My Bus Ride with a Coyote

One thing that I found extremely interesting was how honestly and openly many Guatemalans whom I met shared their past experiences in the U.S. with me (both legal and illegal). Host family members, counterparts, and even sometimes strangers would tell me about their time in the U.S. and if they went there "wet" (illegally) or not. The first time I heard this term used I couldn't believe it. Where I grew up it is incredibly offensive to say that. But in Guatemala the saying I went there"wet" was used instead of illegally. This might have something to do with the fact that the Guatemalan version of the saying: "under the table" is "bajo del agua" or "under the water." Whatever it is they use this term matter-of-factly.

So, back to the Coyote on the bus. I know I've written about Camionetas, American school busses that are driven down through Mexico, given a killer paint job, and used as public transportation in Guatemala and about how there are all kinds of animals on these busses but, have no fear, Coyotes are not one of them. The Coyotes I am talking about are the people who take people illegally to the United States. One day coming back from taking my laundry to the laundromat in Xela I get on a PACKED bus back home (a common occurrence). I'm talking an American school bus with three people sitting in each row and then as many people as can fit packed into the aisles.

So I was standing in the aisles packed among everyone when this guy says hello and starts speaking to me in Spanish. I believe that in either the first or second sentence he said to me he told me that he was a Coyote and was banned from the U.S. for life because he was caught bringing people illegally to the U.S.. He asked me what I knew about those laws and I told him honestly, nothing. Somehow his having two wives was worked into the conversation. He wanted to know if I thought he would ever be able to go back to the U.S.. I told him I had no idea, but that if he was banned for life then probably not. You never know what will happen on a Camioneta.

Sorry this picture is a little blurry, but it gives an idea of how crowded 

the busses can get. 

A Trip to the Forbidden City: Guatemala City that is

One thing that I have noticed about Guatemalans is that they confusingly refer to the capital, Guatemala City as just Guate. So when asking a Guatemalan where they are from and they say Guate, they don't mean that they are Guatemalan, they mean that they are from the capital. Also the buses that I see that go from Antigua to Guatemala City say Guate on them. Ok so this isn't really that confusing.

To put things lightly: we have a lot of rules and regulations as Peace Corps Volunteers in Guatemala. I have heard that we have more restrictions than any other PC country. This may just be chisme (gossip), but I'm pretty sure it's true. The travel restrictions we have are for our safety. Not all of Guatemala is safe for a tourist to be in. However, have no fear, there are many wonderful and safe places to visit here such as the beautiful Antigua and Lake Atitlán. One of the many places that we as Peace Corps Volunteers are not allowed to go to is Guatemala City, which is the capital of Guatemala and its largest city. Guatemala City is about an hours drive outside of Antigua. We can fly in and out of the airport in Guatemala City, but that's it. If you are planning on traveling to Guatemala - make your own decisions - don't let me scare you off. I know foreigners who happily work in Guatemala City.

Since we aren't allowed to visit Guatemala City, the Peace Corps planned a one day optional trip where we could experience a little bit of the city in a highly structured and chaperoned trip. I jumped at the opportunity. On this trip we visited: Popol Vuh Museums at the Francisco Marroquín University, the central square and government building, and an outdoor shopping center.

"Warriors" figurine 

Street art

One of our stops was the main Government building which is located on the central park. We were lucky enough to get a tour of the building.

Government building on the central plaza

Guatemalan flag in the central plaza as seen through open doors of the building.

Peace Statue with a fresh Rose

Who knew that there is a bare-bones Eiffel Tower in Guatemala?

We also took a trip to Cayalá which is one of the nicest open-air shopping malls that I have ever seen. It was like nothing else I have ever seen in Guatemala. It was like being back in America. It has Starbucks (which doesn't exist outside of Guatemala City), fancy restaurants, and good burger/beer joints. After being out of America for so long we were all pretty much in heaven. Don't get me wrong, I love Guatemala, but sometimes when you are away for that long a little taste of home is much appreciated. 

"Welcome to Starbucks Cayalá"

Cool sculpture

Hiking to the Tallest Point in Central America: Volcano Tajumulco

Guatemala isn't only the land of eternal spring, but also the land of volcanos both active and dormant. During Peace Corps training I hiked Volcano Pacaya where we roasted marshmallows on the natural heat coming from the volcano. I also hiked Volcano Acatenango which was a full 12 hours up and down. I'm glad that I didn't but man, it was tough! Volcano Tajumulco, the tallest point in Central America, was my last and favorite in-country hike. We left Xela (Quetzaltenango) at 4am where we were picked up by a tour company. Our hike guide and driver took us an hour to the department of San Marcos. From there we began our trek!

I know it doesn't look that impressive from this angle...

We met these two Guatemalans (see below) near the summit. Our tour guide had to stay with an American tourist that was ill prepared for the hike and altitude and couldn't make it to the top. They were such nice people. Both the man and his wife took sips of the alcohol that they had brought with them and offered some to us. (I didn't think this would help me make it to the top so I politely declined). He also smoked cigarettes on the last part of the climb. At that altitude and at that level of hiking I had a hard enough time breathing without smoking or drinking. Another thing that got me was the woman was in full mayan traje (pronounced traw-hey) which has a very restrictive full-length skirt. She was also wearing small wedge shoes. Guatemalan women are so hardcore. I cannot believe the things that they do while wearing traje. I couldn't help but feel less justified in my hiking struggles as I was huffing and puffing in my running shoes and workout clothes. Oh well.

Note the alcohol in his hands

She noticed that I was taking pictures and soon she was asking me to stop and take pictures of her at various points on the hike or in front of different scenery. We never exchanged information - maybe she just liked posing for pictures. Whatever it was I was more than happy to oblige and take her picture. Below is one of my favorites of her.

Hiking in Mayan traje (which isn't even a little bit stretchy) and wedge heels

Traditional Guatemalan Foods and Drinks

TORTILLAS, TORTILLAS, TORTILLAS! BEANS, BEANS, BEANS!

My host Mom making tortillas over a fire (the pressure cooker to the right is cooking beans)

Pepian - A MUST TRY FOR ANYONE VISITING GUATEMALA. My favorite Guatemalan dish. Pepian is a flavorful stew with meat, tomatoes, vegetables, ground seeds, cacao, cinnamon, and spices.

Jocom: A traditional dish from the department of Suchitepéquez that has a base of herbs.

Subanik: A traditional dish of the Kaqchikeles (a Mayan group) with a base of seeds, cinnamon and cloves.

Fiambre is a traditional dish made for All Saints Day (November 1st). It is a cold antipasto-like salad that can be made from over 50 ingredients. Families usually have their own versions of Fiambre, but ingredients can include: meats including cold cuts, pickled vegetables, beets, cheeses, olives, eggs, corn, and radishes. 

Platanos rellenos - plantains stuffed with pureed black beans, fried, and topped with sour cream and sugar. A great snack!

As for beverages, coffee, hibiscus flower juice, and hot chocolate are the most common.
- Although Guatemala exports great coffee, much of the coffee that I have seen and have been offered in Guatemala more closely resembles brown sugar water. Nescafe instant coffee is often used and there is always A LOT of sugar added. I couldn't figure out why instant coffee was used when they produce so much great coffee, but one host family member explained that instant coffee was fancier because it was easier to make (they do have a point there).
- Rosa de Jamaica: Jamaica is pronounced (Ha-my-ka) not like the country. Hibiscus juice.
- Hot chocolate: Chocolate in Guatemala is traditionally drank instead of eaten. I took an informative and delicious chocolate class in Antigua.

I have also written blog posts on a number of other Guatemalan foods such as: paches, selling tortillas outside of fast food restaurants, tamalitos, black salt, and Fiambre for All Saints Day.

Taking Going to School for Granted

According to the 2012 UNICEF report: the "average schooling in Guatemala is 5.98 years, below the average for Latin America (7.8 years) and that of Central America (7.3 years)." These numbers also change depending on where the kids live. Children in the rural areas are pulled out of school earlier than urban children. For more information check out the whole report.

If you haven't been following my blog, I am the District Coordinator for the Healthy Schools Project. I worked in eleven schools doing health promotion and basic health education. From what I saw and from the people that I met in my small town, these UNICEF statistics seem about right to me. What I would add is that this average would be very different if they separated the average into boys and girls. Women typically receive far less education than men in Guatemala. I would suspect the average for girls is closer to 3 or 4 years. I had numerous teachers tell me that girls being taken out of school way before they finish elementary school was a big problem (TRUE). It seemed to me that the trend was heading towards more education for girls as women are gaining social status within Guatemala, however they told me that the trend is more stagnant if not moving in the opposite direction. A number of teachers expressed to me that parents were pulling their girls out of school when they saw that they could read, write, and count because they believed that these were the main skills that their girls would need. The issue here, they told me, is that children are learning these skills earlier in school and so the girls are being taken out sooner than they might have in the past.

The picture below I took in one of my schools. The girls took turns cleaning the school bathrooms (and yes this was the school bathroom for the entire elementary school). Could you imagine children in the U.S. being expected to get out mops, brushes, and brooms and cleaning the bathrooms each day?!? Me neither.

Female students cleaning the school bathrooms

Happy All Saints Day Guate-Style

The two years I was in Guatemala for All Saints Day (November 1) were two of my favorite and most memorable days. The giant kite festival and drunken horse races* were both events were like nothing I had ever experienced before. *The men riding the horses were drunk not the horses

The first year I went to the giant kite festival in Sumpongo, Sacatepéquez. They were GIANT - multiple stories tall and made completely out of tissue paper! Check out my blog post on the giant kite festival!

This wasn't even close to the tallest kite there

Such beautiful detail!

The second year I experienced the drunken horse races (the men were drunk not the horses) in Todos Santos, Huehuetenango. Check out my blog post on the drunken horse races!

They were literally all completely drunk

Oh and I can't forget the traditional All Saints Day food, Fiambre