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.