Sunday, May 8, 2011
Music
Today Antigua was full of music. It was a music festival. I was pretty impressed with the sound system they had going... The sub woofers were as loud and ridiculous as ones at Snoop Dog concerts. I sat and ate a gelato-filled crepe while listening to a very good marimba group. I'm anxious to get back to work tomorrow.
Motorcycle
The motorcycle plan might work out! I found a guy who might sell me his tiny little piece of crud 100cc bike for $400 and then buy it back for half when I leave. Stay tuned.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Transition
Today felt like I live here all the time. It was the first day like that, where I woke up, went to the coffee shop and got my coffee, came back, did some work, and then realized I was in Guatemala, not Burlington or Hood River.
I met with Silke in the morning. I don't know if I've introduced her yet, but she is the lady who is really in charge of the tour, and is the person I am learning from for the tour project. Then I went out and talked to some Spanish schools about the tour. They were very receptive, which could either be indicative of Guatemalan courtesy or their actual interest. I don't really know at this point. But I will email them all again on Monday, and then visit them again sometime next week.
I spent the evening developing my own Guatemalan peanut sauce, which was a complete success, and learning card games from the three of the four other volunteers staying in the volunteer house . I'm terrible at all card games so this was more entertainment for them than me.
I was originally planning on getting a motorcycle while here, but then I kind of thought it would be useless, but after walking so much today I think it would be useful... I will see. If I do get one then that is one time where I guarantee that I will take a picture for once!
Hasta luego
I met with Silke in the morning. I don't know if I've introduced her yet, but she is the lady who is really in charge of the tour, and is the person I am learning from for the tour project. Then I went out and talked to some Spanish schools about the tour. They were very receptive, which could either be indicative of Guatemalan courtesy or their actual interest. I don't really know at this point. But I will email them all again on Monday, and then visit them again sometime next week.
I spent the evening developing my own Guatemalan peanut sauce, which was a complete success, and learning card games from the three of the four other volunteers staying in the volunteer house . I'm terrible at all card games so this was more entertainment for them than me.
I was originally planning on getting a motorcycle while here, but then I kind of thought it would be useless, but after walking so much today I think it would be useful... I will see. If I do get one then that is one time where I guarantee that I will take a picture for once!
Hasta luego
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Dia lost count
I finally started getting to work on my primary project today of promoting the tour in Santiago Zamora. I'll just be generating interest by going and talking too Spanish schools and Hotels and forming relationships which eventually, maybe not while I'm here, will help send more tourists on the tour. I also decided to start doing field research for a business idea that some friends of mine from school have been developing. I won't bore you with trying to describe this idea, but it is simply put, sustainable banking. So that's second priority. Third priority project is working at the after school program at Los Patojos. I don't know anything about it other than that it is a very wild, loud, and excited atmosphere of children learning. I hear it is less disciplined, and thus more popular with the kids, than Profe Chris's in Santiago Zamora. So I will find out next week I think.
I accidentally made a sandwich for lunch with sweet bread and it was terrible. So I still felt hungry and went to the super market looking for ingredients to make vegetable curry with. But I looked for lemongrass until the ladies were staring at me pacing back and forth with my brow furrowed and looking insane. I couldn't find it! So I figured that a Thai restaurant must have it and that they would sell me some, so I walked until I found a Thai restaurant and I spent a half hour trying to explain to a poor Guatemalan waitress what I wanted, and that no, it was not a manzana (apple). How do you describe lemongrass with a vocabulary of a two-year-old!? Finally she told me that the owner spoke English and would be back tomorrow. So I told her I would come then. I asked everybody I know here how to say or explain lemongrass, but nobody knows.
Anyways... I was invited by the founder of Casasito, Alice, to her house with some other volunteers for a traditional 7 course Chinese meal (cooked by her sister, they are both from China). Who would have thought I would have to come to Guatemala to experience a traditional Chinese feast? It was incredible. One of the best meals of my life. And I got to do a lot of listening to conversations and was able to understand some of them, but I got lost when one story was telling about a little girl who can tell when women are pregnant telepathically... I just laughed when everybody else did during that one. And it sounds like there is a rock climbing wall near here... I will find that. But at the end of dinner I realized I had tasted lemongrass in one of the dishes. So I asked Alice my question of how to say lemongrass or describe it in Spanish, but she didn't answer. But she pointed to her courtyard and said that she grows it and I can have some! Halleluiah! The day was a success. Tomorrow I will have curry. If I can ever find my way back to her house...
Oh and Alice was apparently taking pictures the whole week. She sent some to me so I guess you guys get pictures after all!
I accidentally made a sandwich for lunch with sweet bread and it was terrible. So I still felt hungry and went to the super market looking for ingredients to make vegetable curry with. But I looked for lemongrass until the ladies were staring at me pacing back and forth with my brow furrowed and looking insane. I couldn't find it! So I figured that a Thai restaurant must have it and that they would sell me some, so I walked until I found a Thai restaurant and I spent a half hour trying to explain to a poor Guatemalan waitress what I wanted, and that no, it was not a manzana (apple). How do you describe lemongrass with a vocabulary of a two-year-old!? Finally she told me that the owner spoke English and would be back tomorrow. So I told her I would come then. I asked everybody I know here how to say or explain lemongrass, but nobody knows.
Anyways... I was invited by the founder of Casasito, Alice, to her house with some other volunteers for a traditional 7 course Chinese meal (cooked by her sister, they are both from China). Who would have thought I would have to come to Guatemala to experience a traditional Chinese feast? It was incredible. One of the best meals of my life. And I got to do a lot of listening to conversations and was able to understand some of them, but I got lost when one story was telling about a little girl who can tell when women are pregnant telepathically... I just laughed when everybody else did during that one. And it sounds like there is a rock climbing wall near here... I will find that. But at the end of dinner I realized I had tasted lemongrass in one of the dishes. So I asked Alice my question of how to say lemongrass or describe it in Spanish, but she didn't answer. But she pointed to her courtyard and said that she grows it and I can have some! Halleluiah! The day was a success. Tomorrow I will have curry. If I can ever find my way back to her house...
Oh and Alice was apparently taking pictures the whole week. She sent some to me so I guess you guys get pictures after all!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Dia 3
The coffee plantation was great! We got to talk to the owner who is the 5th generation of the estate's original founders. He was very honest about Antigua coffee and where it fits into the coffee aficionado's cup. He explained how it is best to mix Antigua coffee with other less acidic types in order to make a more well rounded blend. I never had much time for blends in the past, so this was proof of my ignorance! He also showed me the Cuban cigars he liked best and I bought one so that I can check that item off of my bucket list. The plantation was all organic and it was great to see the individual farmers so enthusiastic about it. We also got a tour of the Mayan instruments. Interesting to hear about the legends about how the marimba originated with the Mayans, although there is no evidence to support that the pre-Columbian Mayas ever played marimbas, and much evidence to support the theory that the marimba came across the Atlantic with the African slaves. The Mayan collection of instruments is a confluence of seemingly every global culture. They have instruments from Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and of their own origins.
Other than that, no philosophy for today!
Oh and I almost forgot. I went and helped with Casasito's debate club tonight. Each of the scholarship recipients from Casasito are required to participate in extracurricular activities, and the debate club is one. It is a competition and tonight was the semi-finals. The finals are in 3 weeks, so stay tuned! But I was the official timer and did my best to follow along with their arguments and questions. At one point a girl giving her presentation broke down and couldn't talk anymore. She was so cute that I felt really bad for her. After the presentations her teacher Amanda, a Casasito staff, asked her what was wrong, expecting to hear that she did not like speaking in front of a bunch of people, including three white foreigners. But as Amanda says, she often forgets what large problems these kids face. It turns out that the girl's parents were "broken" and she felt very unsafe and lots of girls are being raped in her village and she doesn't know what to do or who to turn to. She finally just couldn't take it all and lost her composure. It is gut-wrenching. What do you do in a situation like that? This girl is a very successful student to a) be receiving a scholarship from Casasito, and b) to be in the semi finals of these debates. You can't take her from the village because there are thousands more like her. I guess the truth is that progression is slow. Maybe like the women in Santiago Zamora this girl will understand the benefits of learning to speak and read Spanish, how to succeed, and how to fight Maybe she won't escape the tragedy that is her village, but her kids might, or their kids might. The grandchildren of Feno Mena in Santiago Zamora are on their way. Hopefully I can help them by not only providing their grandmothers and mothers with income from the tours, but also by giving them a sense of purpose by showing them that people in other countries support them and that their decisions are despite what their taunting neighbors say, rational, moral, and parallel to their religious sentiments.
So now I know why I'm here. There is something for me to really do, and I hope that I can start doing something tomorrow.
Buenas noches
P.S. sorry about the lack of pictures. I am not a camera guy. Maybe they will happen at some point. Who knows?
Other than that, no philosophy for today!
Oh and I almost forgot. I went and helped with Casasito's debate club tonight. Each of the scholarship recipients from Casasito are required to participate in extracurricular activities, and the debate club is one. It is a competition and tonight was the semi-finals. The finals are in 3 weeks, so stay tuned! But I was the official timer and did my best to follow along with their arguments and questions. At one point a girl giving her presentation broke down and couldn't talk anymore. She was so cute that I felt really bad for her. After the presentations her teacher Amanda, a Casasito staff, asked her what was wrong, expecting to hear that she did not like speaking in front of a bunch of people, including three white foreigners. But as Amanda says, she often forgets what large problems these kids face. It turns out that the girl's parents were "broken" and she felt very unsafe and lots of girls are being raped in her village and she doesn't know what to do or who to turn to. She finally just couldn't take it all and lost her composure. It is gut-wrenching. What do you do in a situation like that? This girl is a very successful student to a) be receiving a scholarship from Casasito, and b) to be in the semi finals of these debates. You can't take her from the village because there are thousands more like her. I guess the truth is that progression is slow. Maybe like the women in Santiago Zamora this girl will understand the benefits of learning to speak and read Spanish, how to succeed, and how to fight Maybe she won't escape the tragedy that is her village, but her kids might, or their kids might. The grandchildren of Feno Mena in Santiago Zamora are on their way. Hopefully I can help them by not only providing their grandmothers and mothers with income from the tours, but also by giving them a sense of purpose by showing them that people in other countries support them and that their decisions are despite what their taunting neighbors say, rational, moral, and parallel to their religious sentiments.
So now I know why I'm here. There is something for me to really do, and I hope that I can start doing something tomorrow.
Buenas noches
P.S. sorry about the lack of pictures. I am not a camera guy. Maybe they will happen at some point. Who knows?
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Dia 2
Today I went to Santiago Zamora and took the tour that I will be leading. What a tour! Santiago Zamora is a small village about 25 minutes outside of Antigua. It is about a 15 minute walk from the nearest bus stop, San Antonio. It is very indigenous feeling. There is a house built by Casasito for the eight women and families who endure the taunting of their neighbors. Even on our short walk in the streets we heard men being frustratingly chauvinistic. They taunt the husbands of the women in the project, saying that when their wives go into town to put the 10% of their meager earnings in the Casasito fund for the Santiago Zamora after school program (El Plan Infinito), that they are being unfaithful and the sort. Considering that El Plan Infinito welcomes over 100 children every day after their regular classes and provides electric pianos, harps, guitars, computers, maps, books, and a devoted full-time teacher (Profe Chris), you would think that the village would appreciate what is being done voluntarily for their children. Profe Chris is quite a guy. He is Belgian and has lived in Santiago Zamora for the last 3 years. He takes the kids on tons of field trips, ranging from the 10 hour trip to Tikal to daily swimming lessons nearly an hour away. This is very important to the children because normally only rich children learn to swim. Even when he makes his annual visit home, he brings the two best students with him, obviously paying their way and shows them Europe.
Anyways, back to the tour. We listened to the leader of the women talk about the history of Santiago Zamora and how it came to be so impoverished. Alcohol, testosterone, and greed being the primary reasons. I was happy to see that my Spanish is getting less rusty and I was able to understand most of what was being said. The ladies then did a traditional dance during which I was invited to participate in! I tried my best and thought I did quite well, but their sideways giggling whispers in Quechua (the Mayan language) convinced me otherwise. After that I tried my hand at grinding coffee the Mayan way, with a large granite sort of mortar and pestle, which I'm told is one of the key inheritances from mothers to daughters. They knew better than to let me try weaving though. They exhibited all of the steps required to weave and then weaved a row of thread. They said that to make their traditional dress, I'm forgetting what it is called right now, it takes them a year or more, depending on the intricacy. For a table runner they say about a month of 4-6 hours per day of weaving is required. They also taught me how to tell the difference between textiles made by hand vs. machine. Then they taught tortilla making. Again, a large granite mortar and pestle is used to roll the corn into a paste, which they then turn into a round tortilla. I stress they because they called my tortillas "mapas de Canada" due to the Baffin Islands that kept falling on to the floor. (Maps of Canada). Then they fed us an excellent lunch and sent us on our way.
I got myself lost in the big market once I got back. I got a good deal on potatoes, Q1 for a pound of potatoes. That is like $0.14! But then I got ripped off on tomatoes. After finding my way back out of the dark depths of the market I headed home.
Tomorrow I am taking a tour of a coffee plantation. When will I start working!?
Hasta!
Anyways, back to the tour. We listened to the leader of the women talk about the history of Santiago Zamora and how it came to be so impoverished. Alcohol, testosterone, and greed being the primary reasons. I was happy to see that my Spanish is getting less rusty and I was able to understand most of what was being said. The ladies then did a traditional dance during which I was invited to participate in! I tried my best and thought I did quite well, but their sideways giggling whispers in Quechua (the Mayan language) convinced me otherwise. After that I tried my hand at grinding coffee the Mayan way, with a large granite sort of mortar and pestle, which I'm told is one of the key inheritances from mothers to daughters. They knew better than to let me try weaving though. They exhibited all of the steps required to weave and then weaved a row of thread. They said that to make their traditional dress, I'm forgetting what it is called right now, it takes them a year or more, depending on the intricacy. For a table runner they say about a month of 4-6 hours per day of weaving is required. They also taught me how to tell the difference between textiles made by hand vs. machine. Then they taught tortilla making. Again, a large granite mortar and pestle is used to roll the corn into a paste, which they then turn into a round tortilla. I stress they because they called my tortillas "mapas de Canada" due to the Baffin Islands that kept falling on to the floor. (Maps of Canada). Then they fed us an excellent lunch and sent us on our way.
I got myself lost in the big market once I got back. I got a good deal on potatoes, Q1 for a pound of potatoes. That is like $0.14! But then I got ripped off on tomatoes. After finding my way back out of the dark depths of the market I headed home.
Tomorrow I am taking a tour of a coffee plantation. When will I start working!?
Hasta!
Monday, May 2, 2011
Dia 1
Antigua is great! All of the people, Guatemalan or foreign, are so friendly. I feel very safe walking around and chatting in my embarrassingly rusty Spanish. I was introduced to the staff here at Casasito this morning and was briefed on what my mission is here. There is a small village in the hills near Antigua called Santiago Zamora. Casasito has a project in the village there which promotes the textiles and handicrafts that the women there make, and they also I think have a school in Santiago Zamora. From what I have been told, the men and also women who are not part of the project in the village are not particularly happy with the empowerment this project has given to the women. My job is to take tourists on just that, tours, through Santiago Zamora allowing them to learn about the coffee growing/harvesting/roasting process and the Mayan culture and cuisine (the ladies provide lessons on tortilla making and then feed the group). The ladies offer their crafts and such for sale and I have been told on multiple accounts that those ladies' crafts in particular are the best around. Tomorrow I get to go on this tour conducted by the founder of Casasito, Alice, and learn more about the details of the tour. But the more pressing and challenging aspect of my job here is to go out and do some marketing here with the Spanish schools, hotels, and travel agencies in order to start creating more interest in our tour again. It sounds like it was a very successful thing at one time, but after some time one thing led to another and the tour stopped receiving interest. I'm working on developing a strategy for recruiting, so stay tuned for that.
Today I went with a group of volunteers from socal up to the project they are working on in the village called San Mateo. I forget the name of the project, but WOW! It is a school for, although my rusty Spanish limited my understanding, kids ranging from 3 years to 19 years old. All of the students' families live on less than $1 per day, and as such, I was expecting a Greg Mortensen school. I was shocked as we got off of the sardine can of a chicken bus and walked back behind some corrugated metal shanties and down into a skinny little stair well to emerge in this wonderful school. They had clean walls. That was the first shock. 40 shoeless children running in and out from recess and futbol and spotless, brightly painted walls just don't seem to go together in my mind... Maybe that's just me though. But then after a long talk about what the project does, we went and tried out the Spanish-learning programs. I was thinking maybe we would be looking through dog-eared surplus Spanish books with erased answers to confuse you. No. We walked into a computer lab with at least 20 flat screen computers. We booted these up and played for about 45 minutes on programs which I should probably be using myself. I've always wondered what the gaming industry had to offer the world in terms of international development. Well this is it. It is amazing and such a fantastic use of technology. Although the kids weren't present today due to our visit, many got word that "una fiesta de gringos" was walking around, and pretty soon they started trickling in. They don't get much cuter. And they had no problem making fun of my often misleading conjugations and vocabulary. Casasito is doing a very good job. After my visit to San Mateo I am confident that my experience here with Casasito and its partners will be nothing short of a life-long inspiration. I was told today that Casasito is helping over 4000 people here, but with a full-time staff of only 5, and a budget between $125,000-$250,000. Despite not considering myself partial to a single religion, I am reminded of that story where Jesus fed a bunch of people with only a little bit of fish or bread or something like that.
The volunteer house I am staying in is also so wonderful. I don't have to eat out and can live very frugally, while being surrounded by like-minded people. I think it is a great example that every person has something to contribute to the world. The range of projects is so large. Everything from a guy (who happens to be from Vermont) working on an accounting program for Casasito, to people just teaching English and playing with kids whose fathers or mothers are sick, alcoholics, or in one case, beheaded.
Sorry about the length of this post! Tomorrow will be a long one too because I am going on my tour!
Hasta!
Today I went with a group of volunteers from socal up to the project they are working on in the village called San Mateo. I forget the name of the project, but WOW! It is a school for, although my rusty Spanish limited my understanding, kids ranging from 3 years to 19 years old. All of the students' families live on less than $1 per day, and as such, I was expecting a Greg Mortensen school. I was shocked as we got off of the sardine can of a chicken bus and walked back behind some corrugated metal shanties and down into a skinny little stair well to emerge in this wonderful school. They had clean walls. That was the first shock. 40 shoeless children running in and out from recess and futbol and spotless, brightly painted walls just don't seem to go together in my mind... Maybe that's just me though. But then after a long talk about what the project does, we went and tried out the Spanish-learning programs. I was thinking maybe we would be looking through dog-eared surplus Spanish books with erased answers to confuse you. No. We walked into a computer lab with at least 20 flat screen computers. We booted these up and played for about 45 minutes on programs which I should probably be using myself. I've always wondered what the gaming industry had to offer the world in terms of international development. Well this is it. It is amazing and such a fantastic use of technology. Although the kids weren't present today due to our visit, many got word that "una fiesta de gringos" was walking around, and pretty soon they started trickling in. They don't get much cuter. And they had no problem making fun of my often misleading conjugations and vocabulary. Casasito is doing a very good job. After my visit to San Mateo I am confident that my experience here with Casasito and its partners will be nothing short of a life-long inspiration. I was told today that Casasito is helping over 4000 people here, but with a full-time staff of only 5, and a budget between $125,000-$250,000. Despite not considering myself partial to a single religion, I am reminded of that story where Jesus fed a bunch of people with only a little bit of fish or bread or something like that.
The volunteer house I am staying in is also so wonderful. I don't have to eat out and can live very frugally, while being surrounded by like-minded people. I think it is a great example that every person has something to contribute to the world. The range of projects is so large. Everything from a guy (who happens to be from Vermont) working on an accounting program for Casasito, to people just teaching English and playing with kids whose fathers or mothers are sick, alcoholics, or in one case, beheaded.
Sorry about the length of this post! Tomorrow will be a long one too because I am going on my tour!
Hasta!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)