I can't believe the month of March is over already. The past 6 weeks or so have gone by so quickly, and I only have 4 months left of my placement and 3 more weeks of language school after that.
The last week of Februrary all the YAVs had to leave the country due to visa issues. Basically, we are allowed to be in the country for 6 months before we have to leave for 3 days, or pay a fine for every day we stay over. So we had to go to Belize. Bummer, right? First, after 14 hours in a bus, we stopped in Tikal and visited the ruins there. I love ancient ruins, but I like to do them my way. I like to walk around and see them all, but mostly I like to find a quiet spot to park it. I like to watch the other people visiting, but mostly I like to just be. There is something about being in a place so old and magnificent, just imagining life then, and appreciating the sophistication of the Mayan culture. It was actually in a Mayan ruin where I decided I wanted to do my YAV year in Guatemala. Belize was a nice vacation where we saw manatees! One of the other YAVs believes she will be a manatee in her second life, so that was very exciting for her, but a slight disappointment that we were not allowed to swim with them.
About week after that trip I got to spend 10 days traveling with the Queens University group that came for Spring Break. That was very special for me, since I was first introduced to Guatemala through that exact trip. It was wonderful to see old friends, and make new ones. It was wonderful to see the country through their eyes, people who had never experienced these things before, where everything was new and fresh. It was funny to realize the things that have become so natural to me, but where big changes at first. I also got to try translating for the first time, which was really hard! Just listening is so much easier, but when i have to think about translating it makes everything much more difficult. But it was a good experience and I learned a lot. I was also sad to say good-bye to everyone, but I knew the month would continue to be full.
Then my parents arrived the last week of March and we spent a week traveling around. First we went to the coast because my dad had to check out the fishing in Guatemala, of course. No trip is complete without some type of fishing excursion. Usually I get out of the deep sea fishing, so that was my first experience. I actually got pretty motion sick, and I was surprised. My motion sickness has been better since I came to Guatemala, or really I have just learned to deal with it. I think the combination of being in the hot sun and out on the water was too much for me. I live in the cold mountains and am not accustomed to extreme heat anymore! Then I took my parents up into the mountains, where my Dad kept commenting on how extreme the change in weather is. I guess he never believed me when I told him it is COLD where I live, although right now it is the warmest part of the year. My mom and dad met Elvia, and all of her family that lives in San Marcos. I was really nervous about this part, I was not sure how it would pan out, but Guatemalan hospitality won out. My parents had a wonderful, and I think my Guatemalan family enjoyed meeting my parents. Then we went to Antigua for the last few days and beginning of Holy Week. Generally Holy Week activities don't start until Thursday, and my parents were leaving Wednesday morning. But we lucked out because Monday night when we arrived at our hotel they were making their traditional Holy Week carpets right outside for a procession that was going to pass by in a half hour. So my parents got a small taste of what Holy Week is like, so that was nice.
Right now I am in Antigua, where I spent Holy Week with two other YAVs and their two friends. I will make another post just on my Holy Week experiences.
About week after that trip I got to spend 10 days traveling with the Queens University group that came for Spring Break. That was very special for me, since I was first introduced to Guatemala through that exact trip. It was wonderful to see old friends, and make new ones. It was wonderful to see the country through their eyes, people who had never experienced these things before, where everything was new and fresh. It was funny to realize the things that have become so natural to me, but where big changes at first. I also got to try translating for the first time, which was really hard! Just listening is so much easier, but when i have to think about translating it makes everything much more difficult. But it was a good experience and I learned a lot. I was also sad to say good-bye to everyone, but I knew the month would continue to be full.
Then my parents arrived the last week of March and we spent a week traveling around. First we went to the coast because my dad had to check out the fishing in Guatemala, of course. No trip is complete without some type of fishing excursion. Usually I get out of the deep sea fishing, so that was my first experience. I actually got pretty motion sick, and I was surprised. My motion sickness has been better since I came to Guatemala, or really I have just learned to deal with it. I think the combination of being in the hot sun and out on the water was too much for me. I live in the cold mountains and am not accustomed to extreme heat anymore! Then I took my parents up into the mountains, where my Dad kept commenting on how extreme the change in weather is. I guess he never believed me when I told him it is COLD where I live, although right now it is the warmest part of the year. My mom and dad met Elvia, and all of her family that lives in San Marcos. I was really nervous about this part, I was not sure how it would pan out, but Guatemalan hospitality won out. My parents had a wonderful, and I think my Guatemalan family enjoyed meeting my parents. Then we went to Antigua for the last few days and beginning of Holy Week. Generally Holy Week activities don't start until Thursday, and my parents were leaving Wednesday morning. But we lucked out because Monday night when we arrived at our hotel they were making their traditional Holy Week carpets right outside for a procession that was going to pass by in a half hour. So my parents got a small taste of what Holy Week is like, so that was nice.
Right now I am in Antigua, where I spent Holy Week with two other YAVs and their two friends. I will make another post just on my Holy Week experiences.
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