Home Away From Home

First off, I want to say that all the Peace Corps volunteers here are safe. As some of you may have seen in the news, there was a terrible landslide here. It’s one of the worst in Guatemala’s history and many people are still missing. So please keep Guatemala in your thoughts and prayers as those affected try to find ways to heal during this tragedy.

I am writing from an Internet Café in my new town of Ciudad Vieja. I’ve been living here for a beautiful eight days! I’ll be living here with my host family for the next two months. Peace Corps calls this your “CBT” site, which stands for Community Based Training site. Here is where I’ll live with a local family, study Spanish six hours a day, integrate into the community, and work in some of the schools. It’s already been an amazing experience getting to know my community. In just my first week here, I have been introduced to the mayor, the police force, and the director of “Escuela Fray Matis De Paz” who invited us to observe “Dia de Los Niños” (a yearly celebration of kids across Guatemala). The next day, he invited us to each observe a classroom. I got to sit in a Social Studies classroom and nervously introduce myself to 24 middle-schoolers who had never heard to Peace Corps or New Orleans. I’m not totally sure I got the Peace Corps message across in broken Spanish, but at least they now know where Jazz music comes from!

There are two other volunteers in my city. We take our 6 hours of Spanish class together everyday! We each live with different host families, all within blocks of one another. My family consists of 4 people (or 8 if you want to count our pets- one dog and three turtles). My host parents are Doña Aura and Don Rodolfo. I have a sister who’s my age named Magnolia and a brother who’s in his 30’s named Jose Rodolfo. I couldn’t have landed in better hands here in Ciudad Vieja. They are the sweetest, most loving, caring family and I feel honored to be a part of their lives for the next two months. I spend most my time with Doña Aura. My favorite thing about her is that she clutches onto me every single place we go. She always links her arm in mine, places her hand over mine with such care, and off we go making groceries, saying our holas and buenas to everyone we pass, and visiting her family members. We’re quite the pair!

On my first day here, she took me around town, ushering me into various houses to meet her friends and family. We would sit down for a cup of tea/coffee and I’d be asked five questions by her friends:

1.“Are you Catholic?”

2. “How big is your family?”

3. “Do you have a boyfriend?”

4. “Do you want a boyfriend?”

5. “Want to meet my son?”

Then onto the next house for another cup of coffee and those five questions once again! Everyone is so kind and welcoming here. It’s been exhausting but it’s also been so fun to practice my Spanish and get to know everyone in my small town.

I also love spending my time in the kitchen with Doña Aura at night. The sweet smell of her frying plantains is enough to draw anyone into that kitchen. I like to sit and watch her cook while I do my homework. Mom- I know you’re probably concerned that I’m not helping her cook and I promise I offer all the time! Doña just cracks up at how slowly I peel vegetables so until she can think of a task I can handle, I’m stuck on the sidelines, observing! This weekend, I’m hoping to get into the kitchen with Doña and prepare a Guatemalan dish!

I am so lucky to say that everything so far has been beautiful. I’m not going to lie and say I haven’t had my rough moments. My first night in my homestay led to my first breakdown, looking at all my family pictures, listening to Norah Jones, and crying while eating a bar of chocolate I brought from the States. I’ve definitely asked myself a million times, “Can I really do this?” But there are those little victories, like getting a few extra free tortillas and a smile from the tortilla lady, that remind me that I can handle this. Everyday, I wake up excited, nervous, and filled with anticipation for what the day will bring. Then I’m served a plate of beans for breakfast and a little part of me cries for Greek yogurt and fruit… but hey, it’s all part of the integration process!

*Side note: I have electricity, which is AWESOME! But I don’t have Internet or hot water… that is not so awesome. So it may take a week or so until my next post! but I promise it won’t be a week till my next shower! MISS YALL! Also, here's a lil peak into my life here! 

Here's my cute lil bed! Also, you know you’re in Peace Corps when you’re mandated by the U.S. Government to sleep under a mosquitero! 

Don y Doña's beautiful courtyard. That’s a volcano in the background!

This is my host mom, Doña Aura and her fresh coffee beans. She processes her own coffee, grinds it a special way with rice, corn, and wheat, boils it twice, and serves a fresh cup every time. It’s hands down the best coffee I’ve ever tasted!