feliz día de chófer!

I found today very fitting to blog about the ever-famous chicken bus, or camioneta. Mark, Molly, and I realized today was "Happy Chauffeur Day!" since music was bumpin' when we pulled into the bus station. Each chauffeur had taken it upon himself to celebrate in correct fashion. Whether an arch of balloons, colorful streamers, or even Christmas garland, they sure knew how to embellish their already-colorful buses for the big day.

Now, what exactly is a chicken bus? There are, in fact, no chickens on these buses. Rather, it is the name given to the mode of public transportation here. If I had to go with an animal name, I would actually call it a "sardine bus," as passengers are packed like sardines. Back during the good ol' SSJ elementary school days, I would share a seat with fellow kindergartener Chelsea. Here, Chelsea is replaced by a family of four. That's right folks, there were FIVE of us in one seat. Que loco, no? Let's just say these chauffeurs know how to get their money's worth.

The amount of passengers is not the only shocker about these chicken buses. Every ride is a new adventure. The man who collects bus fare weaves in and out of passengers in the aisle, hangs halfway out the bus calling down to pedestrians, and even climbs on top of the bus to gather belongings... while the bus navigates through windy roads. You're pretty much always guaranteed this sight. Every so often, you'll get another sight. While waiting for the bus to rival a sardine can at the station, solicitors hop on to ask for money. Sometimes it's a darling child, other times it's a grandma with poor eyesight. Today? Well today we had a man who began his story and, halfway through, ripped open his shirt to unveil a bag that evidently contained part of his intestines (blood, guts, and all). Yup. Thank you, chicken bus. You always seem to keep the excitement alive.

papa americano.

This weekend I got my American on for a couple different reasons..

Reason #1

We received an invite from volunteer coordinator Erika and hubbie Sandro to have dinner at their house. You'd be silly to say no to a couple so incredible in the kitchen (remember that cake I blogged about earlier? Ya, Sandro's work). They served a savory veggie lasagna followed by ice cream with Toblerone chocolate sauce on top. Plus, the appetizer was chips and THE BEST guacamole of my life. Even though they're from Switzerland, I classify this as American because I ate American-sized portions :)

Reason #2

We went for a stunning hike. One that even rivaled those back home in Phoenix. It took us up into the hills and through a itty-bitty town called Corrales. Every so often I just had to turn back and catch the beautiful view into the valley.

Reason #3

We had ourselves a fogato! What's that you ask? Why a bonfire. Complete with s'mores. Mark, Sam, Erika, and myself were the instigators (we also happen to be the token 22 year old college graduates from the states). I'm still pretty impressed with our ability to find chocolate, graham crackers, AND marshmallows at the local grocery store.

Reason #4

Lunch with Conor Mahoney! Conor is a good friend from college who just so happens to be studying at a language school a few towns away. This weekend he passed through Antigua, which is about a 30 minute bus ride from NPH. Of course we took advantage of the opportunity to reunirnos by grabbing lunch and catching up. It was so great to see you bud!

my friday was made when..

My chore this week was to pick up the loaf of bread from la panaderia. It wasn't quite ready during my lunch break on Friday. So what did one of the boys suggest? That he would bring it to me in the library! Just as he promised, way-too-kind Henry and a freshly-baked loaf visited me later that afternoon. There's nothing quite like the scent of warm pan to welcome the weekend :)

princess dreadlocks.

Update: My first day went super bien! Not gonna lie, I had butterflies in my stomach about being alone with my English class. But there was no reason to be! Seeing as they are the oldest students in the school, they really do want to learn English! I asked them what/how they wanted to learn for the rest of the year. What came up most was mas pronunciation, conversation, phrases, and song lyrics. Now that's my kind of learning!

Another part of my volunteer position takes place with mi seccion. The homes where all the kids live are divided into sections. Each volunteer is then assigned to a section for the year. Twice a week, I head down to La Casa de Bebes to hang out with mine! I chose Los Carinositos, which means "the little affectionate ones." It is a group of 12 boys ranging from 5 to 9 years old. Talk about adorable (ok, and wild and crazy too). On Friday I was there from before lunch until they were tucked in bed! It was incredibly exhausting, but in the best way possible. Little Eduardo took me under his wing. Together we washed the lunch dishes, shined the school shoes, and finished up his homework. Then.. it was play time.

We raced cars, pretended to be parrots, played indoor soccer, danced the duranguense, feasted on birthday sweets, and oh, I also visited the salon. Apparently my beautiful, luscious locks wowed them beyond belief. Ha. To the point that they couldn't resist playing with my hair. One moment just Edgar was twirling my hair, the next moment... 5 boys were! They all wanted to "braid" my hair (read: twist my hair into dreadlocks). You'd think I'd ask them to stop, but they were just too cute about it! They started saying, "Eres una princesa!" This prompted Luis to swiftly bring over a chair as my thrown. Eduardo and Edgar then swooped in to offer themselves as escorts. It may have been the most painful updo of my life, but boy did I get the royal treatment :)

it's the turning of a new page!

And no, I didn't title this post based solely on the fact that I'm a librarian :)

This weekend marked a few things. We finished the two weeks of orientation. That means tomorrow is my first official day sola! Wahoo! I'm really excited to get the ball rolling.

We also finished our time in the visitor house. We were temporarily living there while we overlapped with the former volunteers. Seeing as they all left this weekend (que les vaya bien a todos!), it meant the houses were vacant. So we moved in! It is very exciting and I can't wait to post pictures muy prontito. We chose to move in today, although in hindsight, conditions could have been better. Yesterday was sunshine-y great, and today was the perfect stay-inside-with-a-hot-cup-of-tea kind of day. In between bursts of rain, I would fly down the three flights of outdoor stairs with my luggage. A little drenched, all of my belongings and I finally made it into the house. Then the lights went out. I attempted to unpack in the dark. Don't worry, the lights came back on just as I finished haha. All in all, I am just so excited to now have a space to call my own! My roomie is European sweetheart Hannah, who has been here for 6 months as a physical therapist. We live in Casa Seis with 6 other girls. Altogether we are from Guatemala, the states, Germany, Italy, and Austria! What a mixture, right? I'm excited for roomie dinners, movie nights, and dance parties galore!

a day in the life.

Curious about what a librarian/English teacher's day looks like? Glad you asked.

Typical day:

8:00 hit the books! (aka the library)

8:10 read to cutey Montessori kids during library time

9:00 5th grade teacher sits down with me to plan next visit

10:00 teach English to my 16-19 year olds!

11:00 recreo (or recess, in which the kids can read/color/play board games)

11:30 word scramble activity with 2nd graders

12:30 downtime to organize books, make copies, plan next English lesson, look official :)

1:30 lunch break!

2:30 time for kids to check out books, research homework topics, borrow encyclopedias, ask you how to say words in English, ask you for the soccer section of the newspaper, etc.

5:30 until tomorrow, library!

I really enjoy my position. At least once a week I see Montessori kids all the way up to the equivalent of 5th graders when they have library time. Then I have my high schoolers for English. Then anyone can come in from the 2:30-5:30 time. Aka I get to interact with sooo many kids! I guess there actually was a reason behind me wanting to be a librarian when I was a 1st grader :)

the weekend in photos.

Friday night was our first venture into Antigua! About 30 minutes away via chicken bus (more to come on this later) is a city that is one of the more well-known, and, therefore, somewhat americanized spots in Guatemala. I predict a few visits there if we ever get tired of the beans and rice diet :) That, plus it has an incredible market to buy anything and everything for cheap! Our night consisted of spinach pizza at a delicious italian restaurant (I told you!) and a pitstop at a local bar where LOTS of dancing took place. I already know I'm going to like the other volunteers with the amount of moves that were busted!

Saturday night = party time! For what, you ask? Why, our volunteer coordinator was turning the big 5-0! For this, we all met in a volunteer house to find colorful flags hanging from the ceiling, latin music blasting from the speakers, and a myriad of appetizers on the table! We mingled the night away until... cake time! Her husband made an incredible, 4-layer, chocolate cake, baked in rum, topped with cherries and tasty frosting. Yeah, YUM. Also, there's this tradition they have here in Guatemala. Basically, your face gets shoved into your own cake haha. And that is precisely what happened to Erika last night. Luckily, I have 6 months to brace myself for this local tradition :)

Today was a wonderfully relaxed Sunday. It began with a run with Erika and Sam (the two girls above). We later headed into Parramos to shop at the local market! It happens every Sunday at the park where street vendors pack themselves together. I may have avoided the fly-infested meat stand, but I did make my way over to the shaded produce stand to get my fix of fruits and veggies! I bought all of the above for only 14 quetzales, which comes out to about $2! Quit the steal, right?

by the numbers.

NPH Guatemala is a home to many. Here's the breakdown...

Kids: 350

Volunteers: 22

Permanent staff: over 100

That's not all NPH Guatemala is home for. There's the extended family too...

Cows: 2

Goats: 21

Pigs: 126

Chickens: 500

Fish: in the hundreds!

Crazy, right? In some way, shape, or form, all of these animals contribute to the meals made daily in the comedor. I mean, they have to feed 500+ people somehow :)

As I mentioned above, there are 22 volunteers in total. 13 have been here since January, and 9 of us just arrived. Here is a photo of us "newbies" with Erika, the volunteer coordinator. 4 of us are from the states, 4 from Germany, and 1 from Switzerland. Please note the ONE guy of the group. Luckily, he does not seem to mind the ratio haha.

Let's just say, they sure know how to make us new volunteers feel at home. I've already felt so welcomed by many. Even though we have come to share our time and our talents for the next year, so many of the permanent staff have said they are here a tu orden or para servirles. Not to mention all of the kids are just dying to be one of the first to have your name memorized. Already quite the handful have accomplished their goal! They love walking/running over to me to say, "Krrrrristina!" (with that amazing roll of the tongue they have mastered). With that sort of first interaction, how could I not feel at home?

charlie y la fábrica de chocolate.

"Hola! Me llamo Kristina. Soy de los Estados Unidos. Y voy a trabajar en la biblioteca." This is the introduction I say probably about 50982 times a day haha. With la casa (as they adoringly call the orphanage) being so large, there are many people to meet. After getting to know each department and office, our last formal introduction took place in front of the 350 kids at dinnertime. Can I just say that I already love them? After finishing our introductions, a little boy ran up and hugged my leg. Then, once inside the cafeteria, girls called out my name to sit with them. Super cute they are.

Yesterday was my first day on the job! Kinda sorta. Katie (the current volunteer) still holds the position, so it was more of my first day shadowing her on the job. The hours are from 8-1:30 and 2:30-5:30. The mornings consist of a combination of the following: planning with teachers for their class visit to the library, those class visits to the library, little tasks here & there, and going to the English classroom to teach my own group of teens! After the lunch break recreo happens, in which students come into the library on their own to read books, research homework topics, draw, or play games. Not only do I get to know a bunch of the kids, but I also have a lot of variety in my day. I already love it.

Today, one of the classes that had library was in the middle of reading a novel I recognized... "Charlie y La Fabrica de Chocolate" or "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" as you guys know it! I'm looking forward to reading some of my childhood favorites in Spanish with the kids :)

first post from guatemala!

Estoy aqui! And boy, is it stunning. We are in the midst of rainy season so the flora and fauna is green and thriving! While I may be giving up a typical Phoenix summer, I will gladly take the rain if it means so much natural beauty around me. What else surrounds me? Why a bunch of energetic kids, of course!

Today concluded Day 1 of orientation. I feel like already so much has happened since arriving into Guatemala City on Saturday night. Since then I have settled into my temporary room, toured the grounds of NPH, met all of the volunteers, gone into town for a typical Guatemalan meal, figured out how to not shower in freezing cold water, and watched a fantastically entertaining dance competition between the kids. Oh, and I've eaten more frijoles than I've probably consumed this entire year! But you don't have to tell me.. I'm gonna get used to it :)

These next two weeks are full of orientation, training, and information galore. This may sound dull, but I am loving it! It is the window of time in which the 9 of us "newbies" overlap with the current volunteers. Since we will be inheriting their positions, it is incredibly helpful to have them here. Later this week we will be shadowing them so as to learn the ropes. I can't wait!

I'm currently having a bit of trouble uploading photos, but I promise to keep trying! Get excited for what's to come.