First dispatch from the field
Well here I am in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. The city is called Xela (Shay-la) by the locals. I took a bus from Guatemala City this morning and then took a taxi to the school, whereupon I found out that the school will be closed for another couple of hours. Thus I proceeded to wander the streets in search of either a restaurant or an internet cafe. Since I came upon an internet cafe first, here I am writing.
The bus ride was interesting. Guatemala is beautiful, very green. And the people are very friendly and colorful. So from that respect I found that every bend in the road unfolded a new and exciting view. Inside the bus it was jam packed, probably not by their standards but by mine. I was much amused when the bus driver´s assistent started handing out little stools for people to sit on in the isle (Mind you this was the nice bus I took). And then there was the part in the trip where we traversed a road still partially washed away from Hurricane Stan. Fortunately the places where the road had completely collapsed had been repaired.
My time in Guatemala City was great!! On Fri. night my friend, Guillermo, picked me up at the airport. After checking into my hotel we went out to get something to eat and drink. We spent the evening in Zona Viva, a really nice part of the city. We ended up dancing and hanging out with his friends until 3 a.m. On Sat. I went with Guille to his school and then afterwards we drove to Antigua. Both the university and Antigua were really beautiful. Antigua has so much energy in it yet, it was really calm at the same time. The streets were cobblestone, the buidlings were colorful, the food was incredible and the central park was bustling. In the distance towered Volcan Agua. So much thanks to Guille for all his generosity and being an incredible host.
Everytime I come to Central American I continue to be amazed by the juxtaposition. Parts of the cities have all the signs of modernatization and Americanization (Blockbuster, Mcdonalds, Dominoes Pizza- to name a few) yet the minute you exit the city it´s clear that Guatemalan society is agriculturally based. It´s really interesting to think about.
So far I´ve been suprised at how much I can actually understand in Spanish. I still have trouble formulating ideas into sentences (hopefully 5 weeks of spanish school will help that). But for the most part I can actually understand what´s going on. This is a big plus since one of the most difficult things for me when I first arrived to Argentina was simply not knowing what people were talking about or thinking to do.
Well, I´ll write more soon. I´m sending you all lots of love.
From Guatemala,
Amy
The bus ride was interesting. Guatemala is beautiful, very green. And the people are very friendly and colorful. So from that respect I found that every bend in the road unfolded a new and exciting view. Inside the bus it was jam packed, probably not by their standards but by mine. I was much amused when the bus driver´s assistent started handing out little stools for people to sit on in the isle (Mind you this was the nice bus I took). And then there was the part in the trip where we traversed a road still partially washed away from Hurricane Stan. Fortunately the places where the road had completely collapsed had been repaired.
My time in Guatemala City was great!! On Fri. night my friend, Guillermo, picked me up at the airport. After checking into my hotel we went out to get something to eat and drink. We spent the evening in Zona Viva, a really nice part of the city. We ended up dancing and hanging out with his friends until 3 a.m. On Sat. I went with Guille to his school and then afterwards we drove to Antigua. Both the university and Antigua were really beautiful. Antigua has so much energy in it yet, it was really calm at the same time. The streets were cobblestone, the buidlings were colorful, the food was incredible and the central park was bustling. In the distance towered Volcan Agua. So much thanks to Guille for all his generosity and being an incredible host.
Everytime I come to Central American I continue to be amazed by the juxtaposition. Parts of the cities have all the signs of modernatization and Americanization (Blockbuster, Mcdonalds, Dominoes Pizza- to name a few) yet the minute you exit the city it´s clear that Guatemalan society is agriculturally based. It´s really interesting to think about.
So far I´ve been suprised at how much I can actually understand in Spanish. I still have trouble formulating ideas into sentences (hopefully 5 weeks of spanish school will help that). But for the most part I can actually understand what´s going on. This is a big plus since one of the most difficult things for me when I first arrived to Argentina was simply not knowing what people were talking about or thinking to do.
Well, I´ll write more soon. I´m sending you all lots of love.
From Guatemala,
Amy
posted by Amy | 10:10 AM
1 Comments:
Hi Ames,
I imagine that you now have a different opinion about the rather terrible cup of latte that you had at the airport the morning that you departed. What's a girl to do?
Loved your joke.
Love you so much.
mom
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