Everyday living

As I was getting some lunch today I thought you might be intersted in some tidbits about how one goes about daily tasks.

Kitchen

Rule one is the local water is not safe. So that means that anything you drink is either made with purified water ( there is an agua pura container in every kitchen where there is the money to afford the purified water) or you boil it before you eat it.

Rule two is that you never use dishes, cutlery, pots or cooking utensils that are not dry, if they have been washed in local water.

Rule three is that you cook on gas burners and with gas ovens. The ovens have no temperature controls so there is some guess work in your cookies and cakes.

Rule four is there is lots of fruits and vegetables all the time at very good prices so its easy to be a vegetarian.

Rule five - at least for me - is an avacodo a day keeps a smile on my face! At about $.30 I am smiling alot!

Bedroom

Rule one is very night before you go to bed you check to see an scorpian has snuck into your bed.

Rule number two is if you are bitten by a scorpian you eat a teaspoon of sugar and put some sugar on the bit - it takes away the skin.

Rule number three is that even though the days are warm with temperatures of about 75F or 25 C the evenings are cool so you can always get a good night's sleep.

Rule number four is you have to be able to ignore dogs barking and roosters crowing because they always do at all times of the day, and night.

Bathroom

Rule number one is you never put toilet paper in the bowl because the plumbing systems cannot handle it.

Rule number two is don't swollow any water while showering - see Rule number one in Kitchen

Rule number three is use agua pura to brush your teeth.

Rule number four is agua caliente is available almost everywhere so showing is great.

Rule number five is if you are living in Pana ( and I am) and you get your water from a well ( which we do ), you have to conserve water in April becuase the well might to dry any day.

Life in general

Rule number one is slow down, the pace of life is different. Time has a different meaning than in the North.

Rule number two is expect things to change. I am not sure if this is because I am a gringo or if this true for Guatemaltecans as well but it is really a fact of daily life.

Rule number three is expect to learn lots of new things every day.

Rule number four is expect to meet at least one interesting expat every day. Today I met Tina who is Danish born, living here in Pana with her husband and son, fluent in Spanish and providing counselling services. On Sunday it was Dave, a fellow I was meant to meeting today do to some volunteer work with. We were both traveling to the beach with mutual friends

Rule number five is expect the unexpected! Today I am going to a late afternoon yoga class where after class I will have the opportunity to enjoy natural hotsprings while sipping tea.

Adios
Colina

Using local transportation

This week I had the chance to be in Guatemala City for a couple of days. We arrived by public shuttle from Antigua to the international airport ( dropping off one of the team members heading home). Public shuttles are a very common form of transportation for gringos and there are numerous companies providing shuttle service any any town where gringos visit. We were able to book a shuttle around the corner from our hotel (Casa Cristina www.casa-cristina.com) for $5 US. We were told we had to be ready 15 minutes before the 8:30 departure and it could be as late as 8:45 before we were picked up. We were picked up within this 30 minute window, went to a few other hotels picking up others and were at the Guatemala Airport within 90 minutes. Of course one of the benefits of these shuttles is the conversations with other travellers; learning what they have been doing, what companies are good to do business with, what adventures are worth having.

In Gaute City we used local taxis to get around. We stayed in Zona Vida (the tourist zone which offers travellers and foreigners the comfort of a high police presence. This is important as Guate City is not a safe place right now) and enjoyed the great meals available at local and international restaurants. We had time to do two "tourist" trips; one to the Botanical Gardens of Juan Carlos University and the second to the Parque Central where we were the centre of attention at a mirimba concert ( being the only non Guatemalan faces in a crowd of 300). The taxi was recommended by our hotel and Rudi became our tour guide, available to take us back to the hotel and then pick us up early in the morning for the trip to the bus station ( outside Zona Vida and not a place to be unless you are getting on a bus out of the City).

All our information said that our bus to Santiago would leave at 8 am but like some many situations when you are travelling, that was not the case. The bus did not leave til 10 so we had a quick conference to explore options and decided to take the non direct route. We hopped on a bus heading in the general direction we wanted to go knowing we would have to make two other connections to get back to Santiago. The bus ( we often here them call them Chicken buses but I have learned that people here do not like that designation so I have been calling them the intercity bus or the autobus) took 2+ hours to travel what I think was about 100 km stopping regularly at posted signs and when it was waved down to pick up or drop off passengers. The money collector would come down the row at intervals collecting fairs - always in cash. At a number of the larger stops 6 - 10 different vendors would walk through the bus selling water, juices, hot and cold food and snacks. Some even just walked along the bus on either side and sold through the windows ( which are always open because of the heat)!

We jumped off the bus (literally as the stops are often very short) and waited about an hour for a connecting bus. This one was smaller and less crowded, at least to start with. As the bus progressed it picked up more passengers and before long there was three people per seat and in some situations some larger people had one cheek on one seat and the other cheek on the seat across! When they shouted our spot we all began to get up and collect our knapsacks. I must have had a brain blip to think I could do that without hanging on ( as we are still moving at about 60 km per hour around winding roads) and I landed in the lap of the man sitting across from me. This provided enormous amounts of laughter for all those sitting at the back of the bus. And in addition to then having to haul myself up I had to shinny my way through the others standing in the aisles even more quickly to the front of the bus. Off I hopped and the bus was gone when I turned around.

So now we are about 30 minutes from Santiago and the next bus will stop on the other side of town. So off we go, walking in to town with the thought we might catch a bus, a van or even hop on a pickup. Turns out the pick up was the best option and we joined about 6 others in their tipico clothing all catching a ride to Santiago. ( Riding a pickup is a routine form of transportation here. Men make some of their living driving back and forth between towns; their trucks having a bar that runs down the middle of the pick up bed for people to hang on to as the truck whizzes around the winding highways at 60 - 80 km/hr). We tapped the truck roof twice as we got close to our desired drop off point. The truck stopped, we hopped out and walked to the driver's side to find out how many Q he wanted for the trip. With that sorted out, we walked to our hotel in the jungle (Paul's Posada I mentioned earlier)

I had to make it over to Panajachel so I quickly repacked my bags so I could carry everything and took a tuc- tuc ( a three wheeled vehicle with a driver in front and room for up to three people or two people and bags of groceries or one person and a very large backpack) to the launcha site.

Here I heard the now familiar Pana Pana Pana call letting me know there was a boat heading for Pana soon. Now soon is any where from now to 45 minutes from now. I was the first on the boat so I knew it was not now. I had to negotiate my fair. The launcha captains charge different prices depending on whether you are tourist or not. I have learned that if I tell them I am a volunteer I can get a slightly better rate than the tourists. On this occasion I needed to pay Q25 but I only had a 100 bill. I gave him my 100 and then enjoyed the process of the other passengers arriving and getting settled. Just before we left one of his helpers handed me my Q75 change. Nice! Of course no life jackets as we headed across the Lake but this particular captain took it easy and so the trip across was smooth.

My day's travel for taxi, autobus, pickup, tuc tuc and launcha cost a total of Q70 including tip! A total of about $11.50. A deal by any standard for that amount of travel.

Once again a great adventure!

Adios par la dia
Colina

Food

Now that is always an interesting topic - and one of particular interest to me as I love to eat and I love to cook!

My memories of my first trip to Guatemala were not full of wonderful food so its been a surprise to have some positive stories to share. I came to Guatemala thinking I was going to lose weight and that did happen the first couple of weeks as I lived in homestays and did not have much of an appetite. But then I moved to Santiago to live with the team and was introduced to food a ala Al and Elaine! They cooked for the team for 2 1/2 weeks and boy did we eat well - all on $25 a week per person budget. Cinnamon buns, chicken stews and fruit salads are some of the most vivid memories. They would send us off each morning with our tummies full of warm porridge covered with some of the very raw brown sugar you can buy here - and we'd come home for lunches of homemade soups and biscuits. All the comforts of home!

When they left there was a big void to fill and with some trepidation I said I was interested in doing some of the cooking; trepidation because I have not even been doing much cooking in my own home let alone cook meals for 15 people three times a day. As it turned out Brenda was also interested so the two of use took on the role for just shy of two weeks with some help from Jo. I loved the opportunity to head off to the market each morning (a twenty minute walk which included a hike up a very steep hill), to explore the market to find the food needed for our menus (food is organized differently in Guatemala so it takes some getting used to), coming home with our treasures, washing all the vegetables and then getting down to food preparation. One of my favourite stories is trying to select avocados for a guacemole. I was hunched over putting them into my lap as I found ones I thought were good. Another shopper, a woman in tipico Mayan dress took one out of my hands and told me that it was not a good one (told me in sign language as I do not speak or understand Tsutjihil) and showed me what was wrong. I then showed her the other ones I had chosen and she vetted them as well. It was one of those moments where language was not important and the smile on her face as I expressed my thanks with a similar smile was memory making.

Another food story I want to share with you is about eating out. We have made three trips to San Juan, a lovely aldea close to Santiago. One the first trip Mary, a young American woman working as a volunteer in the community, introduced us to the Elinora Comidor. It is a lunchtime restaurant that seats about 50 and offers three or four selections each day. The kitchen, which you can see on your way to the sanitarios, is very basic with the standard wood stove which heats the planchas for tortilla making. Lunch is usally rice, a quarter of an avacodo, some other cooked vegetable like whiskele or carrots and grilled or fried chicken - all for Q20 (less than $3). I have loved each of the meals we have shared there.

Last story - about making tortillas. They are a staple of the diet here and when we were working on the stove project we became aware that the planchas they are cooked on are smeared with lime ( we think to reduce rusting) . Of course our Northern experience with lime is in gardening not cooking. We tend to think of lime as caustic so needless to say we were puzzled and concerned. I did some on line research which did not calm my concerns so then contacted one of my colleagues who is a PhD chemist and asked him about the use of lime in cooking. His answer - yes lime can be caustic but when it comes in contact with heat, that property is eliminated and in fact the calcium in the lime is released adding calcium to the diet. Something important for people who are living below the poverty line and especially for children and women nursing.

But the story does not end there. I was visiting at Andasa, a cooperative which began to support women who lost their husbands in the mud slide associated with Hurrican Stan. Juan who is one of the leaders lives at the headquarters in Panabaj and I had a chance to talk to him and his wife about tortilla preparation. The women buy maiz (a large hard corn kernal) and put a couple of cups of it in a pot with water to cover it and them a small pinch of lime. They boil the maiz for 20 - 30 minutes and then wash away all the liquid (the lime helps the maiz soften). Then they take the cooked corn to a shop with a machine that grinds the corn into a very thick paste the consistency of a thick cookie dough. The paste is put into a small plastic bowl and brought home ( remember every one here walks) and small globs, about 2 inches in diameter are then patted back and forth by hand to a four inch diameter cirle that is put on the plancha to cook. The patting of the tortillas is one of those sounds I will always associate with Guatemala.

And as I close this blog I am off to make myself a big fruit salad.

Adios, Colina

Safety

One of the issues I have been thinking about in the past few weeks is the differences around safety and security in Canada and in Guatemala. The the issue is one that I have considered in the context of being in the developing world where safety takes on different meanings.

Let me share some examples. This morning we took a launcha, a small outboard powered boat, across Lago Atitlan. One each of the three trips there were no lifejackets in the boat and this is typical of all launchas on the Lake. It would be unheard in Canada to be in a boat without enough lifejackets for each person. We have been travelling to and from Chacaya, the aldea we have been working in, by pickup. What that means is we all stand, or some times sit on the wheel well, for the 20 minute trip out to the village. Unheard of in Canada.

The whole food growing and distribution network is another remarkable process. Any fruit or vegetable needs to be washed in solution to remove harmful bacteria, all water consumed is bottled and you have to consider carefully eating anything off the street.

And personal security is also an issue to be paid attention to, much like it is in Canada. Going out at night is something that I do only in certain parts of town. One keeps one personal belongs close at hand in large public environments but at the same time the people are tremendously honest. We were stunned by how the kids would return scissors or pencils handed out in classes even though they have so little in the way of school supplies. There are roads you just do not travel any time of the day or night in the same way there are parts of town we avoid in our own towns and cities.

It is clearly not as clean in part because water is an issue but also because there is less money available to build the infrastructures needed. But that does not stop people from being just as clean as those of us who have the money to access the hot water showers and have people who take away the garbage.

In the end alot of it is what you get used to, what you have time and financial resources to deal with and what you are willing and able to put up with. As I come closer to this adventure ending more and more I think its all about adjustment, assessing risk and deciding when it is worth taking.

And on that note, it is time for me to take myself home by flashlight.

Buenos noche
Colina

Why not just donate?

My budget for this three month project including travel, accommodation, food, language school, my donation to the projects and a little spending money is $4000. This amount of money in Guatemala is the annual income for two families living in poverty in aldeas like Chacaya and Panabaj. And these are families with two parents, 3 – 6 children who might also be supporting one or more grandparents.

One of the questions I have been asking myself is, would I have been better to donate the $4000 to an organization already on the ground? (Sharing the Dream or Mayan Families come to mind). Of course on a purely selfish level the answer is easy. The opportunity to live and volunteer in Guatemala is an amazing gift. As well, the many opportunities I have had to meet and build relationships with people from the aldeas as well as people volunteering and working here from other countries has been enriching for me.

But what about the bigger picture – when it is not about me but about helping build a more just society; a society where all have an opportunity to live a life which offers them safety, food and potable water, shelter and time to learn and have some fun?

Early in this blog I referred to Jean Vanier’s Massey lecture entitled Becoming Human. As I was pondering this question I read a couple of passages in the second chapter that speak to the issue. He asks “Where does the broader sense of belonging come from?” And then answers, “I believe it begins with human contact, with friendship, and as we listen to each other’s stories. We are all particularly touched when someone from another culture treats us kindly, even though we are not a member of their group, or when they reveal an inner pain, weakness, and difficulties. Friendships grow between people of different backgrounds and cultures because they meet as persons, not because they share a common heritage. Such friendships grow because we all belong to the larger group of all, the human race.”

And so there is an answer to my question. I think about the kids whose tummies I tickled as they waited to see the dentist, the woman shopping at the market who showed me through sign language and a big smile how to choose the best avocadoes, or the two brothers whose stories of how they survived through the war in the 80’s. These contacts have changed me; and perhaps them. I have the opportunity to come home, to talk to family, colleagues, friends and students about what I have seen and learned. And in the context of Vanier’s message, perhaps it is there that I can add value, understanding, perspective for others. People who will consider international development work, who will donate money to organizations doing international development work or perhaps who will live, volunteer or work with people from other cultures.

As I try to understand more how I can participate in making our world a more just place, I am coming to understand, as in international education work, relationship is critical to international development work. And it is through practice I am learning to build relationships across cultures, across languages and across values.

As I approach the last five weeks of this adventure I look forward to creating and grabbing opportunities to touch and be touched by others.

Adios
Colina

Stretching

Last night our team met after dinner to prepare for the five day dental clinic. The clinic will be offered in the aldea (village) of Chacaya at their medical clinic. This clinic has two examining rooms, one of which is available to us, another small room and an out of doors reception area. Nadine has developed a plan for two operating site and a process to welcome patients to the clinic and funnel them to either the dentist or the dental assistant for their procedures.

Members of the team were asked to sterilize instruments, provide reception services, assist during procedures, clean and sterilize operating sites between procedures and keep the kids entertained while they wait. Other than the dentist and dental assistant, no one on the team has skill, training or experience working a dental clinic. Hence the stretching as we learn new skills and information to support the clinic.

And the concept of stretching is becoming an on the ground metaphor for me as I think about working in international development. We arrive into a particular situation with the skills, knowedge and attitudes we have built in our very development Western experience. And then we begin to understand what needs to happen. Then with our own, or others insights we see how we can help. Many times that means adapting the skills, attitudes and knoweldge we have to suit the needs of the project.

Let me share with you some of the things I have done in the almost six weeks I have been here that I would not have thought I might be doing. Translating from Spanish into English thank you letters from kids to their donors; shopping in local food markets where I have to use Spanish to tell the vendors what I want, cooking for 12, washing my sheets on a concrete scrub board and teaching a group of Mayan speakers how to brush their teeth! It will be interesting to see what the other six weeks brings!

With a smile on my face, I wish you Buen dia!
Colina

Group Living

Its been alot of years since I have lived with a large group of people! I had not given the reality of group life much thought beyond wondering about finding time for myself, and I have been pleasantly surprised at the experience.

We are living in luxury by Guatemalan standards, a beautiful estate called Vista Dorado which overlooks the bay around which Santiago is built. We have hot !!! and cold running water and live in two homes on the property. Six people in one and five in the other. Two of our team members have been the cooks, really the chefs as the food has been wonderful. I had thought I would lose weight here but so far that is not the case. ( Just so you all don´t think all is sweetness and light we do all our own laundry by hand and hang it to dry. And there is no drinking the water so I have to stay conscious even in the middle of the night not to inadvertantly put some nasty bugs into my system).

I share room and bathroom with two other women both in their twenties. We have come to an easy partnership in terms of space and daily routine. It helps I think that every one is here by choice and is focused on having a good experience and in making a difference for the kids and community in Chacaya.

I am the only member of the team who does not belong to the church which sponsored this mission. I was also a bit concerned that my lack of adherence to the faith of the group might be a deterent to feeling part of the group but that has certainly not been the case. The other members are understanding that I do not subscribe to their faith and I work hard to ensure I am respectful of their practices.

Religion aside we all have a strong value in social justice which is the tie that binds us together. We are seeing the fruits of our labours as kids excitedly brush their teeth, as the stoves the mission has sponsored are constructed and as the the way of offering and providing help evolved based on the relationships the mission team is building with other non profits providing service in the community.

More team members arrive in the coming days and with that the group dynamics will change but the mission is near and end and we have lot of work to do in this last 10 days. I expect at the group forms and reforms we will all be so busy getting the jobs done that the time will be gone before we know it.

Adios para hoy

Colina ( my Spanish name as Colleen is much too difficult to pronounce)

Adjusting

I haven’t had a cold in at least five years – and the one I have now is making up for all those years. I have almost lost my voice and have used up at least two rolls of toilet paper to catch the drips! I am sure it will be better in a few days but what a drag not feeling 100%.

I am typing this message while looking out of Lago Atitlan, or at least the bay around which the town of Santiago is built. The wind, so normal for each afternoon, is helping the laundry dry. Several of us took our clothes to the only laundaria in town but the clothes come back with so much soap still in the fabric that everything needed to be rinsed so we do our laundry by hand.

We finished teaching lessons at both schools yesterday and today. In retrospect I am fairly convinced that another time I would be asking what help we might provide in or for the schools rather than to tell them we had lessons in to teach. I have been impressed with the level of knowledge the teachers are sharing with the kids in the classes and am even more convinced they do not need our help with curriculum content.

I had the opportunity to attend a meeting a few days ago among a group of NGOs all providing service in one community. One of the NGOs talked about using the relationship model to identify what services they would offer. By this they meant they asked the organizations what services they needed and then through a fair trade of produce, which is sold in the US, they fund the services needed. I like the model a lot because it means the people receiving the services are not receiving charity but are in fact earning the services.

This is actually similar to the stove portion of our work here. The stoves are designed to minimize use of wood and at the same time also to maximize the cooking surface available. The design also forces all the smoke to the far end of the fire box and up the chimney minimizing the amount of smoke the women inhale while cooking. Last year this team installed three of these stoves and they families are very pleased with them. This year an additional three stoves are being installed and the men of the families who received the stoves last year will teach the men of this year’s recipients how to build the stoves.

There is a major school soccer tournament for the next seven days and everything, and I do mean everything, center around the tournament and what teams make it through the various rounds. Soccer is serious business here – for both the boys and the girls.

Adios til next time,