Reviews of Guatemala

Because I have so much time and am so kind-hearted :-), I posted a review of Antigua and Lake Atitlan on the lonely planet forums. Here are links if you want to check them out:

Antigua:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/message.jspa?messageID=16186829#16186829

From Guatemala

Lake Atitlan:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?messageID=16186873&#16186873

fun stuff.

Still Here!

I finished week 2 of spanish school and am still a major beginner...but I have some basis now. This coming week, I am sort of "taking a vacation" - going to Lake Atitlan with 2 friends and then to Xela (Quetzeltenango) to check it out and also meet up with Rafman! He was my most recent / last boss I had a Lehman. I am really excited to see him and his family. Rafman has always been encouraging to me exploring my interests and we always have long conversations about world issues and random things.

From Guatemala

As for my paper - I encountered an organization called As Green As It Gets (per a lead from Eric!). I went and helped them out last week and tomorrow I am going to interview the founder, Franklin, to get more official info for my paper. As Green As It Gets works with local coffee farmers to process, market and sell their coffee at real prices (not the crap prices they get offered by larger farms). Check them out.

After my "vacation" next week, I am going to volunteer for 2 weeks at another collective of coffee farmers, IJATZ. This will be really interesting/hilarious because it is Guatemalan-run and I will be on the only native English-speaker there. But I want to dive in - its probably the only chance I have to improve my skills in so short a time.

From Guatemala

Yes, if you saw my facebook, I had quite a time hiking Pacaya, an active volcano. OMG. 2 hour hike, rain, thunder, lightning, flowing lava, pitch black, holding two walking sticks and my backpack, steep climb through volcanic rock, etc. There is no way in hell you would be allowed to do this in the States. You'd be lucky if they let you stand at the base. Seeing the lava was really cool though, once I realized I'd survived. If I may impart a true by cheesy metaphor - I realized that the worst thing to do when hiking upward is to look up - its totally demotivating. Much better to focus on what's in front of you and just keep ploughing.

From Guatemala

From Guatemala

~~~ shout out to sarah and mark - congrats on the little one on the way!! ~~~~

Status in Guatemala

In Antigua - Week one complete.

I have been taking 4 hours of spanish lesson each day, one on one with Cesar, mi maestro. It is *tough* learning a language from scratch. The first few days I didnt know enough basic words or grammar to say much (although I got by fine with english). It's weird not even being able to say "can I have" "what is that", "that is good" "where is" etc. I am realizing how much French I actually know, ie, vocab and how to make sentences with approximately correct grammar. It's just that I just never got to put my French knowledge into practice. When I open my mouth I keep defaultingto French phrases. My brain seems to equate "speak foreign language" to "speak french." Without thinking I respond with "oui", "c'est bon" "et" "ici" "il y a", etc.

From Guatemala

I plan to take another week of class and in the meantime I am:

(1) working on papers for my Sustainability class. Between that and studying Spanish, my day is quite packed, as is my brain.

(2) looking for volunteer opportunities for August

I am enjoying the social scene here - ex-pats and travelers always make for an interesting bunch. Being a school atmosphere, you also get some more serious types. I've made good friends with a girl from my homestay, Eng. Homestay is not great so we are moving to a new house next week.

I had a great first 4 days with Eric (NY friend), his brother Evan and his girlfriend Betsy. We partied it up on Guatemala City and Antigua and were lucky enough to be able to hang out with his extended family who are locals. They know the areas AND speak Spanish! :)

From Guatemala

Guatemala

I am going to Guatemala tomorrow for 6 weeks, maybe including other countries. We shall see! I wanted to learn more about sustainable agriculture in central america and the effects of US policy decisions on agriculture there. That is the topic of the paper I am writing for me class. Should be interesting! Hopefully I will find some good contacts on this topic while I am there because I havent had much luck getting in touch with anyone in advance. Well, worst case its another good vacation / travel experience :)

Ciao!