Buanas noche,

It has been a while since last we've posted a new entry. Lo siento. The biggest reason is that the screen on our laptop has bit the dust. Rudely with no warning. So no new photo's until we figure out another way! Check back though because we have some sexy photo's of me (Luke) on our new scooter!
Hasta luego,
Luke

Iglesia Merced. Typical of the 20 churches in Antigua. This is a functioning church. You are able to visit the ruins of its ancient, pre-earthquake edifice located just to the north. Our language school occupies a garden that is bordered on one side by the ruins. It is lovely.



This is the fountain outside Iglesia Merced (above). 200+ pigeons make a temporary flight though the open square when the church bells sound at key hours durring the day. It is worth being a few mintues late to see the 8am spectacle.



a typical fountain. this one is from a walkway near central park - on the way to cafe condess (see below!)



umm... good coffee.

The view of Volcan de Agua from our roof. We climb the ladder and sit on the shower vent for a little escape.


Our Guest House



Luke taking a much needed break from fighting with verbs.

It’s been a very eventful week (9/10-17). Andrea and I started and survived our second week of Spanish classes. A three or four day, (who’s counting), festival celebrating the Guatemalan independence from Spain ended the week. There was a quick trip to the capital city to see friends on Friday afternoon, and a really fun but difficult mountain bike trip on Sunday. Keep reading for a few details

Monday morning jitters accompanied us on our commute to class. I guess there are several reasons: New teachers, higher expectations, and we’ve begun to realize that the more they reveal about this language the more impossible it seems to ever learn. As it turns out neither of us loved our teachers this round. My teacher spoke at full speed, spoke no English, and seemed very distracted all week. His favorite holiday was Independence Day and he had something like pre-Christmas excitement. Andrea had an…eccentric teacher but she can write about that!

Independence Day (Friday) was cool. Tons of people crowded downtown for marching bands, concerts, food venders, fire-works, kids drinking in the street, and the whole shebang. We saw some definite shady things, but that goes on everywhere on such holidays. Here no one tries to hide so it’s more in your face.

On Sunday, our German friend from school organized a mountain bike trip. There were six of us total including Andrea and I. We had great equipment and very friendly/skilled guides. However it’s possible they over-estimated our abilities! The first half of the ride was an extremely technical single-track climb. Apparently all the rain we’ve had lately really washed out much of the dirt leaving endless miles of trenches filled with rocks and roots. All the hard work paid off, however, as the second half of the trip was filled with wicked down hill runs and enjoyable cross-country sections with fantastic views. It was the most exhilarating time I’ve had in a while. So good to be out of the city, riding through forests & farms, and breathing fresh air!

I think we can make it through another week of mind numbing classes now. It will be tough to sit down all day, butt for a different reason!

Luke

Andrea's Unintentional 10K (9/14)

This evening, while passing the time waiting for the bus, we chatted with a Guatemalan guy named Henry. At one point he exclaimed, "What! You don´t run on Independence Day? No torch? No running? Really? What do you do?!!"
So tomorrow is Independence Day for Central American Countries, the day Spain officially withdrew control over their former colonies. The celebrations have been buildingwith fervorr all weeks. Flagsare drappedd on the hoods of cars and are flying from every building. The day beforeindependencee is the day of "antorcha"- groups of people run with a banner with the name of their school or business and they run with a lit torch (think Olympics) around town or in our case, from one town to another. We haven't been able to getdefinativee answer on how this custom began or its significance. The best that I can gather is that the torch, a symbol of light and freedom, is carried between towns all over Guatemala uniting the country. Oh, I forgot to mention that the runners carry whistles that sound with every breath and that the spectators cheer and throwwater balloonss (made of plastic bags), buckets of water, or just open up hoses at the runners. It is an entertaining event for all. The roads are filled with people of all ages running and, oddly enough, traffic is kind on this day of all days- drivers honk enthusiastically and wait patiently to passthe hoardss of runners.

So I thought our Spanish school was going to run around the nearby town of SanMiguel becausee it would be less crowded that our town of Antigua. What actually happened is that we were dropped off in San Miguel and had to run back to Antigua! The details were lost in translation- or perhapsthey didn'tntellel us on purpose! A surprise but fun nonetheless. We were a ragtag group of little boys, some of our aging teachers full of pride determined to finish. In the picture you can see our school banner PLFM and the torch (a gasoline soaked rag stuffed inside a tin can on a stick). I'm in there somewhere sucking air at 5000 feet and of course, with watebottlele! A hello to my running buddies. Needless to say I was thinking of you all.

This is our first post but there is no way to include all that we have seen and experienced. A summary seems insufficient but it will have to do until you come and visit us. We spent the first few days in Guatemala catching up on sleep, buying groceries and exploring the picturesque town of Antigua. The buildings open directly to the narrow sidewalk through ornate, often arched, doors. It is only when you are standing in the doorway that you can peek inside to find a pharmacy, bookstore, bank, restaurant, hotel,or tropical garden. The sign outside is no indication to the mystery within. It is a constant adventure. The city is surrounded by mountains so it is cool jean weather every morning and evening. The afternoons are sunny but end with a rain. In a country the size Ohio there are over thirty volcanoes although only 16 or so are active. Three, Volcan de Agua, Fuego and Pacaya, are the constant backdrop to our life here. They remind us of our small size and lack of control- as if we needed the reminder! There are gorgeous ruins of churches around town from previous earthquakes. These plus the arches and columns give the town a Italian/Romanesque feel. The stucco is reminiscent of Southern California but the Catholic influence makes it is uniquely Central American.

Our feet are sore from trekking for a week on the cobble stones in flip flops. Our guest house is a few km outside town so we commute by chicken bus then walk from one side of town to the other to class. How these converted school busses were named I have no idea but it does evoke a bit of the feeling. 80 people with goods for the market and sleeping children are "easily" stuffed inside. It is fun trying to squeeze between people sitting four to a seat. I feel like I am given birth everyday. We are looking into a vespa or motorcycle for our commute- it will save our feet but also let us safely stay in town in the evenings.

We have completed our first week of Spanish classes. It is overwhelming but so good. Our brains were fried by Friday- so we played soccer instead of conjugating irregular verbs. Of the hundreds of new words, here are some of my favorites:
el rompecabeza (a break your head) = puzzle
la tierramoto (an earth motor) = earthquake
los anteojos (before your eyes) = glasses
igriega = the letter "y"

It has been great being here but we have had our bouts of homesickness. On Friday night, we shared a blanket on our damp sofa and watched Pelican Brief which is set on Capital Hill. It was both a cure and a disease for our state. On Saturday I started nesting a bit, which was a good sign and am on the lookout for a nice blanket and a coffee press. We are gaining speed on being able to cook for ourselves in a healthy and cheap manner which helps too. Full bellies make happy people. Life is good. Life is rich. Life is crazy. We are holding on.

More later.
Andrea