Taxi Amarillo please...

Ah the weekend, how I have been waiting for you. Lesson planning has been going great but there is only so much you can do when you don't have your schedule of classes nor periods that you will be teaching. And Physics...I don't even know where to start. After three days of work from 8-4pm though I feel very prepared for the first week of classes.

During lunch yesterday Jenny and I walked with two of our fellow colleagues to an authentic Guatemalan lunch stop...it was really good. We ate chicken and mashed potatoes. I know, sounds pretty American. Then today for the lunch the owners of the school treated us to steak and potatoes. I was hesitant that I would dislike the food here, but so far so good =)!

I learned that Guatemalans are split between rooting for "las rojas y las cremas", two soccer teams that play every weekend in the stadium here in the city. It brought joy to my ears to hear that females get to watch the game for free; you know where I'll be most weekends!

Today we were able to see the stadium as we traveled to zone 1 with a colleague, Moises, to Parque Central (Central Park). Moises has been teaching for 26 years and offered to take us around the city to see some of the major cites. He took us to Centro Historico where we saw lots of cool buildings. There was the national palace which has now been turned into a museum as well as some old churches. We pulled into this dark parking garage and when we stepped out of the car I realized that we were in a building that doubled as a nightclub. There was a stage, lots of chairs and a bar as we were heading out of the garage. We had about an hour and a half to walk around because the parking garage closes at 6. They close by 6 so that they can clean up and set up for the nightlife...it was very interesting. We walked around the open market and ate "shucos", which are basically a mini hot dog with guacamole and cabbage. On our way back to our apart-hotel we drove by a baroque church called "la iglesia de la yurrita", it was so beautiful. Here is a picture below:

la iglesia de la yurrita

It was wonderful to be traveling with a Guatemalan, especially after hearing about how dangerous the city is. We heard story after story today about muggings that have happened to some of the other teachers. We knew that we should not walk around after dark...so last night after we had stopped off at the ritziest mall I have ever been to and did our grocery shopping next door we thought: let's take a taxi because it is now dark outside. So we counted our money and walked back to the mall to catch a taxi (side note we knew how to get back to our apart-hotel but we didn't know the address, try explaining that to a taxi driver). We hopped in a white taxi and after a few out of the way turns we made it back safe and sound. Well...we have now learned, from our Guatemalan friends, NEVER take a white taxi...they are dangerous. ALWAYS take a yellow taxi! Good news is now we have a phone and taxi amarillo is one of the few numbers programmed in our phone =)! Well thanks for reading, I will post more soon!

Heather

First Impressions...

It was a beautiful day, blue sky with fluffy white clouds and temperatures around 75*F when we landed in Guatemala yesterday morning. It looked promising that it would be a gorgeous day until, during our delicious lunch out, we were interrupted by a huge crackle of thunder and then it began. The storm rolled in from no where bringing hail the size of marbles with it. The receptionist in the lobby of our apart-hotel was scrambling to save her laptop from the rain that was pouring all over her desk due to the holes in the roof caused by the hail.

It was relieving to discover wireless internet in our studio-sized, mosquito filled, half thatched roofed apartment =)! It may be small and a little less than "nice", but it isn't the worst I've stayed in. After taking a below 50*F shower today our "near future" roommate shared with us exciting news that we were not intelligent enough to figure out how to use the hot water (she put it in a much nicer way =)). This new knowledge has bumped my ratings of this room up a few notches.

After the discouragement of hearing that Han Al American School lacked significantly in the technological tools we are used to having in the states, today brought anticipation and excitement as we started our first day or work. The resources that are available to use in textbook form is incredible. I spent most the afternoon logging and exploring through 30-40 resource books for only a few of my classes. I am still waiting for further textbooks to come my way for the rest of my assigned classes. It will be with great challenge that we teach our students with the far less than exhaustive list of tools available in our classrooms. Lights, student desks, and a whiteboard concludes the list of what our classrooms consist of. Yes, that means no computers, projectors, or tvs in the classroom. Sporadic Internet concerns me as I think about effectively utilizing my prep time at the school. I am eager to have this challenge and find creative ways to teach the students of Han Al the content of Algebra 2, pre-calculus, calculus, and physics.

Through the stress of being overwhelmed, God has shown himself present with the beauty that surrounds us, the encouraging words of acquaintances that have lived/traveled to Guate, and the anticipated attendance of a highly suggested american speaking church on Sunday. I appreciate all your prayers and concerns.

Heather B