1st Week of Spanish Classes

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Xela is an interesting place. There are many beautiful buildings surrounded by such poverty. Xela definately has a city feel but is surrounded by lush beautiful dormant volcanoes. The sidewalks are extremely narrow and it´s very difficult for 2 people to pass each other, you are definately forced to acknowledge each others presence. It is very common to see traditionally dressed Mayan women walking next to people in western dress. One thing I didn´t expect was the size of the typical person here. I am at least a head taller than most people here. Today my maistra referred to me as ¨tall¨ and I am only 5´4¨.

My new school is great! There are lots of activities, resources for students and we study in a pretty garden. My maistro last week was the perfect instructor for my first week. Her name is Marlin (see picture w/me in the garden) and she is 28 w/ a 6 y/o daughter and a husband who spent 3 years in the US after they had their daughter (talk about a hard separation). She told me that she cried everyday for the first 2 years. Yikes, I can´t even imagine what that would be like. It´s hard enough being far away from Willie and it hasn´t even been 2 weeks. Marlin is so sweet, we laughed so much during class and I also learned a lot (go figure). At the end of the week I had stomach troubles and class was pretty tough. On Friday we took a field trip to the corner market to buy me some Gatorade. I was so relieved to find out that they sell that here! Stomach is better now, I´m happy to say. This week we had a lecture on the Mayan Bible called ¨Pop Wuj¨. After the Spanish Inquisition, the Spanish conquistadors invaded Guate and saw the Mayans as heathens. We were told about 1 Spanish priest who spent 3 months straight burning the Mayan books. We lost much information on mathematics, physics, etc. but some manuscripts survived. From these manuscripts came the Pop Wuj. There are 2 versions out there, one from a Catholic priest and an earlier one from a Mayan priest. It was a pretty interesting lecture. I also went to Fuentes Georginas. It is a natural hot springs heated by volcano. It´s surrounded by lush mountains and is incredible (more pics). This was definately a great way to destress after a long week of studying.

I just moved in w- a new family. The last family was very sweet but they did not know how to feed a vegetarian. I´ll let you know more about the new family later. So far, the food is great!

That´s all for now. I´ll keep you posted.......¡Hasta Luego!

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Comments

[Lisa]

awesome
Hi Tam, Wow, it looks so good. Can I come? You are a very blessed individual girl! Love, Lisa

[Erin Rametta]

Hello from Erin
Tamara!! Your trip looks amazing and full of adventure! I hope you have a blast down there. When you come back will you help me with my Spanish? I'm actually trying to learn too but there's nothing like immersing yourself in a culture. It looks warm down there...be careful of racoons at night J/K...I mean monkeys :) This blog is is great!! xoxoxoxo Erin P.S. I'm going up to San Francisco over Xmas to record a new album. Will you be back in January? Miss you!!

[Phyllis]

Great pictures!
Hey Tamara!! Such great pictures you are posting. Keep them coming. It seems you have been gone longer to me, so I can't believe it has only been a week. I hope this entire adventure will be exactly what you need and that you have a blessed experience. God and Guru bless and keep you safe and happy. Your Sister, Phyllis

[Gary]

1st week
Hey Tam, Sounds like you are getting accustomed to your new surroundings. Well I'm glad to here that you are all together and doing what you went there to do. Keep us posted on the current events of your trip. So far, they seem very interesting! Talk to you later, Gary

[anjna]

Thanks
Hey Tamara; sounds like you're doing wonderful in Xela. It was beautiful to hear about the mayan scripts history-how fascinating. I am very happy to hear that you like your new school and family. You're very much here in our hearts. Thanks for sharing your experiences. Love: Anjna

[Guate Gal]

Miss you too!
Hey Erin! How wonderful about your new album. Wow! I am watching out for the monkeys & stray dogs that are everywhere here. So far no racoons, but a gal always has to keep her eyes out :)-. I won´t be coming back until Feb. 05 & want to see you then to catch up!! Love you!