A very eventful two weeks!

Leading up to site visit and counterpart day was incredibly nerve-racking. I was so anxious and really wanted to pretend to be sick. Counterpart day came and went with only a little bit of awkwardness.  My counterpart and one of the directors from my schools came, and they are both super nice. It was only stressful for me because of the lack of Spanish that I have, and the fact that I am still trying to be professional, but I am not sure how to say what I want to say.  There were times in which I wanted to explain more and talk more about my job, but I had no clue how to say it in Spanish. On Tuesday, the 5th, I came with 2 big suitcases and a large backpack to the Peace Corps office, fully expecting to have to take a camioneta to Santa Clara La Laguna. I was also freaking out at this possibility. Nevermind going to the place in which I am going to live for the next two years, how I am going to last 3 hours on a camioneta with all of my stuff.

Luckily the people who were coming from Sololá had a car, so I was able to get a ride and have all my things safely in the bed of the truck. We left Santa Lucia around 11, and made our way to Chimaltenango for lunch. I had Pollo Campero for lunch in Chimal; you can never beat some Pollo Campero! After lunch, we were back on the road. I slept most of the way, and we after a bunch of bumpy, dirt roads we arrived at my site. It is a quiet little town, but not quite as little as I was expecting. The town is very spread out, with another pueblo right next to it. I can walk ten minutes to a lookout of Lake Atitlan, and take a camioneta for about thirty minutes to the shore of the lake.

I arrived at these houses down a slight hill, not to far from the center of town. The truck stopped in the dirt, as the truck literally could not go any farther. One of the directors of the schools, Francisco, who had ridden with me from Santa Lucia, helped me grab all of my things from the bed of the truck.  He handed some things to man, and that man took them down the hill, and to the side. I must be living down there, I thought. I made my way down the side hill, while it’s super short, it is also super steep. I slipped on my way down; I tend to do that alot here in Guatemala. I was lead into a bare room right off the house that only had my two suitcases in it. I became incredibly overwhelmed at that moment. I was hoping for furniture.

I was greeted by the same man who helped with my bags, Juan, who I found out would be my host father. I met his wife, and his two adorable daughters. They watched me while I sat in the room, and tried to contemplate how to start my life in this town. Many thoughts were going through my head, as they stood there asking me basic introductory questions. I was thinking: (How do I begin to form lasting relationships with these people? How do I start unpacking? Where can I buy all of my furniture, and will I have enough money? I was really hoping for a second room. Be positive, and happy. I am so stressed I can’t speak any Spanish. Just calm down, and breathe. Where am I going to put all my stuff?) They watched me unpack some of my things even though I didn’t have anywhere to put them, besides the floor. The rest of the night was miserable. I was told earlier in the week, that the first day of site visit would be the worst in the Peace Corps, and that was right! I felt so alone, without my friends, my host family, and without a clear plan!

The next day I woke up from sleeping on the floor and felt so much better. This is going to be ok! I went out with Francisco (who is the director of the school in my town), and we went to the mayor’s office, the health center, and I had a great tour of the town. I was then walked to a lookout of what I was told would be Lago de Atitlan. We arrived to this grassy, muddy area with some trash on the ground. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I walked to the lookout, and could not believe my eyes. It was the most beautiful place I ever seen. I felt like I was having this amazing experience. I am in this gorgeous country and am ten minutes from this view. Fate really has a plan for me, and I am truly blessed. I could not stop saying, “Oh My God” and “This is Amazing” for the next five to ten minutes, all in English. I cried, laughed, and took some amazing pictures. During those ten minutes I became truly happy to be in my site, and I knew that I was going to try and do amazing things for this community.

For the next couple of days, I went to all my schools, met some very nice people, and began to know my town a little better. When I left on Saturday, I was excited to leave, but I wasn’t unexcited to come back. I arrived back in Sumpango in the afternoon, and it was so nice to sleep in a comfortable bed and have a hot shower. The next day was our family lunch, and we made hummus, tacos, and flan, all homemade! It was so nice just to relax with our families, knowing that it was one of the last times all of us would be together.

The rest of the week passed by as usual, while it wasn’t usual in the least bit.  We had many sessions on becoming real volunteers, and I had many wonderful moments with my fellow trainees. On Tuesday, the 12^th, all of the trainees sat outside in a big circle and shared their thoughts on life, Peace Corps, Guatemala, and the road to this point. I was inspired by what everyone said, and I was happy that we did that activity. While it kind of felt like group therapy, waiting for everyone to speak, it was a lovely way to process the experience of training!

Thursday, the 14th, was the big day! I was sworn in as a Peace Corps volunteer at the ambassador’s house in Guatemala City. I wore traje, which is the traditional dress of Guatemala. I was uncomfortable for most of the day, as what was keeping my skirt up was wrapped tightly around my ribs. However, I now have a new found respect for all of the women in Guatemala who wear this. I could not imagine wearing that everyday, and I respect anyone who does. I said the infamous oath taken by every United States citizen working in foreign service. It was amazing saying those words, and this dream becoming a reality. I am now a Peace Corps volunteer! After all of those years of dreaming, years of applying, and 3 months of training, my dream has finally come true! Now comes working in my community, and I could not be more excited to start!

Finding out my site!

This week I found out my site, which is the town in Guatemala in which I will be living for the next 2 years. All week, I got more and more anxious as Thursday came closer. Our training group is separated into two different programs, Heathy Homes and Youth Development. Healthy Homes found out their sites on Wednesday. When I got home on Wednesday, there were so many happy people on Facebook, just so excited to know their sites. On Thursday, our training class got together for class in the morning at the Peace Corps office. We had meetings on Behavior Change and Secondary Projects. Everyone from Healthy Homes was calm, and some of them smiley. Youth Development was not feeling this way. Some of us were sitting in a row during the meetings, and all of us were moving our legs, using our bodies to act out our anxiousness. Classes ended, and we had lunch in Santa Lucia. We all ate lunch within 10 minutes, and then we had one hour to kill before we were to leave to find out our sites. That hour passed so slowly. I would keep looking at my watch, and only 5 minutes had passed since I last looked. We were finally able to leave, and we were driven to San Bartolme Milpas Atlas, where some of the trainees live.

We arrived and Gonzalo, the boss man of Youth Development, set up a big map of Guatemala. Gonzalo and Aliyya worked on putting 15 pins in the map, to show where all of us are going. The pins were pretty spread out over the Western Highlands, with some in Quiche, one really close to the Mexican border, some in Baja Verapaz (which is close to Guatemala City), and some by Lake Atitlan. We were all given heavy manilla envelopes with our names on it. We then all opened it together! I opened my envelope with much excitement and hestiation, and I saw the name of my site. I yelled "Sololá!" My site is Santa Clara La Laguna, located in the department (state) of Sololá! Sololá is the department of Lake Atitlan, which was described by Aldous Huxley as "the most beautiful lake in the world."

I picture I found online of the road to Santa Clara. This is where I will be living for the next two years! I am so incredibly lucky!

I am so excited to start my work. I am going to be a first generation volunteer, and going to be working with 4 schools in the area of Santa Clara. I am going to visit my site on Tuesday till Saturday, and I could not be more nervous. I am also very nervous to meet my counterpart tomorrow! My counterpart is basically my boss, the guy who I will discuss my plans, and possibly get his help. I am so nervous to meet him! I can speak Spanish ok with my family and my Spanish teachers, but I am nervous about speaking with him!

The rest of the day of Thursday was spent celebrating! That manilla envelope had a lot of information about Santa Clara, for instance the highest temperature in Santa Clara is 24 degrees Celsius, which is about 74 degrees Fahrenheit. I have internet, a bank, a market, and I am surrounded by mountains and volcanoes. I am at about 6500 feet, which is more than a mile above sea level. The main business is agriculture, and the main products are rice, coffee, beans, and avocados! (I am obsessed with avocados, so I am super pumped about this!) 

On Friday, all of the trainees got together in Parramos and started learning the mayan languages of our area. I tried my hand at learning some Quiché. It is such a hard language, and it makes Spanish look like a piece of cake. Saturday was a very fun day. We had a celebration for the 4th of July! All of the volunteers were there, and I definitely had loads of fun! It was a very different way to celebrate the 4th, and I loved it! Today, I have started packing up my room for my site visit this week. I am packing up my stuff because we are suppose to bring most of our stuff with us to leave in site, and then come back to it after swear-in. 

I am so excited about where I am going to be living! And I can not wait to start this new adventure in my life! I am going to miss training, I have had so much fun and made some really good friends. But everything must come to an end. When one thing ends, something else begins. I am getting really excited about that something else.

Update on my life.

I have not posted on this in about a month, and I am kind of embarrassed to admit it. I have had the feeling “hey, I want to post on my blog”, but instead I post pictures on Facebook, and update myself with Facebook. Well no more, I want to make some kind of commitment to this blog. I really believe in posting on a blog, and all of the positive features a blog can bring.

Anyway, so June has been very hectic! I am nearing the end of training, and I could not be more excited or bittersweet. June started out with a bang! It was the first of three birthdays, which I will celebrate in Guatemala. I had a blast with my friends on Saturday, June 4^th, and then on the fifth I had a lovely relaxing day with my family.

On the 6^th of June, I left for Field-Based Training! We went a town called Salcaja in the department of Quetzaltenango, which is about 3 hours east of Sumpango. It was Riley, Richard, Sahisha, Linnea, Lucy, Elizabeth, Brady, and myself. It was really nice to be able to get to know the a group from another training town a little better. FBT was really nice, but it was not all rainbows and flowers. It was incredibly stressful. We had 4 charlas to give, in 4 days, or 1 charla (or “talk”) per day. Another thing to add to the scenario is that we only had the night before to prepare. By the time we got back from dinner each night, it was about 8PM. I had a couple late nights during that trip. I gave charlas on non-verbal communication, being assertive, self-esteem, and HIV/AIDS. Most of my charlas were with children, and one was with parents. 

The town of Cantel, Xela. Beauty. One of the many towns we saw on FBT.

Salcaja flagpole. Monument dedicated to the peace of Guatemala

My FBT group.

Salcaja has many yarn stores. I had to buy some!

It was so nice to really dig my hands into the work, and get a tiny preview of what I will be doing for the next two years. Field Based Training, overall, was a blast. Because all of us were so exhausted, we became very silly. I laughed without being able to breathe many times on this trip, and I will never forget all of the good times that we had. For instance, watching Dawsons creek, having pizza twice, having 4 burgers, amazing coffee, playing with yarn, the oreo game, playing spades for 3 hours, being able to sleep in the bathroom, speaking spanish in front of kids for the first time, playing with the kids, freezing cold showers, and the overall adventure that was Field-Based Training.

The Youth Development trainees.

The rest of the month has been normal, well as “normal” as you can be in a foreign country serving in the Peace Corps. It has included Spanish classes, youth development classes, trips to the Peace Corps office, hanging out with my family, and being clumsy. I have figured out that I am one of clumsiest people here, which is something I don’t love to be. There is a pedestrian walkway over the inter-american highway in San Lucas, and I swear I have fallen on it about 5 or 6 times. Passing over that passarella (name in Spanish), is something I dread every Tuesday when we go to San Lucas. I know I am going to fall and get another big bruise. Even if I wear my hiking shoes, which have a lot of tred, I still slip and fall.  This is who I am now. Lol.

The feast of Corpus Christi in Sumpango today.

This past week was Individual Directed Activities for most trainees. Instead of going to visit a volunteer for a couple days, I stayed in my training town, and had 3 full days of Spanish class. I was a little jealous that I was not able to go, but I am feeling so much better about my Spanish with those three days, so it was worth it.

Finally, on Thursday, I find out my site! I could not be more excited and nervous! I am so excited to find out where I will be living for the next two years, and start preparing for it! 

Weekfull of Activities

Another week gone by living in Guatemala! This week had many activities! Last Saturday we had a community interchange activity. We had a community-sharing event with the volunteers from Pastores. Pastores was a lovely little town. There were barely any hills, and it is in a valley surrounded by hills. Pastores is a lot hotter than Sumpango. We got off the camioneta, and a wave of heat just slammed us in the face. Pastores is famous in Guatemala for making boots. They can custom make leather boots for you, and its reasonably priced, by dollar standards.

Volcan de Agua in Antigua

After the tour of Pastores, we loaded the bus to Antigua. It was my first time in Antigua, and it will not be my last. When we got to Antigua we saw the beautiful view of Volcan de Agua. We found a restaurant and I had one of the most amazing burgers ever! After lunch, we went and found the rest of the Peace Corps trainees. We all had a couple drinks together. I say that like it was a very calm affair. We definitely let loose. It was so nice just to be able to hang out with my friends, without having any commitments. We laughed together, drank together, and had loads of fun! I had to leave early because we were getting a ride back from Riley’s sister. That means that I got to ride in a car, not in a camioneta! It was just as swished as a camioneta, because there were 5 of us in this two-door car. (The rest of my group is super tall, like everyone is over 5’8. The fact that all of them are super tall, made it more difficult for al of us to fit into the small car. Nevertheless, it was an amazing day!

Sumpango group at the Museo de Cafe

The rest of the week continued as normal, Spanish class on Monday and Peace Corps office on Tuesday. Wednesday was field trip day. I feel like I am back in high school, being so excited about field trips. In the training period, my schedule is planned out for me. While there is some grey area, it is mostly a regular schedule, with not many different activities. To continue, on Wednesday, we took a field trip with our Spanish teachers to Jocotenango. We toured the Museo de Café (Museum of Coffee). I learned how much really goes into making coffee. For instance, the different colors (red, then green) the beans are before they turn brown. I also never knew the long process involved in making coffee beans. In my small mind, I thought maybe they were taken from a plant, and then baked. Man was I wrong. It is a very long process, which takes months. After the tour, we were able to try a cup of coffee. I think it might have been the best cup of coffee I have ever had. I would recommend the Museo de Café to everyone! After the museo we were starving, so we took a camioneta to Antigua, which was like 8 minutes away by camioneta. The teachers picked the place, and we ate at this really cute restaurant. I had pasta with pesto. It was really good, however later I felt like crap, so I am not sure it was worth it. I never remember that all the oil in pesto makes me sick until after I eat it. On Wednesday, I also bought my first pair of earrings in Guate. They are really cute! They are a 5-cent coin Quetzal. I got them for 10Q. I was super excited! I also had a lot of fun that day.

The ruins at Tecpan

Thursday and Friday were back to the normal schedule. Saturday was a change in pace, which Saturday usually is for Peace Corps trainees. Yesterday, we got up very early and made our way to Tecpan for a Mayan ceremony. I was not prepared for yesterday. It was my first time seeing a chicken’s head cut off in front of me. I was also not prepared for the Mayan ceremony to last 2 hours. I thought it would last, at most, an hour.  I usually do not have the patience for things like that, but of course I stuck it out because I am in a new culture, and it was one woman who was giving the ceremony to the 60 of us. It was actually very impressive. We prayed to the gods, and thanked them for everything, and asked them to watch over us. The priestess did the ceremony in 2 languages: Spanish and Keckikel. After the ceremony we had some time to walk around the Mayan ruins, which I just loved.

Just some of the PCT'S at Tecpan.

On the way back to Sumpango yesterday, we drove through Chimaltenago. During our drive through Chimal, the road turned into a river. It is only the beginning of the rainy season, and I cannot imagine what it will be like in a couple months. If this is a sign of things to come, then I am a tad bit nervous.

Let me close by saying how difficult it was for me to write this post. Not emotionally difficult, but physically. Since I have been diving into Spanish, my English writing skills have completely gone out the window. I have never had to use spell check this much in a long time. When my spelling was this bad, I don’t think that I was using spell check, because I don’t think I had a computer yet. 

Let's Go On A Walk

This weekend was my first, of hopefully many, very active weekends. On Saturday, my host mom had told me about going to an animal shelter at 9AM on Sunday. So I woke up early on Sunday, and we headed for the animal shelter. I thought we were going to go meet their cousins, and then go to an animal shelter in town. Man, was I wrong!  And let me just say that I wore the wrong clothes for our activity. So we turned left from our house, which I have never done before. To go right is to go to other volunteer’s houses, the center of town, or to catch a camioneta. So we turned left, and went up a slight hill, and turned right onto a dirt path. Not too far along, we turned left onto a stone walkway, surrounded by bamboo on each side. Sounds great right? It was beautiful, but it was all-uphill. I am not sure of the distance, but it took us about 5 minutes to get to the top of the walkway. You could see all of Sumpango from the top. But hey, we weren’t even at the top yet. We climbed a couple tiny cobblestone hills, and then we reached the top. I was so out of breath it was pathetic. My host mom and dad were breathing a little heavily, but nowhere near what I was. We went down a large hill and waited for their cousins, and my fellow Volunteer, Saisha to come and meet us.

We waited a good 20 minutes, and then I saw this really tall gringo turn the corner, with some traditionally dressed women, and I knew they had finally arrived. So we set out on our adventure! We walked to a dirt road, which we took for about half a mile. We then turned right, onto a path surrounded by trees and bushes. I felt like I was really experiencing Guatemala. It was beautiful. We walked for about 5 to 10 minutes on that path, and then we reached Animal Aware.

Before we even got there, we heard loads and loads of barking. We opened the gate, and entered and heard even louder barking. We met this American woman who runs it. We saw many different fenced-in areas, with all of the dogs barking at us. We walked towards the entrance, and found more dogs fenced in. We then went inside the puppy and small dog fence. Oh My Gosh, it was amazing! They were all cuddly, sweet, and excited to see us! Next was the cat area, and we hung out with the cats! I found this one kitten that was so cute! I have decided that before the end of my training in Sumpango, I am going back to Animal Aware and getting a cat! Hasta Luego!!

My host mom and dad

The view from our walk

I tried to take photos!



Saishia and her host mom and my host mom