Sunday, February 17, 2013
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Adios
I judge the quality of this trip by the feeling I have now; I have never wanted to leave a place less. The friends I have made, which is to say the people I have met, the ideas I've encountered, and the place its self will feed my motivation and sense of contentment. As my thoughts have started forming in Spanish while my mouth inadvertently spews English, I feel emotionally attached to Guatemala, but am bound for the States. I wish I could pause lives and live many lives in many places. As this is inability is an unfortunate flaw in who/whatever's design scheme of life, I will have to settle for simply returning to Guatemala at some point in the future.
Hasta luego Guate
Hasta luego Guate
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Roller Coaster
I am a firm believer in the idea that sometimes things must get bad for you to appreciate the good. The last two days have reinforced that notion:
Yesterday I woke up at 5am feeling so terrible that I went and forced myself to puke until there was nothing left in my stomach. Then my digestive system decided that everything else needed to go, so I spent another 4 hours in the bathroom. After a very feverish day of sweating and trying to sleep, I finally felt better by night and was able to go eat a bowl of mac and cheese and drink some gatorade.
This morning I woke up very early and felt awesome, which was a good thing because I had to guide a tour at 8:30. The only problem with this was that I didn't know the way to the project in Santiago Zamora, having only been there once on my first day in Antigua. Ladies from the village were supposed to meet me at Casasito at 8:00 but, as I thought would happen, they did not show up. So I went and met the group and proposed that we venture forth with the understanding that I had no idea where to go, but that I could hopefully get us there by asking people for directions. Amazingly enough we made it! The tour went very well and our driver was delightfully tourist-oriented and stopped at every little market and really made a great trip out of it. He is the first shuttle driver I have been pleased to do business with in Guatemala. We got back just as it started to pour down rain, which is my favorite type of weather here, and I am feeling elated. It's the type of elation that only lows like yesterday can create.
Here is a picture from the tour
Yesterday I woke up at 5am feeling so terrible that I went and forced myself to puke until there was nothing left in my stomach. Then my digestive system decided that everything else needed to go, so I spent another 4 hours in the bathroom. After a very feverish day of sweating and trying to sleep, I finally felt better by night and was able to go eat a bowl of mac and cheese and drink some gatorade.
This morning I woke up very early and felt awesome, which was a good thing because I had to guide a tour at 8:30. The only problem with this was that I didn't know the way to the project in Santiago Zamora, having only been there once on my first day in Antigua. Ladies from the village were supposed to meet me at Casasito at 8:00 but, as I thought would happen, they did not show up. So I went and met the group and proposed that we venture forth with the understanding that I had no idea where to go, but that I could hopefully get us there by asking people for directions. Amazingly enough we made it! The tour went very well and our driver was delightfully tourist-oriented and stopped at every little market and really made a great trip out of it. He is the first shuttle driver I have been pleased to do business with in Guatemala. We got back just as it started to pour down rain, which is my favorite type of weather here, and I am feeling elated. It's the type of elation that only lows like yesterday can create.
Here is a picture from the tour
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Debating why?
Last night was the debate finals for Casasito. I talked about the debates earlier in this blog, and after many months of work, the finalists in groups of two debated over two subjects. The first was over how to eliminate police corruption, (quite a bold topic I thought, as the armed policemen stood outside the building on the street corner), and whether to reform the education system in Guatemala or not. The setting was very professional, on a large stage with microphones and a nice sized audience and panel of judges. The kids debated as well as one could expect them too, but were lacking in research and effective questioning techniques I thought. It was an extraordinary amount of work for the kids, really, young adults, to get to where they were, and I admire them for their persistence.
Afterwards when the volunteers were all discussing the debates, we collectively wondered, could we come up with a plan to solve corruption of fix the education system in Guatemala? Especially when the constant opposing factor is, "there's no money to make these changes with." I mean, how can you argue against that? If the plan you have to fix something simply can't be done, then you lose! And this isn't just the problem for the debates. This is the reality! It is how the politicians debate too! What a nightmare. The mentality is "it is better to have no change than to allow the other party to be successful" but not in the we need to debate for the sake of coming to an agreement or compromise. It is in the way of either we get everything we ask for or nothing. If they refuse to alter their views, why the they debating?
Tonight we had another Chinese feast at our director Alice's house, made by her sister Ella. Not only is the food to die for, but the company and conversation is and educational. Germany, Israel, the States, Canada, Guatemala, China, and Spain were the represented countries at the small table. Everybody volumes of insight to share about every topic imaginable, and finally my Spanish is good enough to where I can understand most of what is being said. Simply put, it is unlike any other dinner conversation I have ever had. I have the uneasy feeling though that it will decrease my low opinion of available conversation with peers in the dining hall at school. What a place this is. I definitively do not want to go home in the States permanently. I wish either the good things from Guatemala would come to the States, or the good things from the States would come to Guatemala. Here is a picture of the debates:
Afterwards when the volunteers were all discussing the debates, we collectively wondered, could we come up with a plan to solve corruption of fix the education system in Guatemala? Especially when the constant opposing factor is, "there's no money to make these changes with." I mean, how can you argue against that? If the plan you have to fix something simply can't be done, then you lose! And this isn't just the problem for the debates. This is the reality! It is how the politicians debate too! What a nightmare. The mentality is "it is better to have no change than to allow the other party to be successful" but not in the we need to debate for the sake of coming to an agreement or compromise. It is in the way of either we get everything we ask for or nothing. If they refuse to alter their views, why the they debating?
Tonight we had another Chinese feast at our director Alice's house, made by her sister Ella. Not only is the food to die for, but the company and conversation is and educational. Germany, Israel, the States, Canada, Guatemala, China, and Spain were the represented countries at the small table. Everybody volumes of insight to share about every topic imaginable, and finally my Spanish is good enough to where I can understand most of what is being said. Simply put, it is unlike any other dinner conversation I have ever had. I have the uneasy feeling though that it will decrease my low opinion of available conversation with peers in the dining hall at school. What a place this is. I definitively do not want to go home in the States permanently. I wish either the good things from Guatemala would come to the States, or the good things from the States would come to Guatemala. Here is a picture of the debates:
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
New Groove
I can't remember if I've mentioned it yet, but I started taking Spanish lessons yesterday. I was worried that my teacher would be concerned with curriculum, but halleluiah, she too prefers to chat rather than look at assigned things. So I am learning tons and am also really enjoying the lessons. It's a very "learn while doing" type of experience which I much prefer. Plus, I am getting a cultural lesson too while we talk because we get into fairly intense discussions about politics, religion, and the troubled youth of today (she has two teenagers). We both enjoy maps so we put a big map of the world up on our white board where other instructors write vocabulary, and we discuss different cultures and laws and such. Her favorite thing to tell me is (in translation) "you talk so much, but you must fix all of these wrong things!" Apparently I passed 7 Spanish classes but never learned the very important verbs of haber and ser... But she is making sure I am now! What a firecracker.
It took some adjusting to start working on the tour less and shifting to other areas of work, but it's very fun now. After class today I went on a hunt for brown sugar. I haven't been able to find it in the supermarket. So I went from panderia (bakery) to panderia asking for brown sugar, but non of them have it. I finally ended up settling for something brown and granular but I'm told is not brown sugar, it is something "more special." Hmm... I think it is very similar to brown sugar, but they don't want to admit that it is the same thing and instead call it something different. I also found out today that I've been paying 2-3 quetzales (Guatemalan curency) more than I should be for bottles of coke. I normally pay 5 for a small glass bottle, whereas I'm told they should be 3! Apparently the gringo tax is hefty for coke. I will straighten out the local tienda though. And I finally told the coffee shop that is right down the street from Casasito, that they are the only place in town that charges Q10 for a small coffee. I told them that was no bueno and I didn't want anymore if it was going to be that over priced. Everywhere else in town coffee is Q6 for a medium. Maybe by the time I leave I will pay close to what Guatemalans pay for things. Maybe.
It took some adjusting to start working on the tour less and shifting to other areas of work, but it's very fun now. After class today I went on a hunt for brown sugar. I haven't been able to find it in the supermarket. So I went from panderia (bakery) to panderia asking for brown sugar, but non of them have it. I finally ended up settling for something brown and granular but I'm told is not brown sugar, it is something "more special." Hmm... I think it is very similar to brown sugar, but they don't want to admit that it is the same thing and instead call it something different. I also found out today that I've been paying 2-3 quetzales (Guatemalan curency) more than I should be for bottles of coke. I normally pay 5 for a small glass bottle, whereas I'm told they should be 3! Apparently the gringo tax is hefty for coke. I will straighten out the local tienda though. And I finally told the coffee shop that is right down the street from Casasito, that they are the only place in town that charges Q10 for a small coffee. I told them that was no bueno and I didn't want anymore if it was going to be that over priced. Everywhere else in town coffee is Q6 for a medium. Maybe by the time I leave I will pay close to what Guatemalans pay for things. Maybe.
Monday, May 30, 2011
Back to work
So after that nice break in Semuc Champey, I refocused upon the reasons I am here. I've found that because Antigua feels so much like home now, it is actually more difficult now to do the more tedious jobs associated with my work. As I have mentioned earlier in this blog, I have three projects here: Santiago Zamora Tour, a personal business idea, and Los Patojos (I nixed Los Patojos). The tour is very easy, straight-forward work and to be honest, I've done about all I can do at this point. So I am now shifting focus to a business idea I am working on with a couple partners from school. I had an interview today with our microfinance wizz here at Casasito, and the outcome was hardly what I was expecting, but nonetheless very helpful. The woman I was interviewing expressed her views that donation-based NGO work is not particularly sustainable. This is a thought that has crossed my mind before, but I figured I would not worry about it until I was done working for one. So much for that.
The philosophical conclusion to our meeting was that if countries are ever going to get on the right path, it has to be from the people and the government. NGO's like Casasito definitely relieve some of the pain caused by poverty and corruption, but it is most often only temporary until the next war or genocide swings around, and actually makes it harder for the people and government to see that there is a great need for solutions to problems. It makes me question whether my work on the Tour is simply putting makeup on a zit that would otherwise be so hideous it couldn't be avoided. Obviously it's on a much larger scale than just one person, or even one organization, but still, it's by no means a new idea and is worth consideration.
The philosophical conclusion to our meeting was that if countries are ever going to get on the right path, it has to be from the people and the government. NGO's like Casasito definitely relieve some of the pain caused by poverty and corruption, but it is most often only temporary until the next war or genocide swings around, and actually makes it harder for the people and government to see that there is a great need for solutions to problems. It makes me question whether my work on the Tour is simply putting makeup on a zit that would otherwise be so hideous it couldn't be avoided. Obviously it's on a much larger scale than just one person, or even one organization, but still, it's by no means a new idea and is worth consideration.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Our Sore Muscles
Rather than bore everyone with pictureless words or wordless pictures... here is our weekend:
We left Antigua in the morning and had a typical shuttle ride and arrived a nice 2 1/2 hours late to Lanquin (the town nearest to Semuc Champey). We were unfortunately in the shuttle for 10 hours with the spitting images of the stereotypically loud, arrogant, and offensive American. After finally ridding ourselves of them at the first hostel we arrived at in Lanquin, we stepped out of the van to finally stretch out legs, and then the tropical rainy season finally decided to let loose. This picture shows the few drops that hit us during our transfer to the more mountain-capable truck that took us to our final destination as dusk fell.
Here is the place we stayed. The loft of the building with the red roof hiding in the trees on the left was our humble abode. The river was about 50ft down the bank, turquoise blue.
Our private little climbing session, right below our hut.
The next morning we began the Semuc tour. Two other people hiked with us up to a good 1000ft above the ponds to a vantage point (mirador), and those ponds behind us are those of Semuc Chammpey. Pictures don't do the height justice. It is a truly extraordinary height. 1000ft is very likely a low-ball estimate.
Hilary, happy to bask in the cool turquoise pools after the "death hike" to the mirador. For those who don't know about one of the world's great wonders, there exists a type of fish which are used in South East Asia for feet massages. I got one when I was in Bangkok last year and was forever in love with the small fish that swarm your legs and feet and eat all of your dead skin, leaving your skin feeling fresher than a baby's... After dangling our feet in the ponds for a while we realized that some similar fish existed in the Semuc ponds, so we allowed them to feast upon our calloused and abused feet. It was a big scary at first because the larger fish were just as visible only a couple feet below and whenever they swam close it was quite difficult to keep our feet in the water.
Because I can't seem to grow my own facial hair, I thought I would make a water beard for myself... The pools were absent of foreigners/tourists for the majority of our time in them. The majority of the pools' baskers were locals. Quite the phenomenon at such an incredibly tourist-prone location. I think the 10 hour drive, the last 2 of which are on dirt roads in the middle of the jungle, keeps many tourists away.
After lunch and a leisurely innertubing down the river, we adorned our headlamps and followed a guide into a set of 11km deep caves. Although we had candles to help light our way, we found that treading water and swimming through pools and climbing up cavernous waterfalls was much harder to do when trying to keep a candle that drips hot wax on to your hand afloat and lit. We left them behind and left the lighting to our 21st century devices. After venturing 500 meters into the caves (the furthest you can go without a wetsuit), we stopped at a particularly deep pool and climbed up the walls of the narrow cave and took turns jumping carefully between the walls and plunging to the bottom of the pool. Then we turned around and hiked back out. It was all quite fantastic in the literal sense. What an experience. By the time we got back to the hostel for dinner we had gone through 6 liters of drinking water, but our muscles still ached and groaned with every step. This trip is well worth the 20+ hours of treacherous driving time for anybody who is traveling to Guatemala. Also, note, the best place to stay is the hostel we were at: El Portal. It is literally in the park. All of the others are 2-12km away.
Hilary takes off tomorrow morning and then I will be back to work after my 3 day break.
We left Antigua in the morning and had a typical shuttle ride and arrived a nice 2 1/2 hours late to Lanquin (the town nearest to Semuc Champey). We were unfortunately in the shuttle for 10 hours with the spitting images of the stereotypically loud, arrogant, and offensive American. After finally ridding ourselves of them at the first hostel we arrived at in Lanquin, we stepped out of the van to finally stretch out legs, and then the tropical rainy season finally decided to let loose. This picture shows the few drops that hit us during our transfer to the more mountain-capable truck that took us to our final destination as dusk fell.
Here is the place we stayed. The loft of the building with the red roof hiding in the trees on the left was our humble abode. The river was about 50ft down the bank, turquoise blue.
Our private little climbing session, right below our hut.
The next morning we began the Semuc tour. Two other people hiked with us up to a good 1000ft above the ponds to a vantage point (mirador), and those ponds behind us are those of Semuc Chammpey. Pictures don't do the height justice. It is a truly extraordinary height. 1000ft is very likely a low-ball estimate.
Hilary, happy to bask in the cool turquoise pools after the "death hike" to the mirador. For those who don't know about one of the world's great wonders, there exists a type of fish which are used in South East Asia for feet massages. I got one when I was in Bangkok last year and was forever in love with the small fish that swarm your legs and feet and eat all of your dead skin, leaving your skin feeling fresher than a baby's... After dangling our feet in the ponds for a while we realized that some similar fish existed in the Semuc ponds, so we allowed them to feast upon our calloused and abused feet. It was a big scary at first because the larger fish were just as visible only a couple feet below and whenever they swam close it was quite difficult to keep our feet in the water.
Because I can't seem to grow my own facial hair, I thought I would make a water beard for myself... The pools were absent of foreigners/tourists for the majority of our time in them. The majority of the pools' baskers were locals. Quite the phenomenon at such an incredibly tourist-prone location. I think the 10 hour drive, the last 2 of which are on dirt roads in the middle of the jungle, keeps many tourists away.
After lunch and a leisurely innertubing down the river, we adorned our headlamps and followed a guide into a set of 11km deep caves. Although we had candles to help light our way, we found that treading water and swimming through pools and climbing up cavernous waterfalls was much harder to do when trying to keep a candle that drips hot wax on to your hand afloat and lit. We left them behind and left the lighting to our 21st century devices. After venturing 500 meters into the caves (the furthest you can go without a wetsuit), we stopped at a particularly deep pool and climbed up the walls of the narrow cave and took turns jumping carefully between the walls and plunging to the bottom of the pool. Then we turned around and hiked back out. It was all quite fantastic in the literal sense. What an experience. By the time we got back to the hostel for dinner we had gone through 6 liters of drinking water, but our muscles still ached and groaned with every step. This trip is well worth the 20+ hours of treacherous driving time for anybody who is traveling to Guatemala. Also, note, the best place to stay is the hostel we were at: El Portal. It is literally in the park. All of the others are 2-12km away.
Hilary takes off tomorrow morning and then I will be back to work after my 3 day break.
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