I can’t believe it’s already Thursday! My Spanish is continuing to get better, and I’m getting more comfortable using it. Most Guatemalans will say that they often use incorrect Spanish, which sometimes makes understanding people more difficult. But, I hope to get the hang of it soon enough and keep trying to hunker down and just study vocab… maybe next week?
My time with my Guatemalan family is coming to an end. I have decided to move into an apartment this coming Sunday, given that is my last official week of Spanish study. It has been nice to be with the family, but we still don’t have a door and needing to have someone open and close the door for me is getting a little old. I recently learned the real story behind the two other guys who live in the house. While they are Jehovah’s Witnesses, like my host family, they are really just two guys who are renting rooms. Guillermo, the younger one, actually arrived the same day I did just earlier in the day. Oscar arrived 6 months ago, but recently quit his job at a bakery and left. No one knows when he is coming back, they jokingly say that he will find a girlfriend in the big city and never come back. Per usual, I don’t really know what’s going on. I also found out that the Senora actually owns a fabric store. This explains why we eat a lot of eggs and quick food, and she is never around. I don't think I'll ever know if she really is 10 years older than he, as she looks.
I also had two days of orientation at Primeros Pasos and I have a good feeling about it. There are 3 other volunteers who are going to be starting with me, all American women, mainly in their first year out of undergrad. I think I'll be there a month or two and then see what other doors it opens. We spent the first day learning about the Guatemalan health and education systems. Like many developing countries, Guatemala’s public services are not adequate for the need and are a little corrupt. Public hospitals are free to all, but there are a limited number of doctors, hospitals are primarily located in large cities, and the waits can be extremely long. Additionally, many doctors who work in Public hospitals also have private clinics. Therefore, they will tell their patients that they need to come to their “other offices” and charge them for what should be free services. Doctors, and private health clinics, also have relationships with pharmacies and labs. They are known for sending their patients to their friends, and telling them that they need to buy more expensive drugs etc… Services for the rural population are also extremely limited. There are ambulatory services that are supposed to come once or twice a week to the rural towns, but don’t always. When they do come they are known to take long lunch breaks, run out of medication, close early, etc… Other problems with the health system include: government health educators and pharmacists who aren’t trained and will hoard medication and then it will expire, or not really know what medication to give (any one who wants to make a buck can open a pharmacy); and health educators who do more scolding then educating.
The Primeros Pasos Health Education Program has two main components. One in the clinic when the schools come for a check-up, and the other in the schools. The workshops in the clinic are about 30 min long and cover basic concepts such as washing hands, brushing teeth, cleaning fruits and vegetables, parasites and (as the grades get older) basic hygiene and puberty. Primeros Pasos has a fairly detailed curriculum and workshops that the Health Educators teach, so the orientation is for us to familiarize ourselves with it and the core concepts the clinic stresses. The workshops in the schools are more extensive. There are three to four per year and they last 45min. For the younger grades they cover similar topics, just more extensively. There are games, songs and activities for each concept. Starting in the third grade, more serious topics are discussed. These include: values and morals, reproductive health, HIV and AIDS, gangs and natural disasters. There is more orientation next week where we will go over these concepts and workshops, and then teach one to the clinic staff to practice.
It doesn’t look like we will actually start teaching for another two weeks, because school was supposed to start this week but has been delayed. This means that we have more time to get ready and familiar with the material, but I also hope to go do some site visits and learn more about reproductive health programs and maternal and child health services. I’m not exactly sure how that’s going to look, but I’m excited to start talking to people. There is a network of Midwives here in Xela and a friend a mine at the school is going to work at a clinic near the lake – so that might be where I start.
I hope you all are well and send me news! Besos from Xela!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Finally some pics!
Sorry some of these are crooked. Here are some pics of Xela and the door... I will post more on facebook tomorrow.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Weekend Fun
This weekend was full of new sites. On Saturday, the school organized a trip to the Laguna de Chicobal (photos: http://www.travelblog.org/Photos/673426.html- not my photos unfortunately, but you get the idea). The laguna is a sacred Mayan site, the water is a communicator between the gods and the underworld, therefore you are not allowed to swim in the water. Twice a year, on a date determined by the Mayan Calendar, the Mayans head to the lake to conduct various rituals. Some say that tourists aren´t welcome during this time, other say just be respectful. We didn´t have to worry, because those events don´t take place until April or May.
So, at 7am, we all crammed into a local microbus that took us to the start of hike. Hiking a relatively steep slope for about 45 minutes, we got to the entrance of the national park. From there is was about another 45 minutes to the "mirador," viewpoint. On one side you could see the Volcan Santa Maria and another extremely active volcana where you could see the erruptions. It was pretty cool. There are 37 volcanos in Guatemala, so I´m sure the novelty will wear off, but for now I´m still pretty excited to hike them and be near them. On the other side you had a nice view of the Laguna. From there, there are 600 steps that go down the laguna. They are really steep, and as soon as we started going down, I started dreading coming back up. They reminded me of the Incline, for all you CCers reading this, and they were just as fun to go back up.
The laguna was quite beautiful. As we got there, you could see the clouds starting to come in over the lake. And by the time we left you couldn´t see the laguna at all as the clouds had taken over. After climbing up the 600 steps again, and seeing the view one more time, we headed back down where we had fresh squeezed orange juice and crammed back into a microbus to head back to town. It was great to do a nice hike, see some of the nature around Xela and get a little sun (forgetting that we are at 7000 feet, I of course, have nice rosy cheeks now from not putting on sun screen...). Exhausted from the early morning and hike, I crashed that evening barely able to hold a conversation with my host family that night.
The fun times continued on Sunday. In the afternoon I headed up to the Fuentes Giorginas, http://www.lasfuentesgeorginas.com/, with my british friends, Rob and Rachel. They are natural hotsprings about 30 min outside of Xela. We drove through Zunil, a small town and then up the mountain on a road that overlooked Zunil, the river and neighboring farms. There were people farming on the side of mountains, and 10 year olds cutting and carrying large bundles of wood on their back. I started to get a little anxious on the ride as the higher we got up into the mountains, the thicker the fog got. The visiblity quickly dwindled away to practically nothing and our driver seemed to know what he was doing, minus the occasional sudden braking.
The hot springs themselves were wonderful. Just what I needed after a nice hike on Sunday. Three pools of different temperatures are surrounded by trees and plants, that felt like an enchanted forest because of the all the fog. It was magical at times, and lying on a rock in the super hot pool, I forgot where I was. There were a ton of kids whose hands look a thousands years old and ghostly white from having been in the water so long. The cutest girl though, was one who was sick and couldn´t enter the water. About 2, and dressed in traditional Mayan attire, she just stood by the side of the water, looking like she was about to cry, while her family played for hours. It was a great way to end the weekend, and only 30 min away and about $10 for the entire afternoon, I hope to return again their soon. As soon as I can get pics off the camera, I will post. Adios for now!
So, at 7am, we all crammed into a local microbus that took us to the start of hike. Hiking a relatively steep slope for about 45 minutes, we got to the entrance of the national park. From there is was about another 45 minutes to the "mirador," viewpoint. On one side you could see the Volcan Santa Maria and another extremely active volcana where you could see the erruptions. It was pretty cool. There are 37 volcanos in Guatemala, so I´m sure the novelty will wear off, but for now I´m still pretty excited to hike them and be near them. On the other side you had a nice view of the Laguna. From there, there are 600 steps that go down the laguna. They are really steep, and as soon as we started going down, I started dreading coming back up. They reminded me of the Incline, for all you CCers reading this, and they were just as fun to go back up.
The laguna was quite beautiful. As we got there, you could see the clouds starting to come in over the lake. And by the time we left you couldn´t see the laguna at all as the clouds had taken over. After climbing up the 600 steps again, and seeing the view one more time, we headed back down where we had fresh squeezed orange juice and crammed back into a microbus to head back to town. It was great to do a nice hike, see some of the nature around Xela and get a little sun (forgetting that we are at 7000 feet, I of course, have nice rosy cheeks now from not putting on sun screen...). Exhausted from the early morning and hike, I crashed that evening barely able to hold a conversation with my host family that night.
The fun times continued on Sunday. In the afternoon I headed up to the Fuentes Giorginas, http://www.lasfuentesgeorginas.com/, with my british friends, Rob and Rachel. They are natural hotsprings about 30 min outside of Xela. We drove through Zunil, a small town and then up the mountain on a road that overlooked Zunil, the river and neighboring farms. There were people farming on the side of mountains, and 10 year olds cutting and carrying large bundles of wood on their back. I started to get a little anxious on the ride as the higher we got up into the mountains, the thicker the fog got. The visiblity quickly dwindled away to practically nothing and our driver seemed to know what he was doing, minus the occasional sudden braking.
The hot springs themselves were wonderful. Just what I needed after a nice hike on Sunday. Three pools of different temperatures are surrounded by trees and plants, that felt like an enchanted forest because of the all the fog. It was magical at times, and lying on a rock in the super hot pool, I forgot where I was. There were a ton of kids whose hands look a thousands years old and ghostly white from having been in the water so long. The cutest girl though, was one who was sick and couldn´t enter the water. About 2, and dressed in traditional Mayan attire, she just stood by the side of the water, looking like she was about to cry, while her family played for hours. It was a great way to end the weekend, and only 30 min away and about $10 for the entire afternoon, I hope to return again their soon. As soon as I can get pics off the camera, I will post. Adios for now!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Volunteering in Xela
This week so far has been pretty busy, as I’ve been looking for volunteer opportunities, studying and making friends. I find that after 5 hours of Spanish in the morning, from 8 –1pm, I don’t have a whole lot of energy to study more in the afternoon. As much as I want to review verb conjugations and study vocab, it’s hard to motivate. So, I spent a chunk of time earlier this week meeting with various organizations and trying to get a grasp on what work I might be able to do. (I also found a little yoga studio and might have found an apartment!)
I first met with the volunteer coordinator from Primersos Pasos (primerospasos.org). Primeros Pasos is a health clinic about 15 min outside of Xela, and is the clinic that I contacted prior to coming down here. They serve the schools and villages surrounding Xela and have a Healthy Schools program. The Healthy Schools program includes annual school visits to the clinic, so that the kids can have a doctor’s visit, as well as in 10 in-school health education sessions. These sessions include nutrition, dental, hygiene and sexual health education). I had spoken to them about being a Health Educator but I wanted to gain a better understanding of what exactly I would be doing, and what other opportunities might be out there, before I committed two months to them. While the program may not be exactly what I’m looking to do, the clinic sounds like a great place to gain exposure and learn about Guatemala’s major public health issues and other programs. Also, since I don’t know exactly what I want to do, it seems like a good start. The more I’m there and in the world, the more opportunities will present themselves, I’m sure. I’m looking forward to going to the Clinic next week for an orientation.
I also visited and met with some volunteers from a women’s shelter. The women’s shelter is pretty impressive. They have capacity for 60 families, but right now only have about 40. All the women have decided to leave their abusive relationships, and the shelter provides housing and food for them as long as they need it. This includes teenagers who have been court ordered to stay at the shelter. All the women share the duties of cooking, cleaning and doing laundry. The shelter also has legal, social work and psychological services. There is also a Laundromat where the women from the shelter work, and all proceeds go back to the shelter. It is fully Guatemalan run, except for the two English speaking volunteer coordinators. The volunteers run activities for the children who live there, such as arts and crafts, games, etc... It was interesting to visit the shelter and meet with the staff and other volunteers, and I might choose to spend a few hours a week there after I get into the grove at Primersos Pasos. There are various other opportunities, primarily playing with children. I’ve been told that through the doctors at Primersos Pasos, I might be able to find OBGYN or Midwives to follow or interview.
On the surface, and of little surprise, it seems that most structured volunteer opportunities are in organizations that were either founded or are currently run by foreigners, primarily Brits and Americans. The war that ended only 10 years ago (but was worse in the 70s and 80s) and the corruption that Guatemala has suffered the past 100, or more, years, has given the people of Guatemala little hope and ability to bring about change. I have been learning about the terrible political acts and governmental coups that the US supported and funded to protect their fruit export interests. It has amazed me and I’m embarrassed that living so close to Guatemala, I had no idea. I’m sure, or I hope, that I studied it in High School but not after that. The indigenous communities were practically killed off. They are discriminated against, illiterate and many do not speak Spanish. While there are efforts to work in these communities and provide services, it seems that the biggest struggle is in recognizing the indigenous languages and the rights of indigenous people. I will share more as I learn and gain a deeper understanding of Guatemalan culture and politics. My current Spanish teacher, Jaime, is a law student who plans to work for indigenous rights. He speaks fluent K’iche and has been teaching me about Guatemalan history, but also Mayan traditions and cultures.
On another note, things with my family are going well. They are very kind, we have interesting conversations and my Spanish is rapidly improving because of it. We still don’t have a door and the Senor is starting to get sick of staying at home. I asked him if it was coming this weekend and he responded saying “It’s Guatemalan time…”
I first met with the volunteer coordinator from Primersos Pasos (primerospasos.org). Primeros Pasos is a health clinic about 15 min outside of Xela, and is the clinic that I contacted prior to coming down here. They serve the schools and villages surrounding Xela and have a Healthy Schools program. The Healthy Schools program includes annual school visits to the clinic, so that the kids can have a doctor’s visit, as well as in 10 in-school health education sessions. These sessions include nutrition, dental, hygiene and sexual health education). I had spoken to them about being a Health Educator but I wanted to gain a better understanding of what exactly I would be doing, and what other opportunities might be out there, before I committed two months to them. While the program may not be exactly what I’m looking to do, the clinic sounds like a great place to gain exposure and learn about Guatemala’s major public health issues and other programs. Also, since I don’t know exactly what I want to do, it seems like a good start. The more I’m there and in the world, the more opportunities will present themselves, I’m sure. I’m looking forward to going to the Clinic next week for an orientation.
I also visited and met with some volunteers from a women’s shelter. The women’s shelter is pretty impressive. They have capacity for 60 families, but right now only have about 40. All the women have decided to leave their abusive relationships, and the shelter provides housing and food for them as long as they need it. This includes teenagers who have been court ordered to stay at the shelter. All the women share the duties of cooking, cleaning and doing laundry. The shelter also has legal, social work and psychological services. There is also a Laundromat where the women from the shelter work, and all proceeds go back to the shelter. It is fully Guatemalan run, except for the two English speaking volunteer coordinators. The volunteers run activities for the children who live there, such as arts and crafts, games, etc... It was interesting to visit the shelter and meet with the staff and other volunteers, and I might choose to spend a few hours a week there after I get into the grove at Primersos Pasos. There are various other opportunities, primarily playing with children. I’ve been told that through the doctors at Primersos Pasos, I might be able to find OBGYN or Midwives to follow or interview.
On the surface, and of little surprise, it seems that most structured volunteer opportunities are in organizations that were either founded or are currently run by foreigners, primarily Brits and Americans. The war that ended only 10 years ago (but was worse in the 70s and 80s) and the corruption that Guatemala has suffered the past 100, or more, years, has given the people of Guatemala little hope and ability to bring about change. I have been learning about the terrible political acts and governmental coups that the US supported and funded to protect their fruit export interests. It has amazed me and I’m embarrassed that living so close to Guatemala, I had no idea. I’m sure, or I hope, that I studied it in High School but not after that. The indigenous communities were practically killed off. They are discriminated against, illiterate and many do not speak Spanish. While there are efforts to work in these communities and provide services, it seems that the biggest struggle is in recognizing the indigenous languages and the rights of indigenous people. I will share more as I learn and gain a deeper understanding of Guatemalan culture and politics. My current Spanish teacher, Jaime, is a law student who plans to work for indigenous rights. He speaks fluent K’iche and has been teaching me about Guatemalan history, but also Mayan traditions and cultures.
On another note, things with my family are going well. They are very kind, we have interesting conversations and my Spanish is rapidly improving because of it. We still don’t have a door and the Senor is starting to get sick of staying at home. I asked him if it was coming this weekend and he responded saying “It’s Guatemalan time…”
Sunday, January 18, 2009
First few days with the family
The first few days with my host family have been good and interesting. My host family consists of a couple, and the Senor’s “Brothers.” When I first arrived, they were introduced as his brothers and it took me a few days to understand their relationship. The Senor seems much older than the Senora, and that I haven’t quite figured out. They are both indigenous, (a distinction people in Xela make). He is 100% Maya, but was raised in Guatemala City so doesn’t speak K’iche and isn’t close to his Mayan roots. She is closer to her roots, as she understand K’iche, but was never forced to speak it as child and therefore, doesn’t. She also has pictures all over the kitchen of different ceremonies and her family in traditional Mayan clothing. I hope to learn more about this as the weeks go on, as well as starting to dive into Guatemalan history.
Here are a few tidbits from the last few days that you all might enjoy or hopefully find interesting.
1) They are Jehovah’s Witnesses. According to a teacher at the school, 60% of Guatemalans are Protestant, 30% Catholic, and 10% other. I guess my family falls into the “Other” category. When I told my teacher my recent discovery, she said “Oh” and then nodded her head. That’s the reaction people in the states generally have too, I guess. Having studied Jehovah’s Witnesses in college, it’s fascinating to find them here in Guatemala. I first suspected it when I saw typical JW literature on the kitchen table (“Questions for Adolescents”. How to fight peer pressure, improper relationships, etc…) They go to meetings twice a week and just tell me that they follow the bible literally. While I haven’t quite been comfortable enough to ask them how and when they converted, I plan to at some point.
2) These “Brothers” are the Senors “Spiritual Brothers.” The parents of the Brothers asked my host family to take them in. One lives there all the time and works at a bakery, Oscar, the other goes home Fri –Sun, and studies in Xela during the week, Guillermo. Oscar is about 28, and one evening while I was up in my room reading I heard him reading the bible out loud to himself (very loudly). He would then stop to take breaks where all I would hear from my room were noises of much exertion (“Huh, huh, ah, ah etc…”). As this continued for about 45 min, I peaked out the window to see that he was doing pushups in between his bible reading breaks. I was a little relieved that he was just working out.
3) A few days ago, my Senor announced to me that the door to the house was not adequate. The entrance to the house is a large steel wall that had a steel door, with a door. For some reason, he didn’t think it was safe. So, yesterday, construction started. And now, we don’t have a door at all. We have two large makeshift panels made of roofing steel that are locked by a pad lock at night and a giant piece of wood that leans against the door from the inside. There is also a rope that holds it shut. Now, someone always has to be home to let people in and out, because there is no way to lock the door from the outside. The Senor has changed his work schedule and says he will now do the cooking during the day for a week, while he waits for the new door to arrive. I find the whole situation amusing, and as soon as I get a camera, I will try to send a picture.
Here are a few tidbits from the last few days that you all might enjoy or hopefully find interesting.
1) They are Jehovah’s Witnesses. According to a teacher at the school, 60% of Guatemalans are Protestant, 30% Catholic, and 10% other. I guess my family falls into the “Other” category. When I told my teacher my recent discovery, she said “Oh” and then nodded her head. That’s the reaction people in the states generally have too, I guess. Having studied Jehovah’s Witnesses in college, it’s fascinating to find them here in Guatemala. I first suspected it when I saw typical JW literature on the kitchen table (“Questions for Adolescents”. How to fight peer pressure, improper relationships, etc…) They go to meetings twice a week and just tell me that they follow the bible literally. While I haven’t quite been comfortable enough to ask them how and when they converted, I plan to at some point.
2) These “Brothers” are the Senors “Spiritual Brothers.” The parents of the Brothers asked my host family to take them in. One lives there all the time and works at a bakery, Oscar, the other goes home Fri –Sun, and studies in Xela during the week, Guillermo. Oscar is about 28, and one evening while I was up in my room reading I heard him reading the bible out loud to himself (very loudly). He would then stop to take breaks where all I would hear from my room were noises of much exertion (“Huh, huh, ah, ah etc…”). As this continued for about 45 min, I peaked out the window to see that he was doing pushups in between his bible reading breaks. I was a little relieved that he was just working out.
3) A few days ago, my Senor announced to me that the door to the house was not adequate. The entrance to the house is a large steel wall that had a steel door, with a door. For some reason, he didn’t think it was safe. So, yesterday, construction started. And now, we don’t have a door at all. We have two large makeshift panels made of roofing steel that are locked by a pad lock at night and a giant piece of wood that leans against the door from the inside. There is also a rope that holds it shut. Now, someone always has to be home to let people in and out, because there is no way to lock the door from the outside. The Senor has changed his work schedule and says he will now do the cooking during the day for a week, while he waits for the new door to arrive. I find the whole situation amusing, and as soon as I get a camera, I will try to send a picture.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
The beginning
I have arrived in Xela! I arrived here yesterdat after spending my first dayin Guatemala City, mainly hanging out at the bed and breakfast, and doing alittle exploring after the long flight. I then took the bus here yesterdayfrom Guatemala City, which was an absoultely beautiful ride. The highlandsare gorgeous, with volcanoes and lakes a plenty, and I can´t wait to do somehiking and camping. As soon as I got off the bus, I went right into 5 hoursof Spanish class. My teacher is very nice (we change teachers once a week,so she will only be my teacher until tomorrow) and has told me that while Ihave a good accent and will be able to speak spanish, we have MUCH reviewingto do. It appears that I make up a lot of words, making Italian soundSpanish. While that worked when I was in Boston, it won´t work here... WhenI mentioned that I was only going to study for 2 or 3 weeks, she screamed"no! you need to study more months!". So we´ll see. The school itself isvery nice, with a gorgeous courtyard and patio where we do all of thelessons. They also have a nice internet cafe, coffee and tea for students,and plenty of people to answer all our questions. The other students arequite friendly as well.
I spent my first night with my family yesterday. It is a small family withan older couple (she appears much older than her husband, not sure whethershe really is) and his two brothers who live with them. My room is nice, andthe family is used to students so the señor of the house is quite talkative.I have already eaten a lot of beans and eggs, and have my fingers crossedthat it wont be dinner tonight as well. Although I have already found thefruit market, where I will fill up on fresh fruit and vegis. I hear its getting close to fruit season, which I am very excited about. I think Imgoing to stay with the family through the end of next week and then find anapartment or room for the next few months.
Xela is a town that feels small,because of the extremely narrow streets that I would be terrified to drivethrough, but large buses do - but is actually the second largest town inGuatemala. So there is much to be discovered, and I´m looking forward to it.I am meeting with the clinic next week, where I have arranged to work, and amalso exploring other opportunities as well to see what presents itself. I amso happy to be in Guatemala and looking forward to the next few months. Ifeel oddly at home with broken sidewalks, lack of hot water and spottyelectiricity (pick pocketers and people trying to rip off gringos too...) butalso warm and welcoming people. It is also amazing that with technology you are all just a cheap cell phone call away and I still snoop on facebook.
Guatemala is waiting for all you reading this...
I spent my first night with my family yesterday. It is a small family withan older couple (she appears much older than her husband, not sure whethershe really is) and his two brothers who live with them. My room is nice, andthe family is used to students so the señor of the house is quite talkative.I have already eaten a lot of beans and eggs, and have my fingers crossedthat it wont be dinner tonight as well. Although I have already found thefruit market, where I will fill up on fresh fruit and vegis. I hear its getting close to fruit season, which I am very excited about. I think Imgoing to stay with the family through the end of next week and then find anapartment or room for the next few months.
Xela is a town that feels small,because of the extremely narrow streets that I would be terrified to drivethrough, but large buses do - but is actually the second largest town inGuatemala. So there is much to be discovered, and I´m looking forward to it.I am meeting with the clinic next week, where I have arranged to work, and amalso exploring other opportunities as well to see what presents itself. I amso happy to be in Guatemala and looking forward to the next few months. Ifeel oddly at home with broken sidewalks, lack of hot water and spottyelectiricity (pick pocketers and people trying to rip off gringos too...) butalso warm and welcoming people. It is also amazing that with technology you are all just a cheap cell phone call away and I still snoop on facebook.
Guatemala is waiting for all you reading this...
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