I haven't blogged yet about my site and my work, but it's not because I haven't wanted to or even because I accidentally downgraded my internet... again. My problem is simple: I just don't know where to start.
Everything about my life has been totally changed over the past three months. I have made incredible, new friends. I live with a new family in a new country. I eat new food. I have a new job. I speak a new language. How do I begin to transmit this amazing, rich experience with a few sentences and some pictures? Welp, I have no idea.
So, I have decided to cut myself a little slack and start sharing anecdotes as they happen. I am going to start with thie of my Thursday night, which very accurately captures the spirit of improvisation and new experiences, that sums up my first few months here in Guatemala.
It all started Wednesday night at about 9:00pm. I was in bed reading and not too many minutes away from falling asleep when my phone rang and the person on the other end of the line was Seño Gloria, my host mom. She asked me to come downstairs to talk. I really thought I was in trouble. Luckily, she was just inviting me to her daughter, Ruby's, birthday dinner. Ruby was turning 15 and even though it wasn't a formal quinceañera, 15th birthdays are still a really big deal here for girls.
So, the next afternoon, I got her a bracelet as a gift and got ready for the birthday dinner. I still had no idea what to expect. Slowly, family started to arrive and pretty soon there was a group of about 30 at the house.
All of the sudden, Gloria says "Let's go!" and we all start to walk out of the gate that surrounds the house. Lo and behold, the bus that my host dad drives was parked outside of the gate. So, all of us loaded onto this bus and set out for the birthday dinner. I'm sure everyone else knew what was happening, but I hadn't been filled in on the details and was totally confused about why I was on, what essentially amounted to, a Guatemalan party bus.
After about a thirty minute ride, we arrived at Pollo Campero, a Guatemalan fast food chain that exclusively sells fried chicken. Guatemalans LOVE Pollo Campero! After taking a few turns around the block because we couldn't find anywhere to park a huge bus, we unloaded and headed in.
The huge group sat along a long table and waited for the meal to begin. However, there was one problem - Pollo Campero does not serve tortillas and Guatemalans do not eat without tortillas, EVER. Luckily, this was a prepared group and they had brought their own tortillas. I am not kidding. They each pulled tortillas out of the purse and were ready to go.
After a prayer and a few words about the birthday girl, we ate our meal, tortillas included. Then, we headed back out to the bus. However, the bus would not start. After about thirty minutes of unsuccessfully turning the key in the ignition, the two mechanics on board decided they could help and fixed the bus in about twelve seconds. So, we headed home where we opened presents and said our goodbyes!
While there is not a birthday party every night, there does seem to be some adventure every day. Everything is new and usually takes me six times as long as I expected and always includes a surprise. I am yet to go to bed thinking, "Well, that was a normal day."
I hope that by sharing some of these stories with you I can stitch together a virtual quilt of my life here and transmit it via blog. If you want the 3-D experience, you can always visit!
Also, if there is something that you would like to know about please shoot me an email at kelley.scholl@gmail.com with any questions that you have! I would love some guidance about what to write about and would be elated to share more of my experiences with anyone who is interested.
Also, Happy Mother's Day! I don't want to put any ideas in your head, but Mother's Day is celebrated on Friday here in Guatemala and mother's don't have to work...
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