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Published: June 20th 2013
Overwhelming Welcome
The kids were excited and told the teachers they wanted to make a poster. Each star has a student's name.I am loving being here. It felt like coming home... only better.
I arrived I Guatemala City and collected the boxes of donated materials I brought from baggage, and sailed through customs in 10 minutes with only one box opened and a "Welcome to Guatemala". Rolling the boxes outside, I was met by two women from UPAVIM who treated me like a princess. They took me by the bank to get my money changed and stopped to get a drink... I was VERY thirsty. I really didn't expect anyone to notice that I was coming back. I certainly didn't expect the royal treatment!
Arriving at UPAVIM, there were lots of hugs and kisses and "¡Bienvenidos!". Last year, I really should have paid attention to those around me, because I didn't remember some of the women hugging me to say hello when I arrived this time. Then, to my surprise, they took me to a meeting room and served a wonderful lunch for me and the ladies connected with Montessori. We had cake and they told me I had to take a bite out of it. I looked at them dubiously, but they assured
me that this was a Guatemalan tradition, so I did! They all loved it!
The children saw me and they were excited. I didn't think they would remember me, but I guess I made more of an impression than I thought. They wanted to show me their work and I got masses of hugs. I tried to get out of there as soon as possible so the class would calm down.
I was also surprised at how many things that I had changed in the classroom actually stuck. They are still using a lot of the materials I made last year. Just everything is better that I thought it would be, and I had already figured things would be pretty good.
In the afternoon and early evening, the smell of the bakery below, the beautiful view of the volcanoes on the horizon, bustling volunteer quarters, the wonderful food here, the cool afternoon rains, the sound of firecrackers at night, and the ease of knowing how to get around reminded me how much I like this place.
Today, I got busy planning with the teachers what we will be
...and the result...
…flies kept swarming my face until I could wash it properly. making and learning. We set a schedule for what materials I will present to them and what we'll be making. Hopefully we can get it all done! So much work, but not difficult when I feel so appreciated!
There are a bunch of photos waaaaaay down at the bottom of the page. Scroll down to the bottom of this page or double-click on the pictures to see more photos connected with this blog.
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Fran
non-member comment
Hey Natanya
I'm enjoying your blog so far. You look great - all smiling and happy. Keep taking photos! I'm looking forward to the next episode of "Natanya Goes to School in Guatamala". The chickens are doing good. I've started putting the water jugs in the freezer overnight so the water stays cold way longer. I tried hosing them down with water, but they didn't like that so much. Hahaha! Dora is pecking the hell out of all the low laying tomatoes. I've got some mesh to put up this weekend! Hugs, Fran