Ok, so Monday and Tuesday this week were not so so interesting. Not much happened on Monday. Coffee cooperative meeting, and the farmers' English class.
On Tuesday, we worked during the day, and then went downtown to Antigua for a lecture that Franklin was giving on As Green As It Gets' development philosophy. To read it, click here, and then click "Development Philosophy." After the lecture was over, we went to Reilly's, an Irish bar in downtown Antigua and ate dinner. After that, I got dragged to a salsa club called La Sin Aventura (Without Adventure). The name of the place is apt--because it was full of tourists--and I wasn't so interested in hanging out with them.
Then on Wednesday, we held our first English class for kids. We had about 10 kids, and did the basics "Hello, my name is...", "How are you? I am fine, thank you." They had a ball. Most of them were Timoteo's, Filiberto's, and Daniel's kids. So, given how quickly they seemed to learn, we aimed to step up the pace of this class. Not all that surprising, the kids learn much faster than their parents.
After English class on Wednesday, Oriana and I borrowed four of Filiberto's children: Maria Benita, Vicente, Cristobal, and Esvin. We took them downtown to Antigua and treated them to a movie. There's a cafe called the Bagel Barn that shows movies once a week. Well, the movie was free, and we actually treated them to a bagel, soda, and a cab ride. The movie was The Bourne Ultimatum. The boys were completely enthralled, the youngest, Maria Benita, fell asleep toward the end. They were not all that impressed with the bagel and cream cheese. But, given that this is Guatemala--the bagel and cream cheese wasn't so bad!
Then on Thursday, we had another English class. From now on, these kid's English classes are going to be on Tuesday and Thursday. If anyone has ideas for super-easy songs, etc. That would be helpful. We were very impressed with their response to "Head, shoulders, knees, and toes!"
On Thursday night, we had fifteen kids, we're the most popular people here!
So, it's Friday evening. I spent most of today with Maria Benita, who is working on her cosmetic creams with As Green As It Gets. We had some trouble with following the recipe. She didn't measure everything correctly. So, we did a lots melting down and filtering beeswax--and her lip balm still had too much beeswax by the end of the day.
More later! Stay tuned for the next chapter in my adventures below the equator!
Friday, June 27, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Whirl of a Weekend: Part Two
Alright folks, so here's the Sunday saga...
After a long day/night out (see previous post for more info), Oriana and I took it relatively easy in the morning. We grabbed breakfast from the bakery, washed clothes, and were chilling out.
We had been doing a good job with public relations for our girl's soccer group on Sundays at 3 pm. We were not sure how many girls would actually show up.
I should have guessed that we'd be popular--since we're the new kids in town. And, so at 2:15 pm, when a few girls knocked on our door, I shouldn't have been surprised. But, I was.
We pulled ourselves together quickly and per their request, started rounding up kids at neighboring houses. By the time we got up to the field, we had about 20 girls and about 5 boys.
We had so many kids that we had to split them up in teams and have them play in shifts. While the other teams played, the kids played on this jungle gym of tires that is set up outside the field.
The little kids started to lose interest in playing after about an hour or so. Once that started to happen, we let the bigger boys play because they had been antsy since we got there. Oriana was playing with the older boys and I was keeping an eye on the smaller kids--making sure that they didn't break my camera in the process.
So, at some point Oriana and one of Filiberto's sons went for the same ball in the same play and smacked their heads right into one another. Both seemed shocked, but Filiberto's son seemed to only have a cut. Oriana, however, started bleeding everywhere. That's when the fun began.
So, I asked folks to stop playing--and for the little kids to start making their way home. I picked up our belongings and asked the older boys to take the soccer balls back to the office for me. Then Oriana and I started walking toward the office to find Jessica. Franklin was with a tour that had stopped to chat with us at the field a half hour before. I knew he wouldn't pick up the phone.
So, we're walking down the street--and it must have looked so ridiculous. So there's me, holding a bunch of stuff and fumbling with our stupid Guatemalan cell phone. Oriana, bleeding everywhere, but trying to stay strong. And behind the two of us, there's about 15 kids following us like a small parade. They were all so scared and wanted to make sure Oriana was ok. When we show up at the office and finally Jessica answers the door, she was startled at the amount of people with us. I told her we would start walking home, could she please find some alcohol and meet us at our house. Then we started going into every store looking for ice. Finally, one of the kids knocked on the door of a neighbor of ours and she brought out a homemade ice pack.
About 15 minutes have passed and now everyone on our side of town has seen the gringa with her nose bleeding. So we go into our house, thank all the kids and ask them to go home, and Jessica comes down the street bearing a first aid kit and alcohol. Then one of Filiberto's daughters, who was with us up at the field, goes and brings Filiberto to the house. We start talking about whether or not Oriana should see a doctor, and do we know any doctors in the area. Well, in fact, our landlord's son-in-law is a pediatrician, so we try calling him. He doesn't pick up his phone--I would have screened this call if I was him too. Filiberto offers to go to the doctor's house and get him. A few minutes later, Filiberto and the doctor return, check out Oriana's nose and decide that it would be best if she went with them to the clinic in Ciudad Vieja.
The doctor returns with his car and Filiberto, Oriana, and Jessica go to the clinic. I offered to hang back. Oriana lost so much blood, and continued to spit more blood, that somewhere along the way, I must have turned sheet-white. I was extremely nauseated.
So, about a half hour later, everyone comes back to the house. My nausea passes. Oriana is in good spirits, but with a small bandage on her nose. And then we get ready to go to another farmer's house, Daniel, for a party. Daniel's family was celebrating the confirmation of two of his children. There was awesome food, fantastic coffee, and lots of great conversation.
It was a very calm end to an overly hectic weekend.
Stay tuned for more reports from Guatemala!
After a long day/night out (see previous post for more info), Oriana and I took it relatively easy in the morning. We grabbed breakfast from the bakery, washed clothes, and were chilling out.
We had been doing a good job with public relations for our girl's soccer group on Sundays at 3 pm. We were not sure how many girls would actually show up.
I should have guessed that we'd be popular--since we're the new kids in town. And, so at 2:15 pm, when a few girls knocked on our door, I shouldn't have been surprised. But, I was.
We pulled ourselves together quickly and per their request, started rounding up kids at neighboring houses. By the time we got up to the field, we had about 20 girls and about 5 boys.
We had so many kids that we had to split them up in teams and have them play in shifts. While the other teams played, the kids played on this jungle gym of tires that is set up outside the field.
The little kids started to lose interest in playing after about an hour or so. Once that started to happen, we let the bigger boys play because they had been antsy since we got there. Oriana was playing with the older boys and I was keeping an eye on the smaller kids--making sure that they didn't break my camera in the process.
So, at some point Oriana and one of Filiberto's sons went for the same ball in the same play and smacked their heads right into one another. Both seemed shocked, but Filiberto's son seemed to only have a cut. Oriana, however, started bleeding everywhere. That's when the fun began.
So, I asked folks to stop playing--and for the little kids to start making their way home. I picked up our belongings and asked the older boys to take the soccer balls back to the office for me. Then Oriana and I started walking toward the office to find Jessica. Franklin was with a tour that had stopped to chat with us at the field a half hour before. I knew he wouldn't pick up the phone.
So, we're walking down the street--and it must have looked so ridiculous. So there's me, holding a bunch of stuff and fumbling with our stupid Guatemalan cell phone. Oriana, bleeding everywhere, but trying to stay strong. And behind the two of us, there's about 15 kids following us like a small parade. They were all so scared and wanted to make sure Oriana was ok. When we show up at the office and finally Jessica answers the door, she was startled at the amount of people with us. I told her we would start walking home, could she please find some alcohol and meet us at our house. Then we started going into every store looking for ice. Finally, one of the kids knocked on the door of a neighbor of ours and she brought out a homemade ice pack.
About 15 minutes have passed and now everyone on our side of town has seen the gringa with her nose bleeding. So we go into our house, thank all the kids and ask them to go home, and Jessica comes down the street bearing a first aid kit and alcohol. Then one of Filiberto's daughters, who was with us up at the field, goes and brings Filiberto to the house. We start talking about whether or not Oriana should see a doctor, and do we know any doctors in the area. Well, in fact, our landlord's son-in-law is a pediatrician, so we try calling him. He doesn't pick up his phone--I would have screened this call if I was him too. Filiberto offers to go to the doctor's house and get him. A few minutes later, Filiberto and the doctor return, check out Oriana's nose and decide that it would be best if she went with them to the clinic in Ciudad Vieja.
The doctor returns with his car and Filiberto, Oriana, and Jessica go to the clinic. I offered to hang back. Oriana lost so much blood, and continued to spit more blood, that somewhere along the way, I must have turned sheet-white. I was extremely nauseated.
So, about a half hour later, everyone comes back to the house. My nausea passes. Oriana is in good spirits, but with a small bandage on her nose. And then we get ready to go to another farmer's house, Daniel, for a party. Daniel's family was celebrating the confirmation of two of his children. There was awesome food, fantastic coffee, and lots of great conversation.
It was a very calm end to an overly hectic weekend.
Stay tuned for more reports from Guatemala!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Whirl of a Weekend: Part One
So, there are so many fun things to write about. I'll save some of the others for a day when there isn't quite so much to report.
This past weekend Oriana and I were quite busy. On Saturday, we woke up and took our time getting ourselves together. We read in the morning--and it was sunny for the first time since we arrived.
Then we got a call from two of the As Green As It Gets staff--Laura and Erin (boy) who invited us to tag along to a barbecue of another ex-pat in Guatemala who had just moved into a new house. We gladly accepted. So we took the bus down to Antigua and met Laura and Erin at La Bodegona--the grocery store and picked some grill-appropriate food. We proceeded to get lost while looking for the house and eventually found it after a 20 minute detour.
The food was good, and the party was fun. We ended up playing catch phrase in a mixture of English and Spanish. We left the party and then Laura ably guided us through the market to the appropriate bus to get to San Juan del Obispo, where we would be guests of Roberto Barrera and his family at a huge festival in honor of the Eucharist (I think).
The bus rides are always interesting. First of all, try to imagine old school buses where the aisle in the middle only spans about 6 inches. Then imagine packing 3 people in every seat on the bus--with some folks hanging over into the aisle. Lastly, imagine me trying to twist and contort my body through a sea of people without knocking people over with my hips. I am blessed with hips, but they do not come in handy in this situation. So, on this bus, I ended up standing in the aisle for the majority of the ride. Also, I am one of the tallest people on the bus, so everyone expects me to hold onto the bar on the ceiling of the bus, which is not comfortable at all.
It gets better. Then sometime in the middle of every ride, the bus boy (literally the bus driver's helper) pushes his way through the endless rows of people to collect the fare from everyone. When he comes through it is an entirely uncomfortable situation by any American standard. You have to embrace the fact that you have ZERO personal space when you get on these buses.
Anyhoo. So, we arrive in San Juan del Obispo to witness the hustle and bustle of preparation for the nights festivities. There were all types of games and food stands--a DJ stage setting up and a big band setting up on either side of the park. In the park, there was very little evidence of any religious foundation for this festival.
But, once the evening was hopping, our tour guide for the evening, Jorge, Roberto's 21 year old brother-in-law, walked us all over the town looking at the different altars dedicated to various parts of Jesus' coolness. I'm still a little cloudy on what exactly we were celebrating--saber--slang here for 'who knows?'
Here are some pictures of the altars:
I proceeded, during our walking tour, to develop an urgent need to find a bathroom--I'm not sure what I ate that didn't sit well--but I was pretty sick. That started around 8:30 pm. I managed to hang out for another hour before deciding that I would need to go home--and not stay with the Barrera family. Everything turned out well. We met up with the As Green As It Gets jade artist, Francisco, whose wife made me some basil and lemon tea. I'm not sure it helped, but it sure didn't hurt. They both helped us find a cab to take us back to our house a couple villages over--which was very difficult given that about the entire population of the town was at this festival.
That was the end of Saturday--making it home alive at the end of a long day was an accomplishment.
Stay tuned for Whirl of a Weekend: Part Two...
This past weekend Oriana and I were quite busy. On Saturday, we woke up and took our time getting ourselves together. We read in the morning--and it was sunny for the first time since we arrived.
Then we got a call from two of the As Green As It Gets staff--Laura and Erin (boy) who invited us to tag along to a barbecue of another ex-pat in Guatemala who had just moved into a new house. We gladly accepted. So we took the bus down to Antigua and met Laura and Erin at La Bodegona--the grocery store and picked some grill-appropriate food. We proceeded to get lost while looking for the house and eventually found it after a 20 minute detour.
The food was good, and the party was fun. We ended up playing catch phrase in a mixture of English and Spanish. We left the party and then Laura ably guided us through the market to the appropriate bus to get to San Juan del Obispo, where we would be guests of Roberto Barrera and his family at a huge festival in honor of the Eucharist (I think).
The bus rides are always interesting. First of all, try to imagine old school buses where the aisle in the middle only spans about 6 inches. Then imagine packing 3 people in every seat on the bus--with some folks hanging over into the aisle. Lastly, imagine me trying to twist and contort my body through a sea of people without knocking people over with my hips. I am blessed with hips, but they do not come in handy in this situation. So, on this bus, I ended up standing in the aisle for the majority of the ride. Also, I am one of the tallest people on the bus, so everyone expects me to hold onto the bar on the ceiling of the bus, which is not comfortable at all.
It gets better. Then sometime in the middle of every ride, the bus boy (literally the bus driver's helper) pushes his way through the endless rows of people to collect the fare from everyone. When he comes through it is an entirely uncomfortable situation by any American standard. You have to embrace the fact that you have ZERO personal space when you get on these buses.
Anyhoo. So, we arrive in San Juan del Obispo to witness the hustle and bustle of preparation for the nights festivities. There were all types of games and food stands--a DJ stage setting up and a big band setting up on either side of the park. In the park, there was very little evidence of any religious foundation for this festival.
But, once the evening was hopping, our tour guide for the evening, Jorge, Roberto's 21 year old brother-in-law, walked us all over the town looking at the different altars dedicated to various parts of Jesus' coolness. I'm still a little cloudy on what exactly we were celebrating--saber--slang here for 'who knows?'
Here are some pictures of the altars:
I proceeded, during our walking tour, to develop an urgent need to find a bathroom--I'm not sure what I ate that didn't sit well--but I was pretty sick. That started around 8:30 pm. I managed to hang out for another hour before deciding that I would need to go home--and not stay with the Barrera family. Everything turned out well. We met up with the As Green As It Gets jade artist, Francisco, whose wife made me some basil and lemon tea. I'm not sure it helped, but it sure didn't hurt. They both helped us find a cab to take us back to our house a couple villages over--which was very difficult given that about the entire population of the town was at this festival.
That was the end of Saturday--making it home alive at the end of a long day was an accomplishment.
Stay tuned for Whirl of a Weekend: Part Two...
More pictures of the house...
Here's some more pictures of the house...
My bedroom AKA The Dungeon:
Oriana's Bedroom AKA The One With A Window:
Kitchen:
Bathroom/Shower:
My very own Jesus calendar:
Friday, June 20, 2008
Pictures of the New House
Here are some pictures of the new house. Now folks, remember I'm living in a third world country--and this place would normally sleep 8-10 people.
Views of the House
Here's another one:
Kitchen/Pila (sink area):
I think it's only letting me upload a few pictures at a time. So, I'll upload more in another post.
Views of the House
Here's another one:
I think it's only letting me upload a few pictures at a time. So, I'll upload more in another post.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Rainy Day at the Office
We moved in last night. Pictures of the house will be on the way shortly. I forgot to bring the connector cord for my camera to the office today.
Last night was interesting. Figuring out all the idiosyncrasies of a new home can be really exciting. We need to put up a curtain or two so that internet cafe customers cannot see into our house. Also, we probably need to figure out how to put in additional light bulbs--otherwise we'll be using the bathroom amenities in the dark.
But, I have to run. We have to go hunt down the Zeta Gas company to connect our gas for the stove. Should be interesting.
Hasta luego!
Last night was interesting. Figuring out all the idiosyncrasies of a new home can be really exciting. We need to put up a curtain or two so that internet cafe customers cannot see into our house. Also, we probably need to figure out how to put in additional light bulbs--otherwise we'll be using the bathroom amenities in the dark.
But, I have to run. We have to go hunt down the Zeta Gas company to connect our gas for the stove. Should be interesting.
Hasta luego!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Coffee, Cafe, and Cooperative
So on Monday night, As Green As It Gets' San Miguel Cooperative has its weekly meeting with Franklin. After work, Oriana and I were able to sit in, be introduced formally, and learn a little about how coffee production happens with these fellows. They also talked about a giant order that was due at the end of the week. And that Oriana and I would be available to help them roast, package, and apply the labels to the bags. At the request of the farmers, Jessica teaches the English class immediately after each meeting. Some of the farmers' children attend as well.
Oriana and I hung out for the English class also--and I had a ball. We were asking questions like "How are you?" and "How many children do you have?" and "How many daughters do you have?" The farmers had some serious issues with the word "daughter". It was super difficult for them to say. Then we went into what types of trees they have, and how to welcome folks to different places i.e. "Welcome to my fields" or "Welcome to my house".
This was really a blast for me. I think the best part about it is that these guys are all in their 40s-60s and they are so eager to learn English at 7pm. If I woke up by 5 am everyday, I would skip English class.
On Tuesday, all of the farmers trickled in starting around 1 pm to begin roasting coffee. They brought something like 250 pounds with them. Some arrived on foot, some arrived on bikes, some arrived with their kids in tow. Altogether there are seven coffee farmers in the San Miguel Cooperative: Filiberto, Timoteo, Daniel, Fredy, Miguel, Felix, and Alberto. They just brought on four new farmers--but I haven't met them yet.
We roasted around 100 lbs of coffee, three didn't come out well--and they got tossed. Each batch that comes out of the roaster is tasted by all the members of the cooperative before it gets packaged for distribution. These guys are serious about quality control. By the last few tasting rounds our tongues were tired, but it was clear that something wasn't quite right with the last three batches. So, they tossed them and called it a night. We finished around 8:30 pm.
Because they didn't finish until late--and we lost power once, we didn't move into our new apartment until this morning (Wednesday). Bright and early, at 9am the first farmer showed up to roast more, and package more coffee. It's about 6:15 pm. We're still here waiting for the next batch to come out of the roaster.
It's been a long, but satisfying few days. The farmers were telling me that they think technology is advancing really fast in the U.S. Filiberto said that he thinks that with time, computers will replace waiters (we were talking about restaurants). It is interesting to talk with the farmers and get their perspective. We were talking about music while we were packing. They knew a lot of music that I like already. And were giving me all kinds of advice for what type of marimba (typical Guatemalan music with a giant xylophone) band I should hire for my hypothetical wedding.
They like that we get their jokes--thank goodness I'm proficient enough to understand. They really enjoy laughing--and that is something I enjoy doing as well.
So, I'm just finishing this post at 8:10 pm and the coffee farmers just left. We are now, for an order of 200 lbs of coffee only missing 5 bags. So, they'll come back on Friday to bring more coffee, roast it, and pack it up.
For now, it's time to go forage for food and then settle in to the new house.
I just figured out how to add pictures to the blog, so I'll start adding them in future posts!
Hasta luego! Until next time!
Oriana and I hung out for the English class also--and I had a ball. We were asking questions like "How are you?" and "How many children do you have?" and "How many daughters do you have?" The farmers had some serious issues with the word "daughter". It was super difficult for them to say. Then we went into what types of trees they have, and how to welcome folks to different places i.e. "Welcome to my fields" or "Welcome to my house".
This was really a blast for me. I think the best part about it is that these guys are all in their 40s-60s and they are so eager to learn English at 7pm. If I woke up by 5 am everyday, I would skip English class.
On Tuesday, all of the farmers trickled in starting around 1 pm to begin roasting coffee. They brought something like 250 pounds with them. Some arrived on foot, some arrived on bikes, some arrived with their kids in tow. Altogether there are seven coffee farmers in the San Miguel Cooperative: Filiberto, Timoteo, Daniel, Fredy, Miguel, Felix, and Alberto. They just brought on four new farmers--but I haven't met them yet.
We roasted around 100 lbs of coffee, three didn't come out well--and they got tossed. Each batch that comes out of the roaster is tasted by all the members of the cooperative before it gets packaged for distribution. These guys are serious about quality control. By the last few tasting rounds our tongues were tired, but it was clear that something wasn't quite right with the last three batches. So, they tossed them and called it a night. We finished around 8:30 pm.
Because they didn't finish until late--and we lost power once, we didn't move into our new apartment until this morning (Wednesday). Bright and early, at 9am the first farmer showed up to roast more, and package more coffee. It's about 6:15 pm. We're still here waiting for the next batch to come out of the roaster.
It's been a long, but satisfying few days. The farmers were telling me that they think technology is advancing really fast in the U.S. Filiberto said that he thinks that with time, computers will replace waiters (we were talking about restaurants). It is interesting to talk with the farmers and get their perspective. We were talking about music while we were packing. They knew a lot of music that I like already. And were giving me all kinds of advice for what type of marimba (typical Guatemalan music with a giant xylophone) band I should hire for my hypothetical wedding.
They like that we get their jokes--thank goodness I'm proficient enough to understand. They really enjoy laughing--and that is something I enjoy doing as well.
So, I'm just finishing this post at 8:10 pm and the coffee farmers just left. We are now, for an order of 200 lbs of coffee only missing 5 bags. So, they'll come back on Friday to bring more coffee, roast it, and pack it up.
For now, it's time to go forage for food and then settle in to the new house.
I just figured out how to add pictures to the blog, so I'll start adding them in future posts!
Hasta luego! Until next time!
Monday, June 16, 2008
Lazy Sunday
Today we ventured to the neighboring town of Ciudad Vieja (Old City). Actually, San Miguel Escobar, where we are living, is a part of Ciudad Vieja, but they gave it its own name. We went to the market, only held on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, and is about three blocks long with stands along one side of the street. Slim pickins. But, we managed to find enough for dinner this evening.
We also stopped in every pharmacy around trying to locate another tube of Jessica's magical anti-itch cream for my mosquito bites--but to no avail. They are numbering in the teens now, mosquito bites, that is. I get a few new ones everyday.
After the market, Jessica and I attempted to put together a 1000 piece puzzle of a group of Amish people building a house. Not the most exciting puzzle I've ever worked on, but it was entertaining. Oriana rounded up neighborhood kids and played soccer with them up on the concrete field I helped to lay in March. It sounds like there's enough of a following for us to keep this up once or twice a week, with special emphasis on getting the girls out to learn to play soccer.
It's amazing how tired I am. I'm pretty sure that yesterday and today were the first two days in recent memory that I didn't have stuff to do, no schedule, no agenda or anything. I did almost nothing today--but I'm still exhausted. Even though I am here to work during the week, it will be nice to have down time at night and on the weekends. I'm halfway through my first book here--and it's likely I'll finish it soon and tear into the next.
This coming week, Oriana and I are looking forward to tracking down where the remnants of the Buena Vista Social Club are playing--and going into Antigua to see them. Some of these guys live in Guatemala now.
Anyhow, there isn't much else to report. I'm going to dive back into my book and then crash for the evening.
Until next time!
We also stopped in every pharmacy around trying to locate another tube of Jessica's magical anti-itch cream for my mosquito bites--but to no avail. They are numbering in the teens now, mosquito bites, that is. I get a few new ones everyday.
After the market, Jessica and I attempted to put together a 1000 piece puzzle of a group of Amish people building a house. Not the most exciting puzzle I've ever worked on, but it was entertaining. Oriana rounded up neighborhood kids and played soccer with them up on the concrete field I helped to lay in March. It sounds like there's enough of a following for us to keep this up once or twice a week, with special emphasis on getting the girls out to learn to play soccer.
It's amazing how tired I am. I'm pretty sure that yesterday and today were the first two days in recent memory that I didn't have stuff to do, no schedule, no agenda or anything. I did almost nothing today--but I'm still exhausted. Even though I am here to work during the week, it will be nice to have down time at night and on the weekends. I'm halfway through my first book here--and it's likely I'll finish it soon and tear into the next.
This coming week, Oriana and I are looking forward to tracking down where the remnants of the Buena Vista Social Club are playing--and going into Antigua to see them. Some of these guys live in Guatemala now.
Anyhow, there isn't much else to report. I'm going to dive back into my book and then crash for the evening.
Until next time!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Homeless Until Maybe Monday...
Not really homeless, just not in our new house yet. So the whole renting an apartment thing is not working quite the way we anticipated. We were supposed to move in a couple days ago, but the place wasn't ready. The family we're going to rent from is moving to their new house. It is taking longer than expected for them to clear out their stuff. So, tonight was supposed to be the night we moved in. When Jessica and I arrived to collect keys for Oriana and I, the house looked great.
Here's where the problems start. Then we spoke to Don Silvestre, the owner, and there's one door that they need to change the locks. There's also an internet cafe that they own --the storefront is right in front of our house. The problem there is that the kid that works at the cafe has to enter from the back door--which is inside our house so as not to set off the cafe's alarm. They have to change the alarmed door for the store from the back one to the front one. Then there's the additional problem that the landlord needs to park his car there until they find another parking spot for it. Apparently, I learned from Jessica, is that if he parked on the street, his car would likely be broken into and then jacked for parts. If the car made it through the night, they would be issued a stiff fine from the police.
So, we told Don Silvestre that we wouldn't move in until all of this stuff was taken care of. So it looks like maybe Monday. Since past and current events do not inspire confidence, my bet is on Tuesday or Wednesday. We shall see. Until then, we'll continue to squat at Franklin and Jessica's house (which is also the As Green As It Gets office).
Today we went to the open air market in Antigua and the big grocery store. Haggling in the market feels bad. When I lived in Jerusalem, I never had the same haggling guilt. It just feels wrong to try and take an extra Quetzal (Guatemalan currency, at 7.5 to the dollar) from these folks. We bought quite a lot of stuff--and only spent about $60 US.
Tomorrow Oriana and I are going to try to meet up with the As Green As It Gets carpenter, Roberto, and his family for a festival in their village--San Juan del Obispo (St. John the Bishop). I'm not sure what the festival is celebrating...something about the Eucharist, I think. Hopefully that will work out.
Until next time!
Here's where the problems start. Then we spoke to Don Silvestre, the owner, and there's one door that they need to change the locks. There's also an internet cafe that they own --the storefront is right in front of our house. The problem there is that the kid that works at the cafe has to enter from the back door--which is inside our house so as not to set off the cafe's alarm. They have to change the alarmed door for the store from the back one to the front one. Then there's the additional problem that the landlord needs to park his car there until they find another parking spot for it. Apparently, I learned from Jessica, is that if he parked on the street, his car would likely be broken into and then jacked for parts. If the car made it through the night, they would be issued a stiff fine from the police.
So, we told Don Silvestre that we wouldn't move in until all of this stuff was taken care of. So it looks like maybe Monday. Since past and current events do not inspire confidence, my bet is on Tuesday or Wednesday. We shall see. Until then, we'll continue to squat at Franklin and Jessica's house (which is also the As Green As It Gets office).
Today we went to the open air market in Antigua and the big grocery store. Haggling in the market feels bad. When I lived in Jerusalem, I never had the same haggling guilt. It just feels wrong to try and take an extra Quetzal (Guatemalan currency, at 7.5 to the dollar) from these folks. We bought quite a lot of stuff--and only spent about $60 US.
Tomorrow Oriana and I are going to try to meet up with the As Green As It Gets carpenter, Roberto, and his family for a festival in their village--San Juan del Obispo (St. John the Bishop). I'm not sure what the festival is celebrating...something about the Eucharist, I think. Hopefully that will work out.
Until next time!
Friday, June 13, 2008
Shake, Rattle, & Roll
Yesterday, Oriana and I were both trained in various administrivia-related tasks. So, I was on database duty for the morning, and Oriana took her turn in the afternoon. I worked on some other projects that were more interesting.
As the work day came to a close, we made dinner plans with Franklin and Jessica. We walked down to the neighboring town of Ciudad Vieja to pay a visit to what I would call a street barbeque vendor. I asked for chicken and cheese on tortillas. That was served on a little plate that then gets piled high with beans, guacamole, salad, and salsa with another tortilla on top to make sure nothing falls off. So this outdoor establishment has plastic stools for its customers and we sat down and ate. Except I didn't sit down. There were neighborhood dogs everywhere eyeing us for a piece of meat. I stood and ate for a while, but when our drinks came (yummy hot chocolate) I drank and held my plate up. Eventually, I drained my cup and asked the vendor for a bag--and I finished my grub when we got back to the house.
Once back at the house, our clan played Spades. For someone who didn't know how to play two days ago, I'm doing pretty well--only misplaying twice. My partner (Jessica) and I won both rounds. Oriana and Franklin are sore losers. They will likely get their tooshies whooped again tonight.
The most exciting part of the night was not the Spades game. It rains pretty hard at night--so much so that we have to yell to hear each other over the noise (rain on tin roof, remember!). And last night was no different, except that in the middle of our second round the floor started to shake. Much to my surprise, I sat through a 4.7 on the Richter scale earthquake. It was a bit scary, but not as bad as I would have thought. Franklin told us that had their been less fog, we could have seen the volcano erupting a little.
So, we finished our Spades game and Oriana and I were goofing around before going to sleep when the rain and thunder subsided a bit, and then the power went out. The best part was that I have (in my Brooklyn apartment) about 14 flashlights. I didn't bring any with me--I didn't think I would need one. So, we fumbled around in the dark for a while and finally found a crank flashlight. We then proceeded to search for a second flashlight because the before bed bathroom operation would be far more difficult without light.
So, just as we were about to panic (okay, not really, but we were anxious), Franklin and Jessica came out to tell us that the electricity was back on. We just had to turn things on.
Oriana and I then got ready for bed and took turns killing annoying moths. The thunder and rain got progressively louder and so we read for a while before eventually crashing for the night.
Today, like the other mornings so far, Oriana and I get up around 8 AM, shower, get dressed, make coffee, and run across to the bakery for pan dulce (sweet breads). Then Laura shows up around 9 AM--and that's our cue that it's time to start working.
So, I was on database duty most of the morning--not the most exciting, but crucial for As Green As It Gets. Oriana got to work with Francisco, AGAIG's jade artist, to build a saw. At lunchtime, I asked folks to pick up a sandwich for me. We've been eating the same sandwich all week. It's pretty good. But, they got to the sandwich lady too late, and I got a bean and cheese sandwich with ketchup...not quite what I wanted. The ketchup was definitely not good with beans and cheese.
After lunch, we went over to our new apartment to see if we could move in tonight. So, surprise surprise, our apartment is not quite ready. The previous tenants (and our landlords) were fixing the electrical wiring, painting, and cleaning out their belongings when we showed up to see if we could move in tonight. It did look much better than it did when we saw it. According to my sources here, it's pretty normal for things to take longer than expected. So, we'll be at Franklin and Jessica's for another glorious night.
Until next time!
As the work day came to a close, we made dinner plans with Franklin and Jessica. We walked down to the neighboring town of Ciudad Vieja to pay a visit to what I would call a street barbeque vendor. I asked for chicken and cheese on tortillas. That was served on a little plate that then gets piled high with beans, guacamole, salad, and salsa with another tortilla on top to make sure nothing falls off. So this outdoor establishment has plastic stools for its customers and we sat down and ate. Except I didn't sit down. There were neighborhood dogs everywhere eyeing us for a piece of meat. I stood and ate for a while, but when our drinks came (yummy hot chocolate) I drank and held my plate up. Eventually, I drained my cup and asked the vendor for a bag--and I finished my grub when we got back to the house.
Once back at the house, our clan played Spades. For someone who didn't know how to play two days ago, I'm doing pretty well--only misplaying twice. My partner (Jessica) and I won both rounds. Oriana and Franklin are sore losers. They will likely get their tooshies whooped again tonight.
The most exciting part of the night was not the Spades game. It rains pretty hard at night--so much so that we have to yell to hear each other over the noise (rain on tin roof, remember!). And last night was no different, except that in the middle of our second round the floor started to shake. Much to my surprise, I sat through a 4.7 on the Richter scale earthquake. It was a bit scary, but not as bad as I would have thought. Franklin told us that had their been less fog, we could have seen the volcano erupting a little.
So, we finished our Spades game and Oriana and I were goofing around before going to sleep when the rain and thunder subsided a bit, and then the power went out. The best part was that I have (in my Brooklyn apartment) about 14 flashlights. I didn't bring any with me--I didn't think I would need one. So, we fumbled around in the dark for a while and finally found a crank flashlight. We then proceeded to search for a second flashlight because the before bed bathroom operation would be far more difficult without light.
So, just as we were about to panic (okay, not really, but we were anxious), Franklin and Jessica came out to tell us that the electricity was back on. We just had to turn things on.
Oriana and I then got ready for bed and took turns killing annoying moths. The thunder and rain got progressively louder and so we read for a while before eventually crashing for the night.
Today, like the other mornings so far, Oriana and I get up around 8 AM, shower, get dressed, make coffee, and run across to the bakery for pan dulce (sweet breads). Then Laura shows up around 9 AM--and that's our cue that it's time to start working.
So, I was on database duty most of the morning--not the most exciting, but crucial for As Green As It Gets. Oriana got to work with Francisco, AGAIG's jade artist, to build a saw. At lunchtime, I asked folks to pick up a sandwich for me. We've been eating the same sandwich all week. It's pretty good. But, they got to the sandwich lady too late, and I got a bean and cheese sandwich with ketchup...not quite what I wanted. The ketchup was definitely not good with beans and cheese.
After lunch, we went over to our new apartment to see if we could move in tonight. So, surprise surprise, our apartment is not quite ready. The previous tenants (and our landlords) were fixing the electrical wiring, painting, and cleaning out their belongings when we showed up to see if we could move in tonight. It did look much better than it did when we saw it. According to my sources here, it's pretty normal for things to take longer than expected. So, we'll be at Franklin and Jessica's for another glorious night.
Until next time!
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Guatemala: The Adventure Begins
Yesterday's arrival was full of fanfare, we ran into about half of the As Green As It Gets producers. Some remembered us, some didn't. We managed to stay up relatively late last night given that neither Oriana nor I had slept the night before we left.
We had dinner at this really cute comedor (a restaurant in someone's house) where you only had one choice. Ours was a chile relleno with beans, cheese, and homemade tortillas. I could get used to this.
Sleeping here is slightly difficult. There's lots of new noises: roosters, cats on the roof, really loud rain, fierce crickets, and kids playing next door. Also there's the problem of wiggling out of my borrowed cocoon-like sleeping bag in the middle of the night to pee in the outdoor bathroom. In case you are interested, you only flush your business--not the paper, because sewage systems here get clogged very easily.
So, it's the end of Day Two of my summer adventure in Guatemala. Oriana and I spent most of today looking for apartments for our stint in this fine country. It's amazing that we'll each be paying about $130 a month on a two bedroom house with everything we need. Our pick is one that is behind an internet cafe that is about a block from the As Green As It Gets office in San Miguel Escobar. One of the coffee farmers, Filiberto, was our broker on this deal--and the house we'll rent is significantly nicer than his place.
After seeing all of the apartments, Oriana and I had fun buying food to cook for dinner at La Bodegona (a grocery store in Antigua). Most of today we were slightly disoriented and have yet to pick up on the directional nuances we'll need to survive here. Our groceries in hand, we hopped in a tuk-tuk for the ride back to San Miguel. A tuk-tuk is a small three-wheeled car with no discernible doors. Imagine a motorized tricycle, where the driver is in the front and we were in the back looking for oh-shit handles to hold on to for the ride.
When we got back we cooked dinner and asked Filiberto, the coffee farmer, to eat with us. A good time was had by all. We spent much of the dinner conversation yelling over the incredible noise that rain on tin roofs produces.
We're being trained on the database and other administrivia tomorrow for our day at the office. There is also talk of us staffing games & recreational activities for local kids once a week. Oriana and I are both pretty excited about the idea. Hopefully, tomorrow we'll be able to move into our new accommodations.
We had dinner at this really cute comedor (a restaurant in someone's house) where you only had one choice. Ours was a chile relleno with beans, cheese, and homemade tortillas. I could get used to this.
Sleeping here is slightly difficult. There's lots of new noises: roosters, cats on the roof, really loud rain, fierce crickets, and kids playing next door. Also there's the problem of wiggling out of my borrowed cocoon-like sleeping bag in the middle of the night to pee in the outdoor bathroom. In case you are interested, you only flush your business--not the paper, because sewage systems here get clogged very easily.
So, it's the end of Day Two of my summer adventure in Guatemala. Oriana and I spent most of today looking for apartments for our stint in this fine country. It's amazing that we'll each be paying about $130 a month on a two bedroom house with everything we need. Our pick is one that is behind an internet cafe that is about a block from the As Green As It Gets office in San Miguel Escobar. One of the coffee farmers, Filiberto, was our broker on this deal--and the house we'll rent is significantly nicer than his place.
After seeing all of the apartments, Oriana and I had fun buying food to cook for dinner at La Bodegona (a grocery store in Antigua). Most of today we were slightly disoriented and have yet to pick up on the directional nuances we'll need to survive here. Our groceries in hand, we hopped in a tuk-tuk for the ride back to San Miguel. A tuk-tuk is a small three-wheeled car with no discernible doors. Imagine a motorized tricycle, where the driver is in the front and we were in the back looking for oh-shit handles to hold on to for the ride.
When we got back we cooked dinner and asked Filiberto, the coffee farmer, to eat with us. A good time was had by all. We spent much of the dinner conversation yelling over the incredible noise that rain on tin roofs produces.
We're being trained on the database and other administrivia tomorrow for our day at the office. There is also talk of us staffing games & recreational activities for local kids once a week. Oriana and I are both pretty excited about the idea. Hopefully, tomorrow we'll be able to move into our new accommodations.
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