A Week on Paradise Island

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As I sit on our patio overlooking the Caribbean Sea, listening to the waves lapping in the distance, I watch the dolphins as they put on a show for the cheering crowd. Seven girls singing and playing a game, simply enjoying life, one sleeping, and the guys relaxing. I sit here and attempt to gather all of the emotions and overwhelming feelings that this place brings me. There is some sort of connection between me and the water. Keeping this all inside is a challenge that waits for a release. I want so much to share this incredible experience with all those I love back home, but since I can only share it through words, I am going to live it and take the most of it that I can.

So often I feel that there are too many things that I want to do in the limited amount of time that I have. Having the entire week free of other commitments has helped me to focus on what really matters, without the outside distractions and stresses. Opening up so many emotions and feelings that never get the chance to surface when I am caught up in the daily business that life brings me. I really like taking the time to think, feel, and just be. I am allowed to reflect on my life and all of the many blessings I have. If there was one thing left in my life that I would do, at this point I am not sure what that would be. I so badly want to make connections and friendships wherever I go, in whatever I do. I believe that relationships are the most important part of life; they are the foundation of all necessities, joy, and pure survival.

Now that I’ve talked about where this trip has brought my emotional state, I’ll tell about the fun times we had here on the island. I’ll start at the beginning. Getting here was a long and very warm bus ride. We rented a private bus and it took about 14 hours to get to La Ceiba, Honduras. We left Xela at 2 am hoping to make it to La Ceiba in time for the last fairy at 4:30, but unfortunately we didn’t make it in time. So, we stopped by the airport and it must have been meant to be because there was a group of 4 families travelling together who were looking for more people so that they could make a flight to the island. It was a little more spendy than taking the fairy, but this way we didn’t have to find another place to stay for the night. So we went ahead and bought our tickets then had to wait about 1 ½ hours for our flight to leave. We rode in a jet that was from WWII. It was pretty exciting. We even got to go into the cockpit, talk to the pilot, and take pictures up there while we were on our 20 minute trip to Roaton!

Getting to our beach house once we got to the island was pretty uneventful. We were so happy to be here, everyone was exhausted, and our place was gorgeous! We had a huge open-air patio overlooking our private beach, a spacious living area, nice kitchen, and a few bedrooms. We lived surprisingly well with 14 people in a 6 person house – but we are used to it, as college students. We are placed in a perfect part of the bay, where we can sit on our patio and watch the daily dolphin shows right across from us at Anthony’s Key Resort. There was a nice private dock for our enjoyment as well, which was a perfect place to watch the sunset.

Our food for the week consisted of cheap, college kid food. Lots of peanut butter, pasta, tuna, and that sort. But I’m not going to complain, being surrounded by this gorgeous atmosphere, I could care less what I eat for dinner. The first night we did splurge, and order in a pizza from a nearby pizza place – we were just lucky to find any place that was open at 10 pm at night! We did treat ourselves to a nice dinner out in West End on the last night. I was on a deck above the water at a place called the Lighthouse, enjoying some ceviche (a really good seafood dish).

The first day there we went for a nice boat ride and went snorkeling at a few different places. Then we checked out West Bay, which is the really beautiful public beach where everyone hangs out. There are so many families and kids here! Roaton is more of a family vacation spot, almost a developing Cancun before it became everyone’s spring break spot. The racial mixture of people here is really neat to see, much different the life in Guatemala.

A few nights we went out to West End, which is where the night life is at. There a street along the water that has a bunch of restaurants and open-air bars, even a few floating bars! Every night there is live music somewhere. The rest of our time there was spent relaxing on the beach, swimming, reading, playing guitar, loving life. I went for a few nice runs on the beach and some water aerobics. We also had a campfire on the beach, of course with some live music on the guitars.

The trip home was a very long one. The little airport in Roaton was packed with people waiting to get on planes. We arrived at 6:30 am for our 8 am flight and didn’t end up leaving until 10:30 for our 20 minute flight. We had to split up in two airplanes since each one only holds 9 passengers. It was a gorgeous flight, but a little nerve-wracking since the Low Fuel light was flashing before we even took off. But we made it there safe and sound! Then on the road again for our 14 plus our journey. The highlight was at exactly midnight the whole van sang happy birthday to me – great start to a great day. When we finally arrived to Xela at 2:30 my bed felt so wonderful – though it was a bit strange to be sleeping by myself again since for the past week I shared a queen bed with two other girls (haha, that’s what we get for cramming so many people in one place!).

My 21^st birthday in Xela was a good day. Classes all day, with some yummy strawberry cake from Xelapan during break, a free amaretto coffee, and lots of feliz cumpleaños wishes. After dinner most of our group went out to one of our favorite hangouts, Smoothies Rum, where we sat on the floor in our favorite living-room style Buddah room, smoked some hookah, got some drinks, talked, and the best part – I got a free flaming tequila shot that I drank out of a straw! It was a good time, perfect because everyone was so tired from the long trip, and we had a great time reminiscing about all of our funny stories and adventures over the past week.

And now to continue with the business of classes and job searching, in hopes that I can land something in the job field very soon so I can stop thinking about that for now. Especially now, I only want to concentrate on enjoying my last month here because in less than 4 weeks I will be in the States!

No Leaving it Behind

I have come to the expected moments that everyone seems to experience while abroad. I have begun to panic just a little, for the fact that I only have just over a month left here and I feel like there is so much left still to experience and accomplish. I want to keep learning and using Spanish, I want to know more of Guatemala and see all there is to see, I want to continue learning as much about myself as I do every day here, I want to strengthen and build my friendships that I have made here. Then I step back and realize that everything I have had the opportunity to learn and in all of the ways I have grown, I will take this with me, there is no way to leave it behind.

As I sit in Café Baviera, my new favorite (with fantastic music), I simply want to take in all of the joys in life. It has so much to give and yet I too often find myself soaked up in everything I want to take that I cannot find. Changing my lifestyle and surroundings here in Guatemala has definitely opened up my eyes to a greater world need – structural, economical, social, environmental, and the list continues. I may have thought I was not immune to the suffering and hardships of other people, which I don’t believe I ever was, but being surrounded by it for longer than just a short time, constantly being approached with empty hats asking for money, or having adorable little girls and boys come up to me on the streets trying to sell bracelets and candy, really touches my heart. The feeling of helplessness overwhelms me, and the best I can do for them at that moment is look into their eyes and give them a genuinely loving look from inside.

Continuing with our group excursions, we travelled to El Salvador for the long weekend of March 10-14th. The first night on our way there we visited Rafael Landivar University in Guatemala City. They put on a program for us where we learned about the Mayan calendar cycle and social practices in everyday life; saw a short drama performed by a few students, and Rafael Rosales (director of Las Cruces film about the internal conflict in Guatemala) presented a clip of his film. We then ate dinner at Frida’s, a nice Mexican restaurant.

The next morning we met with the Human Rights office of the Archbishop of Guatemala. We then went into the garage where Monseñor Gerardi was assassinated. Then we were off for our 6 hour trip to San Salvador, El Salvador. Once there we met with a professor of Pastoral Theology from the Jesuit University of Central America (UCA) about the pastoral reality of the preferential option for the poor today in El Salvador. For dinner we went up where there was a gorgeous lookout of the city, and feasted on some traditional El Salvadorian food of papoosas. Basically the best way to describe these would be like a pancake quesadilla with your choice of meat, beans, and cheese inside. Then back to our “hotel” for the night. I stayed in a room with 6 other girls, and had I known what it felt like to live in an orphanage, I’m pretty sure this would have felt the same. It was pretty funny, and the 7 of us couldn’t stop singing Annie songs the whole time we were there.

Friday, March 12th was the 33rd anniversary celebration of the martyrdom of Fr. Rutilio Grande and his companions. We participated in the pilgrimage to the place of “Las Tres Cruces,” where there was an Ecumenical Prayer said and we were part of the big procession. We then finished off the pilgrimage to Plaza Rutilio Grande in El Paisnal, where they had Mass and an offering of flowers. The weather is very warm and dry in El Salvador, as well as the sun being very intense. Needless to say, after a 1 ½ hour walk in the direct sunlight, we were hot and tired. The rest of the afternoon after we returned to San Salvador, we went to the mall to cool off and relax for a while (and of course get some ice cream). For dinner I tried calamari – very tasty, and a choco-banana shake, which I am going to be making a lot of when I return home.

Saturday we visited Divina Providencia, the site of Archbishop Romero’s murder. We toured the chapel where Romero was killed and toured the house he lived in. It was a moving experience, after having learned about all of Romero’s work for the poor of El Salvador, then imagining his murder in the church during mass. Lunch was at a place called Cooperative El Jicaro, a place of local development and eco-development and tourism. We dined on fish and shrimp. The next day we had a long, 10 hour bus-ride back to Xela.

Last week wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary for us, though St. Patrick’s Day was a good time. We went to a nearby bar/lounge where they served green beer and green jello-shots. There were a lot of “gringos” there, especially since Guatemalans really don’t celebrate St. Patty’s Day – when I ask them about it, most of them didn’t know it existed or had only heard about it.

This past Friday some of our group travelled to the highlands about an hour outside of Xela just outside of the village of Totonicapán to a nature preserve/community owned forest called Aprisca. It is an eco-tourism draw, and one of the few places in Guatemala where kids can come learn about the forest and nature. Molly, an alum of St. Ben’s is working there as part of the Peace Corp. I felt right at home there, like I stepped into the north woods of Minnesota – the fresh smell of pine trees brought me right back home. We also learned about herbs that are grown there and Mayan remedies. There were 8 of us that spent the night (there are a few cabins there). It was a really great, relaxing weekend. We had the chance to play some fun “camp games” like human knot, ninjas, and relay races. Of course we had a campfire and sing-along that night, and roasted some pink, strawberry-flavored bunny marshmallows (otherwise known as Angelitos here).

The morning brought another walk through the woods with some binoculars and a bird-book. Then a trip to the market in Totonicapán. Despite the number of times I have visited them, I remain overwhelmed at the markets here. Imagine a truck-full of plantains, piles upon piles of fresh fruits and vegetables (all sold for a very minimal price), fresh fish, seafood, and meats hanging for display – which leaves a disturbing smell in the air and me without an appetite for a while, barrels of dried beans and rice, and more. Then once we made our way inside, this is where they sell the brightly – colored indigenous clothing, shoes, pottery, and much more.

On Saturday we are off to the island of Roaton in Honduras for Holy Week! Bliss. Hopefully all goes well!!

A Kitten and Some Chicks on a Chicken Bus

So, once again procrastinating on my homework to write my blog – works for me! I have noticed that I have not been nearly as good at keeping up with my daily journaling and more frequent blogs, but ‘tis life. A girl gets busy sometimes, especially in another country this will happen. Everything has been going well here in Xela. Everyone in our group went through the seasonal cold, since this is the time of a slight climate change here. My Spanish class was interesting for the few days that I didn’t have a voice, but I made it through and am now feeling happy and healthy again.
I will start with a week and a half ago on Wednesday, was a celebration in Central Park for the Superchivos soccer team of Xela. There was a concert, and lots of people (many venders of course as well). My host dad was very excited to take us all (he is an avid Superchivos fan). So we all took the short walk to the square around 8:30 and hung out for about an hour. It was a great “family outing,” I don’t get to see my host dad very much so when I do get to spend time with him it’s really great. He is really fun to talk to, and we have some great conversations. There was also a live salsa band playing at La Parranda from the Buena Vista social club (a group started a while back in Cuba) – so of course, despite how tired I was, I could not pass up a Wednesday night of dancing. The rest of the week and into the weekend was pretty routine. Out dancing on Friday after the party at the school, and out to the café to do some homework on Saturday. Saturday night we had a fun fiesta at John and Dennis’s apartment to watch the Olympics and cook some Guatemalan food! We made enchiladas, guacamole, beans, salsa, tostadas, carrot-lime salad, platanos, and horchata. Everyone dressed up as Olympian participants or fans, it was a great time, especially since I had not been able to watch any Olympics up to this point (my family doesn’t have the channel they showed on), which was driving me crazy! The best part of the night, though, was getting to pick up Monica from the bus station in Xela! She came to visit Rachel and I for the week.
Obviously last week was craziness, since we had all of our classes and a guest here to entertain. It was such a blast though! We took her out every night to get a taste of the city. A different café or bar each night, with people from our group and some of our friends from Celas. We even made an 11 O’ Clock McDonald’s run – the ice cream there tastes different than in the states, and so good.
A trip to the beach is always a good time, so a few of us decided to go this past weekend. We only went for one night because Monica’s flight left on Sunday. Short but intense trip. So we set out on Friday morning at 6:30 and headed to the terminal where we would board our first chicken bus of the day. Chicken busses are their main form of local transportation here in Guate, they can be described as old school busses, festively decorated with many colors on the outside, and the inside leaves some to be desired, and I’m pretty sure the name comes from their method of seeing just how full they can cram these things. 3, sometimes 4 to a seat on some of them. So we had to take a total of 3 buses to get to our destination of Monterrico. Expecting it to take us about 5 or 6 hours, we didn’t arrive to our destination until after a good 8 hours. We were so exhausted, hot and sticky by the time we got there. Drastic weather change to humid and very warm – which I didn’t mind at all, once we were finally on the beach.
We found a nice hotel to stay at for an equivalent of about $10/person/night – mosquito net included! As soon as we were able we hit the beach to relax and enjoy the water, which had a very strong current so all of us took our turns wiping out while wading. It was such a sense of freedom though, to finally be there on the beach, taking in the vastness of it all. Monterrico is a black sand beach on the Pacific Ocean. The black sand was fun! We watched the gorgeous sunset. Our dinner consisted of PBJ sandwiches, fruit, and some vegetables that we had brought with us from the market the day before. Living classy and cheap is what we do. But it was great! I hadn’t had a PBJ sandwich since I left the states! That night we lay on the beach for a few hours, watching the shining bright stars and listening to the waves crash on the shore - I fell asleep to this for a while – it was perfect.
Facing the early morning the next day, we met a tour guide for a boat ride down the canal at 5:30. We saw lots of wildlife, mostly different kinds of birds, many interesting plants and trees, and best of all the sunrise. It was very junglesque. So we got back and after our breakfast of PBJ we were on the beach before 8:30, talk about good time management! We were able to enjoy the beach for a while that morning until we had to leave at 11am. We wanted to make sure to get back in time before the buses stopped running, since they don’t leave after dark and with our luck, it would have been dark had we not left that early. We ended up with a record time of 5 ½ hours for the trip back – wohoo!
We met some interesting people along our way, as one usually does when travelling; it’s always fun to make new friends. We also had the privilege of riding one chicken bus with baby chicks – Mom, I thought you would like this – they were tweeting the entire way. Another bus we rode with a kitten that was wrapped in a sack, it started to meow, then must have went back to sleep (I hope…). On one bus ride a man (must have been a preacher) stood up and gave us a sermon, making us all feel guilty about spending our money on going to the beach instead of giving it away to the poor people. Strong words he had to say…
Seeing the families, sometimes all in one seat, asleep, was so sweet. Every time we stopped our bus would be bombarded by venders that came onto the bus to sell us anything from fruit, candy, ice-cream, fried platanos, sandwiches, etc. They literally line up outside the bus when it stops, and some hop on, sell their stuff, and then get off at the next stop. I had a hard time watching people through their litter out the window at least 4 times – I guess it’s a culture thing, but it’s still made me cringe to witness it so many times in one day. I was really touched though, one of the buses all of us were standing for a portion of the ride, then one by one, men sitting in the aisle seats offered their seats to us. A simple act of kindness that means so much.
So that was the outline of our crazy adventures last weekend. Times like those that are worth the experience. For time’s sake I didn’t include all of the funny stories, but all eight of us who went definitely have some good times to look back on, and plenty of things to laugh about.

Chiapas and Everyday Life

Our journey to Mexico was an eventful one. Long day of traveling, total of about 8 hours on the vans, but the time it actually took us to get there was much longer… Crossing the border was pretty painless, but a few hours into Mexico, we were stopped at a checkpoint and told that our vans could not continue any further without the necessary vehicle permits. Apparently they were supposed to register the vehicles. All of us could continue the hour and a-half to San Cristobal, but our two vans could not. Hmmm… So out we climbed, with only our necessary personal belongings, and chilled at this little station for about an hour. Nice break from the bus, we played hacky sack, and some other games to pass the time – until another van that our guide contacted came to pick us up. We squished into this, with people sharing seats and sitting on the floor, but we finally made it!

We stayed at Mancion del Valle in San Cristobal in Chiapas, Mexico. They even served us cocktails when we got there! We went to a nice restaurant for dinner, where we had cocktails with eggnog, cream of corn soup, tortillas with lots of fixings and a huge plate of meat assortment that we shared at our table and some type of strange looking dessert. After that I felt like I shouldn’t eat for the next week!

Our first full day in Mexico we visited Las Abejas in Acteal Mexico. Acteal is a little pueblo in the highlands of Mexico. Las Abejas was formed as a non-violence group and their goal was to keep peace, especially between the Zapatistas and the Pristas (para-military group). On December 22, 1997 a massacre occurred at this site that we visited. A total of 45 people, including many women and children were killed. One of the men giving us the tour and history was a survivor of this massacre. The people in this area speak the Mayan language of Titzil. In small villages such as these it is common to find a few people that are able to speak Spanish, but a majority of them only know their indigenous language. They had a small store where they were selling home-made gifts and I bought a few of these to help support their growth, this isn’t exactly a tourist attraction but there is so much to learn there – and they are so willing to share. They hold so much strength in their approach to peace, even after the devastating massacre they still fight for peacekeeping and non-violence.

They took us down to the tombs of those killed in the massacre, and one of the men sang a prayer in Titzil, it was a very powerful experience. After this a few women served us a very typical lunch of tortillas, beans, pasta noodles, picante sauce, and coffee. We then took a two-hour drive to Zapatista territory. This was a very unique experience – kind of felt like I was in the movies. All of the Zapatista leaders wear black face masks, only showing their eyes. The Zapatistas are an army revolutionary group based in Chiapas, and have been in a declared war “against the Mexican State,” which has mostly been nonviolent and in acts of defense against the paramilitary and invasions in their territory. Their social base is mostly rural indigenous, with some urban and international supporters. We were then brought to another building and were able to listen to a few of them speak about the organization, goals, and functions. Their ideals align with anti-globalization, anti-neoliberal social movement, and work for indigenous control over land and local resources.

When we were entering we had to give them our passports, and they questioned our director and one of our teachers, seeming suspicious of us, it was intense. After they warmed up to us, we were able to ask a lot of questions and learn a great deal from them. They even let us take a picture with them! It seemed that they were very appreciative of our interest and desire to learn and tell others that they are there and what they are about. Their desire is that they wish not to be forgotten – they are still there and they are fighting.

After we returned to San Cristobal, we had a nice relaxing night. At a place called Vino de Boca I tried hot wine or “vino caliente” for the first time! It was very interesting – a little too sweet for me though.

The next day was long and full of meetings with different organizations. First, I started it out right by eating breakfast on the terrace of our hotel. A few friends and I bought some cereal, milk and fruit and lived life the easy way. It was a great view of the city! First we visited Si Paz, a permanent observation program in Mexico founded in 1995, and since then has helped in preventing sociopolitical violence in Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Guerrero with a non-violent philosophy that stresses not only non-violence, but positive peace. It is a really great organization and a friend that I met at Celas is going to have an internship with them in about a month. Check out their website at www.sipaz.org.

We then went to CORECO, a civil society organization that also works to resolve conflict and help with negotiations in the indigenous communities of Chiapas. After this a friend and I enjoyed the afternoon by going to a café and taking in the city. Later in the evening we met with Derechos Humanos, helping provide public security and safety for the citizens of Mexico. Getting into our vans once again, we went up into the hills to a little pueblo, Chamula, and had the opportunity to participate in a ritual in the church of San Juan. Here the form of Catholicism is a blend of Mayan customs and Spanish Catholic traditions. There are no pews in the church; the floors are covered in pine boughs. Curanderos (medicine men) diagnose medical or psychological afflictions and prescribe remedies of candles, flower petals, feathers, or sometimes a chicken. Chamula families, with their sacrifices, kneel on the floor, with melted wax stick candles onto the floor, drink cups of Posh (sugar-cane based liquor), Pepsi/Coke, or some other sweet drink, and chant prayers in their archaic dialect of Tzotzil.

When we entered I was surprised to see so many candles on the floor, and it was covered with hay-like looking pine boughs! Such a neat experience! None of us really know what was going on the entire time, but we just did whatever the priest we were with told us to do. We were able to see a chicken that was about to be sacrificed. Apparently this church is a big tourist attraction because of this strong tradition, but tourists are only allowed to view from the back of the church – we went right up to altar and partook in the ceremony, each person lighting a candle and sharing the sweet juice drink while saying prayers for our intentions.

The last day we took a boat ride through a canyon down the Grijalva River. I could imagine that I was in the Lord of the Rings – so incredible and overwhelmingly beautiful! I felt like I was dreaming the entire time. We even got to see a crocodile! This lasted about 2 ½ hours. When we returned to San Cristobal we all hit up the market, which is always an adventure.

Most of the nights we checked out the nightlife in San Cristobal, which was livelier than Xela. The city reminded me a little of Europe, with its architecture and streets. A very tourist – friendly city. That explains why there were many nice restaurants, bars and discothèques.

Getting home was not nearly as eventful. Two of our Spanish teachers from Celas came along with us, which was very fun. We talked with them in Spanish during the rides so that helped pass time more quickly.

So I got to swing dance the other night! I have been dancing so much salsa and meringue that I didn’t realize how much I miss swing, until we were at La Rumba (a discotheque in Xela) a song came on, and then along comes John “Andrea!” Bailamos! Very fulfilling night I would say. That is, after we had a fiesta at Celas with some good old karaoke!

Last week to celebrate Abby’s acceptance into the India study abroad program for next year, we all went out to an Indian restaurant called Sabor de India. Wow, talk about a LOT of food! It was all delicious. I tried a drink called a Lassi. To describe it I would say it’s a combination between a smoothie and the flavor of a particular kind of tea. Very tasty!

This entire week was a big “Carnival” celebration for the preparation for lent. It’s a pretty big deal here. When people go out at night to the Carnival, they get eggs with confetti smashed on their heads, and then some flour to top that off! I was tempted to check this out, but I have been a little sick this past week, so my logical thinking told me not to. A few girls and I did check out the Carnival during the day, which was just down a few blocks from Celas. Here is basically what it is: a fair in the middle of the streets, with really old rides and TONS of food. It was an experience. There was a church – type setup also, where they had incense and statues and such. One of those experiences that I can explain, but it’s so much better to simply experience it.

This past week has been pretty crazy for all of us here in Guate. We started our classes at Rafael Landivar University. We have classes there in the mornings, then Spanish classes in the afternoons at Celas. I am taking two classes at the University: Mayan Societies and Liberation Ethics, then taking 20 hours of Spanish per week. I began volunteering at a daycare called Centro Infantil a few blocks away from my house. I help out there for about 5 hours every Wednesday in the morning. The kids are absolutely adorable! They simply love our presence there (I volunteer with two other girls from our group). We don’t really have any “specific tasks,” but we have fun playing with the kids, helping with breakfast and snack, assisting the kids with whatever else they may need help with, and simply being there to show them love and care.

Life in the Ixil Triangle

Yay for Ginger tea at the Blue Angel! Oh the love of spending the afternoon at a coffee-shop, talking with the girl friends, and studying. A few afternoons of my week last week consisted of this. These last few weeks have been a little more laid back. I decided that I need to take some time to be with my host family, and explore this beautiful city that I live in. Exploring the city street markets is an adventure in itself! I am immediately bombarded with eight different smells that I am hardly able to identify, and so many stores that sell some funky, random things – like an entire store selling anything and everything you could ever want that is made out of plastic. Lots of second-hand clothing stores, and tons of shoes! I do love the fact that I bought 20 tangerines for 5 Quetzals (which is about 65 cents!). I don’t feel too guilty about my never-ending fruit cravings when I can buy it on the streets for that cost!

I have been continuing with regularity my hobbies of yoga and going out to dance. I go to yoga once or twice a day (yes, I am addicted) and we go out dancing usually about twice a week. I am going to start taking salsa lessons next week – very excited for that. Also continuing to play my guitar frequently, as well as bringing it with on all of our excursions.

Friday we left for our excursion to the Guatemalan highlands and ended our destination in Nebaj, which is the Southwest corner of the Ixil Triangle. The van-ride through the mountains lasted about 6 hours, and I’m just going to say that I am surprised our 20-passenger van survived this ride (although there was one point when we had to stop to pick up our fender which fell off). There were a few times we scraped the bottom, I’m surprised they don’t make the wheels bigger on those things. It was so curvy, hilly, and steep! We had to stop a few times to let the breaks cool down. The view was never-failingly gorgeous though!

After checking into our hotel we had a really nice lunch on the balcony of a nearby restaurant. Overlooking the little city of Nebaj, it was hard to believe that only 30 years ago this city was massacred, houses and fields were burned, people were killed, and so much heartache swept through the entire area of the Ixil Triangle, which consists of the three cities of Nebaj, Chajul, and Cotzal. This is one of the most poor and isolated parts of Guatemala. The indigenous villages in this area suffered horrible massacres during Guatemala’s 36-year long civil war, and lived in extreme poverty with no electricity, access to water, and lacked basic services like schools and healthcare. In the late 1970’s and 1980’s this area was enveloped in much violence. The government believed this to be the main operating point of the Guerilla Army of the Poor (EGP). Because of this the government armies wiped out entire villages and populations in an attempt to end the EGP. Families were forced to move into the mountains in an attempt to hide. Since this time many villagers have returned to the villages to rebuild their homes and villages.

A majority of the people of this area wear traditional indigenous clothing. Their textiles are so intricate and beautiful. Greens, reds, yellows, and oranges are worn with red cortes (skirts). Most women wear a traje, a headcloth made of hand-woven fabric decorated with tassels that they pile above their heads. Hardly any men wear traditional clothing, they usually buy secondhand American clothing. Many of the people here speak the Mayan language of Ixil, which is a very neat language to listen to! So many different sounds they put together, and they speak with a specific rhythm that seems to sound like they are reciting a poem.

We met with a group called REMHI (Recuperación de Memoria Histórica). This is a collective movement that works to rebuild and gather and present the effects of violence in different afflicted areas of the world. They gather the thoughts of the victims and survivors of violence and offer proposals and guidance and work toward social reconstruction. This particular group focuses on the area of the Ixil Triangle, and has been developing many very beneficial programs, such as healthcare, pharmacies, education programs, ect. After this we walked up to an altar on a hill to see a Mayan New Year ceremony. This was a very unique experience. After the ceremony they served us bread and hot chocolate (these two things are very common in Guatemala I have realized).

Sunday we met with the Movimiento Desarraigados (Movement of People Uprooted by the War). A few men shared their personal stories of their experiences, one as a guerilla, and the other as a Church board member. As I explained earlier, the lives of these families were so difficult. During this war so many families were forced into hiding in the mountains without food, heat, or other necessities. The thing that frustrates them the most they told us is that there is no justice. No one is being punished for the extreme violence that was committed against them. Also the fact that the United States Government still is not recognizing the wrong-doing of the Guatemalan government, ant the help that the US had provided.

We then left for a 2 hour hike to Acul (Finca San Antonio), which was a farm owned and run by Italians with a Swiss cheese factory. We ate lunch there of tortillas with melted Swiss cheese, salsa, and spaghetti. We then took a tour of the farm.

Monday was another early morning and long day. We took the van to a little dark room in the neighboring town of Chajul to meet with some community members who were victims of the Guerra. Here in this room with no light, women told personal testimonies of their hardships and tragedies during the war. Many of them lost their husbands and children to the murders of the army. It was heart-wrenching to hear these experiences and see the faces of these women and families. By the end of our visit there were so many community people in that room, children and all. They were so grateful to us for coming, and didn’t want us to leave. They offered to show us their houses and spend more time with us. The just wanted to share with us their hardship and the difficulties they are still having trying to thrive, so that we can take this back with us and let people know what has happened and the circumstances they are still forced to live with. They sent us off with a blessing, which was so touching. A few of us left with tears in our eyes, and all of us, a sense of helplessness and desire to fix all of their problems right here and now.

All of these little pueblos we passed through had nice communities of chickens, turkeys, pigs, dogs, cats, sheep, cows, horses, and goats roaming free around the towns and fields. The houses were all mostly little shacks and it is clear that they all work very hard every day too complete simple, necessary tasks in up keeping their families. Everywhere we went people would stop and watch us walk by. It’s not very often that they get to see “gringos” passing through. These aren’t exactly “tourist highlights” but there is so much beauty to this part of the country that I wish more people could see.

We then took a 4 hour hike through the mountains to a little pueblo where three women brought us into a home and fed us a typical indigenous meal of Boxboles (pronounced Boshbol). It was very interesting, but quite tasty! After returning from our hike we were all exhausted, but still had to last through the 6 hour drive home.

And once again I have written an essay, but there is so much to say so much to do, and so many emotions. Now our group is back in Xela for one day, then off to Mexico for a few days!

Semuc Champey

Last week’s Wednesday dancing adventure consisted not only of a great time dancing Salsa, Meringue, Hip-Hop and Reggae, but also of Jana and I winning the limbo contest! That was a good time – we were the stars of the night (but wait, when are we not…haha).

Last weekend’s trip to Semuc Champey was incredible. This was a great get-away from the city life of Xela, and into a beautiful natural atmosphere – someplace I would go for a dream vacation. We left on Thursday morning at 11, the bus ride was very long, total of 10 hours, but so beautiful. I haven’t experienced a drive yet that wasn’t full of awesome views to take in. The first night we stayed at a hotel called Casa de mi Abuela in Coban. We had dinner there and took it easy since everyone was tired after a morning in class and 7 hours in the bus.

Friday morning we left for Semuc. When we got to a town about 45 minutes outside of Semuc, we transferred our bags and ourselves (all 19 of us) into a pickup truck to drive through the mountain the rest of the way there. I believe that more than half of the people riding in the back couldn’t feel at least some part of their body by the time we got there, but it was a good time.

The hotel we stayed at was very close to the Semuc Champey national park. My teacher told me that Semuc is one of the Seven Wonders of Guatemala. It was a gorgeous setting. We were right by the lake, with cabins, a hammock, a little outside restaurant/bar where we ate our meals, a sweet water swing, and a place for campfires – we were all set for a great weekend! After settling in we all set out to explore Semuc. We took a hike up to the mirador (lookout) at the top of a cliff, where we could see the little waterfalls and pools of water amidst the valley of the tree-covered cliffs. Amazing view! By the time we reached the top everyone was hot, sweaty, and very ready to jump in the water (though we did have to hike down first of course).

Jumping in the water felt so great! It was pretty entertaining trying to make our way from pool to pool, sliding around on the slippery rocks (we felt and looked like we were learning to walk again) and sliding down or climbing up the mini water falls to get to each body of water. It reminded me of the movie Fern Gully, with the forest and the valley. We spent the afternoon relaxing here, then went back to relax at our hotel. By the time dinner came around everyone was very ready to eat, it had been a long day. After dinner some of us did some dancing – Salsa, Meringue, Cha-cha and Swing. John, our assistant director rocks at dancing, and he likes to teach us new moves whenever we get the chance. A little later I and a few other people jumped off the water swing. Then to warm up, we sat around a campfire, played some guitar and sang.

Saturday we left around 9 for a tour of the caves. This time I felt like I was in the Goonies. We all got candles to carry, and spent about 2 hours in the caves. We were in the water the entire time and it got really cold, but we hardly noticed the temperature because it was such a cool experience. We got to climb up a waterfall, slide down this shoot thing, and make our way to the end of the cave where we all put out our candles for a few minutes and sat in complete darkness. Once we made it back out into the sun again, we all got to float on tubes down the river and soak in the sun we had missed for the last two hours. The rest of the afternoon we spent relaxing in the sun, and going off the rope swing.

KAWOQ

First excursion from Xela was successful and very enjoyable. Leaving on Friday at 11, we had a 3 hour drive to Antigua, Guatemala (which was the original capital of the country). Antigua is a beautiful city full of history and many beautiful sites and ruins. The ambiance is very different than Xela, since it is a very large tourist attraction. The city is bustling with people from all over the world, who are on a vacation and there to have a good time. The comparison to Xela was something that was neat to see, after living in Xela for 2 weeks.

Besides everything being more expensive, some of the hotels, restaurants, shops, and other attractions were incredible! Antigua is known for their Jade, and there are a few Jade stores with museums and tours. This was an interesting taste of the history and background of the Mayans and the official stone of Guatemala. I bought a jade necklace with my Mayan symbol, which is the KAWOQ, meaning thunder being, or storm. According to the Mayan Calendar I carry the energy of the group, operating from the spiritual world with universal consciousness; I am youthful; restless; friendly; multi-faceted; a good learner and teacher; drawn to philosophy or religion; and show concern for healing and purification. Sounds pretty accurate overall(minus the stormy part...) – way to go Mayans!

We did enjoy some of the tourist attractions while in Antigua. After a long day of exploring museums on Saturday, a group of us ate at a restaurant on the balcony, overlooking the ruins of the old Cathedral. That night for dinner we went to a place called Sky Café, where we sat on balcony once again, to enjoy the view of the city at night while we ate our dinner and sipped our drinks.

The central park is beautiful night and day, but especially when it is all lit up at night. The Cathedral is all lit up as well, perfect for a nighttime stroll. The park was always bustling with people so on our last day there, I sat with a friend eating breakfast and people – watching. It was enjoyable but hard to handle at the same time. Amidst the happy, hearty tourists were Guatemalans with disabilities, going around asking to take pictures for money, or trying to sell souvenirs. Seeing this and the homeless in the streets in contrast to the “high life” of the tourists (myself included) gives me a very unsettled feeling. It is hard for me to continue living my life and in comparison to some, it seems almost throwing money to the wind, while others have that kind of life.

While in Antigua we visited an organization called Common Hope. This is a sponsored program that aids families in sending their children to school, gives free medical care, provides resources for better living, and also provides housing for those who need it. This program has a great method of approaching poverty. They start with the families themselves, and once they are able to get their children prepared and sent to school, working closely with the families, the program helps alleviate all of the factors that may deter from the children’s learning and development. The policy of the organization is that the family must work by putting in time at the center, a certain number of hours, before they can receive their house or stove (which are made to help improve health conditions in the home). This is such a great way to help families get off their feet and live their life without the worries of those simple needs. This organization has helped so many children and families and is an inspiration that there are people and programs making a big difference in the lives of others – not only short-term but a long term effect.

So to flash back to last week, on Monday I went to a class in the afternoon on typical phrases and expressions of Spanish and the locals – very interesting, and useful “street phrases.” On Wednesday we went to Aguas Amargas, which is a center lf thermal waters located in Zunil. The water was warm and the view was spectacular! We were amidst a mountain cliff and had a great view of the Santa Maria Volcano. Then of course I went salsa dancing on Wednesday night! Thursday I learned how to make empanadas – a traditional Guatemalan dish with rice tortillas, meat, vegetables and salsa.

I can’t believe how early I have been going to bed the last few nights, such a drastic change from my normal schedule back home. But it makes sense when I look at my typical daily routine: 6am wakeup, 6:50am-7:50 Yoga, 8am-1pm Spanish class, 1:15-2pm lunch with my family, 2:30-5pm excursions/activities planned through Celas/ or doing homework, TCB, 5:15-7pm Yoga again (sometimes), 7:30pm dinner with my family, 8:15-11pm finish homework/ go to a coffeshop to study/ hang out with the group, 11pm my eyes are heavy and I am ready for bed! Wednesday nights are an exception because those are the nights we go dancing ‘til about 12:30am.

I have a new Spanish teacher now (we switch every two weeks), so it is nice to have a little change, though I do miss my old one. My new teacher is a little tougher, but that will be god for me because I really want to learn as fast as possible! Language is a frustrating subject to master and the sooner the better. I also have two new people staying in my house here. They are indigenous Guatemalans from Cichitenango who are studying in the University here in Xela. I ate dinner with one tonight – he is only 17 and is going to school here in Xela. His sister is 19 and is going to a University here. It will be nice to have some other “siblings” to talk with in Spanish.

Okay so I feel like I am writing an essay, you would think I get enough of that in school but I guess since it is all in Spanish now I need to get my English fix. We have started our class with our director, Brother Dennis, which we are having once a week. I really like it so far, the theme is globalization, spirituality and social justice. Right now we are discussing the issue of globalization and the preferential option for the poor – which seems to fit in perfectly with our experiences and the concepts that I am currently struggling to deal with. There is no perfect solution, but there is much to be understood and explored and that is the very best place to start.