think my home sickness got to me last week when I was so sick.

congratulations are due!

i spoke to nolan on saturday and he informed me he received a 2nd promotion at his job! yaaaahooo! that's freaking fantastic! i'm ecstatic! i wish i could be there to celebrate with you, sweetie! this calls for a night a blues and dinner of your choice when i return. i'm glad you hired the dog walker as bernie will need it as you'll probably be working longer nights! i'm so proud of you! i know that you'll get the news you passsed the CFA when you're here with me in Guatemala in August!

secondly, i just checked my email and nolan emailed me that i was accepted to the accelerated graduate option at my pharmacy school! i'm so psyched, but secretly i've been hoping that i wouldn't get it because i wanted to come back to guate for a month next summer again to study. am i bad or what? anyway, the sooner i graduate the sooner i get a job and the sooner i can have babies!!!

yeah!

sorry for the long silence

hola everyone!

boy, it's been a rough 2nd week for me. first, i had the gastrointestinal problems then i had a really bad friday.

i woke up at 5 a.m. with a shooting electrical pain in my neck. i bolted out of bed and was so scared. it was the kind of pain that you feel radiate through your body and it makes you lose your breath and the tears well up in your eyes immediately and instantly begin crying. i was pacing back and forth and didn't know what to do as it was so early and Josefine doesn't get up for another hour to hour in a half. i kept thinking, oh my god, i have meningitis, i knew i should've gotten the vaccination before i left. isn't there a vaccination for it? for some reason she woke up at 6 a.m. and i was leaving my bedroom to use the bathroom and she say my tears glistening in the dawn and my distressed look. i told her while sobbing i'm in immense pain. she immediately ran to her friends house and ask her friend to have her daughter come over that afternoon to look at me. i thought she said she was a doctor. i got to school and i threw my laundry down on the ground and was too afraid to say anything to anybody. usually i socialize in the a.m. with teachers and students. i couldn't move my neck at all i cried all the way to school and would have to slowly turn my entire body to look at something. i immediately told my teacher i couldn't and the director. i sobbed in pain the entire time during my lecture, but somehow i still was able to converse with my teacher in spanish and i did all of my homework assignments correctly! my teacher was amazed as was i. we were suppossed to go on a field trip to the market and panaderia, but i was in too much pain so we talked and did other stuff. fortunately, a married couple i befriended is so nice and they walked to the pharmacy and bought me a foreign form of icy hot. also, krissy is a nurse and she asked her hubby to bring me some pain meds she had left over from her C-section. i called nolan soon after i arrived in tears and asked him to go see my beloved chiropractor who's office is nearby nolan's office. nolan spoke to dr. silbert and gave him some tips and said i'll live! whew! later that afternoon, josefina's friend come over and it turned out she was a massage therapist. whew! i didn't want to get involved with the doctors down here as my school as forewarned me about it as well about the horrors of the medical system here. the girl gave me a massage for a good price too in my bed room. it really felt weird to be half naked on my bed and having this girl massage me and then she placed some electrodes on my back and stimulated my muscles. at least after she was done i could slightly move my neck. she tried to sell me a neck brace and i said no thanks! lol! let me tell you, i wanted nothing more than to fly home and see dr. silbert and his massage therapist, kelly, whom i've befriended over the years! this chick was no kelly! i know they would've whipped me right into shape! needless to say, i couldn't go on the hiking trip scheduled for saturday and i lost my $ for that because the company won't reimburse me. what jackasses! i gave them ample time! it wasn't even a hike it was to a coffee farm, which i'm going to in two weeks with my school and my school always has a cheaper price. i basically chilled the entire weekend and i red a book i loaned from from school, the divine secrets of the ya ya sisters, no it's not in spanish.

anyway, my neck is improving daily and i can move it completely, but i still have some residual pain. everyone said it was probably from the cold showers, stress, and new bed. stress, imagine that? i think my body was worn down from being sick for a few days. i hope it's all up form here.

More Q & A

Has the high altitude been bothering you? sometimes, i think i wrote about it.


If you are already 7000 feet above sea level how high will you be when you go hiking? i don't know. i'l let you know though.

Does Josephine carry thing on her head like the photos I have seen on the internet? no


Do you see women doing this around Xela? yes, i have pics, but can't post them! the clothes they wear are so beautiful and they carry these huge containers on their head with various contents. i guess all the pics will have to wait until i get home and i can post them for all to see or if nolan can help me in august. i'm so sorry.

Q & A

Did the cinnamon drink help your stomach?yes, the cinnamon drink helped my stomach. it's great because the teas are so yummy here. she'll take a stick of cinnamon, or some vanilla, leaves, or fruit and throw into water to extract the flavors.

Is one pepto a day enough? Yes, trying to let it run its course naturally. what exactly did you buy? I know! I wish I could show you a picture. It's a think wool blanket with indigenous symbols on it. They said it's incredibly durable and I can wash it in the machines at home. It's incredible soft! They stop on them and brush it to make it soft.

that outhouse sounds crazy! it was something i was hoping to never experience, but i guess i'll be ready for anything when i go on a two day hike in a few weeks.

Are you going to go to the church to see what the comotion is all about? it's a protestant church, i think. it was pretty rambuncous last night. they were clapping the entire time and singing. the man is better than the women when he leads, i guess he's the preacher or whatever you call it. the women sounds like she's in pain when she sings. oh, nolan, you'll hear it possibly dending on how long we stay in xela.

Is your family religious? i know they are religious, but they don't go to church. they are pretty liberal actually, i think. josefina and her hubby moved out of the tiny moutain they lived, i can't recall the name. she didn't like the practices of the indeginous ppl because they don't believe in education and want to marry off the girls at at 12, 13, 14, or 15. sorry i can't use the dash symbol so i had to type all the numbers. she said women should focus on their education, wait to marry, and they aren't as many opportunites for people in the mountain town.

what are some guatemalan specialty dishes? hmm...i'm unsure of that. i mean it's like mexican, cuban, costa rican all wrapped into one. i'd say more like the latter two because the later two aren't spicy. when she makes picante salsa it doesn't have any fire, to me, but she's fanning her mouth.

I hope you get to go hiking with Kim this weekend. i hope i do too i've been emailing her all week trying to get everything resolved! i just wish we could meet already.

Hey Everyone:

I'm starting to feel better each day. Yes, I heard aloe is good for your belly too, Aunt Gail. I drank some sweet corn drink. It was very think I didn't like it but I didn't want to be rude. Nolan, I think you might like it because you like sweets.

The sores on my mouth are getting better. Its not a sore per se, but more like irritation its red and peeling on the corners of my mouth. I just want it to go away. It's not terribly noticible, but I can't help but obsess over it.

I finally had a hot shower, it was on the borderline of scorching my skin. However, I enjoyed it! I'm back to ice cold showers again. I guess I'm only alotted a hot shower once a week.


Last night I had nearly a 45 minute conversation with Eric, Josefina, Norma, and Jeremy would chime in once in a while. Norma is the mother of Jermey. I have a hard time understanding Jeremy and Josefina's hubby. It was exciting to converse with them liberally and both parties know what is being said. It felt so good to talk to them because I love talking to people and I can't do it that much here. The prepositions in spanish are incredibly difficult for me. I wrapped up present tense this week and hopefully will start on past tense next week. I can only hope! The teachers are strict so I'm unsure of how often they bump a student up to the next level. I was put in the lowest level! I'm kinda of bummed about that and I hate being able to only speak in present tense.

Josefina's hubby works at a market in Xela, Norma works at a pet store, Carlos works at McDonalds, Eric and Ramon work as painters in a mechanic shop.

I think I'm going hiking this weekend, not up a volcano, but somewhere else. I'm 90% sure. If not, I'm definitely going hiking next weekend with my school.

Interesting facts, Norma and I have the same birthday, but I'm 2 years older than her. Eric, the 2nd oldest son, name is Eric Jose which is similar to my brother, Eric Jason. Lastly, Josefina's hubby birthday is in March and Josefina's is in August. My birthday is in July and Nolan's birthday is August. We're both one month apart! Odd coincidences!

I always play with Jeremy before lunch. He loves my alarm clock and pushes the button and it iluminates blue. He yells out, WoW, azul luz, which is blue light in Spanish. He's the freaking cutest thing ever!

It's been incredibly cold her, mostly in the 60s. It's about 8000 ft above sea level. I have difficulty breathing some times when I'm walking briskly and have to use albuterol inhaler. I really had a difficult time in Momostenango last weekend. Thelma lived on the side of a mountain and it was incredibly wet and cold. We had to walk down it and they carved out steps from the earth, but the get messed up from the repeated rain fall. It was incredibly steep and slippery we all thought with one false move we would have slide down into their house.

Josefina made tamales from scratch today. She made them with cheese and peppers and they were amazing. She also made some with only corn. I ate 3 of them and had some pasta! Mmmm! They use a different type of corn for tamales vs. the corn that we know of that's used to make the tortillas.

I think it's going to be impossible to post pictures, you guys. I'm incredibly sorry, but I've spent hours trying to get it to work. I also had a battery die and I only have 1 battery left so I can't afford to waste another battery. I was hoping that 1 battery would last me all summer while I'm here. I don't know where to buy a battery for my camera here.

Oh! Mom, Luis is a lorro. He flies into my room from time to time.

barely can log into my blog today...Miscellaneous

Ugh! The internet thing is incredibily frustrating as is my Spanish progress. LOL!
I´ve been sick the past few days. I cancelled my dance class today as I wanted to nap and take it easy. I finally broke down and told Josefina that I have diarrhea because she made me an egg for breakfast this a.m. I can´t eat the greasy food. For lunch she boiled yuca, gave me a viscous clear drink flavored with a cinnamon stick she boiled in it. she said all of that is going for my belly.

this past saturday, i went to a moutaintown calleMomostengango. The ride in the Chicken Bus was amazing. No, I didn´t get pics of the waterfall. I hope to visit it though. I´m trying to go on a day hike this weekend, but I can´t find a tour company to go with. I´m kinda nervous about going on the moutain bikg as I´m not a good bicyclist.

Anyway, Momos short for Momostenango is famous for the weeving. The women´s house that we went to, it´s about 1.5 hours by bus from Xela, cleans the school and the owner of the schools house, as well as has a weaving business at her house. The blankets are called chamarras. They are the most beautiful things I´ve ever seen. I bought a few things while I was there for 350Q, which is $60, that will pay for nearly a month of her son´s college education! Her son wants to study medicine. She and her family built this wood looms and spnners to make the wool into threads, they die it with natural pigments. It takes a month to several months to make a single blanket. they have pictutres on them some how they weave it into it. they have 3 looms in the back yard.

I had touse the bathroom as soon as we got there because I try to drink a lot of water to remain hydrated. Well, I almost died. It was a concrete outhouse on the side of the moutain. You walk into this blog of cement and there is this concrete hole where you go to the bathroom. A dirty shower curtain was flapping in my face. It was pretty wild and the stench was nearly unbearable. I ran out of there at first and couldn´t believe my class mates went to the bathroom in there. Well, I did too.

Telma, the women´s house we visited, was extremely kind. She made us fresh tortillas on her wood burning stove, guacamole, and salsa. I didn´t eat the queso, I´m glad I didn´t because the girl who did was barfing and pooping for a few days.

I think I´m almost done with my problem. I take one Pepto a day. I went to the pharmacy and bought some electrolyte powder and mixed it with 1 liter of water. I drank nearly all of it and I have another one for tomorrow if necessary. It´s incredibly disgusting.

I have another funny story about Josefina, she had a student named Seth live with her a while aback. She couldn´t pronounce his name so she kept calling him ¨Shit¨¨ or she would make her kidsgo get him because she didn´t want to call him Shit. AFter a few days she he finally told her how to say his name right, even now she has problems with the TH south, it´s not common in spanish.

My classes are becoming harder and harder every day. I have nearl 1000 flash cards and I´ve been here for only weekend and a half. It´s been almost all review, but I need it to solify stuff in my mind.

OH! I live right across the street from a tiny church. They have mass every Sun, Mon, Weds, Fri. I tune it out when I study, but if I want to sleep it´s impossible. Also, we live on a busy street so there are kids playing soccer constantly. Somehow,k I was abl to nap for 1.5 hours today. Whew! I needed it. The church music is unbareable. This women or man get on a microphone to lead the congregation and they are so off key. I laugh while I´m studying in my bedroom.

I learned how to make corn tortillas on Monday. It´s pretty easy. I´m sorry if I´m repeating myself. I can´t wait to make them for everyone in the states! Josefina said she´ll show me how to make her salsa. Josefina feels bad because she thinks it may have been the cream of potatoe soup she made me on Sunday that made me ill. I told her no becase I eat dairy all the time in the states. It´s quite expensive here for people to buy dairy products.

I´m going on a field trip tomorrow. I´ve been taking it easy as I want to study, get better, and save my $ to go on a hiking trip this weekend. I really want to go hiking!!!

Friday, I´m going on a field trip with my teacher to a market to learn about veggies and fruits in Guatemala and we´re going to stop by the best Sweet store in town. I´m sad because it´s the last few days I have with my teacher. I like her so much, but I think I should try someone else before I ask for Edna again.

This is Nolan posting a few pictures Kristy was able to email me

1. 
   One is her room and another is a bird at her home in Xela.
   
   

No pics!

Guys,
I don't know what to say, but I've not been able to upload any pics again today. I'm at my favorite cafe and the pc just freezes. I think it must be the pic size or the connection. I'm sick too so I really don't feel like screwing around with this right now. I guess I'll just write stories, but I'd rather have pics to accompany them. It freaking sucks! I wish I were more pc savy to figure this out.

I've had diarrhea for the past two days. I've been forcing myself to eat small meals. I haven't told Josefina that I'm sick. I think it's from the food I ate in the mountains on Saturday. I know I shouldn't have eaten, but it's rude to not eat the food when someone offers it to you. I haven't gotten sick from Josefina's food yet. She's very careful. She soaks green leafy veggies in Clorox to kill the bateria for an hour. I think it'll pass quickly. I've taken Pepto a few times, but I don't think it's necessary to take Immodium and definitely no need for Cipro. It's pretty minor and I think I'll let everything just pass naturally. LOL!

More of Nolan's questions

So how old are the members of the family you live with? I think Josefina's in her 60s, her hubby gotta be about 70ish, her kids range from 30s-20s. She has 6 grandchildren.

Do the young ones (if there are any) go to school? No, none of her children go to school anymore. They all work and very hard at that each works about 6-7 days a week. They couldn't afford to send their children to college. Like I said, the family I'm really is really poor, but doing well as an indigenous family. They are one of 2 families that are indigenous and affiliated with this school. The other families are more wealthy. I've heard students say how nice their house is, they have private bathroom, etc. However, I'm attached to my family; I'm staying here. I have good food, clean water, clean room, and a nice family. That's all I need. All the other stuff I can do without.

I can't wait to try the plantains. Are they as good as the ones at La Teresita? She either fries or boils them. I like them boiled. She boiled Yuca for me yesterday, it was freaking awesome! I like the platanos better here b/c it isn't as sweet as a cuban restaurant. Does Josefina make her own tortillas? Nope, but I'm going to learn how to make corn tortillas tomorow at school! I did go to a mountain town yesterday and in the lady's house she made tortillas and fed them to use with cheese, salsa, and guac. All was home made. Truly amazing experience! The mountain was beautiful! I saw a waterfall on my way up the mountains in the Chickenbus!

Will Josephina be doing your laundry or have you found a place to do it? Someone picks my laundry up form school and does it. Mind isn't handwashed and the laundry mat. They do an awesome job!
Dose she wash her clothes by hand? Yes, there's a thing attached the kitchen sink called a "pila" which is serated and she use it to scrub the clothes, sheets, etc.

Does she make enough from hosting students that she does not have to work? She gets 250Q a week, which is equal to $30 a week! It's incredibly sad! I get my own snacks and try not to eat too much, but she always pushes me to eat more. I want to cry right now just thinking about how poor the economy, healthcare is here. This place and family has a special place in my heart and I want to do more hear once I'm a pharmacist. I'm going to pick up a few things this week at the supermercado.

It's late so I need to get back home, do home work, eat, and wind down. Again, I'm so sorry I can't post pics yet.

Answers to Nolan's questions

God, I'm incredibly frustrating with the phones and internet. I don't know when I'm going to be able to post pics. I've been here for 1.5 hrs and no success. I don't feel like writing stories without having the pics. Sorry, everyone! I've tried calling home a few days in a row without any success. It's hard to hear on one or the other end.

The electricity is unpredictable so it always goes out everyday. I've had to study by candle light or by the small amt of sunlight the goes into my bedroom. My room is completely concrete and it has the tiniest window I've ever seen in it. It gets like one ray of sunlight! LOL! I take an ice cold shower everyday. That really wakes me up. I'm unsure why the family or I even bother lighting the gas to heat up the water b/c it's so cold all the time. I can't imagine how cold it would be if we didn't light the gas tank. There's a gas tank with a line running to a box in the wall and the box connects to the shower had somehow and it's supposed to heat the water. Well, I've been here a week and I've had only 1 lukewarm shower!

OK, Nolan's questions:
How many people live in the house?

There's 7 including me. Three of Josefinas children, her grandson & her hubby, and herself. Everyone has a lot of fun together. They are a very close family and don't treat me like I'm a foreigner. We enjoy each others company and we all laugh at how badly I butcher Spanish.

Is the "sun room" enclosed? There are 6 rooms in the house, 3 BR, 1 Bathroom, 1 kitchen, 1 living room. In the middle of the concrete house is a cut out where they hang their handwashed laundry. Today, I raced to the patio from the kitchen with Carlos and Norma to grabb the their laundry has a thunderstorm unleased its fury. Norma was too short to reach the laundry so I had to grab it. It was funny!

If not how do they keep the rain from blowing into the rest of the house? You can close all of the doors to protect yourself from the elements when you're in a room, except for the kitchen there's no door there. However, the rain doesn't come into the kitchen unless it's really bad and a flood occurs.

How far is your school from the house? A 5 minute walk.

Was Josephina familiar with Chicago? No, she wasn't family and couldn't believe what it looked like. I tried to tell her about, my friends, and family as much as I can, but my spanish is soooo bad.

Have you given them any gifts yet? Yes, I gave her the USF hat to give to her hubby, I gave her a necklace and earrings. She was blown away. She's so unselfish that she gave it to her daughter Nilda. I still have a few left. I really want to buy her a mop as she mops the house daily with a broom and a wet towel wrapped around it. I'm going to have to find the supermarket and see if they sell them. She's an incredibly hard worker! She and I had a coversation today about how men in Latin America are sexist and won't help the women around the house. She said it was shear ignorance! Go Josefine! She said it's even worse for indigenous women like herself. She's had a tough life. She never knew her dad and her mom died when she was a little girl. She survived all the choas of the civil war and being indigenous.

Reality Check!

As you all know everything is going well except for my roadblock with Spanish. I try not to be out past 9 p.m. and if I am I have someone walk me home. However, some have you have emailed me about stories you've heard recently. On Friday, a lawyer working in an office a block away from my school was gunned down. I heard the pops, but figured it was probably fireworks, but thought it was odd since it was midday. Well, I walked home from school an hour later and saw ambulance, people, police crowded around. Two men zoomed up next to the lawyer as he was pulling away from his office and shot him 8 times. The pics in the newspaper actually showed the lawyer slumped over in his seat, blood and brains oozing from his head. They have a different kind of journalism hear. I ran home and told Josefina about it. The next day she bought the papers for me to read about it. The family next door to use knew the lawyer well and the american student in the family's house saw the aftermath, the lawyer dying, and the family rushing to the scene. He told me the police did absolutely nothing and weren't going to investigate anything. The government is incredibly corrupt here. Usually, murders don't happen Xela. On Friday evening, a newly arrived American student left a bar with a fellow classmate 1a.m. He was walking her home and a group of men with guns forced them into the car and drove them 40 mins outside of Xela. They raped the girl and made the boy watch. They drove them back to Xela and the girl immediately called the US Embassy and they weren't very helpful. She went to Guate (Guatemala City) on Saturday to get checked out and then flew out today. My friend found me at a coffee shop with another friend and told us the story. It was about 10 p.m. last night she and her host brother escorted me home. I always carry my pepper spray! I couldn't fall asleep last night for a while. I told my host mom I'm going to always take a cab or walk home with friends. However, I'm always home by 8-9 the latest. The streets are really unsafe and the gangs come out. The rape was gang related.

Two times a charm!

The first breakfast I ate the day after I arrived I was sitting with Josefina and heard a loud popping noise. She said it's bandits and they are running the streets because of the gangs. My eyes opened wide and I was freaked out she proceeded to give me a long story about the violence in Xela. After a few minutes, she said I'm joking! Anyway, the noise is every morning someone shoots off fire works in the street to announce it's a family member's b-day. I hope someone sets them off for me as I'll be celebrating here alone. :( A few days ago, I was sitting at the table eating dinner with her and her hubby, I said, what type of tea is this. She grabbed the jar down from the shelf and said, shhhh, it's a secret. It's marajuana! She said it's legal here in Guatemala, but no in the U.S. Haven't you noticed I serve this with dinner and it doesn't wake you up b/c it doesn't have caffiene unlike coffee. I said, OK. I really didn't know what to say. She and her husband a few minutes later told me she was joking. She's always playing tricks on me! I'm pretty gullable right now as I can't speak spanish well. I'm much better at listening and picking up on things.

No more pics!

I've been here for over an hour and I've only been able to upload 2 pics. The internet sucks at this cafe. I hate it b/c I've had to use 2 different places the past 2 times b/c the other one was closed. Ugh! I have really great pics, but I can't post them I'll try again later this week.

Some pics of my family

Thus far, I´ve taken pictures of my host mom, Josefina, and her 2 y.o. grandson, Jeremy. The picture doesn´t even due her beauty justice. I´m living with one of two indigenous families my family allows to host students. I´m unsure of why type of indigenous group she belongs too, but she does speak Qui´che. she said she´ll teach it to me once my spanish improves until then she won´t teach me words because it´ll slow my progress with learning spanish. She has long hair all the down to her waist. She wears colorful, hand woven clothes that are affiliated with the indigenous group in Xela. She´s a wonderful cook, loving mother and grandmother, and always laughing. I don´t know why she isn´t smilihng in this pic because she´s always laughing and having a good time with everyone in the house. Josefina has a hubby who works everyday. He looks tired, weather, and his eyes are clouding mabye from glaucoma or cateracts. They have 5 children: Eric, Ramon, Nilda, Norma, and Carlos. The latter three live in the house along with Jeremey, Norma's grandson. I play with Jeremy all the time, he's very curious about me and constantly runs into my room to grab my stuff. He's sooo adorable! He always gives me a fist to punch onto my balled fist to give me props and he gives me the thumbs up sign when we're eating our meals. He also yells out "fly" in spanish to have me swat away the flies from the table. The kitchen and patio are exposed to the environment to it's fair game for insects. He loves having his picture taken. Carlos, the youngest son and I help Josefina write and read stuff as she wasn't educated. Carlos and I are mostly home to help her with stuff. It's really interesting that Josefina wears indigenous clothing, but her children don't. Indigenous people are treated very badly hear and there's racial tension between the indigenous people and the guatamaltecos (guatemalans). I watched a movie in Spanish on Tuesday about the war.

Where do I begin?

Where do I begin? I really can't express how happy I am with my school, my teacher, my family, the food, the city, etc. My teacher's name is Edna, she's very strict, patient, and smart. She's been teaching for quite some time. I'll have her for 2 weeks and then I'll get a new teacher. I don't want to change, but I think I should so I can have a different experience. I can always request her again some other time. She & I have fun b/c at times I say the wrong thing and the meaning of what I said is perverted! LOL! She always assigns me things to write in spanish, but the entire class is listening to her tell stories and us conversion and her teaching me grammar. It can be very frustrating at times, but when I get something it's very rewarding. I feel every day I'm able to communicate better with my peers and my family. Often times, we're doing a lot of sign language to communicate with each other. It's very amusing. One of the most difficult things for me is pronunciation, did I spell that write in English? God, in my diary, I find myself writing in spanish midsentence. I'm constanting thinking in spanish or how to say something. I feel like I'm in elementary school all over again. We were using flash cards with cartoon pictures on it so I could learn adjectives yesterday. Also, I learned some irregular verbs today and I couldn't pronounce them worth a damn. She would make me repeat them like 5 times each. she's tough, but I like her.

I'm going to take a break from the Taiwanese stand b/c the veggie empanadas are very good, but very fattening. I've been there 3 days in a row now. Last night, I met some students for dinner at an Indian restaurant. I couldn't even wait a week to try the Indian restaurant. The portions are good, but the food isn't as good as in the United States. I'm spoiled in Chicago. I guess I'm an Indian food snob. However, they have these drinks called licuado con fresa, mango, banana, etc. I ordered a shake with strawberry (fesa) it was the most amazing drink and biggest thing I'd ever seen! It could've been a meal! I can't wait to take Nolan there in August. I brought my leftovers for the family. Josefina said it was fantastic and that her hubby and her son didn´t like it too much.

I had to hurry to meet a classmate to show here where a few things were. I can't believe I'm able to do so after being here for 4 days! I ate lunch quickly with my family. I ate the best guacamole of my life! My friend, Lauren, from pharmacy school has turned me onto Guacamole. My family is spoiling me w/the food. Yesterday, my host mom gave me fried plaintains for breakfast! They were soooo yummy and I don't even like them in the states. Josefina made salsa too, but she loves salt so she adds a bit too much, but still, how eats fresh salsa daily? She sauteed spinach, onion, and tomates and I made my own veggie tacos w/corn tortillas. We drank Pepsi with our lunch! It wasn't diet either, man, they are spoiling me!!! I told her I love Pepsi, but I think it's kinda expensive so I hope she doesn't think I want it all the time. I try not to eat too much because there are about 7 people living in the house so 8 including me. I can always buy a snack if I need too. I know I'm paying to live there, but even fruit is a luxury it seems. I'm going to pick up some at a market soon so we can eat with our meals. During lunch, two of her children at with us and they were talking and I had no clue what they were saying. They would pause and explain in laymens terms what they were talking about. They correct me constantly.


I'm getting bit by fleas all the time b/c of the feral dogs wandering the streets. My family's house is very clean so I doubt it's from them. The sun hasn't been out much and I'm so cold all of the time. I wear 3 layers of clothes sometimes. What's up w/that? I'm living in Central America!

Josefina has been hosted students for 15 years! She really loves it b/c she likes she worked in a laundry facility before and hated it and it was very laborious. Plus, she wans't spending much time w/her children. She enjoys working at home, boy does she ever work! She's so busy!!

Yesterday, I went to a tiny shop across town, I forgot my camera so I couldn't take pictures. :( In Guatemala, the are these dolls called Munecas and that are hand made and painted. It's kinda like paper mache. It's very intricate so it was cool to see the process. I takes many days to make them. I didn't bring enough money so I couldn't buy one either. However, I'm sure they are quite prevelant around the country. We had to take 2 busese and walk a couple miles to get to it. I forgot to spray my legs with insect repellant I'm covered in flea bites! God, I wish I wouldn't have taken microbiology last quarter b/c I'm constantly worried about germs and what disease I could get from a fleas or mosquito. I'm excited b/c my family finally got hand soap in the bathroom! However, I use my handsanitizer like crazy.

My eyes are finally used to the pollution. They aren't burning or red, but they are puffy. However, I'm a bit concerned b/c I've developed some sores on the sides of my mouth where the the crease it. I keep applying chapstick. I hope I didn't catch a cold sore from something.

Today, I'm going to watch a movie in my school then I go home eat and study. A store across from the school sells school supplies so I bought index cards so I can make flash cards. My spanish was so bad that the girl let me go behind the secure counter and look through the inventory to find them. LOL! I'll never forget how to say index cards with lines in Spanish again!

I promise I'll take some pictures starting tomorrow and I'll post them in a few days. I haven't been taking many pictures so I need to get on that! I think I'll wander around on Sunday and take pictures. Pictures are so much better than stories or it will solidify stuff for you.

Tomorrow, I'm going to take my first Salsa dance class! Yeah! I heard the teacher is very good! Wish me luck! I'm the least graceful person I know so it's going to be very interesting. I think the gym I wanted to join is very far away so I need to do some kind of exercise while I'm here or I'll go nuts! At least I walk everywhere, but I've been eating so much. I still haven't gotten sick! Whew!

All is well in Xela.

Oh! Next Saturday, my school is overing a mountain biking activity. Do I dare? I don't want to hurt myself so I think I may not do it. What do you think?

Only one cat call since I've been here, not bad, huh? Everyone is soooo nice!