Turn around those December Doldrums..

I got back from vacation on Sunday, and after a day of recuperation from the grueling bus ride on Monday I woke up on Tuesday and asked myself What now?

Rejuvenated from a couple of days in the Caribbean, I was full of energy and ready to throw myself into changing the world with a new passion-only one problem.  December may be the worst month to be a PCV-if you're like me and elected to spend your meager Peace Corps stipend on seeing the sights in and around your host country instead of flying home for the holidays.  |Because Guatemalans do celebrate Christmas, along with a host of traditions and festivities in the weeks leading up to Christmas, and New Years, and in my site the feria, or carnival to celebrate the patron saint of Sija, occurs from the 7th to the 14th of December officially.  Unofficially, what all of this boils down to is a general spirit of festivity and vacation for the entire month of December.....or, to put it more simply, no one really does any work for the next 30 days.

*sigh*

Having already frivolously spent all my vacation days and all my money (anybody surprised by this?), I run the risk of going absolutely insane playing the waiting game this December. In order to avoid, or at least quell, this dilemma, I sat down and made a list of goals for December-things I can do by myself, or nearly by myself, that don't cost a lot of money, can be done in or around my site, improve my physical and mental well being, and are constructive.  In an attempt to cement my commitment to these goals, I've decided to share them with you all.  Here goes.....


Work Goals for December:

1. First draft of Flora and Fauna Guide for the park
2. Trail Work (got a lofty list that I won't share here)
3. Request Letter of Recommendation from my Peace Corps boss
4. Information Booth for our Park during Feria
5. Make headway on Recycling efforts
6. Mural in Community Library
7. Get involved in Peace Corps training and support activities
8. Make flyers to publicize our trail in Spanish Schools in Xela

Personal Goals for December:

1. Run 5k (not even an official race, just be able to run that far without stopping)
2. Buy kennel for Bella
3. Climb Volcan Tajumulco
4. Start cleaning out apartment
5. Take my own recyclables to Recycling Center in Xela
6. Spend time with host family


For all my fellow PCV's that aren't traveling home for the holidays, I know how tough it can be.  Hope I've motivated you to turn December into a transformative month in your service-a time to catch your breath, make personal changes and improvements, and get ready to work hard again in January =)  I love marathons of Grey's Anatomy as much as the next PCV, don't get me wrong- but here's a chance to break up the movie watching and baking.

Wish me luck! 

Turkey Day in the Caribbean

Just got back last night from a wonderful Thanksgiving vacation to the Caribbean. Traveling ALL DAY (Guatemala has made me into a marathon traveler-13 hours to get from home to our hotel in Livingston), we woke up on Turkey Day feeling like a hike to stretch out after the bus ride.   We hiked to Siete Altares, or Seven Altars, a cascading set of pools leading out to the ocean.  After the hour and a half long walk, jumping in the cool springwater felt amazing.  Surrounded by jungle, the 7 Altares pools were a beautiful way to start our vacay. 

We returned from our afternoon of hiking, swimming, and drinking on the beach Hungry!  Thanks to Rusty, owner of Casa de la Iguana hostel in Livingston, Guatemala, we had a traditional turkey meal attended by lots of Peace Corps Volunteers and other travelers.  I ate the best turkey I'd ever had and actually managed to say no to the mountains of mashed potatoes and gravy so's not to stuff myself beyond capacity.   I defintely missed the leftovers though =(

The day after we left Livingston to enjoy another hotel called Finca Tatin.  It's a little place in the jungle upriver on Rio Dulce.  I like it because they have lots of hammocks and several docks for sunning and swimming, t he food is great, and the rooms are in the jungle.  Lights go out at 10 b/c the whole place runs on a generator so you can enjoy a quiet night surround by jungle sound s and complete darkness.

We got to spend one afternoon sunning, swimming, and enjoying a few cold ones.  In the morning, we took kayaks out on Rio Dulce and paddled along the shores for a few hours.  I forgot how stunning every  turn around the river is.  I was also excited to see a few green iguanas in the trees. Unfortunately, its obvious that they are hunted because as soon as they saw me (from pretty far away) they headed up high into the trees.  

All too soon it was time to head home =(  but not before meeting two couples that are living my dreams-one cute young Australian couple who travel "professionally," traveling and picking up odd jobs in between with no real home base-and an older couple who bought a 36' sailboat 16 years ago in Louisiana and have been sailing around the Caribbean since then.  Both (hopefully) kind of a look into my future.  


Anyways, like i was saying, the time to leave the Caribbean came all too quickly. It always does. Which is why I think more and more about someday never having to leave =) 

Hope everyone had a Great Thanksgiving with family and friends and too much food!

Where did November go?

It's been a week and a half since I wrote?? Is it just me-or is this November just flying by? Which leads me to wonder what the hell I've been up to since then-glancing at my calendar, scratching my head.. Peace Corps brought a group of ecotourism volunteers here for their in-service training-An opportunity for Volunteers at their 1 year mark to learn new technical skills that apply to the projects they are working on.  We were able to go up to our park and talk about trail design and maintenance.  I'm happy to say that the previous Volunteer and the NGO Helvetas ProBosque, together with the local park committee, did a pretty good job constructing the trail here to begin with, so it served as a great example for the group that came.

Wednesday I was supposed to take my group of kids hiking, but was struck with a case of food poisoning that kept me in bed clutching my stomach all day.  Just when I thought I had developed that Iron Stomach so coveted in the PCV population-I hadn't been sick in months-there's nothing like a good stomach flu to keep you humble. 

Luckily, that only lasted one long, painful day.  Unluckily, the rainy, grey skies persisted on Thursday and Friday..and right now I've about had it with the grey cold drearies since they prevent me from working in the park =/ 

Saturday my friend Steph and I made a happy discovery in Xela-the existence of a delicious microbrew, served in pitcher form no less, right next to our bus stops!  AND, in a town devoid of outdoor seating because Guatemalans just aren't into it, an outdoor patio to sip our brews and chat.  You have to understand, there is NO beer on tap here, and the national beers are terrible, so this is a huge windfall. 

After a typical Sunday (laundry, dishes, cleaning the apartment, run) I headed up to the trail yesterday to do a little honest work.  I'm fortunate to have the opportunity and ability to do some manual labor in the park when I want to, and our trail maintenance seminar inspired me to grab a hoe and get a little dirty.  Sometimes you just need to put effort into something that gives you results you can see-the Holy Grail of Peace Corps life. 

And that brings us to today, Tuesday before Thanksgiving.  Peace Corps was gracious in giving us Wednesday through Sunday off, and so I am taking a much needed trip to the Caribbean Coast with Tara.  While part of me wishes I were sharing Turkey Day with all of you back in the States, another part of me can already taste the grilled lobster and rum-filled coconut.  I love the day before a trip-the anxiety and excitement, something that I have truly come to enjoy here. 

Happy Turkey Day everyone! 

Adventure on our trail

They got me to play soccer-Bella helped too

Bellá and my host family's husky, Gold

Keeping warm with Bella and Pia, another Volunteer's dog

OK, I just realized 3/4 pictures with and of my puppy =/  I can't help it!  Hopefully you think she's as cute as I do.

Eat a slice of pumpkin pie for me and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

xoxo
Amber

Murphy's Law

Do you ever have those days where things just go horribly, comically awry? Yesterday was one of those days for me.  I woke up way before necessary and stumbled out to get the coffee going in my french press.  When I put the lid on with the hot water and ground coffee in, the filter came off and sunk down to bottom of the jar.... =/ It took me like 5 minutes to get the filter out of the hot water and screwed back on properly.  I was cursing and thinking "I can't deal with this, I haven't had my coffee yet!".... Little did I know this was an indication of the rest of my day.

At the risk of sounding like an old country song... My internet stopped working, I got catcalled by long-haired, greasy teenagers, and my bus broke down halfway up the mountain. And I bought a mexican torta from the new restaurant in town that was so bad, I fed it to my dog after one bite.

However, there is always a silver lining-I was so worked up that I went for a run to burn off some frustration before heading to the Tigo (internet provider) store.  Yes, I've started running after many years of proclaiming that "I don't run."  The nice weather got me feeling antsy with a lot of pent up energy.  I've been hiking and walking my dog so much that it doesn't really get me winded anymore.  I live at over 9,000 ft and all the roads I walk on have big, steep hills.  I decided to try running or jogging. I actually googled "how to start running," having no idea, and feeling that I would probably hate it and go back to power walking after one try. 

But I really enjoyed it.  I started three weeks ago and have been increasing my run intervals and decreasing walking time-yesterday i ran for like 4 minutes without feeling like keeling over.  Progress.  Maybe at this point in my service, I feel like I need to do something that produces tangible, rapid results.  Not a whole lot of that in development work.  I was concerned that I would get catcalled or feel uncomfortable in my sweatpants, sweating and huffing and pufffing along.  But I'm known well enough in my community that I usually see people I know, or that know me, and greet me and wave as I go by.  So, while I won't be running a Marathon anytime soon, I can measure in minutes and meters an improvement in myself. 

And my Comedy of Errors sort of day?  It ended the only way one of those days can end-with a good movie and a big glass of red wine.

Drizzly Friday

I woke up this morning to a familiar sound. Rat tat tat a tat....the lovely sound of rain on a tin roof. I thought, no, that's not right-but upon peeking out my window I saw the familiar drizzly scene and sighed. At least I'm prepared for a rainy day-new dvds, yummy snacks, and bella got to play with her buddy Gold (my host brother's hugemongous husky dog) All Day yesterday so she's not too disappointed about not going out today. But I had planned to work in the park today-I can see that plan going down the drain with the drip drip drip of this drizzly rain.


The town is mourning the tragic death of one of their own-a young guy who was a close friend of many, including my counterparts and my host brother. He attempted suicide by grabbing onto the electrical wires and was brought to the hospital in xela, where he died three days later. His friends and family were further upset by graphic photos published in the paper yesterday of the firemen taking his body down from the electrical pole, along with accusations that he was up there trying to steal electrical cables.

Don't think I've mentioned before that there is a newspaper published here, of the tabloid variety, called Nuestro Diario that publishes uncensored pictures of dead bodies after accidents, gunfights, etc. I've always been a little shocked and disturbed by this paper, and its popularity, but until yesterday hadn't thought about how the friends and family of the deceased would feel about such photos being published for entertainment and shock value.

People here were upset by the article, but the paper sold out anyways. My host family looked up the article online last night and were looking at the pictures, I turned away. Even the grandkids were in the room and saw the photos too. I dont know why this rubbernecking behavior is so prevalent here, the attraction to gore and death... Are they desensitized? Are we too sheltered from it?

Right on time, the marching band is starting to play outside to start off the fanfare and funeral procession that I hear will last most of the day. Uniting to mourn the loss of a beloved member of the community, coming together to ease their pain and share the burden with each other. They are reminded that life is short and precious as they try to make sense of one of their own ending his own life. Despite all the hardships of life in Guatemala, suicide is rare-making this loss even harder to understand.

A Week in Review

Some Highlights from this week

-Saw a Mountain Trogon for the first time in our park (in the quetzal family)
-Started putting out coverboards to survey herpetofauna (a little late but better late than never, an emerging mantra for my last few months here)
-Went all the way down to xela for lap swimming to find that the pool is closed until january for swim lessons =/
-Bought two boxes of Turtle Brownies because they were on sale Q3 each (like 40 cents!)
-Made Turtle Brownies to share with my host family, eating only two myself  (success!)
-Downloaded new How I Met Your Mother, Sex and the City (old), Glee, and True Blood thanks to randomly (lightning) fast internet
-Skyped with Gina DeVecchio over on the east coast, and with my little brother in LA (west hollywood to be exact) and can't believe how grown up everyone is..... or that almost two years have gone by already
-Guided a group of kids and women from my library groups up in our park, and had such a good time we're doing it again next week



Leaning on Technology

My computer got sick about two weeks ago.  The screen flashed black and white while I was working on it in the office and I held my breath while it lasted -about 30 seconds-and then it went back to normal.  I tried to deny that it had happened-perhaps I imagined it?

Later in the week, it happened over and over again after varying periods of normal function and I had to admit I had a problem.  I googled the symptoms and the general consensus was that it was unsalvageable.  I felt sick to my stomach.  I took it to the repair shop, not even daring to hope that it could be fixed-but was assured that replacing the screen would fix the problem.

Does all this sound akin to the stress level that would accompany-oh i don't know - a sick child, not a piece of replaceable machinery?? While I am happy to report that after a week in the shop, all that was wrong was a loose connection that they fixed for about $10, the event brought to light my concerning dependence on this piece of machinery. 

With it, its easy to keep tabs on friends and family, talk to my boyfriend daily on Skype, read the news, surf the internet mindlessly, watch movies and tv shows at night.... not to mention work related functions. 

What the hell do peace corps volunteers do where there is no electricity and no internet?  And Why aren't I one of them?  I certainly hadn't pictured myself plugged into my email and facebook and blog Daily while down here in a third world country.  *frowns*  I feel guilty, uncomfortable with how much my computer occupies my daily life, but unable to stop.  My computer is back,a nd here I am, surfing the net while I drink my coffee.  I wish my service had been back in the 60's, before laptops and mobile internet and skype. Or do I?

The mini-crisis brought about by my computer getting sick forced me to ask these difficult questions today, and I hope will motivate me to reduce my computer time and increase time spent doing other activities and getting creative about doing so.  Today for example (and actually have to cut this short now to do so) taking our Girl's Group from the Library to hike on the mountain.   Yay physical activity, nature, sunshine.... !

In other news, we are being STANDFASTED again this weekend for the second round of elections.  We dont expect any violence here in Sija, but thats probably why they want me to stay here.  I'll try to avoid reading your FB status updates in real time.  Promise.

No Jack o Lanterns for me...

Today was All Saints' Day, a holiday not widely observed in the States but recognized in many other countries, including Guatemala.  In some parts of the country, it is celebrated with much fanfare, most  famously in Todos Santos, home of the Drunken Horse Race. 

Here, we passed the day a little more 'tranquilo'... The office was closed, so I slept in, then took Bella for a run with my host sister (yeah, running, more on that later).  We had a Delicious chicken dish that my host mom had just learned, with chipotle peppers and cabbage and shredded chicken breast.  Then we walked to the cemetary to visit the dead.  Sound creepy?   Let me (try to) explain why it wasn't.

All Saints Day here is a day for the living to go visit and remember their loved ones.  Some believe that all the souls are allowed to come back to visit this one day a year.  In some communities, people bring food and drink and sit by the grave to share, or bring a flask and toast to their deceased.  In our cemetary, families came to visit their departed and leave flowers and candles adorning their tombs.  Instead of burying their dead, they use above ground tombs that often house and have space for whole families.  It's hard to explain, so I took pictures. 

The flowers and the hanging with the host family was nice-don't get me wrong-but i'll be happy to return to the costumed drunken debauchery, pumpkin carving, and bite sized candy bars next year.