BECOMING LOCAL... (hay que acostumbrarse, part II)

Almost 4 months have already passed since I arrived here, and more and more I feel like a local… I have been getting used to the different lifestyle, the different pace of my days here in Guatemala. 

But now, a certain anxiousness about my future, my next steps, starts to kick in. Though I am still in an early phase, I can’t help it … and often catch myself bouncing ideas back and forth… hmmmm

It’s somehow complicated to have left a great job and a career and a lifestyle that you had liked (for the most part) and then you need to figure out what else to do. 

Now that I have the opportunity, I want to give myself the freedom to explore all sorts of possibilities … and one of them is (surprisingly?) going back into a similar job in a similar environment. After all, I liked my job before. Or would that be disappointing?

On the other hand, do I have to do something completely different just because I have the opportunity to do so? hmmmmm

These mind games will keep me busy for a while…

Anyway….

They say that after 3-4 months you start to let go of your sub-conscious tourist attitude and start to realize that you actually live in this new place. And that’s when some of the things that are difficult for you to get used to are starting to bother you just a little more… Well, for me I have been very lucky not to encounter too many things that really bother me. Some initial things have been discussed in an earlier post.

As you could hopefully read in my lasts (though not very frequent) posts, I am quite happy about how things have turned out so far. I have met the right people at the right time and somehow, everybody has been very nice to me. I have established a good flow for all my activities (which include sleeeeeeeeping, going to the gym very regularly, working with Ventanas Abiertas as well as worldpossible.org, salsa classes with Nancy, and just enjoying Guatemala).

Here are a few more observations that I have picked up over the last few months. And again, I am not judging, just observing & comparing… ;-)

USTED (formally addressing people)

One thing that has struck me from the very beginning here was how ultra-formal this country is in certain ways of communication.

Many languages know a formal and an informal way of addressing someone. Grammar usually gives a few ideas on how and when to use it, but – as with any language – its use is also depending on where you are and what the social / cultural context is.

Here in Guatemala, the basic understanding is: the formal way to address someone (ie. ‘Usted’) is used, when you want to show respect. So far, so good.

Now, I am used to formally address people I don’t know (both male and female, especially senior people), until the more senior of us offers to move to the informal way of addressing each other. This usually happens pretty quickly and this respect ‘thing’ works in both ways, unless one of the two is a non-adult.

Here in Guate, it is very, VERY common to use the formal ‘usted’ within the family and friends circles as well, for example to show respect to your parents, brothers and sisters, and also children.

So, I have seen married couples that use ‘usted’ between themselves (after 40 years of being a married couple, they are still addressing each other with the formal ‘usted’!!), to their children, grandchildren and the other way around. A 60-year old is easily going to use ‘usted’ to address his/her sister or brother, even after a whole life of being family, but also to address his/her grandchild.

Imagine this: It’s very ‘normal’ here that someone will use the informal ‘vos’ (oh, that's a whole other story... :) ) to address the ‘same-sex’ best friend, but will be using ‘usted’ to address his/her husband/boyfriend/wife/girlfriend. If I meet Nancy’s ‘female’ cousin, she will use ‘usted’ to address me. If I meet Nancy’s best friend, she will use ‘usted’ to address me, but her husband, who is addressing Nancy with ‘usted’ too, is addressing me with ‘vos’/’tu’. Complicated. :)

Then again, I have seen (male) teachers address me with ‘tu’ and expecting me to address them with ‘usted’, because they were older, but at the project I work at, if I give math classes to a 7 year old kid, I will address him/her with ‘usted’ just as well. You basically use ‘usted’ with everyone except with your best (same sex) friends, and more so in rural areas! More liberal city families are already using ‘vos’ (‘tu’ is practically not used here) between themselves, but I don’t think I will ever address Nancy’s parents in an informal way like that, even though they certainly address me with ‘vos’. :)

Bottom line is: in Guatemala the use of ‘formal vs informal’ follows a completely different concept. I feel like it has been replaced with some sense of needing to show respect to people and especially so to people within the family. It’s certainly different than how the formal address is used in Europe.

So I have had some very interesting situations, here.

Buses / ‘camionetas’

Lots and lots of people need to travel every day to go to work/school/allsortsofplaces. That’s nothing new and it’s the same here in Guate. Guatemala is actually famous for its ‘chicken buses’, which basically are old North-American school buses that are used here until they ‘die’. And they are definitely they absolutely cheapest way to travel…

that's a regular one in the street

And guess what, I have to travel with one of those chicken buses every day, twice. It’s an experience – ie. an adventure – every time :) for two reasons:

The drivers drive like crazy chicken drivers, as if they were running away from Police or something like that… way too fast, wayyyyy too aggressive. It’s because they don’t really run on a schedule and they can potentially make more money if they get to do a round more.

Having said that, they load as many people as humanly possible into the bus. If a bench usually fits 2 people, they can fit 3 or 4. If a row fits 5 people, they can sure fit 7, too. All age groups, all professions, all sorts of things to take along. It’s a fun experience, that’s for sure… but I do feel lucky that my way to ‘work’ is a rather quiet road with little traffic.

(I once took a picture of the usual rush hour mess, but can't seem to find it right now.. :( )

Traditional clothes

I have been very surprised / impressed by the amount of people (though mostly women) that are wearing traditional clothes in Guatemala. Very, very beautifully handmade with nice colors.. the diversity is really amazing.

Here’s a source for more information: http://www.rutahsa.com/traje.html

In this case, pictures will speak for themselves. 

Food

I love the fact that my host mom is a passionate cook and she loves to cook typical local food... so I have been able to try many different typical dishes. Really tasty and nice.

One thing, I haven't grown fond of, and probably won't, is the amount of tortillas people eat here with every meal. I would say, an average Guatemalan will eat between 4 and 8 tortillas accompanying every meal... and I mean EVERY meal. If you don't know what tortillas are, it's a type of flat bread, similar to the Indian Naan, etc. It's really amazing.

I suppose it's a really good filler, so people that don't have enough food can still feel well fed and they are fairly cheap. Maybe that's where this habit comes from.

As a consequence, you can find tortilla selling families at every corner... it's quite fascinating. :)

OK, that's it for now.

Take care and be good... I'll keep you in the loop. haha   

VENTANAS ABIERTAS

So I have started my volunteering work (and have stopped going to Spanish classes).

Remember that apart from an old dream of living in and exploring Latin America and exploring the relationship with a girl that would change my life, I also came here to work as a volunteer.

Don’t ask me why or how exactly, but somehow I ended up with this project called VENTANAS ABIERTAS (http://openwindowsfoundation.com) and after a few weeks, I really feel like this is the project I was supposed to end up working with.

VENTANAS ABIERTAS (VA) is essentially a dynamic learning center for children from low income families in the little town of San Miguel Dueñas, ten miles from Antigua, Guatemala. With its many activities, it provides an educational support environment to more than 250 kids every day and a total of approximately 2,500 registered children from the area.

Seven permanent staff members and many volunteers provide the children with learning services and programs to help improve their options in life and to increase their self confidence and self sufficiency. Here, the children find a friendly and encouraging environment to help them be successful at school, so they can follow their dreams of a better life in the future.

VA have a reading room with a library that currently offers around 10,000 (donated) books, including picture books, fiction / non-fiction, and reference books as well as school text books that support the local school curriculum. Many of these children are first generation readers, so access to books is essential. The kids need to develop a sense of value for the book and its content and they need to find excitement in reading and learning… something that is not given in their families or communities.

reading room / library

two teachers preparing an afternoon activity at the library

Complementing school work, VA also offers educational support like tutoring and homework support as well as reinforcement classes in math, languages, accounting, etc. Furthermore, there are opportunities to participate in activities introducing motor skills, basic reading, writing, handwriting and spelling skills and most importantly ‘critical thinking skills’.

 improvised classrooms in the garage and in a tent just in front of the garage

A few years ago, VA initiated a computer lab here at the center with a few donated computers. Now, this lab has become an essential and very important part of the activities here. Many of the kids are using computers for the first time and it’s been opening up an entirely new world of opportunities for them. Children have access to basic computer classes specific to age groups as well as more advanced classes for older children, like MS Office courses.

this is the computer lab during one of the few quiet moments....

Every day, there are a number of activities here.

In interactive literacy activities, teachers bring books to life and children learn how to explore the story and content of a book through reading, writing, interpreting, etc. In related activities, the little ones can express the stories they heard through arts and crafting.

Other activities include guest presentations on different work areas, jobs or on important topics, like for example ‘how to recycle?’, which have the potential to initiate cultural changes or at least changes of perspective.

VA also provides an afternoon snack for the kids every day… because many of them do not necessarily receive regular food at home, so they suffer from malnutrition or are at least underfed.

this is where the kids put their bikes ... 250 kids, how many bikes?

kids taking a break

kids enjoying the afternoon snack

here you can see how the kids get their afternoon snack. 

this snack is called 'atol', a thick warm drink with lots of nutritious stuff in it...

Finally, VA is committed to send selected, talented and motivated children from low income families to middle and high school (in Switzerland: Sekundarschule). The idea is to break the cycle of poverty and allow children to pursue an education that will allow them to have a better job later and hence a better life in the future.

However, since the costs related to going to such schools are usually too high for the families here, they need sustainable financial support, otherwise they will prefer to send their kids to work.

So, we currently have around 50 children on a scholarship every year. A scholarship includes inscription fees, school uniforms, books and transport expenses to get to those schools and are around USD 500.—per kid, per year.

Again, you can find more information here:

http://openwindowsfoundation.com

the kids also learn basic social skills

And what does Patricito do in all of this, you ask?

Well, as unlikely as it may sound :) every afternoon I am giving math reinforcement classes to a few kids that really need it. This has been an interesting experience, because some of the things are so basic that I have issues explaining them to someone that doesn't have the capability to imagine the abstract idea of numbers on a line or why numbers can be positive and negative. But it's been a fun challenge.

Also, I am helping the center with fundraising. You might get contacted by me about that sometime soon. ;-)

Furthermore, I am helping to further develop the computer lab.

Up until recently, VA was using (very old) donated learning software programs with the kids in some of the classes. A very generous donation earlier this year allowed for a replacement of most of the (old) computers, but now we are facing a challenge. The new computers are all running Windows 8, and some – actually most – of the learning software we use are not running properly anymore.

So, one of my projects is to fix that.

Another one is the following: ..since the internet access here and in most places in Guatemala is very moderate at best, we are looking to bring a lot of offline content to the center using the Raspberry Pi technology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi). To do this we work with an NGO called World Possible (http://worldpossible.org/) that has compiled a lot of content (e.g. the entire Khan Academy (https://www.khanacademy.org/) video library or the entire Wikipedia in Spanish) and put it onto Raspberry Pi’s so as to make it available offline. 

If you don’t know what I am talking about, we are basically making a lot of very cool stuff available offline for the kids to access it here at VA. Another fun project.

And since I wasn't exactly made to be the perfect math teacher, I think this is also more the kind of stuff that I feel comfortable with and can actually add value…

Hopefully, this has given you an idea on what keeps me busy.

It’s a different type of busy than I had been used to in the last few years, though. And you wouldn’t believe it, but I really needed to get used to the very different pace of living and working here.

To this day, I feel like I am not doing enough and things are not moving fast enough.

Keep in touch and more from me soon. 

MY FIRST FEW WEEKS

Dear reader

I know, it’s been a while. 

And I understand that to write a blog kind of implies writing more regular updates. I will try to be better at this de hoy en adelante (going forward).

The thing is, it’s not that nothing worth writing about has happened. Quite the opposite, actually.

So, today I’ll try and give you a few ideas about my life here in the last few weeks..

Mi casa

My house – well the house I call my home for now – is a typical house in Antigua Guatemala. From the outside, you can see a wall and a door, more or less ugly, and that's it. But as soon as you step through the door, it’s like entering a new world.

In my case it’s a beautiful old colonial house with the typical interior garden with looooots of plants. Around this garden, there’s like a passway with arcades in U-shape, which kind of serves as the living room. There’s usually no real living room inside, because the climate allows for people to sit outside most of the time during the year. And around that, you’ll find a number of rooms which serve as bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens or like in our case, the kitchen is outside as well.. so there’s really only bedrooms and bathrooms around the whole thing.

My host family is fairly small and consists of my host mom Elsa – a really nice older lady, that has quickly turned into my substitute mother – who is cooking, cleaning, ironing my shirts and generally taking care of me in a very cute way and her security chick (see last post). Elsa is really the cutest lady ever, who loves to talk, so I always have someone to practice my Spanish with during breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as at any other time.

Elsa 

 Our 'living room' and eating space

 My bedroom 

Recent weekends

Two weeks ago, we had a long weekend – Friday was a day off – so Nancy and I decided to take advantage of this and travel a little bit.

On Friday, on our way to Lago Atitlan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lago_de_Atitlán) 

we passed by the town of Sumpango with its famous Kite Festival (there will be a specific post about this soon), a really amazing celebration of the art of kite making and kite flying.

We then drove all the way to Panajachel 

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panajachel) 

and from there, we had to take a little boat – a lanchita – which brought us to our hotel for the weekend in about 15mins.

We were lucky, because we pretty much just arrived to the boat place, when one of the boats was leaving (sometimes you have to wait up to 30mins until the boat is full and the captain is ready to leave), but the problem was that we didn’t really have a place to sit anymore. So we sat in the front of the boat… and only after a few minutes, we realized that the boat had a little leakage in the front, so I arrived at our hotel with a bit of a wet backside.

no comments, pls :)

The hotel was absolutely beautiful (http://islaverdeatitlan.com/), 

an eco-lodge situated directly at the lake, but integrated into the mountains surrounding it, with stunning views, great food and a really cute private bungalow, or rather ‘hut’, with an ‘open air’ shower and toilet we called our home for the 2 nights.

view from the room

bathroom and right next to it...

 ... the shower

our little bungalow integrated into the forest

a chill out area

our room 

the view from the restaurant

We explored the area and a few of the villages around the lake and simply enjoyed each other’s company, the great healthy food and the beauty and silence of the nature at the lake.

For the weekend one week ago, Nancy’s family decided – like on Thursday – that we were going to spend the weekend at the beach. Of course I didn’t mind at all. The entire family went… Nancy’s parents, brother and sister and the sister’s boyfriend. And I. :)

There’s only little I can say about this weekend .. it was nearly perfect. A bungalow directly at the (black) beach, with a Swimming pool and direct access to the beach.

The weather was nice most of the time – we did have a quick shower period – and we just chilled in the hammock, around or in the pool, went for a little walk along the beach or otherwise ate, drank and played games. It was so much fun! I really felt part of the family, which was excellent.

The beach or rather the sand has a very specific color.. almost black. I don’t think I have ever seen a beach like this, but looking at the amount of volcanoes in this country, it’s not entirely surprising that the beach would be black because of the volcanic soil. Very interesting.

Oh and another thing that is interesting is that here you can rent a house and it comes with a person that does all the cooking, cleaning and everything… so it felt much more like a 5-star experience than it probably would have otherwise.

 view from the house 

please do notice the pool, the beach right behind it as well as the hammocks. thank you!

'black' sand 

OK... big hugs to y'all. I am off to yet another wedding tonight. :)

More about that at a later time.

Also, I have started my volunteering work. That's another post coming up soon. Stay tuned!!

Much love

HAY QUE ACOSTUMBRARSE… PART I

Another week of full day Spanish classes has gone by... same thing, different teacher... and it's been great.

Well, so far I have been living a very good life here. Focused, simple, not much distraction (other than you-know-who) and a lot of time to enjoy not feeling stressed at all. I think I could get used to that.

There are, however, those little unexpected challenges that are part of living in a country far away from home. I will share some with you in the next few weeks, while I am getting used to life here.

Water:

> First immediate experience…warm water is not obvious! So far I have lived in two houses, both of the 'nicer' sort and both didn’t seem to be able to provide the kind of warm water that I have grown used to when taking my morning shower back in good ol' Suiza. As a matter of fact, the warmest it gets barely helps me not to have to hold my breath… I am probably just a little bit of a 'wuss'!

I am thinking they do it on purpose here, so people don’t spend 20mins in the hot shower like I know some of us do back home, but then again, probably not. My showers are certainly very quick and much less fun over here. :)

> Water in general is a thing to be watched. I have already talked to a few people here and the consensus seems to be that tap water or any running water is fairly contaminated and definitely not drinkable. You can’t (read: shouldn’t/mustn't, well as a delicate European anyway) use tap water to brush your teeth and my host mom doesn’t wash vegetables with it either. She puts anything that is not cooked, peeled or otherwise boiled and safe in disinfectant. Nancy’s family have an ozone-filter, which I assume is the most common thing to have to make sure you don’t have to buy bottled water day in day out.

Yet, I have been drinking nothing but water, tea and coffee (with milk) here so far. 

> It’s very common to see used / dirty water to be thrown out on the street, just like it's done with waste.

> As much as rain is needed to make sure the large amount of people living off agricultural products here in Guatemala can survive, rain is also a real pain in the b*tt!! Not only does it not come softly and nicely, but in huge amounts, it also completely destroys traffic patterns, entire streets turn into rivers, entire mountains move downhill, mosquitos are multiplying like there’s no tomorrow and the humidity levels raise to uncomfortable levels.

These high humidity levels have also made my first night in my new bed in Antigua a little bit of a challenge, because the mattress, bed sheets and covers were so humid (practically wet) that I didn’t know how to sleep, well didn’t sleep. And I am certainly still getting used to the constant smell of humidity in my room and in the bathroom.

Mosquitos:

The little f**kers do not deserve to exist… ‘nuff said!!

Security:

Everybody constantly speaks about seguridad here. And it really is a topic.

> All cars (ALL cars) have polarized, black windows all around so that nobody can see who’s in the car from the outside. Bullet-proof windows are quite common, too.

> My host mother Elsa is the mother of a high level government employee. As a consequence, she gets special treatment in the form of a bodyguard of the Policía Nacional that’s with her 24/7. So, sometimes I am having dinner with Elsa and someone, who carries a gun. Just like in a movie :)

> Antigua Guatemala is a really cute little town with lots of shops, bars, restaurants and lots of things happening in the streets. Many tourists come here for its beautiful buildings and churches that are all UNESCO World Heritage. As soon as it gets dark however, the streets quickly empty and only in the very center of the city can you still see people outside. Why, you ask? Because it gets dangerous.

People, and especially white folks (supposedly all rich) get robbed regularly. Just the other day I was talking to an US-American who got asked nicely to only keep his underwear on and then walk away. So if you have to be outside at night – let’s say you go to a bar or club, do it in a group and/or take a taxi to go home. Most people are home by latest 8pm, though. 

I mean, don’t get me wrong, living here is calm, easy and the people are generally very warm and hospitable. At the same time, you just do quickly find out which streets to use and which not to use at night. You never carry a lot of money or more than one credit card. And you do develop a certain heightened attention for potentially difficult situations… and not to draw attention to yourself.

> It’s for example not possible to carry a nice phone, wear a nice watch or anything of value, because you run the risk of ‘losing’ it very quickly. And if you happen to have a new iPhone, you do not want to show it around in the street, even during day time.

Therefore I am not wearing my watch and my local phone - that I sometimes use on the street - is a fairly small and simple one (remember your first Nokia?). If I carry my laptop, I don’t carry it in a backpack that could make it obvious that there’s a laptop in it… I carry it in a simple bag that looks like nothing specific.

> Even more than in Antigua, it’s very common to see armed guards in front of supermarkets and other places like that in the city (Guatemala City), which for an average Swiss traveler certainly comes across weirdly.

More about these topics and others soon. Also, I promise to post pictures more regularly going forward. And I will definitely post pics and visual impressions on facebook more often.

Hasta luego!

TO BE OR NOT TO BE FLUENT - PART I

Monday… the first day of the week, the first day in Antigua, the first day on my own, the first day of Spanish classes. Monday, the 14^th of October 2013.

I knew approximately where the school was situated in the city. A short walk from where I stay.. 3 blocks, 4 at the most. And I knew the number of the house.

Since only some of the streets have street names to help you get around the city, I certainly took the wrong turn and ended up standing in front of the house #43, but in the wrong street. So I entered into what they call tiendita here, which is essentially something like a small kiosk that offers snacks and other unhealthy stuff, and asked in which street I was. The young guy sitting there seemed to understand me and told me that I was in 7^th street North, not the 6^th .

Fueled with energy, motivation and a first successful conversation with a local guy, I proceeded to find my school, called Proyecto Lingüistico Francisco Marroquín (PLFM).

I was greeted by the technical director of the school – who is responsible for the content of the teachers’ classes – and led to the main presentation room, where I received my welcome presentation and was given a welcome package.

Ten minutes later, I was introduced to my teacher Ana Mercedes – short: Merci or Mercy – and with no delay, I started my first day of classes.

Fijense que I had signed up for 7 hours per day, 5 days per week, 1on1 type classes.

We start at 8am (on time), short break at 10am, continue until 12pm. After lunch, we start at 2pm, short break at 3.30pm and end the day at 5pm. Just the teacher and me. Homework and revision to be done during free time. This is serious business…!!

Well, my school is really nicely located in the city, attached to one of the main attractions of Antigua: the Iglesia y Convento de Nuestra Señora de la Merced, a really nice old church and convent complex that’s at least partially still very well maintained. The school itself consists of the main building with a few offices, a library and room with computers and in the backyard, there’s a coffee corner and a garden with the cubicle-like class rooms that you can see in the pictures below.

In every class room there’s a table and two chairs, a white board and a little lamp, just in case the sun goes away temporarily.

Looking around, there are lots of plants and flowers, butterflies flying around and a gardener, who’s constantly digging holes and watering plants. It’s almost picturesque… and certainly a good place to study.

As you can imagine, with the right attitude, it’s really possible to get stuff done in this setting.

Luckily I was allocated a great teacher, who not only quickly picked up on my Spanish level and speed requirements, but also knew an answer to (almost) any and all questions I had.

We got along really well and had a great time… we got quite a bit of grammar theory done, but also just talked a lot, did loooads of exercises (writing, reading and listening comprehension, use of grammar, etc.), read an entire (though short) book and even played Scrabble in Spanish. I feel like I made a lot of progress this week, clarified a whole lot of questions and I actually had quite many of those famous ‘ahhhhh‘ moments.

I think it made all the difference that she was not trying to be overly strict or serious, but was structured and demanding and also knew how to keep my attention. I do have a tendency to be distracted easily… ;-)

Other than studying Spanish I didn’t do much… 3 meals a day (Elsa’s cooking skills are highly recommendable: “muyyyy rico”), a bit of reading and homework, and that’s it. I think I slept a good 8 hours a day in average.

A surprise visit de mi Nancita on Wednesday evening made this week a special one… :)

‘So, how’s your Spanish?’ – you ask?

I’m very pleased with how I can keep a conversation by now. My vocabulary has grown substantially and I definitely feel more comfortable just talking with people.

I am even more pleased at how motivated I am to get rid of my mistakes and master the different tenses without having to think about it anymore. There’s surely a good bit of work left to do, but I can’t wait to start working on my Guatemaltecan (chapín) accent.. 

FIRST DAYS

Well then… Tuesday, 8^th of October 2013, was the big departure day.

As ready as can be, for my last night in Suiza, I was staying over at my new official home in Zurich… with my dear friends Juerg and Ada, who have kindly agreed to add my name to their mailbox, so I can still remain registered in Switzerland.

My flight was at 13.20h and my plan was to be at the airport at around 10.00h. If you know me, you know that of course that was never going to happen. Even though I got up at like 6.00h and I had practically everything packed already beforehand. Well, I did still have a few things to do, like going to the Registry of the City of Zurich to change my address and … actually, I am not really sure what else I did, but I only left the house shortly before 11.00h.

At the airport I checked-in my two nice suitcases and then proceeded to go to my bank. I still had to get one of those travel cash / credit cards as well as take care of a few other things. Then I went to the gate, bought a few gifts for Nancy’s family on the way, and off I went.

After 10 hours of SWISS Economy Class (which is not so bad after all), a few movies and a little bit of comida, I arrived at Miami, Florida. Lovely Sarita – who was going to host me for the night - was already waiting for me at the gate and we directly went for dinner at ‘Sushisamba‘ or ‘Sambasushi‘ – a Japanese / Brazilian fusion place as you would guess. Barbara and Patrick, a very nice couple I had already met once or twice before, joined us for what was going to be a short night out… I was just too tired.

The next day, after some 8 hours of mentally preparing for my new life to come, I got onto the flight to Guatemala City. First major challenge: I was flying American Airlines.

With a slight delay, but – despite the airline – no other issues, I arrived at 21.00h on Wednesday night in the country that is now my home. GUATEMALA.

Happy, excited and also a little nervous, I was picked up by my always very beautiful Nancy.

It was so good to see her again. We got my stuff into her car and embarked on our first common activity … dinner at her family’s place. Everyone was going to be there… her parents, her brother Eddy, her sister Laura plus boyfriend Bernardo as well as two dogs, Osama aka Negrito and Bin Laden aka Bin. No comment.

Admittedly, I had been a little hesitant about this dinner as well as the fact that I was going to stay with Nancy’s family for the first few days. I thought, that because I had never met them, things might be a little awkward, cos I wouldn’t know what to say.. and since of course Nancy was going to be working for the first two days, too, I was potentially going to be alone with parts of her family, etc., soooo yeah, I just didn’t really feel all excited about this.

In hindsight I don’t really know what the F* I was thinking!!!

I could not have wished for a better start into my adventure than to stay with this lovely family. Immediately, I felt welcome and everyone was very warm, hospitable and nice with me. The food was excellent and even my modest attempts to participate in the conversation during dinner were greeted with patience and slow enough responses. What’s more, the dogs seemed to like me, too.

On my first morning, I already did the unthinkable and went on a little excursion with Nancy’s mom, Doña Norma.

YES, only with her. Again, very lovely. We were chatting away and had a pretty good time. Who would have thought… :)

In the afternoon, Nancy surprised me with a half day off, so we spent a few hours in a really nice place at the edge of the city.. drinking a good coffee and catching up. Just perfect! In the evening, we went for drinks and a small dinner to a bar/restaurant called ‘La Playa’ .. not sure what part of it was supposed to be beach-like, but it is a very nice place with very nice Caipirinhas nonetheless.

Friday was a lazy day with not much activity on my side. I blamed it on the jetlag and slept in until like 11.00h and then really didn’t do much other than a few pages in my book and maybe a bit of watching TV. At some point in the afternoon, Laura informed me that ‘today is an ice cream day‘ , so we went and bought ice cream and you would not believe the amount of toppings that can be found in the family’s fridge. Delicious. Oh and dinner with my partner in crime Nancita at this Italian place that I think I’ll need to go back to. Really good pasta!!

On Saturday, the plan was to bring all my stuff to Antigua .. so that’s what we did. HA!

After a short run around the neighborhood, I had a bit of laundry to be done and then set out for the roughly 60mins drive to Antigua. Once arrived – and after a snack at a very famous place with typical local food (don’t remember the complicated name) – I met my host mother, Elsa. A lovely 65-year old (approximately) that will surely be an integral part of my life here in Antigua.

I unpacked my stuff, talked to Elsa for a little bit, had dinner with her and then Nancy and I decided to stay in Antigua for drinks and a bit of dancing. At the local Irish pub, we had good fun until around 00.30h before we headed back to Guatemala City. Early you think? Bars and clubs close at 1.00h here.

On Sunday, Nancy’s father had planned to make it a Churrasco day. Well, what can I say: he’s a proud BBQ master, so I couldn’t miss this! It also gave me the opportunity to spend some more time with the entire family.

Let me summarize the day in short: excellent meat, excellent food in general and a lot of fun. My learning of the day was: I need to improve my table tennis (or as they call it here: pin pon) skills!

In the evening I then took a taxi to go back to Antigua. Keep in mind: it’s a good 60mins drive. I paid roughly CHF 21.--.

Nestor – the family’s and now my cab driver of choice – will probably do this trip quite a few times in the next months.

When I arrived, Elsa was still awake and we ended up chatting for a while, before we both went to bed.

My new life was really about to begin. Exciting times!!

GETTING STARTED

…so I have decided to write a blog about my time here in Guatemala. 

I guess it’s the best way for me to not only write down my experiences and impressions of my stint here in beautiful Guatemala for myself, it’s also a good way for YOU – should you wish so – to keep yourself a little updated on what your favorite wannabe-Guatemalteco is up to. I have had a surprising number of people asking me to ‘keep them in the loop’, so here I go… mostly in English and sometimes in German, con mucho gusto.

First things first, contact information.. ;)

Of course I still have an email address you can use: patrick(dot)siffert(at)gmail(dot)com.

I am also still available via the usual means of communication (Swiss phone number, social networks and apps and such), though a bit less regularly. More about that later. Oh and I also have a local phone number – just in case: +502 4971 7422.

And by the way: I will call myself ‘ Patricito ‘ going forward, if referring to myself. hihi

At any rate, thanks for stopping by and thanks for your interest in my life.

Feedback and comments about both this blog as well as life in Guatemala in general are of course always very welcome.