Planting, Settling, Growing, Elements, Time

It is a cool night, but the rain has stopped, and the city lights shine rather brightly behind the thin haze of water particles and air pollution.  My room is cosy, and while I could have gone out, I am glad for this chance just to be alone and quiet.  I feel like the week was fast-forwarded to the end, and yet when I think of the individual days, it seems like they were lived in another era.  Still, I am starting to think that three months is going to go very quickly.  I will have to be careful not to tell myself, "It's okay, I'll do it later." because later doesn't always exist!  I guess that that is something that I should practice in everyday living, not just in "everyday living" in Guatemala. 

Hmm, Guatemala.  A friend from ICA and I were walking down by Parque Central, and a marimba band was playing on a stage in celebration of ... well, something about an "arcangel", with firecrackers going off in the background, and pigeons flying off in escape.  It could be the time of year I showed up, but fiestas (parties) don't seemed to be carefully rationed out; instead, people are looking for reasons to celebrate.  It is an interesting atmosphere, one of excitement and pride, if not for country, then for city.  My teacher last week told me of a student who asked her teacher if he was a Guatemalteco.  The teacher, who was indeed Guatemalan, answered "NO!  I'm Xelan!"  I met someone the other day who said that they liked Canada, to which I responded, "muy bien (very good)" or something like that.  They corrected me and told me that I should say "gracias".  (They complemented MY country; I should take that personally!)  Isn't that an interesting perspective?

So far, I have enjoyed the opportunities ICA has given us to gain perspective.  So far, I think that some of the activities are meant to make us feel like we are contributing something to the community, but mostly I think we are meant to be learning.  (Let the activities continue!)

Monday, the school played a movie that was produced in Guatemala, called VIP, focusing on corruption and prison life (in a Guatemalan prison), but there were no subtitles and it was the 2nd movie in a series, so the 2 of us there didn't really get a whole lot from it.  It was a serious movie, but sometimes I just had to chuckle at the absurdity of our cluelessness as to what was happening. 

 (Photo by Ina)

Tuesday, 4 of us chose to have class in the afternoon so that we could go to Fuentes Georginas (a series of hot springs) to plant some trees during the morning.  The springs had been damaged by Tormenta Agatha and heavy rains had taken its toll on the roads leading up to the springs as well.  In some places, only half of the highway remained, because the other half fell off the cliff.  The springs, part of a natural reserve, were closed to the public due to reparations.  Our guide, Marcelo, led us up the mountain (although potentially a volcano?), where we ate our breakfast, and then started our task of planting the ceders in the rich, damp soil.  Enrique, the school director, talked to us about roots that could be used for dying clothes; Marcelo showed us mushrooms that we could eat.  I got very muddy, trying to secure the ceders into their new home...oops; everyone else seemed to stay somewhat "clean". It was so good though.  I wish you could have been there.  Vines were hanging down from the branches, the air lush and fresh; you could see the steam rising from the springs below us, and the fog slowly set in.  Enrique stopped us partway down the trail, and had Marcelo share with us about his

(Ina)

experiences in the civil war, and his connections with the indigineous people.  I wish I could have understood, but my wandering mind only caught bits.  It takes so much concentration to put sentences together...even so, I don't think the experience was lacking.  After our mountain excursion, we were able to have a modified hotsprings experience, as there were some baths we could use as hot tubs in some retreat houses.  The water smelled like sulfur, so it's legit, right :)  Our way home was bumpy as we experienced the "tumulos" (major speed-bumps) which I have heard so much about.  There was a little bit of mud that caused some concern, but we got through.  It was beautiful driving through the countryside.  One student made the comment that he had missed seeing Guatemala, as he had lived in the city the whole time.  The hillsides, once all forested, are now used for agriculture, which is causing major erosion problems...but it's hard to know what else people can do to eat ...    If you are in Xela, take this drive.

 

Guess who left their camera in the city?  Photo taken by Ina



Wednesday afternoon we went to the women's prison, right in town.  One visitor and her daughter(?) brought a chicken, which was a new idea to some of us. In general, I really had no idea what to expect at the prison, and I don't know how it compares with other prisions, so I don't know how much I learned, but it was good just to be there.  Edwin, one of our teachers, planned out activities, and brought cake and coca cola. All the women were so engaged and laughed so hard.  One of the activities was for the women to write out their dreams, many of which were to take care of their own children again.  One of the volunteer opporunties with the school is to work at the prison.  Our time with the women was so fun, and Edwin did a really good job of planning relevent activities, but I think that volunteering, especially with a language barrier, could be tough.  You can pray for the girl who is working there now, as well as for opportunities to connect, inspiration for activities, and encouragement for others who are thinking of spending time with the women in the prison. 

After our time at the prison, Ina (friend at ICA) and I browsed the market a bit, but they were packing things away, so we headed home, not too long after. 

I went to class at 7:30 on Thursday so that we could end class early and attend the procession for the Patron Saint of Xela at Parque Central.  Bands, batonistas, widows, altar girls, priests, a carpet in honour of the Virgen made of grain, paint, grass, and I am not sure what else, vendors selling icecream, cotton candy and wind twirly things were all present!  Even though this was a "short parade", it didn't seem to be lacking anything (especially not firecrackers...they were there in excess)!  It was so good to have my teacher there to explain things.   She is happy that the parades are now done so that the bands will stop practicing in the afternoon!





Friday night I went to a church fundraiser supper...I am not exactly sure what for.  The church is made up of young people;  the church rents a space in a basically non-functioning mall.  It was so good to be there... I spent most of my time talking in "Spanish" with a girl from the States who has been working in Guatemala for over 1.5 years.  Besides being a relaxing time emotionally, it turned out to be a good spanish practice time too, as I wasn't SO nervous speaking with another Anglophone (mistakes still happen, don't get me wrong), but at least words came out!  so good. 

And today is Saturday, and tomorrow is Sunday!  (I did find my way to church last Sunday, although not the one I was expecting to attend!  On my hour long journey to find the Lutheran church, I stumbled across a "Prince of Peace" congregation, which was good, because it didn't seem like the Lutheran church was open...)  Tomorrow the school is supposed to go to Momostenango to see how wool blankets are produced; we'll see if it is a go after all of this rain! 

I forgot your Spanish words last week.  Sorry.   Here are some for this week:

Paraguas - umbrella (undecorated)

Niebla - fog 

Agujero - hole

Pedazo - piece

La única vez - the only time

Manga - sleeve    

With love,
Erin

  



above: Road to Fuentes Georginas (Ina)
below: a random road

above: Road to Fuentes Georginas (Ina)
below: Parque Central

Poco a Poco (Little by Little)

Xela is a beautiful city.  I was overwhelmed by it at first, and I am sure that I will continue to be, at least sometimes.  The buildings, the paint jobs, the cobblestone-ish streets, the smells, the etiquette for crossing the road ... it's not what I am used to, but that's a good thing. Canada should not be my picture of what safe, secure, friendly, and good are.  It is just a country, with people living there.  Guatemala is a country too, with people living here.  You can pray that how I look at Xela will continue to change (for the better) in the next couple months (although weeks would be preferable). 

Here was my week:

Monday:
So, I was unsure of how I was going to make it even to the Parque Central (Central Park) on my own, which I heard is where most things happen.  The musical demonstration turned out to be a museum in guess where... Parque Central! One of the teachers from the school took us (the two of us that showed up) to the museum and then showed us around some of the other historical buildings around the park, including the political offices.  He gave the historical background on everything we saw, but I understood next to nothing, which is fine...He then said we could go home.  hmm.  If only I knew where that was.  I was actually glad for that as it forced me to get to know my way around a bit.  The other student pointed me in the right direction, and off I went.  I found some postcards on the way home (a bit of an adventure in itself) and did indeed make it home safely. 

Tuesday:
I went to class, which I enjoyed more than Monday's and then went home, and stayed there.  There were lots of concerts and festivities going on at the Parque Central, but most were at night (the sun sets around 6pm), and neither my family nor the students I asked were going, so I didn't go either...Honestly, I was glad that I was "advised" not to leave the house.  Something that seems like an adventure with too people is just kind of scary with one.   (I did get to watch fireworks from the roof/terrace outside my bedroom...but went to bed around 10...Poor Sonia, however, didn't like the fireworks/firecrackers at 2 in the morning!

Wednesday:
No class for 'Independence Day'!  Since I slept, read, and did Sudoku all Tuesday evening, I thought that I should get out of the house.  My teacher had told me about a parade going on in town, and I had heard the marching bands practicing all week, so with directions from my host mom, Sonia, and the help of two different sets of people on the street, I found my way to the masses of people waiting for the 8:30 show to begin.  I found my spot, up against a lampost, so that I wouldn't block anyone's view.  I had a great view, grace to how short everyone else was.  The parade started; more people came; more people came; more people came; one left; more people came.  My spot by the lampost turned out to be not so "out of the way" as people squeezed in front of me, behind me, and beside me.  It was quite humorous for us who had been there since 8:30 to watch people squeeze their way past us, assuring us that they could indeed make it through, only to retreat 30 seconds later.  The parade (desfile) was definitely a good exercise for getting over space issues...and I talked a bit (a very little bit, but still talking) with a couple people who wondered what a blue-eyed girl was doing there.  All in all, a good experience, fire-crackers and all.  I stayed 3 hours, but a woman told me that the parade was scheduled to go for another 2 hours, I decided to call it quits. I went to Parque Central for a bit, but other than that, didn't do much else. 

Thursday
I liked classes more than Tuesday, and my teacher realized that I had some previous knowledge of grammar, at which point he started to use more complex verb tenses with me, not that I could understand or respond, but I felt stretched.  So good!  (I sound like a nerd.)  At 4 on Thursday there was a talk on Las Fincas de cafe...Coffee farms.  (Before the lecture, Enrique (presenter and school director asked me how my spanish was.  I said "malo" and he corrected me "poco a poco", which is a good reminder and attitude!)  With hand gestures and drawings, I understood quite a bit (but definitely not all!).  We were supposed to go to visit a Finca tomorrow, but I was the only one signed up, so it was cancelled.  Language school enrollement is way down, they think because of the mudslides.  It is true that there were people that died from the slides (and that is NO small thing), and parts of the road were reduced to one lane where mud still covered the road, but still, from what locals say, it isn't as bad as the press makes it out to be (which makes Guatemala a less appealing place to visit.)  My host at the bed and breakfast is thinking about looking for other work; host families aren't receiving students; the school isn't receiving tuition (which also finances NGO projects)...etc.  It's just too bad that there is such fear where there doesn't really need to be, and that the people of Guatemala, who are feeling the effects, are voiceless in sharing that.

Friday
Good class!  (Next week is a new teacher, so we'll see how the switchover goes.)  I had asked Carlos (my teacher) about a good price for watches and how to get to La Feria (the week long fair to celebrate Independence Day).  He was going to take me to the market to buy a watch in the second half of class, but that would mean that I wouldn't get to learn about prepositions.  The market was probably more important, but I opted for prepositions since I wouldn't have any more classes with him and I knew that that was something I wish I knew in French.  (Judgement?)  Carlos did show me on a map where I could find name-brand watches, no-name watches, and a Mennonite bakery.  I found ALL 3 on my own in the market that afternoon, although it took a while longer than it would have with Carlos ... the streets aren't marked that clearly!  At the market, women in woven clothes sit on the curbs selling all types of fruits and vegetables, while pedestrians and cars share the middle of the road.  Shops and tables sell brightly coloured bowls and basically everything else you can imagine (including scarves!).  It made me wish that I could set up a home here.  So beautiful.  Still, I felt somewhat awkward and just unsure of what to do.   It isn't that the market was scary.  Really, people were quite friendly, and were less "pushy" than I remember markets being...is that rude to say?  Like I told a friend, even one of the men holding a large gun (It seems that they guard banks and electronic stores etc.) was joking around with a young boy. But after being directed to the "watch" section by a young boy selling electronics, and buying one, I made my way home without much other exploring.   I hope that I will be less aprehensive in time, and more open to just exploring and enjoying.  Small steps though, right? 

Saturday:
Today I feel like I actually did something!  Okay, well, I didn't do anything this morning, but this afternoon, I made my way back to the Mercado (Market) Democracia and found the bus (again with lots of help from Xela citizens) to the Feria.   I wandered and wandered.  At first I was just looking, with the idea that I didn't really want to buy anything...  I wandered through the mazes of stalls, never knowing where I was, but always finding my way back to the main street.  Finally, I realized that I was always going to feel like an outsider if I didn't make an effort to not be.  I mandated myself to buy something.  It didn't matter what...and then it became more fun.  I stayed until around 5, and then caught the bus home...which ended up at a different street, but I found my way back to the mercado and then home :)

Tomorrow I will find my way to church, I hope!  Carlos gave me directions for there as well.  I am excited that I have something planned for tomorrow as it is so easy just to sit in my room, out of the way.  Confession: I have been going to bed around 9:30 because I really have nothing else to do.

Eek. I ended up writing a lot, and I won't do so every week (I don't think), but everything seems like such a new, important stepping stone to being at home here...steps to not spending EVERY afternoon in my room being "unsure" and doing sukokus (which, by the way, I had never tried before this trip)...

that or I'm just wordy :)

- I left for la cena (supper), and am now back.

There is a family reunion downstairs.  Sonia has a wonderful family!  I think that they let me eat first so that they could fit around the table, so I ate and left, but they were so easy to talk to.  You know chaotic large families, where the kids are running, the parents calmly scold them for running in the kitchen because they could hurt themselves on the counter, and then the parents sit back down and ask about your life in Canada, and give you a hug.  Thank you Jesus for gifts like this! 

oh, and the fireworks are going again outside!  Okay, I am definitely almost done...I'll just show you some pictures of where I live :)

This is the roof/terrace.  My door and window are directly in the middle.  The bathroom is the room behind the ladder.

I love my door and window!

The red one is my house.  The yellow one with the flag is the school.  Close :)

This is one of the views from the roof. 

Another view from the roof ... to the left is Volcano Santa Maria.

View from roof #3...a beer factory, but mountains and volcanos more than make up for this one side!

La feria (fair)

The parade

The vegetable section of the market + car, which I guess is part of what is in the market...

Beautiful Xela!

I´m Here!

So I made it safely ~ leaving Edmonton International at 12:30 on September 10 and ultimately arriving in Xela at 1:00 pm September 12th.  YES!

In Guatemala City (September 11), I stayed with Gilda and her two daughters at their Bed and Breakfast.  It must have been about 2:00 when I arrived at their place and slept until 6 and then off and on again until 10, at which time I went to bed and slept until 5:15.  I suppose that this must not be very interesting, but I think my mother will be pleased that I took so many naps!  I also slept on and off on the bus, when I arrived at my host family´s house in Xela, and then again from 9:00 to 6:45. 

Today was my first day of classes, and I feel like sleeping again!  I think that exhaustion of the brain is stronger than I give it credit!  I understand some, but people speak so quickly, some with accents, that mostly it sounds like jibberish. I hope that will change!  I had classes from 8:00 to 1:00 (with a break at 10:30, at which time I tried to figure out how to use the computer´s keyboard.  I still haven´t found the dash.)  My classes are one on one.  My maestro for this week is Carlos...we had broken conversations about alcohisim, coffee plantations and exploitation of workers, crops and fruit.  It sounds more impressive than it was.  I feel so incompetent, and and unsure that I will learn as much as I want to, but at the same time, was encouraged by the sentences that I could understand.  Right now, 20 minutes before our afternoon activity (watching some sort of musical demonstration), I am quietly overwhelmed.  I am not scared, I am sure that customs and familiarity will come in time, but I am simply uncertain of when.  I wish that I had someone to explore the city with, to figure out laundry, and to buy a electrical converter ... it would be nice...but I am not worried, just uncertain.  I´ll let you know when I figure some of it out...they are victory of sorts! 
(Today I figured out how to open the front door, and how to find the @ sign on the computer.  Good things :)

My host family lives three doors down from the school (thank you, Jesus!).  We had beans and eggs for supper last night...pancakes this morning...and rice and chicken for lunch - (hey!  dash!)  good food!  (I expressed concerns to some of you that we would be eating pancakes and pasta all the time...not so far!)
Oh, and the little girl in my house, Luisa, was playing with my hair and got a comb dreadfully stuck my  first day!  Her mother was NOT impressed.  oops!  I honestly thought we might have to cut it out, but her madre, Marla, got it out.  Good times. 

Words I learned today:

arroz - rice
subir - to ascend (a volcano for instance)
trigo - wheat
finca - farm
ambos - both

Aren´t you glad that you know that as well now!

Anyway.  I will keep you posted.  Thank you for your emails, prayers, and letters.  I appreciate it so much!  Keep letting me know what you are up to! 

Fast Paced Heart

In two days, my flight leaves, and if everything goes as planned, I will be on it.

These days, when I talk about going, my heart starts to beat faster and faster.  I actually breathe harder, and my mind starts to race.  I only have one dose of typhoid medication left, which means I really must be close!  Really, three-four months is not that long, and although I am trying not place a label of "life-changing" on this experience, I still sometimes think of it that way.

I received my "Guatemala Rough Guides" tour book in the mail yesterday.  While flipping through the Quetzaltenango section of the book at lunch today, my dad noticed that ICA (my school) was not listed on the recommended language schools page; in fact, it wasn't listed anywhere.  Taking a break from my unfocused attempts to clean my room, I have spent the past couple hours searching the internet for reviews on schools in Xela.  While most schools received a mixture of good and not so good, some schools did stand out, and I wonder why I didn't choose one of them.

I know in my head that worrying will not help, and I may very well have been saying the same thing about another school, had I chosen it.  Still, I am craving peace and security, and I don't feel like I have it.

If you could pray that I accept things as they come, that God will give me peace, and that if problems arise, that He will provide me with other options or ways of changing my situation (preferably that Augustana agrees with!).

Thank you for praying (and for marvelous good-bye hang-out times and suppers!)

Please keep me posted on how you all are doing!