Hello!
I hope everything is going okay at home. I figured out I can call the United States for free with google, but I cannot find anywhere that has a working microphone so hopefully I will be able to use Wifi somewhere in Antigua this afternoon.
If I cant get in touch with you all by tomorrow, I just wanted to let you know that I will be out of touch starting tomorrow until next Sunday. We are going on Field Based Training and my group plus a couple volunteers and Spanish professors will be traveling to different sites in the highlands and near Lago Atitlan. We will be listening to lots of charlas, giving environmental education lessons, doing trail maintenance, and a lot more! I will try to upload photos today too. This week has been packed again and Im very excited to get a break from classes!
Yesterday our new Spanish teacher, Maria de Jesus, gave us a cooking lesson on how to cook tamalitos and platanos. Hopefully I will get to talk to you sometime today!
Love,
Rosemary
Also had a phone conversation with Rosemary. She was at a friend’s house (fellow Peace Corps volunteer). They had cooked a meal together, with her friend’s host family. There were birds singing in the background, a dog barking, motorbikes going by – Rosemary said it was a quiet day. Guatemalan’s appararently like noise, firecrackers, radios, street vendors, etc.
ReplyDeleteHer group in Ciudad Vieja had a meeting with the city secretary and city planner to talk about their ideas for a tourism office.
Rosemary got a new Spanish teacher for her group, and likes her very much. This lady has been a volunteer herself and understands many challenges they will face. They are learning how to do practical things in Spanish – phone calls, negotiating in the market, etc. Also learning how to effectively work with men in a culture that does not necessarily acknowledge women as equals.
Rosemary says she most misses books. She didn’t realize books would be so expensive, e.g., $30 a book! There is no public library, and she misses something to read. A typical Guatemalan might have only a 6th grade education (women less), so reading isn’t a high priority for many.
Rosemary likes the Guatemalan’s. They are somewhat formal and conservative in their views, but at the same time welcoming and warm. She likes their relaxed attitude towards time and pleasure in daily small talk and conversation.