Western Highlands

I said goodbye to Jack and the babies and about one hour later Smith arrived. Smith is the female version of Jack which means I love working and traveling with her soooo much! (Seriously her and Jack have so much in common!)

Smith also brought with her one of her students and the little sister who have not been back to see their families in about 2.5 years.

Our first stop was Chichicastenango. Chichi is known for it's enormous market, Mayan roots, and mix of Mayan and Catholic religions. Read more on Wikipedia because it's very interesting. In the morning we set foot out of our hotel and into the market, which is only on Thursdays and Sundays. Absolutely loved it! The churches are also gorgeous and have Mayan altars outside of them. Highly suggest a visit there.

Also while in Chichi we got to visit and tour the former school of one of my super sweet and smart babies! I really wanted to go to his house but it was about 5 hours farther north so it wasn't possible this year but I really enjoyed at least touring the school and sending greetings to his best friend.

In the afternoon we were off for Huehue (3rd time for me this year, 6th time total). The student's dad picked us up at Pollo Campero and cried when he saw his daughters. It hurt to see, I can't imagine being away from my babies that long or what they were going through. We had another 2 hour ride to their house from there and we did it in the back of the truck. We love riding in the back for the better views and fresh air, but the double takes at 2 gringas in a truck in extremely rural Guatemala from every single person we pass are also fun to watch. It was dark when we arrived and the tears from mom and grandmas were hard to take as well.

The next morning preparations for the day's meals started at 3:30 a.m. We knew because walls in Guatemala only go up so far, not all the way up to the tin ceiling. When we got dressed and came out there were so many people!! Only 5 people live in that house but we think there were around 60 there that day. All the women were in corte, even the babies, it was gorgeous. Every single one of them told us 'buenos dias' and the all shook our hands or hugged us. The women all got around a table to make tamalitos with their own corn and leaves, somewhere around 1,500 of them! They set up to have a blessing/church service to thank us for coming and for Smith bringing the two girls back to Guatemala to visit. We ate caldo and tamalitos and talked with the family all afternoon. The family always spoke mam, a dialect that sounds nothing like Spanish. Some of them spoke little or no Spanish at all, but most spoke Spanish with us. It was a great experience.

That afternoon we took a 5 minute truck ride up the road to another student's house. This student graduated this May so it was fun to be able to show the family pictures of him in his cap and gown. We called the student, put him on speakerphone, and spoke English to him. His parents were so proud! Dad walked with us back to our house saying "I'm responsible for you now, I'll walk back with you". They were so sweet!

The next morning we said our goodbyes and set out in a truck and almost literally went uphill for 3 hours. We were already really high! Imagine how long it takes you to get up lookout mountain, pmaybe 15 minutes? To arrive at our destination that night, Tuimulco, we had gone about 4-5 hours uphill total. We were past the clouds and the views were breathtaking, it was also really cold!! We stayed at another student's house that night and got the pleasure of drinking coffee with grandma and great-grandma together. After we had said goodnight to the family and they had left us with lots of blankets we hear a knock on the door and mom comes in and says 'oops, I forgot something' and goes under my bed and pulls our a big tub with a chicken in it sitting on 10 eggs. The sweet mama chicken had been quietly sitting under the bed all day while we came in and out .

We set out in the morning on a camioneta. Camionetas (chicken busses) are a bunch of fun, super cheap, easy to access, reliable, and packed full of people. Drivers take pride in painting and giving some flare to their camionetas. This particular one had a TV that played an 80s karate movie dubbed in Spanish, it was so cheesy and hilarious. After that camioneta we took a minibus and after that we took a tuk-tuk to arrive at the last student's house of the trip.

This student has been one of my sweet babies for 3 years and he'll be mine this year as well. His mom and 2 little siblings share one room while they are waiting for more rooms to be built.  Mom was very 

sweet and loved getting to hear me speak English with her son on speakerphone. Little brother had the opposite personality of my outgoing, social butterfly student but had the exact same face. Brother had to translate most of what I said to mom because they only speak mam at home.

Went traveled after that to Retalhuleu. In total that day we were on 3 tuk-tuks, 2 mini-busses, and 3 camionetas. We have mastered traveling through rural Guate though so it was all smooth sailing.

In Retalhuleu we went to a gorgeous finca, plantation, in the rain forest and got to see a lot of wildlife. The finca focuses on coffee and macadamias but also has rambutan, mangos, mangostin, rubber, cinnamon, oranges, limes, avocados, cacao (chocolate), guisquil/chayote, and lots more!

I have had the trip of a lifetime need some time to process it all! For now I can't wait to get back home to the big girls and the fam and spend a few days lounging around.

Adventures with Jack

Jack is finally here! He came down for a week to hang out, travel to Huehuetenango, and take the kids back with him to Chattanooga for my final leg of traveling to places that aren't as kid friendly (although they have surpassed all expectations so they could have traveled no prob). An hour after they take off my friend and coworker arrives and we'll head out.

We were so excited to pick him up at the airport! The kids couldn't stop telling him about school and all they've done so far. I had already rented a car so we jumped in and started driving! Every time I come to Guatemala I end up doing things I say I would never do and this time it's drive! The drivers here are crazy, there are no rules, no street signs, tons of pot holes, but one interesting thing is I have never seen a Guatemalan driver get angry. They are the most chill drivers and go with the flow when getting cut off or when someone is super slow. I also have never seen a wreck. 

Traffic was atrocious leaving the city and the typical 2-3 hour drive to Atitlan ended up being about 8. Atitlan was gorgeous, we wish we could have stayed longer but we got to enjoy the views and kayaking and were back on the road before lunch.

Then we were off to Huehue, the trip was easy and I really enjoyed driving!! We stopped in the city of Huehuetenango dropped our stuff at a hotel and walked down the block to an orphanage we have been talking to. We got to talk to one of the directors, get a tour, and drop off some goodies. They are doing some really good things at that orphanage, I hope to make another trip there for a mission trip some day.

Last stop in Huehuetenango city was the ruins of Zaculeu. They were amazing! They are around 1500 year old Mayan ruins. If you want to know the interesting history, check Wikipedia. We loved it though, well worth a trip out there if you are near Huehue. 

Next we headed to visit Elisa's parents house in La Democracia. I have been there before but Jack and the kids haven't and they loved getting to meet them. Jack is in heaven with all the food and views, the kids love the animals everywhere, and there are 2 tiny babies for me to cuddle with so we're all happy!

We spent the rest of our time with the family. We even got to cross into Mexico! We had a great time!

Kids kayaking on Atitlan

Enjoying the views with my love

My loves

Animals everywhere, even in restaurants

We think there were 4 in there

Zaculeu ruins, 250 A.D. amazing!! Jack and the kids are up there!

Ruins are enormous and very well preserved

This bunny wanted to be held like a baby!

Guatemalan babies!!!!

Great-grandpa always had a baby in his arms or lap and was feeding toddlers dinner off his plate. Families are very close and loving here.

Jack washing in the pila

We went to Mexico!

View of Guatemala and Mexico

Sleepy babies in the hotel before they fly back

Walk in the rain

Mud houses

San Raymundo again

We were back at school this week, our break was during a school break as well. It wasn't planned when I first planned my trip, but it all worked out great.

The kids were excited to get back to their classes. They all ran there happily like they have always gone to school here. All the kids shouted their names and grabbed their hands to go into class.

I am helping the secondary English teacher again. His English is probably the best I have heard from a Guatemalan in Guatemala. He lived in the U.S. for 6 years and still works hard to keep studying and improve. Classes here are very different as is the way school is set up, it makes sense why my students always ask me "Am I going to pass my year?" Here they stay in one classroom with the same group of students all day, the teachers change rooms every half hour or so. Their is no individualized education. At Howard students can fail a class but pass their year, they just have to retake that class, here if they fail they have to take the entire year over again.

Class times are short and their is more homework and lots more time spent on grading during class. In my class students usually turn in assignments electronically on google classroom and take quizzes on Google as well, making grading simple and quick. There is zero technology used in the classroom or by the teacher (I think they have a computer class but I never saw it), so grading is time-consuming and tedious. Each student has a little notebook where they do all their class work and homework. With over 200 students it is definitely not an easy process. I spent a few hours grading tests for him and it took forever! 

One aspect of the school I love is the relationships between students and teachers, it is very different from the U.S. norm. Teachers ride the school bus with the students, teachers eat the same lunch and with their students, every game of duck-duck-goose had at least 2 teachers playing in their dress clothes, during recess teachers played soccer with the kids or sat and chatted, teachers were regularly joked with and they then dished it right back, and during their 'planning' time I never saw one teacher alone or actually planning, they were hanging out with students. It was great to see but of course it wasn't all buddy-buddy, I saw plenty of chewing out as well. The foundation of trust and love was built though, discipline was much less often and much simpler than what I am used to. I actually saw zero actual behavior problems, just some playfulness. I have leaned so much and am still continuing to learn a lot.

As far as my kids in San Raymundo, they have really impressed me! Food is not readily available or predictable where we are staying, for example, nowhere is open for breakfast so sometimes we didn't eat breakfast and when we were invited for lunch at a family's house we had to wait many hours past lunch time to eat. Sometimes where we ate only had food my kids weren't exactly used to but they haven't complained at all! We have tried almost every street and market stand in this town, no fear to eat street food here! We have also had zero sickness!!! That's almost unheard of for tourists in Central America, we have been really lucky. They also endured many long taxi rides without drinks or meals and just sucked it up. This was the part I was most concerned about for them, they have always had predictable meals and predictable food. Super proud of them.

We also have been washing clothes daily in the pila, the kids even enjoy washing their own clothes. While traveling last weekend we didn't have access to a pila or washer for a few days and some of our clothes got moldy and I threw them out so now we pretty much have to wash every day if we want clean clothes. Sometimes it rains on my almost dry clothes on the clothesline and I get worried about what we will wear but so far we have been okay, of course I could buy more clothes but I am trying to keep our suitcase as empty as possible for room for Guatemalan stuff. Shoes are the only problem, definitely bringing boots next time!

School bus craziness

June's PE class, that's her teacher in dress clothes doing the exercises, this is his planning period

How you spell 'Jackson' in Guatemala

6th grade class, no electricity only windows

I loved seeing this boy braiding the hair of the girl in front of him, my boys do this all the time!

June eating street tacos that have onions!! June hates onions, she is so much less picky here

9th grade class

Santa Lucia Cotzulmalguapa

Almost all of my students are from the western highlands of Guatemala, which I am headed to later, but one of my babies is from just an hour or so south of where I was in Antigua, so that was my next destination.

I got an uber from Antigua and entered the first air conditioned car I have ever been in here. I thought it was nice but not necessary since Antigua was almost always around a cool 60°/65°. I have never been very far south of Antigua, driving down looked nothing like what I have known so far of Guatemala. There were smooth, long, highways lined with palm trees, it felt more like Florida. Many beautiful sights to see on the drive as well. Well, when we arrived and I opened the door it hit me why the AC had been on, heat! It was scorching hot and humid! When you think of Central America you usually automatically think hot, that's not true for most places in Guatemala because of the elevation. Even the capital and San Raymundo are up high enough to be cool, the places I am going in the West are even cold, not here! We are close to the ocean and fairly level with it. I wasn't expecting it at all!

I walked to the house one of my sweet, super smart students grew up in, through a maze of narrow alleys, following an uncle who came to pick me up at the gas station meeting point. The family was all very kind, grandma raised her 7 kids, then she raised most of her kid's kids, and now she has 2 more toddlers (she said were given to her), a little boy, and a special needs adult to take care of. I think the toddlers' moms went to America and couldn't/didn't want to take them.

She made us caldo de pollo and the uncle showed us around town. I chatted with the family all afternoon and then called my student and talked to him only in English to show the family how well he is doing. Bragged on him a lot, all true. The kids played with the baby chicks and ducks running around the house, ate supper, and crashed. Still hot and no ac but they don't seem to mind.

I asked grandma why her student made the decision to go to the U.S. and how she felt about it. She said he had no hope there, that he was facing a life of physical labor for hardly any money, not enough to take care of a family or better his life. She was heartbroken when he left and still is. She had raised him since he was a toddler and it still hurts that he isn't there. I know grandma didn't want him to go but I don't know why she didn't stop him. He will be one of my seniors this year and I have no doubt he'll be off to college after that to make a better future for himself and his family.

I had another stop before I headed back to San Raymundo but it doesn't deserve it's own post, Sipacate, on the pacific coast. See pics.

So on this pic of the map you can see in the background where I have been (mountains) and in the foreground is where I went. That's why it was such a temperature change when they're so close!

Caldo de pollo made by my student's grandmother

Santa Lucia Cotzulmalguapa

Little boys that grandma is raising playing hide and seek in the house

My student's grandmother

My taxi driver stopped and every interesting thing he could think of on the way! This is a jaguar carved by the Mayans, not a replica

The first church in Santa Lucia

Spicate. Black sand beaches. However, closer to the equator= quicker burn. I forgot that rule! It wasn't even sunny!!!

Antigua

My sister came to visit us for a few days while school is out so we are staying in Antigua. Antigua is the oldest city in Central America, gorgeous, full of history, and has lots of markets!

When we arrived Sunday we did some shopping, eating, and exploring. I tried the only Guatemalan food left on my bucket list, Ka-kik and the kids got their Choco Bananos they have been patiently waiting for.

Monday we went to Pacaya Volcano. I knew from a past experience with Pacaya that the altitude plus the hike is killer, especially for the kids so we happily took horses up. It was the kids first time on horses and they loved it! The volcano has great views of other volcanos and the kids got to roast marshmallows in lava. I talked to my guide almost the entire way up because he reminded me so much of my students. We hiked down instead of horses and the kids did great. After we got back we went around the markets some more and crashed early.

Tuesday was probably one of my favorite days in Guatemala so far. We took a 6 hour 4 wheeler tour through 6 Mayan towns. We got to see a macademia plantation, how chocolate is prossesed, jade carving workshop, Mayan women weaving corte, Mayan markets, the first church in Guatemala, views for miles, and so much more. It was my first time to drive a 4 wheeler and my first experience with driving on Guatemalan roads. I was so scared before we left, but it actually turned out great! The owner gave me a 2 minute tutorial on how to drive before we left then just let us go. Jackson said that was irresponsible of her 😂. The kids were excited/nervous, June was even tearing up a little before we left (she is a little scared of new things) but immediately after taking off they loved it and got very comfortable with riding. It was a complete 6 hours, our tour guide was very knowledgeable and patient and sweet. It was something I have never paid for before but was completely worth it!

Tomorrow my sister leaves and the kids and I head south to Esquintla to visit a family of one of my students. 

Jackson riding up the volcano

Ka-kik

June and my sister going up Pacaya, I promise June is happy

Laila and I going up Pacaya

The kids in front of Pacaya

3 more volcanoes

Roasting marshmallows in lava

Starting back up/down volcano

Mayan market

Mayan mask carved out of jade

My babies in front of the oldest church in Guatemala

My sister and Laila on their 4 wheeler

Weaving

Driving through the towns was not as scary as I thought.

Market In a Mayan town

June and I riding

My reader and I relaxing in the hotel