Happy New Year

Hi all! I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season, and are enjoying the beginning of 2011! I suppose that I'll start with Thanksgiving, as that's where I left off! A group of close friends and I went to Tilapita, which is a beach on the Pacific Coast, close to Mexico. You have to take a boat to get there, and it is a beautiful little island with no roads or cars, just the occasional four-wheeler. Cellphones don't get reception there, and I doubt there are any computers on the island. We stayed at the only hotel on the Island where, for 50 Quetzales (about $6), we had fresh fish and shrimp cooked for us for dinner. We spent three nights there, lounging around in hammocks, swimming in the ocean, and eating good food. We also cooked our very own thrown together Thanksgiving meal, and it was lovely. December really slowed down for me work wise, as Blake came and visited from November 28-December 21, followed by Joni, December 27-January 8. When Blake arrived, we stayed at a place outside of Antigua, the Earth Lodge, with an absolutely gorgeous view of three volcanoes, and overlooking the city. Following that, we went to Jacaltenango, in the department of Huehuetenango, to visit a coffee cooperative that Kickapoo Coffee in Wisconsin buys from, and where the Root Note in La Crosse, WI, buys some of their coffee. It is mighty delicious, so try some Guatemalan Blend next time you're in La Crosse = ) Next on our agenda was Lake Atitlán. We stayed in a cute little bungalow right on the water's edge, and took boats to a few of the tourist towns on the lake. It was picturesque, and very relaxing. How relaxing, you ask? We watched every single Harry Potter movie while we were there!! Blake and I then traveled to Cajolá, where I was able to show him how I actually live. I had two presentations with my women's groups, where Blake, who doesn't speak Spanish, helped me put on a puppet show. A great time was had by all! I also had a lunch set up with a group. They cooked for us and we had a great time with the women. We met up with Peace Corps friends and had a Paca White Elephant Christmas Celebration. Pacas are stores that sell donated clothes from the states, and there are some awesome clothes, and a lot of ridiculous clothes. We dressed up, made dinner, and played a lot of ping pong - it was a very nice way to celebrate the holidays with all of my friends that flew home for the holidays. Blake flew back to snowy Wisconsin on the 21st. I went home for a couple days to clean/relax, and spent Christmas in bed watching movies and wearing my Christmas socks. Junior and I made faces at each other for about an hour, so although it wasn't the same as being at home, I wouldn't have wanted to spend it any other way down here. Joni flew in on the 27th. We spent that day in Antigua, then went to Tilapita, the same beach I went to for Thanksgiving, for three nights. We spent New Year's Eve there, but had so much sun that we were sleeping before midnight. After our relaxing trip to the beach, Joni and I went to Cajolá and saw the sights (well, there are none, but she saw my house!). Next, we were off to the lake to stay at a hostel, sit in the sun, and go for boat rides. I think both Joni and Blake had a nice time in Guatemala, and there will be pictures on facebook and flickr to prove it!

I was able to do a lot of traveling with them, and hopefully January will pick up right where I left off with work. This week will be full of cleaning (hand washing all of my clothes from these great adventures will not be fun!), and I think I'll get a couple Mam classes in as well. I'm part of the Volunteer Advisory Council (yes, this is the student council of Peace Corps), and I represent the Xela and San Marcos volunteers. I am in charge of putting on the welcome orientations when new groups swear in (every 3 months) so this saturday we're doing a meeting and a chocolate factory tour in Xela. It will be great to get to know the people that live near me better.

Nothing too much else to share, except the fun bus rides I've recently had. My first one is on the way back to Xela after Blake left. I wasn't feeling the best I could have been, and there were no seats on the bus. This is not abnormal, but usually seats open up. This time, however, they did not. I stood on the bus, sweaty and tired, feeling a bit sick, when the driver kept cramming people in. I couldn't move a limb, and suddenly the little boy standing next to me starts vomiting. Luckily it was in a bag, but a clear plastic one. It was not a pleasant experience for either of us. On this same bus ride a lady (who was SITTING mind you) kept elbowing me in the back, like she wanted me to climb on top of the bus so that she could be comfortable. Finally 2 hours into my 4 hour standing bus ride, I said "I can't move!" With one more big elbow to the back, she finally quit. After a couple more standing-for-multiple-hour-bus-rides, I was finally sitting on one minding my own business, when someone's huge bag falls on my head. I didn't know what to do, so I stayed still and silent for a minute, hoping the owner would grab it. I was wrong, the owner did not, but the guy behind me who kept calling me 'baby' did. ahhh the life of a chicken bus rider.

I wasn't able to read as many books as normal with visitors here, but I did manage to get through these ones:
The Glass Castle
An Ethical Slut
A Round Heeled Woman
Invisible Man (currently reading)

All for now, happy early birthday Dad = )

oh yes, new phone number: 011-502-4013-3400