Sooo, surprise! It's been another month and alot has happened and I failed to write on a consistent basis but... it's not my fault! Ha. Ok, it is my fault, I've been busy and too cheap to buy internet. Alas, let me begin chronicling my adventures since the last time we chatted :o)
Swearing In
So I'm officially legit! No more Peace Corps Trainee Kim Duncan- it's Peace Corps VOLUNTEER Kim Duncan thank you! The swearing in ceremony was ridiculous. It was also in conjunction with the 50th Anniversary of PC worldwide and was held in the residence of the US Ambassador to Guatemala. Anddd, all the current volunteers were invited too. So, there were about 300 ish 400 ish people to celebrate us becoming volunteers and the 50th. Not to mention the awesome press coverage where we landed on the front cover of the Prensa Libre which is basically the main newspaper in all of Guatemala. And yours truly was in the front row so my face was bright eyed and bushy tailed for all of Guatemala to see! After we took our Oath of Service to protect the Constitution of the US we were official. It's really neat, the oath is the same one used for the military, Congress, etc. Following the fun times with the Ambassador, the media, and all sorts of PC officials everyone headed to the touristy spot of Antigua. We had some good wholesome fun of dancing and singing and celebrating! At one point I did feel like I was back in college- eek! That was wayyyy too long ago.
San Juan Ostuncalco (Also known as the hardest week thus far)
So you would think that the hardest time of acclimating to a new culture would be within the first three months of training but definitely not. We swore in on Friday March 25th, had fun Saturday and Sunday, and by Monday night we had met our new bosses/counterparts and our new home for two years.
So first things first, we had two options for houses and of course one house was really awesome and one house wasn't bad at all however, lacked some privacy and was a tad bit overpriced. I totally begged my partner to let me have the house with the family/kiddos and a little more sense of privacy and she graciously (emphasis on graciously) let me take the awesome house. On the bright side for her, she only has to live with the family for about 3 months and can get her own place and live solo. I'm pretty sure I'm committed to living with this family for the next two years which is ok with me! I have my nightly coffee with them, and dare I admit it, the taste of instant coffee is growing on me. Someone send me a Starbucks cappucino asap!
So, after I groveled for the house we still had no where to sleep so we headed to the local motel. Mind you this is the best/safest hotel in town an if I was walking in the US I know I would have snubbed my nose at it and said no way. And it wasn't amazing... smells of smelly things and our tv locked in a cage but the food was good and the people as usual were very accommodating. The next morning we mentioned to the owner of the hotel/ cook that we were in need of some beds and other furniture. They told us to wait five minutes and before we knew it there was a guy ready to drive us around town and help us buy beds. How willingly would I normally get into a truck with a stranger- not likely- however in Guate (for the most part) people are genuinely willing to help. And our new host spoke 3 languages- Spanish, Mam, and English. His english was a little bit broken bc he hadn't lived in the states for awhile but he was just so gracious! So we went on our journey for beds and the storekeeper was going to charge us Q950 but he was able to talk her down to Q800 ($100). So we loaded the beds in his truck and really didn't remember where we lived but we made it! Rebecca and I cuddled for the next two nights bc her room wasn't quite ready yet. So fast forward to the rest of my furniture: I bought a table and a dresser and a ridiculous book shelf. Ri dic u lous. It is covered in pictures of 18 wheelers. I'll have to post a picture soon. Essentially all of my furniture is resting on a piece of cardboard bc inevitably one or two legs are shorter than the other. But it's mine and I heart it. Oh, and price comparison: I paid Q300 for my bookshelf and for Q300 I could have also bought 2 things of CoverGirl mascara. I def opted for the bookshelf and thanks to a care package should have some mascara soon!
So why was this the hardest week thus far? Because we didn't have a home, because we couldn't just up and get in our cars and drive to the local Walmart and buy furniture, because once you buy said furniture how are you supposed to get it to your said home, because we ate corn and bananas all day every day bc we couldn't cook, because I didn't have my agua pura yet, because we were officially on our own to sink or swim. Ha!
All is better now, I'm definitely more settled in and not surviving off of corn, bananas, and the occasional ramen. I've waged war on the flies in my room and I've become very successful at providing the swift justice of my fly swatter. I have a broom so I sweep everyday to keep the dusty dirt at a minimum. And my shower is more or less warm. And I'm going to start hard core studying/reviewing my Spanish so I can hold a decent conversation.
Was I Hallucinating or was God Spiting Me for Breaking Lent?
So I gave up ice cream for Lent. The main reason was because while living in my training town of Sumpango I had gotten into the habit of having my daily ice cream cone from Sarita. Strawberry cheesecake flavor to be exact. So, when Ash Wednesday rolled around I said no to Sarita fresa queso! And I lasted a good 30 days. Thirty days. The hardest part is the first 20 days and I had totally done that. But after a really long day all we wanted was some ice cream. And I should mention that Rebecca and I do alot of waiting. Meetings that are supposed to start at 9 am and really don't start at all and it's 12 pm by the time they tell you "Fijese que we can't meet after all." So we were waiting for three hours to not have a meeting. And then we had another meeting that started at 2 pm and thought it would only be an hour and come 6:30 pm when the meeting was actually over we desperately wanted ice cream. I figured I was justified. And plus I had a conversation with the Big Dude Upstairs and rationalized with him that I had already given up so much in the last three months and could I please have some ice cream. I heard a "Yes" and proceeded to get a double cone.
Fast forward to the next morning around 7 am. My bed is shaking, my door is shaking, and my water bottle is doing the whole Jurassic Park shake. Literally the first thing I thought is that I was imagining all the shaking goin' on. Then I thought, "Oh crap. It's because I ate the ice cream. Big Dude did not say "yes" he said "ten more days of no ice cream." And then I thought maybe this is an earthquake. And then it was over. So, lessons learned: 1) Probably shouldn't have ate the ice cream 2) Find out what to do in an actual earthquake- review training notes 3) Work on response time- ie: don't lay in bed wondering if it is God spiting you or if you're imagining things.
In Conclusion
All is well here in the new site. We have started to visit schools and meet people in the community. The teachers are on strike in the country but it isn't affecting our school district for some reason so we've been keeping busy. Somehow I even managed a four hour nap today. It's my first nap in Guatemala so I'm actually pretty proud that I've only taken one nap in 3 months whereas in the States my whole weekend was one big nap. Now it is 11 pm and I'm still awake which is also probably a record too.
If y'all are interested in sending me care packages- no worries! Mom and Dad sent three boxes of Girl Scout cookies and Double Stuffed Oreos so I'm pretty much set. Plus the cookies (oh so yummy) end up negating the weight I have lost. Woo woo! I'm losing some chunk!!! If you do feel so inclined I can always use I-Tunes or books for the Kindle! Books are ridiculously expensive especially since I now convert everything into Quetzales and I only make about well... nothing... ha! I started reading Anna Karenina bc 1) it was free and 2) it's a classic and 3) bc I "read" it in high school and want to legitimately read it. But I really have everything I need here and even though I've given up a laundry list of things all is well. And who really needs mascara? Ok, I do and thankfully that's being sent bc y'all know my eyes look really small and beady without makeup. Ha! But I digress....
I hope everyone is well in the states and that pop culture is still popping! Someone let me know what Lindsey Lohan and Charlie Sheen are doing!
Lots of love!
