Last week in Guatemala part I

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Heres my last update from Guatemala. Im in el salvador now, but will tell of that next time:

1) Last weekend in Guatemala: Carnivals, Big dinners, and Soccer Games
2) Kids Day

1) Last weekend in Guatemala: Carnivals, Big Dinners, and Soccer Games

Carnivals: A few quick notes here. First, I went on upside down amusement rides that cost $1.25. My first week here included independance day (most cenral american countries celebrate it on the same day). And Xela, my town, is the hub of the celebrations for much of guatemala, so naturally the carnival was in town. And, having worked in carnivals before (for those who didnt know, i was a carnie one summer on the jersey shore) ive never really had trouble getting around a carnival. But this time, i legitimately got lost the second i walked in. Between the vendors, food stalls, rides, games, and artesenias all mixed together in a central american way, a few minutes in i didnt know if i was in the center or the outskirts, or which way to walk. But i didnt care, because for $1.25 i can ride the gravitron until my i´ve swallowed my head and thrown up my stomach.

Dinner: Every Thursday my school has a giant dinner where a few students cook for all the other students and teachers. I was feelin a bit lonely before, but after going to my first one, i found some people i really liked and had some friends to hang out with. I spent the next few days going salsa dancing, playing soccer, walking the streets, and overall taking in the scenes. A few of them left that weekend too, so we made a giant american breakfast with pancakes, yogurt, granola and fruit...all the stuff id been cravnig but hadnt yet had.

Soccer games. I went to a soccer game here in Xela, and it was phenomenal! First, like every ‘event’ here, a bad ass marching band came out and took to the field. Then, at the start of the game, the bleachers erupted with fire extinguishers spraying Red, White and Blue smoke (Xela-Ju´s colors), and that was the last i saw of calmness. (And Dock, i realized that you and i were just a head of our time and in the wrong country). As for calmness leaving though, the rest of the game entailed screaming, trash throwing, toilet paper rolling, road flare firing, and impromptu bleacher bands (with horns and drums). Definitely a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, especially for $5.

2) kids day.

In guatemala (and central america) they have ‘kids day’. Kind of like fathers day and mothers day, except for kids. Yeah exactly, every child’s dream, one more day of presents. So to celebrate i went with 3 other people to a local guaderia, an afterschool program for elementray scool kids, with which the langugage school works closely. And we spent that afternoon playing with kids. Unfortunately on the way outside to play games, a girl stepped on an old rusty nail which went right through her shoe and into her heel. Being the 4th year medical student that i am, i expertly pulled it out and cleaned the wound. Thank you 3 months of surgery at St. Elizabeths medical center in brighton, your welcome.

Anyway we then played Simon Pide (Simon Says), relay races, and musical chairs. This was followed by a meal of every kids favorite food here, helote. Helote is corn on the cob doused in mustard, mayonaise, ketchup, hot sauce and cheese. And thats how i spent my afternoon before my all night hike.

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Photos

ping pong
jesse and tanya playing some ping pong

the band in the sky
the marching band taking center field

wheel barrow races, indigenous style
the two smallest taking charge on the wheel barrow race

Learning Spanish
doin some studying

The bridge to nowhere
a very special bridge. it didnt got anywhere, it didnt cross anything important, but it was fun to look at.

Watching from the trees
these people climbed trees outside the park and stayed there the whole game to be able to watch.

Road Flares
one of the many Road Flares for the game

La Guarderia
they liked touching his bald head

La Guarderia 2
waiting to go outside

Simon Pide
a variant of simon says where they all run up if they have what he asked for.

The Big Race
The Big end all Relay Race

fire extinguishers to start the game
at the starting whistle the stands erupted in red, white, and blue smoke from fire extinguishers that the fans brought

Tigo girls
the cell phone company sponsored models prancing around the field for the hour before the game. slightly different than cheerleaders, but similar idea.

learnin spanish
studying in a cafe, learning the language

desperdidas
goodbyes