Guatemala

La Casa

San Juan del Obispo, Guatemala
Hello from Guatemala and It has been to long since I have written. There are so many different smells, sounds, and sights that are new to me. I guess I will start with the first day in another country for me.
We arrived at noon on a Thursday and we were picked up at airport by Guatemala supervisor and 2 hired vans we were off to San Juan del Obispo. Lots of traffic and up and around mountains with windows open. It took about 45 min. to get to APPE language school where we were unloaded with all of our many suitcases. We waited there to meet our host family (the family we will be living with for 3 months) . Our lady of the house and their 10 year old son was there to greet Rocky and I and we got all of our many suitcases and headed out on foot up up up up to their house and I thought my lungs were going to burst and it took about forever to get to the house but we made it. The elevation here is about 5000 ft so that could have had a lot to do with no air to breathe and it still takes its toll on me and I am doing it every day sometimes more than once but I have learned not to have anything to tote because each little pound gets hard to get up the street to the house. I was always carrying my laptop in my backpack so I could use the internet but it is to heavy. That brings me to cultural shock! That would be that internet is not handy at all. Rocky and I have to go to a pay internet place here in San Juan or if we want to use it free we have to take our laptops on a hairy bus ride to Antigua and once we get to Antigua we get off bus and continue on foot for a ways. There are some restaurants that if you buy something you can use their wireless for free but not very fast BUT better than nothing and there are internet stores where you pay and can use wireless or use their computers. And when I really need a word from afar whatever is worth it. We found out last Friday that McDonalds has free wireless and they also have Frappe coffees (pretty close to Satrbucks)
Rocky and I live with a very nice family. Their names are Vinicio, Olga and Fabio. Vinicio is a teacher at our language school so at breakfast and lunch he gives us help with some language. We are served breakfast, lunch, and supper Monday –Saturday and on Sunday we are on our own. Olga is a very good cook and we enjoy but we eat a whole lot of carbs. We are missing our fruits and vegetables and salads. It is just till January that we will be in our own home and we can eat better then. I also bought a bottle of bleach today and will begin to buy some fruits and clean them by soaking them in bleach water.
Rocky and I have a small room with full size bed, wardrobe, table, a plastic chair and a cloth chair. When we got home from the beach the family had put some metal shelves in our room and I was glad for the storage. Olga had washed our sheets and made our bed while we were gone. Washing is not an easy thing either. There is a big cement thing called la pila with running water in the middle sink and on the left side is a sink with bumps to rub your clothes back and forth on and on the right side is a sink that you can wash your dishes in. You just dip out of the middle sink and pour over clothes or dishes which ever you are washing at the time. I have washed some clothes twice like that and it is not so easy. I am thankful that I will have a washing machine and dryer in Ecuador. We share the bath with the family and there is another language student living with our family. Her name is Caroline and she is from Norway. She is a medical student and is here volunteering at a hospital for children. The bath is across the porch and down the steps. One door leads to the potty and the other door is the shower and we are so blessed to have a hot shower. It has what is called a widow maker shower head that is electric and it heats the water as it flows through the head. You are not to reach up and touch…….water and electric…….do not mix well.
The streets here are made of dirt or cobblestone. The people love boombas or what we call fireworks but with a lot more kick and noise. They go off all of the time! This morning at about 4:00am when it was pouring rain there were boombas going off. The people love their music also.
Riding the bus is something new for us and it is a exciting way to get where you need to go as long as you can just chill.