Still In Antigua

Sorry It’s been so long since my last post. I am still studying in Antigua and am keeping very busy. I go to class for 6-7 hours a day and then spend the rest of my time at home or out in the town. I feel like I am learning a lot…I just hope it will be enough to survive in Pinula. I went back last weekend and I still could not understand anyone because they all talk so fast.

I have been loving Antigua so far and have been making some good friends. I have become pretty good friends with a couple from Sweden, Moa and Henrick. Henrik and I have been going to a local gym a couple times a week and every now and then we will go out to a restaurant at night. We love talking about the differences between the United States and Sweden (and the rest of Europe).

I love learning about different cultures, and Antigua is a great place to do it. I went on a hike up a local volcano last week and I was the only American in my group. There were two girls from Denmark, Moa and Henrik from Sweden, a couple from Quebec, and then two girls from the UK. I love it.

I am doing great and I really love Guatemala so far. I am excited to get fully planted in Pinula.and to get deeper into my internship. Only a couple more weeks…

Antigua

I made it to Antigua a couple days ago. It is really nice here. Antigua is probably the most touristy city in Guatemala. It is a very old city—several hundred years old—and still maintains the antique look. The city is very small too, which I like. You can walk practically everywhere. I live on the south side of the city, close Volcano Agua. I would say it is the most distinct of the three volcanoes. Step on to my street and there it is. It is incredible.

I am studying Spanish for a couple weeks at La Union Spanish School. They placed me with a family that I can stay with while I am here. I am staying with an older woman called Chiqui. She has a small, but nice house. She is also a very good cook. Chiqui has been housing Spanish students for 12 years. She does it as a full time job. She housed three of the Spring Arbor girls last week and currently has another girl staying here for 2 months. She is a med student from Michigan State University and is doing some medical research in Guatemala City.

I think Spanish classes will help quite a bit. It is nice to be able to dedicate all my time to studying Spanish. I am with a teacher for 4 hours in the morning and for 2 hours in the afternoon. I study and do homework in the afternoon.

Yesterday in class we experienced an earthquake. It was such a crazy experience. At first I looked around to see if someone was stomping their feet or shaking their desk. It just seemed like a soft shaking. Then It started getting harder and harder and eventually slowed down again. I guess altogether it lasted for 45 seconds. The earthquake measured a 6 point something on the rictar scale. The recent earthquake in Haiti measured a 7 on the scale. Thank God there was no damage in Guatemala or El Salvador.

I hope that two weeks studying will be sufficient, but I may end up doing two more if I need too. It has been kind of nerve-wracking moving around place to place by myself (especially considering the fact that I don’t know many people and I don’t know a lot of Spanish), but God has been working everything out perfectly. It has been a huge blessing.

El Basurero

Today met up with a group from my college. In order to graduate, students must spend three weeks in another culture, so there is a group about 30 people here. It was nice to see some familiar faces and to talk to people in English! We met in the National cemetery for a ministry there that works with local kids. The kids parents work in the cemetery and the kids have nothing to do during the day while their parents work. So the ministry meets every Saturday and plays with the kids and feeds them lunch.

The cemetery was huge, with these big tombs all over the place. There were some big tombs that were for particular families and then big walls that were just rows and rows of tombs. A lot of it was very pretty. In Guatemala, the people try to celebrate the lives of the dead instead of mourning their death. So, much of the cemetery is very beautiful.

Liz was guiding the group (30+ Spring Arbor people) through the cemetery. On the far end of the cemetery was the city dump. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of vultures flying everywhere. We reached the edge of this big cliff and overlooked the dump. The smell was terrible. The dump went on forever.

The dump is very well known for its scavengers--10,000+ people that work in the dump looking for items of value. These people make anywhere from 2-5 dollars a day. Though it is now “prohibited”, many people (and families) still live in the dump. Also, they have no sanitation regulations. 2,000 tons of garbage is dumped per day and is then scavenged by thousands of people.

It was a heartbreaking sight. It makes me sick that this kind of thing happens. How can so many people live with such wealth and simply let others suffer like this?

Santa Catarina Pinula

I am now in Santa Catarina Pinula (Pinula for short), the small city I am staying in for the remainder of my time here. It is outside Guatemala City, up into the surrounding mountains. You have to go up very steep and winding hills to get to Pinula. Driving is pretty crazy here too, so it is kind of scary getting up there. But looking down from Pinula you can see over Guatemala City and see two huge volcanoes in the background. It is an incredible sight.

While in Pinula I will be living with the youth pastor of the local church and his wife. Their names are William and Caren. They have two sons, ages 5 and 1. They are both very cute. The church is called Nueva Jeruselen, where Caren’s father is the pastor. The family is very big and very friendly. Even though I know little Spanish, I still feel comfortable because the people are so friendly.

The church is right beside the local school, Kairos. Caren is the principal of the school. I will be working at the school during my stay here. The kids are still on summer break and school starts next week. The school is pretty small and not in the best shape, but the teachers are all very nice and a lot of fun. The Pastors family is very big and many of the teachers are the Pastors daughters. There is an English teacher who obviously speaks English and there is another American, Anna, living with the Pastors family. There are also a couple of other people who know a bit a English, so that is nice.

I am learning more Spanish each day, but not as fast as I would like. So next week I am heading to Antigua where I will study Spanish for at least couple of weeks. They told me that there once was an intern here that didn’t speak any Spanish and he went and studied in Antigua and came back speaking very well. I already know quite a bit of Spanish, so I think this will help me a lot. I will let you know J

Mi Segunda Día

So I woke up early (I slept for 12 hours though) and I showered. Then we had breakfast. I had an egg, black beans, and tortillas. The beans were like refried beans, but made from black beans. They tasted way better too. The tortillas were just like small corn tortillas. Then they had this cream stuff that you mix in with the beans. It is pretty bland but it adds nicely with the beans. The coffee here is much milder than in the States. Most Americans I have talked too don’t like it, but I like it better.

Then we left for church. We had Sunday school, which was taught by Fabián (Liz’s Husband). Then there was the main service. Altogether it was about 3 hours, maybe a little longer. It was really hard because everyone speaks Spanish and I do not know very much. I actually know much less than I thought I did. And most of the people do not speak English. I was sitting in church and looked around and it hit me that I was the only American in the room. It was a pretty weird feeling. But unlike in the States, everyone was very friendly, so I still felt comfortable.

Then we went to Liz’s family’s house for lunch. Her father is really nice and funny and her mom is very sweet. She has a 29 year old brother who is a lawyer. People here live with their parents until they get married. He was telling me how I was lucky that I get to move out and live on my own because his parents would be really upset if he moved out. For lunch we had rice, tortillas, and a bean/meat mixture. It was really good. In Guatemala, breakfast and dinner are smaller and lunch is usually a pretty big meal. Beans, rice, and tortillas are in most meals, so it’s good thing I like them.

They tried to talk to me for a while in just Spanish…it didn’t go so well. That was discouraging. So Liz said I will have to go to the Spanish school to work on my Spanish. Most of the time I just sit there and don’t understand anything, so it will be good to go the school. I think it will help me a lot.

I still feel a little overwhelmed, but I love it here already.

Hola! Estoy en Guatemala!

Hi everyone! I arrived in Guatemala today around 12:30 PM (1:30 Michigan Time). My flights went well and to my surprise, I made it through the airport very quickly. I did not have to wait at all to go through customs. That was nice. Outside the airport there were these gates set up with TONS of people waiting behind them. It looked like something you would see outside a concert. Everyone was waving and yelling and holding up signs for people. It took me a while to find my boss/host Liz, but she finally spotted me and we headed off to her house.

Liz works for Strategy for Transformation and one of her many jobs is to supervise the interns. I rode home with her and her husband Fabián. They are both really friendly and hospitable. We came back to their place, had dinner, and then some of Liz’s family came over. They were very nice and a lot of fun.

I am feeling a little overwhelmed with not knowing very much Spanish. It’s really not as bad as I was anticipating though, so that is good. I think I will catch on pretty quickly.

The weather is beautiful here! It’s probably in the low 70’s and there is a nice breeze. It’s perfect. I am going to go walk around later and take some pictures.

Well, I will be staying with Liz and Fabián until Monday and then I will go to Pinula, where I will stay for the rest of my time here. I am excited to go there and get settled in. Anyways, I should get internet while I am there so I will post again soon.

I'm Leaving Tonight!!!

Holy Crap! I leave tonight. My flight leaves at 5:45AM so we have to leave home around 2:30AM. I am actually not as nervous as I anticipated, but I am sure that will change later tonight J I am very excited about everything, just feeling a little unprepared in terms of my Spanish skills. But I bet I would feel like that no matter what.

I had a very good Christmas break. I got engaged to a very beautiful and wonderful girl. It will be hard to leave her, but it is exciting to think that we will be getting married shortly after I get back. I also got accepted into University of Michigan’s Masters of Social Work program, so I will be starting graduate school in the fall. It was a very eventful and exciting break!

Anyways, I am sure my first couple days in Guate will be pretty crazy, so I will post again as soon as I can. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers!