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Lets start with last Saturday: community exchange day. The idea of this activity was to become familiar with a different Guatemalan community, so they paired our group up with another from a different town. We were matched up with the town of Pastores. First the girls of Pastores came here to San Bartolome. We set up a make-shift scavenger hunt where the girls had to find us at all the different important locations in town by following clues. At the end I was waiting at my house with a prize; peanut butter sandwiches and a delicious juice I made. Juice recipe: one fresh pineapple, diced; one fresh papaya, diced; add both to blender with water and sugar; blend until smooth; enjoy the deliciousness.
Lets start with last Saturday: community exchange day. The idea of this activity was to become familiar with a different Guatemalan community, so they paired our group up with another from a different town. We were matched up with the town of Pastores. First the girls of Pastores came here to San Bartolome. We set up a make-shift scavenger hunt where the girls had to find us at all the different important locations in town by following clues. At the end I was waiting at my house with a prize; peanut butter sandwiches and a delicious juice I made. Juice recipe: one fresh pineapple, diced; one fresh papaya, diced; add both to blender with water and sugar; blend until smooth; enjoy the deliciousness.
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Next we went to Pastores. This is where things got interesting. We were blind-folded, taken to an obscure part of town (on foot, through traffic, without being able to see), and provided with a map and a sheet of questions. When they took the blind-folds off we had to race through the town, stopping people to find the answers to all the questions, and the first one to make it to the "X" on the map with all the answers won. Some of the questions were a little off the wall; for example, "where in town can you buy iguana skin boots." We found out later that the girls didn't even know the answers, they just wanted to know and figured we could find out for them. I did find the iguana boots. Actually Pastores is famous for their boots, there must be 50 boot stores. They make them all by hand, to your specifications, with almost any fabric or animal skin you want. People apparently come from all over the world for these boots, and the people of this town have been making them for generations. I might return and get myself some snakeskins with snake skulls on the tips, bad ass.
Next we went to Pastores. This is where things got interesting. We were blind-folded, taken to an obscure part of town (on foot, through traffic, without being able to see), and provided with a map and a sheet of questions. When they took the blind-folds off we had to race through the town, stopping people to find the answers to all the questions, and the first one to make it to the "X" on the map with all the answers won. Some of the questions were a little off the wall; for example, "where in town can you buy iguana skin boots." We found out later that the girls didn't even know the answers, they just wanted to know and figured we could find out for them. I did find the iguana boots. Actually Pastores is famous for their boots, there must be 50 boot stores. They make them all by hand, to your specifications, with almost any fabric or animal skin you want. People apparently come from all over the world for these boots, and the people of this town have been making them for generations. I might return and get myself some snakeskins with snake skulls on the tips, bad ass.
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Next up, Superbowl Sunday. Almost all of the volunteers met up in Antigua at a bar called Mono Loco, where my friend Karina happens to bartend. We had a blast. Other volunteers from all over the country showed up too. It was really funny to see everyone let loose after 3 weeks of hard work and no booze. It seems to me that if you want a group of people to bond, just add alcohol. Plus, what a game!
Next up, Superbowl Sunday. Almost all of the volunteers met up in Antigua at a bar called Mono Loco, where my friend Karina happens to bartend. We had a blast. Other volunteers from all over the country showed up too. It was really funny to see everyone let loose after 3 weeks of hard work and no booze. It seems to me that if you want a group of people to bond, just add alcohol. Plus, what a game!
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The next few stressful days were spent preparing for Thursday, Charla day. Yesterday I had to give a presentation to everyone involved in my park. I spent the night before typing up my lesson plan, preparing handouts, and making visual aids. Then I woke up yesterday morning to find out that half the country was without power, an ominous start. There was a storm with crazy winds Wednesday night and some power lines were knocked down. Since the country is not set up on grids, but on a few main lines that light the entire nation, when one goes down everyone loses power. For some reason we lost the water with the power, so I couldn't shower. I also couldn't print out my lesson plan or my handouts.
The next few stressful days were spent preparing for Thursday, Charla day. Yesterday I had to give a presentation to everyone involved in my park. I spent the night before typing up my lesson plan, preparing handouts, and making visual aids. Then I woke up yesterday morning to find out that half the country was without power, an ominous start. There was a storm with crazy winds Wednesday night and some power lines were knocked down. Since the country is not set up on grids, but on a few main lines that light the entire nation, when one goes down everyone loses power. For some reason we lost the water with the power, so I couldn't shower. I also couldn't print out my lesson plan or my handouts.
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This was a terrible start, but one of the keys to success in Peace Corps is to be flexible and learn to adapt in difficult environments. So I took a trip to Peace Corps headquarters where they have a generator, there I was able to print out everything. I made it back just in time for the presentation. So there I was on the top of a windy mountain where it was freezing cold, with no power, giving a half hour presentation about basic marketing principals, completely in spanish, to 15 people of which only a few can read and write, using a fire for light and warmth. That is Peace Corps.
This was a terrible start, but one of the keys to success in Peace Corps is to be flexible and learn to adapt in difficult environments. So I took a trip to Peace Corps headquarters where they have a generator, there I was able to print out everything. I made it back just in time for the presentation. So there I was on the top of a windy mountain where it was freezing cold, with no power, giving a half hour presentation about basic marketing principals, completely in spanish, to 15 people of which only a few can read and write, using a fire for light and warmth. That is Peace Corps.
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The presentation actually went pretty well. I used some simple games to display the principals, and we were able to develop a visitor survey to gather infomation that will help us design a more efficient marketing plan. In reality I already designed the survey, but the idea was to make them think they designed it. That speaks to the heart of development work and being a facilitator. Simply doing the work for people does not produce lasting effects, but if you guide them through the process, teaching them along the way, and allowing them to feel as they own the ideas, the chance of them following through goes up ten fold. In three months it is hard to produce any tangible results, my hope is to help them develop a plan, give them the tools to implement the plan, and pray that they follow it through. It is a slow and pain-staking process, especially given the speed of life down here. For example, I have been waiting for over a week for the park director to email me a copy of the current marketing plan he allegedly has. Now this is someone who has requested assistance, and I am here working for free, but I have had to call and email him over and over for a simple email. Sometimes it isn't as the saying goes and you can't just lead a horse to water, sometimes you have to carry the horse up a mountain on your back. I love the challenge though, and I know this park has the potential to not only support itself, but provide a much needed income stream for the municipality that can help all the residents of the town.
The presentation actually went pretty well. I used some simple games to display the principals, and we were able to develop a visitor survey to gather infomation that will help us design a more efficient marketing plan. In reality I already designed the survey, but the idea was to make them think they designed it. That speaks to the heart of development work and being a facilitator. Simply doing the work for people does not produce lasting effects, but if you guide them through the process, teaching them along the way, and allowing them to feel as they own the ideas, the chance of them following through goes up ten fold. In three months it is hard to produce any tangible results, my hope is to help them develop a plan, give them the tools to implement the plan, and pray that they follow it through. It is a slow and pain-staking process, especially given the speed of life down here. For example, I have been waiting for over a week for the park director to email me a copy of the current marketing plan he allegedly has. Now this is someone who has requested assistance, and I am here working for free, but I have had to call and email him over and over for a simple email. Sometimes it isn't as the saying goes and you can't just lead a horse to water, sometimes you have to carry the horse up a mountain on your back. I love the challenge though, and I know this park has the potential to not only support itself, but provide a much needed income stream for the municipality that can help all the residents of the town.
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After the Charla I had some fun. Jesse and I joined a basketball league with some kids from our town. Now, I am not very good at basketball, but here I am Shaq. We play in a town about 15 minutes away called Santiago. It is a big court with bleachers, we played under the lights, and lots of people came to watch. It is legit, we have uniforms and everything. It is five on five, but when we got there one of our players realized he left his backpack at the gas station and took off, he never returned. So we played 4 on 5. I scored 21 points, Jesse had 25 or so, and we won 59-16, with 10 of their points coming from free throws. It was pretty hilarious and I can't wait 'til the playoffs start in 2 weeks. I'm winning that trophy.
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Today was a fun day, it was our last day with our first spanish teacher, and my host mom's birthday. First we went to the city of Chimaltenango where Friday is market day at one of the largest markets in the area. This place is a maze of thousands of little shops, its the craziest flea market ever, on crack. You navigae your way through block after block of aisles. One section will have meat hanging on hooks everywhere; pig feet, full chickens (dead and alive), huge slabs of meat, you name it. Another full block is all clothes, everthing from traditional mayan dress to lacoste polos. You can find anything, all kinds of toys, electronics, knick-knacks, junk, crazy food, animals, fruits, vegetables, flowers, firewood, etc. Some of it is outside, but a lot of it is covered by tarps and tin roofs, and like I said it resembles a maze. Small little aisles, thousands of people, no real order to anything. I bought a real nice sweater for Dona Dora for her birthday. I spent a little more then I wanted too, but I think it was worth it.
Today was a fun day, it was our last day with our first spanish teacher, and my host mom's birthday. First we went to the city of Chimaltenango where Friday is market day at one of the largest markets in the area. This place is a maze of thousands of little shops, its the craziest flea market ever, on crack. You navigae your way through block after block of aisles. One section will have meat hanging on hooks everywhere; pig feet, full chickens (dead and alive), huge slabs of meat, you name it. Another full block is all clothes, everthing from traditional mayan dress to lacoste polos. You can find anything, all kinds of toys, electronics, knick-knacks, junk, crazy food, animals, fruits, vegetables, flowers, firewood, etc. Some of it is outside, but a lot of it is covered by tarps and tin roofs, and like I said it resembles a maze. Small little aisles, thousands of people, no real order to anything. I bought a real nice sweater for Dona Dora for her birthday. I spent a little more then I wanted too, but I think it was worth it.
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After the market we went to another village that is famous for having a statue with special powers. The statue is of Maximon (pronounced Mashimon). Stories about him differ, some say he was an old priest that looked after the aboriginees in the western Guatemaln highlands. Some say he was a pre-Columbian Mayan God. We heard an all together different story today. We went to the shrine where Maximon is usually found and discovered he is no longer there. Apparently there was a dispute between the church and the shrine and they had to move the statue to another town. However, after some investigation we found out that there was still a Maximon nearby. We found him in the middle of a deserted lot, where it looked as if a house was torn down there a century ago. In the corner of this lot was a little hut, made completely of the tin that is used for the roofs here. This 8 x 10 foot hut contained a small fire, a ton of smoke, two old ladies, and the statue of Maximon: a man dressed in a black robe, with a cowboy hat on, a cigarette in his mouth, a rifle in his hand, and candles and bottles of liquor surrounding him. Maximon is the god of vices, and he responds to them as offerings. We were told today that he was an old mayor who ruled with an iron fist, and had the power to perform miracles. One of the old ladies said she was his keeper, and that she serves as a spiritual conductor for Maximon. Devotees believe that prayers for revenge, or success at the expense of others, are likely to be granted by Maximon, and if they pay this lady she will give offerings to the statue and he will do their "works". This lady stressed that this was not a business, and that she had faith that can move mountains; however, the starting cost of each "work" is 500 Quetzal. She told us that she has performed "works" for 14 different mayors in her time. Some of the things she can do is make someone fall in love with you, relieve illnesses, remove your enemies, and help you take other peoples jobs. It was surreal being in this dark smoky little hut, with this hunch-backed old lady, hearing about her life work, and watching this cigarette smoking, rum drinking, gun slinging statue that people come from all over to pay homage to. I didn't believe a word of it, but at the same time I hope he doesn't do a "work" on me while I'm here.
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Tonight we had a little birthday party, kind of. I baked a chocolate birthday cake and bought a bottle of Chilean wine. We had a nice dinner, with Diego dancing on his chair the whole time. The cake turned out pretty damn good, I must say. Then I gave Dona Dora the sweater I bought her, and realized that I was the only person who got her a present. They don't buy presents for birthdays, because it isn't affordable. I don't know if I should feel good that at least I was able to get her a nice present, or terrible that nobody else was able too. I also am not sure if her children think I was trying to show them up, or they are happy I am so nice to their mother. I think Dora really appreciated it though, and we will see if she actually wears the sweater or not (she better).
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Tomorrow I will be attending a traditional Mayan cermony, at a highly spiritual place, where the land supposedly emits vibrations that can heal the mind, body, and soul. On Tuesday I will be taking my second language test to see how I've progressed in the last month. After that we are going to get a new teacher. I am going to miss my old teacher, Isabel. She was great, very nice, and very smart. She speaks fluent spanish, a fluent Mayan language, and is learning english. The next week we are heading out for "field based training". We will be hiking and camping for a week at 5 different sites throughout Guatemala. I am really pumped, we are going to see some incredible places, and I get to try out the largest zip-line in Guate. I know this post was long, but a lot happened and I hope you enjoyed it. Adios amigos.
Jesse and me with Isabel.
Cutting the cake I made for Dona Dora's birthday.
Dona Dora with her new sweater, Don Cesar paying no attention.
Dona Dora about to blow out her candles, Diego stealing the show as usual.
Me and mis padres afitriones.
Octavio and his girfriend, Robin, in Antigua. Robin was the volunteer in this house before me.
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