News about my host family

This came from Kim earlier this week:

"You will be staying with Dora Luz.  She is in the Colonial Manchen neighborhood where some of our long term volunteers stay.  Dora is a great host mother and has a long history with The Project.  She has no animals and I’ve heard she is one of the best host families to stay with.  She speaks some English, but would be happy to help you work on your Spanish.  She will make sure you are well taken care of.  Your transportation is set up and what you can expect is someone waiting for you after baggage claim when you arrive. They will have a sign with your name on it.  The driver will deliver you right to Dora’s house."

I am finished work now, so madly trying to complete many small tasks before I go - cancel the paper, give Ann the key, mail a gift, contact the bank etc.  I bought a digital camera this morning so I can update this blog on a daily basis as long as I have easy access to internet.   I have read over the volunteer journal and sent contact information to family.  Over the next few days I will review the spanish handbook I received when I took a course.  Hopefully Dora is patient - she will have to be with my limited Spanish!

Fast Approaching

I spoke with Kim from North Dalota on Friday and gave her a visa numbr so she could make the arrangements for the pick-up and drop-off to and from the host family.  By next week she said she will have the information about my host family.   Holly gave me a large bag of Aleya's clothes which are in very good condition and will no doubt make several little girls happy.  I will email all my other friends and ask for their hand me downs so I can take them with me.  Reading about Antigua makes it easier because it sounds like a beautiful and fairly safe city.

"Antigua sits in a Highland valley (1,500 meters) overlooked by the spectacular Agua Volcano (3,765 meters high). A little further away are two other volcanoes Acatenango and the always smoking, sometimes erupting, Fuego. The neighboring towns and villages include Ciudad Vieja, Jocotenango, San Juan El Obispo, Santa María de Jesús, San Bartolomé Milpas Altas and Santa Catalina Barahona. Each of these towns is worth a visit, even if only to view their historic colonial churches.  Antigua’s kitchen offers a palate-pleasing combination of traditional flavors, aromas and condiments that produce a delicious, nutritious and varied menu, something you cannot miss.  Antigua is also noted for its crafts: terracotta, ceramics, wrought iron, silver and jade jewelry, wooden sculptures, carved colonial-style furniture, a great variety of traditional costumes and weavings, figured stone, brass, jarcia, traditional toys and much more."

The typhiod vaccine is making me feel quite sick and tired. Tomorrow will be the last dose, so hopefully by the weekend I will be feeling better. I would advise anyone needing this vaccine to have the shot instead of the oral vaccine. The side effects would likely be one day instead of 8.

I managed to change my flight out of Vancouver so the layover is only 3 hours as oppossed to 10. The $100 fee to make the change is worth it. I have written Kim in North Dakato to enquire as to whether I need a visa for Guatemala. The reading in the Volunteer Handbook mentioned that US citizens didn't need one.  I am assuming they have lumped us Canadians into the mix.

I am beginning to wish I was staying longer than two weeks but I am certain I will go back.

"Antigua Guatemala, in the Department of Sacatepéquez, (Cerro de Hierba), may be the most outstanding and best-preserved colonial city in Spanish America. Tourists visit Antigua Guatemala every year from around the world to enjoy its natural beauty and historic monuments. The Spanish Colonial style permeates every part of the town: its houses, churches, squares, parks and ruins, also its traditions and folklore as well. Antigua is a city of charm and color where you can see and buy an overwhelming variety of attractive, handmade products that honor the traditions of generations of artisans."

Vaccines and flight changes

On Thursday last week, I went to the Travel Clinic in North Vancouver so I could receive the shots I need for Guatemala. They gave me Hepetitis A and I am taking an oral vaccine for typhoid. Fortunately I had a fairly recent tetnus shot so I didn't need a third one. They also gave me a prescription drug I can take for diarrhea, if Immodium is not strong enough to stop it. I have had slight flu symptoms and very tired - slept 9 hours last night.

Delta changed my flight again so now arriving at 7:30am in Guatemala but leave LA at 11:30 pm. That will be a long unpleasent wait especially remembering the LA airport. Perhaps I should look up some of my long lost cousins.

I am going to dig through my things and see if I can find the Spanish audio tape I bought so I can listen to it on the way to and from work.