Thursday - coming home

   
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Airport Guatemala City - early morning



It is 4:21 pm and I have been up since 3:30 am - seems like days ago.  Victor woke me up as he was preparing to go to work and Joshua from the God's Child Project picked me up at 4:00 am. 

The drive to Guatemala City was easy and the flight to LA okay but of course I was held up at immigration because I had a temporary passport, another line-up and wait. 

I count 8 line-ups I have been in already today and still not anywhere near home.  I lost it at the United Airlines check-in because it cost me $60 to check two bags - will never fly United again.  In LA for 6 hours and then 6 hours home as I have a stop in San Francisco.  It will be nearly 24 hours by the time I get home.

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Jose, Ivan, Ceasar, Dora nad Maria - my host family



I was sad to leave Antigua this morning - the Posada party with Dora and her family was interesting - we went to her son's place in another town, they live in a very uninteresting gated community of small non-descript little row houses.  If it hadn't been for the Spanish Christmas songs being sung, I could have been in any little town in any community in North America, but as we were following the procession around the small community, I looked over and saw a guard with a semi-automatic machine gun.  What a strange site it was - I just wish I could have taken a picture but I know guys with guns generally don't like having their pictures taken.  Even more interesting, would have been a picture of him coming over for a sandwich and a hot drink.

This family will always be special to me.  The children are beautiful and watching them play the same way children do eveywhere (rolling down hills, playing tag, doing cartwheels)  reminds me we are one race, just slightly different colours.

I will miss them!



  

 





Wednesday - last day

There are celebrations nearly every day it seems as we approach Christmas - Sunday was the celebration of the Immaculate Conception and tonight I am going to a party with my host family to honour the arrival of Mary and Josesh at the inn (Posada). 

 I cannot believe I only have one more day as I am beginning to feel like a local and enjoying my daily routine, which involves walking around Antigua, still drinking in the beauty of it, having coffee, checking email, and updating my blog.  Then I head home for lunch at Dora's and walk up to Casa Jackson, then back for dinner and generally out for the evening somewhere, then cab home for $3, though it is walking distance- it is not safe at night.  I bump into people I know, or meet new ones nearly every day.

It is cold here - in the morning people have their faces covered and many wear hats.  I considered buying a wool coat yesterday.  Next time I will come in April or May.

These are pictures of Dora and her grandchildren - Jose (7) and Maria (almost 3).    He is such a sweetheart, he comes up to me for a hug everytime I see him and Maria talks non-stop and bosses everyone around.  When I am in my room at night, I can hear her chattering on, over and above everyone else.   Both Jose and his older brother Ivan are at bilingual school so they speak a bit of English.  Every night- there are 5-6 family members at the house and Dora feeds them - last night I had dinner with her 2 sons, 2 grandsons and Maria.  Tonight I will attempt to take a family picture of everyone.


Dora with Jose and Maria


 Maybe I am being romantic but they seem so much happier than some Canadian families and yet they have so much less and life is hard.  The importance of family (the priority) is highly evident as is their faith.  I am so glad I chose to stay with this family and next time I am determined I will be able to speak to them in Spanish.  Believe it or not, I have managed to leave Dora little notes in Spanish that I am sure are totally misspelled and gramatically incorrect but it makes me hopeful that eventually I can learn the language.

Likely this will be my last posting until I get home, as I leave for the airport at 4:00 am tomorrow for a 7:30 flight to LA - 6 hours at the airport there and them home tomorrow night at 11:00 pm.  Wish I didn't have to go.

Jose playing hospital - according to Maria's directions.



Tuesday - two more days

No pics today as the battery on my computer died, will post some later.  I have gotten into a nice routine and feel sad that I have only one more day.  Poking around Antigua, chatting to people and trying to get warm, freezing here, coldest it has been in 5 years but when I looked at the pictures of what is going on in Sarnia, Ontario, I feel blessed.  Plan to buy a few small gifts for Dora´s grandchildren and maybe something for her and I hope to take some pictures of the family later so I can send some from home.  Then I will hit a small second hand bookstore and buy some children´s books for Casa Jackson as the toys and other activities for the kids are very limited. 

It has been a wonderful experience being at Casa Jackson but it is hard sometimes as without the volunteers the children would be left in cribs all day and though many have gone home for Christmas, some will still be there.  I believe some are abandoned kids as well, three have cerebral palsy and two are blind and one blind and deaf.  When we put them down and leave at the end of the day they cry desperately. 

The one thing that is so noticeable all over Guatemala is the total lack of concern for safety, pretty different from our anal attention to this area at home.  The volunteers come and go and no one seems to be really in charge, at home they would need two criminal record checks, doctor´s note, TB and HIV test, two references, two weeks of training etc. etc.    The floors at Casa Jackson are ceramic tile, the bathing facilites are on the floor in small plastic tubs, the peeling paint on the cribs likely lead based, picture taking would not be allowed without parental permission etc. etc.  Yesterday, I was told a Swedish volunteer fell from the third floor while washing windows a few weeks ago, so they closed for a week.   A disasater management plan here would be 100s of pages long.  Excellent example of the hierarchy of need scale, safety being on the bottom of the list.

There are two other areas that make Guatemala dangerous - tripping and being hit by cars.  So far have only tripped and fallen - will be sure to keep a close eye on traffic, so I make it on that plane on Thursday morning.

 

 These are pictures of Sunday evening - the celebration of the Immaculate Conception - the boys dress up as devils and the girls as angels (I guess).   Catholic celebrations are numerous and the devil is big here - the night I had my passport stolen was called the Burning of the Devil - which they do between the two gas stations. in Antigua.  A group make the devil out of paper mache each year and someone told me this year he was dressed like a surfer on a bicycle.  Go figure!

Monday morning - back to Antigua

Father and daughter in Antigua. My favorite picture so far.

Sitting in the expat cafe across from Parc Central in Antigua this morning, having a cafe grande and yogurt and granola, finally slowing down enough to enjoy a vacation.  The trip to Lake Atilan and Chichi was overwhelming but glad I did it; I saw the real Guatemala they talk about, coming back to Antigua was like a reprieve from the noise, crowds, throngs of people begging or selling, and general chaos.  We left Antigua at 5:30 am on Saturday morning and arrived in Panachel - city on the lake about 9:00 am - 1.5 hours late.   I was dropped at a lovely hotel, which was luxury after the host family lodgings and I was able to  speak French to the receptionist who was fluent, I now feel like my French is excellent after sturggling with my limited Spanish.  I was picked up almost immediately by my guide Alexandro who gathered up other tourists as he walked us to the lake.  We travelled across the lake and headed for San Juan, the first of three Mayan villages on the tour.    Along the way Alexandro pointed out several secluded Mayan villages, accessible only by boat, some as small as 3,000 people, most with hotels or properties, we first world people have bought or rent to get away from it all.   We walked up the hill through the first village and visited a women's weaving guild, where we were shown the process used to complete the traditional weavings.  When I saw how time consuming it was, I was embaressed at how little I have paid for some purchaces and though I had already bought so much, I bought more from her because I cannot imagine how they can make a living from such a remote location.

I hadn't been feeling very well in the morning and as the day progressed it got worse, severe rumbly tummy and nausea that culminated in me vomiting in the street after a tuk tuk ride to another village (San Pedro) and visiting an extremely humble abode of a local that was a family friend of our guide.  This was a true example of likely the way most of the poor mayans live, a shack with a dirt floor, mother is one section making tortillas for lunch on a open fire and father in the living room, bedroom, surrounded by his carvings which he proceeded to tell us about, along with a hard sell to buy.  I was feeling so sick by then I was unable to respond and had to use their "banyo" urgently at one point, a hovel with newspaper for toilet paper, 2nd worst bathroom to one I used in Morocco, but thank god it was there.  One of the women on our tour was a doctor from Holland and she was able to give me three different drugs to stop the activity.  I had to interrupt the tour and head back to Panachel on a ferry and go back to my hotel; a place I will never forget for the comfort it provided that day, including a private bathroom.



 

Hotel Utz Jay, Panachel

 I had considered staying another day in Panachel if I still felt sick but decided to carry on with the tour as things had settled down.  The ride to Chichi was about 2.5 hours.  Guatemala is a series of mountains and valleys with small villages nestled in amongst the volcanic mountains.    It is a dangerous country to travel in, not just because of the proverty and subsequent crime but because it has very high earthquake, volcanic and slide activity; anyone one of the three happen fairly regularly.  The area I was travelling in had several land slides in October due to very high rains,  this had hit the American and Canadian news - several people were killed.  Along the way there were several areas still being cleared and it looked like the work was all being done manually.   We arrived in Chichi safely and were given about 3 hours to visit the market and walk the town; I remembered being in the madenas in Morocco and the fear of being swallowed up by the crowds; lost and never finding my way out.  I braved it anyway and ended buying more "stuff" it was so cheap and the people eager to sell, as again the rains had caused a slump in tourism - of course I was happy to oblige.

 

The three pictures above are, the Chichi market, Santo Tomas Chruch and the hotel where I had lunch.  It would be like having the Vancouver Hotel on the corner of Main and Hastings, interesting juxstaposition and reminded me of the phrase

"holidaying in other people's misery".    Started to bother me a bit so I got my visa off the bus and bought more stuff.  I have presents for everyone or I could open a small store.

 



Sunday

In Panachel just waiting for the bus to pick me up to go to Chichicastenago and then back to Antigua. Beautuful little town, will write more later.

Friday in Antigua

Yesterday I went on a tour with a guide named Miguel (on the left), who took me up to the cross above Antigua and then to a nearby town  called San Antonio where there is a textile artisans' market where many of the local weavings are done.  Fortunately, they didn't take Visa or I would have bought more than I did.  Miguel offered to lend me money and pay him back in Antigua but I was worried about my Visa not working, so I politely declined.   Miguel was 12 at the time of the 1976 earthquake and  lost  four family members, including his mother.   One of the women dressed me in a traditional mayan costume (centre), I am sorry I couldn't buy more as tourism is really down here due to the economy.  I ended up buying a beautiful bed quilt in Antigua partly because I know they are really hurting.  It is so heavy it will probably put me over weight when flying home but it will be worth it.

I am going to Lake Atilan tomorrow so may not update for a few days.

Thursday morning

Cannot believe I leave a week today - I want to stay another month, amazing considering having my passport and all avenues for acquiring money stolen.  I spent the whole day in Guatemala City yesterday, acquiring a new passport and talking to Visa about unlocking my work vcredit card and sending emergency cash.  It is a long story I will tell later on.  The Guatemalam people are so friendly,  a young woman in a bank actually lent me her cell phone to call visa and because I kept getting cut off I ended up calling about 3 times.    Anyway, I have put it behind me and carrying on.  Back to wandering Antigua, doing a laundry, sightseeing and taking pictures, today I am back at Casa Jackson in the afternoon.  I still plan to go to Lake Atilan and Chichi on the weekend.  My host family have taught me how to keep money in 3 places, carry a copy of my passport and leave the original at home.  I am getting smarter! 

Did an amazing city tour -  the main industry in Guatemala after coffee, sugar and rum is remittance (Guatemalans working outside the country and sending money home).  This brings in 3.8 billion dollars!

Wednesday

Just spent 24 hours getting a new passport in Guatemala City.  Passport, visa and bank card stolen yesterday  ` ripped off my neck. I am okay - Will write more tomorrow.

Tuesday

Hard to believe tomorrow will be almost a week- it's going way to fast.  There are many ex-pats down here, I could see myself doing the same in a few years.  It is surprisingly expensive for some things - I was paying up to $14 for lunch but I have gotten smarter and finding the cheaper places to eat though I am eating at least 2 meals at Dora's.  Saturday and Sunday I will do an overnight side trip to Lake Atilan and Chichicastenago, which is a very large market - oh oh more shopping!  I justify all the things I am buying because I am paying $10 per day for accomadation and food and of course, I am also supporting the economy.

Public outdoor laundry facilities

I will be sponsoring a little boy named Jose who is 8 years old through the God's Child Project for $30 per month.  Today I will receive more information about him and maybe some pictures which I will post.  It is cold here - sunny but not hot - evenings and mornings are very cold.   Fortunatly I brought a few warm clothers!

Monday

View from Dora's House



My room at Dora's House

  Today I volunteer at Casa Jackson from 1:30 to 5:00 so in the city walking and shopping.  I had planned to move to the hostal today but changed my mind because I decided my plan had been to come, volunteer and stay with a family, at the hostal I would have ended up speaking english to young american tourists. I have found it a little difficult to be with a family and speak no Spanish.  Last night they invited me to a family gathering to say prayers before Christmas, at least I knew how to make the sign of the cross - better than nothing.  There were 11 people crammed into a tiny living room, Dora and her husband, their 4 children and 5 grand children.  Afterwards we had a hot blended banana drink and sandwiches - I bought some expensive pastries and then we sat around the table and they talked - it was a very strange experience so sit their quietly as I could not understand one word.   I was very aware of the richness of their life due to the extended family, I believe they are there nearly every evening, it made me miss having had that while Graham was  growing up.  Dora's children are all very well educated - an auditor, teacher, mechanical engineer and a lawyer - they commute to Guatemala City every day and have to leave at 5:00 am to arrive on time as the traffic is so bad it can take up to two  hours despite being only 45 minutes away.  Clearly Dora and Victor's focus has been on educating their children and not beautifying their home, our standards are so different.  At first I thought they were very poor but I think they are probably considered middle class.  I will try to take a family picture later and add it to this post.

Antigua is only about 8 blocks long and wide so it is very easy to get around, though the streets are all cobbled so I have to be very careful not to trip - quit wearing sandals.


Agua Valcano to the north of Antigua



Sunday morning

Met a woman by the name of Maria Lopez for coffee this morning, she is a Spanish woman from Edmonton who comes to Antigua for 4 months, rents an apartment and volunteers.

She showed me around town and took me to San Pedro Church which is run by the Franciscan Brothers - they care for people with disabilities and also babies who require surgery, often to repair cleft palettes which are common due to lack of folic acid in the diets of the mothers.   


Maria Lopaz and a woman from San Pedro

 

San Pedro Church

 

This is a picture of a family I have befriended, Anna and her five children:  Johnny, Christina, Cynthia, Fernando and Alexandre - I bought about 9 scarves from her, she was so generous about picture taking.



Saturday in Antigua

Finally sunny and hot here - it was cold and cloudy when I arrived.

Last night I volunteered  at the Homeless Shelter - an amazing experience.  It is dark by 6:00 pm here so I did the one thing I have been advised not to do which is walk at night, I hoofed it down there and was met by Jorge who walked me to the shelter, a pretty rough part of town near the bus station.  I helped dish out and serve a meal of rice, meat and beet and carrot salad to about 60 people - mostly men but some women and children as well.  At 8:00 pm Jorge walked me back to get a tuk-tuk (small cab- a buck for anywhere in town) but I had forgotten to bring my address so getting home was interesting but got there eventually - gave him $2 for the trouble.  Met Dora's daughter who is a 26 year old lawyer who speaks english so enjoyed that.

Today I spent the morning at the centre helping w the Christmas Party for about 800 kids- overwhelming.  They had several pinatas and I did a mad scramble to retrieve some candy for the little guys who would have been out of luck, then helped serve lunch to a long line of hungry boys - pizzas, cake, coke, and frozen bananas. It took over an hour and before the line was finished the cake was gone but fortunately there was enough pizza and pop. Each of the children received a present, some bigger than they were.

Second day!

Oh my god - this is so wonderful.....

Spent the morning at Casa Jackson, the centre for children who are malnourished, about a 10 minute walk from the Dreamer Centre.  Casa Jackson is like a small hospital for up to 20 children  most under three who have varing levels of developmental delay depending on their family situaiton.  Most are very under weight and many are not walking or talking.  The morning was spent bathing, holding, playing and feeding the children.  Other than me, there are several other volunteers from Germany and some from Guatemala.  We have to be walked to and from the centre with a man because some volunteers have been robbed in the past.   The school is closed for the holidays, so likely I will be at Casa Jackson and then the Homeless Shelter from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm.  Tomorrow I will help with the Christmas Party at the Dreamer Centre and then it closes for the holidays. I  plan to take some side trips to Chicacantengo and Lake Atilan, maybe Tikal- I will see how it goes.

Dora is a wonderful host and speaks English well so she in helping me with my Spanish which is pitiful.  She cares for her 3 year old grand-daughter, Maria who I have fallen for - she talks non-stop so I call her my maestro d'espagnol.   Had thought of looking for another place such as the hostal where I am writing this but it would be the same $ but only one meal a day, with Dora I am paying $10 per day w 3 meals -makes for a cheap vacation and the experience of being with a family is rich.   It is also very safe and quiet despite her entire family being there for dinner last night.

So far everything is perfect - better than I thought.

Made it!

Its 9:15 am in Antigua and have had no sleep but walking around the city to get a sense of my surroundings, it is very muh like San Miguel D´Allende but smaller and flatter. Managed to exchange some American money which is a good thing because none of the ATMs would take my visa.  That might be a problem later on.  Had a great morning coffee and breakfast, then a shoe shine by two little boys for $10, they probably thought they were ripping me off but I was very aware they were getting a great deal.  It was worth it, my shoes will glow in the dark.

I am staying with a woman by the name of Dora Luz, it is very meagre lodgings and not sure how comortable it will be but I will give it a try.  She is obviously very poor and has done her best to make it welcoming.  I am headed back there now for a rest and then Corinne from the project will pick me up at 1:00 to have a tour of the centre. 

This keyboard is missing some letters and other punctuation marks so bear with me, either that or it´s because I have been up for 24 hours.

More later!