I'm jealous of my blogging friends...

Laura, you win. I guess i gotta start blogging about my experience here in Guatemala cuz sometimes the old "book" doesnt cut it. but dont get me wrong i love the book, i get made fun of all the time for being an fb creep, but whatever, its how i talk to my family so GET OVER IT EVERYONE. Kbye.
I'm actually starting this blog 8 days before i go home to the us for the first time, been in country now a little over 7 months. 7 months? thats crazy talk, its flying by and creepin at the same time.

Let me start with training, oh training...it was the funnest/hardest 3 months ever! it was fun because i met like 3 million new friends, well 44 actually but i love them all. we all got divided up into training towns based on our spanish level so we could take classes together, and LUCKILY, my girl mary and I stunk up the joint compared to everyone else, so we lived right near eachother and took our classes juntos. That's us in the pic at a mayan ceremony..and hey! thats patty throwin her desires en el fuego! hey patty!

This is all of us in Healthy schools, im the one in the dope cornrolls and my old body lol!

On the technical side training was kindofa bitch. we had classes almost every week day slash sometimes saturday for spanish and atleast once a week for our tech. program. Mine is Healthy Schools. The idea is we are trying to certify schools here by i guess the guatemalan board of health standards, also pc standards, and the requirements are 8-fold. Water 5 days a week for atleast 5 hours, atleast 8 faucets, atleast 2 lessons in health each week, clean kitchen, kids practice healthy habits i.e. brush theyre teach and wash their hands, a rincon de salud in every class (which is basically a fun corner with toothbrushes and soap), atleast 80% of the kids come to school with clean faces, hands, hair, clothes etc..and clean/functioning bathrooms. most of the time here that just means letrines but atleast its something, no wi find myself with schools who don't have anything and dig holes outside the classrooms =(

Here are some of the kids in an already certified school with their toothbrushes and guacales. (those little tubs) Those carrots behind them is their "rincon de salud" where they put their toothbrushes! GET CUTER THAN THEM. cuz you can't. As far as my projects go, im making some progress but its just so much sometimes. We work in pairs and my partner is Cliff, he drives me nuts but he's alright. I asked the Lord to teach me patience and hence...now i have cliff! haha He's hard to explain but if it helps, our training group is getting Tshirts made that say "God Dammit Cliff" on them..... Here we are at Swear-in Ceremony..lookin fly i might add.

So together, we have 35 schools, technically 33 because 2 of them are already certified. We live in the mountains of Cabrican, Quetzaltenango, and some of these schools are over 2 hours away on foot-thru the hills! but hey, ive lost almost 30 lbs here in Guate so I'll take it! we recently divided the schools in half so we can get be a little more efficient, we share one because its a creep-walk thru the woods for real. He took the schools the very furthest away because we decided he's more likely to look for the transportation and I'm more likely to get the workout and hike those bad boys. my 17 schools are all at totally different levels. I have some with water 24/7, but everyone lacks in healthy habits so there is still plenty of work to do in every school. I have 2 schools with legitmately nothing at all, i'm gonna make those my babies =) It's so sad, Los Hornos and El Cebollin, they dont have water, faucuets, bathrooms or a kitchen...can you imagine? the hard part is the communities they are a part of don't have water either so in order to get it to the school, We've gotta get it to the comminuty. It's just gonna be hard looking for that kind of funding, or the manpower to do these projects but OMG once their done..what a difference itll make! thats why I'm here right?

Seriously?

Since i've been in site, its been hard to see my friends considering we're all spread out over the country but we had a BOMBASS 3rd of july party. Full of great music, COOKOUT FOOD! and of course BEER! btw, i'd kill people for a sip of budlight...no such thing here in Guate...anyways...we spent the weekend in Antigua and just chilled, ok fine we drank like fish, but none of us drink insite so when we get together..simply look out...mom dont get mad im not the only one! So there was a talent show at the cookout and i simoply HAD to dance the Single Ladies dance!... I messed up the 1st chorus cuz i couldnt here the music over the wild crowd haha, but its true...here it is!!!!

I was a little nervous but not really, did a costume change and everything...could not NOT WEAR ROCAWEAR i mean please. I was surprised to know the administration would be watching because i mean lets face it, it can be a little provocative but afterwards Wendy came up to me with a huge compliment about getting the crowd going and that i was talented! so i was floating for the rest of the night...maybe i'm still floating? I stayed in the outfit for the after party to pretend im beyonce for alittle longer...dont hate.

THE TWISTED SISTERS!

Leah is also really important in my life here. Shes the queen of everything, especially spanish. The brothers gave Leah, Mary and I the nickname of "the twisted sisters" which by the way is the best thing ive ever heard...it's probably because we do things like go out for the night in matching shirts....

I think the biggest changes in my life since ive been here would have to be..the constant use of public transportation..Theyre called camionetas but really they are old american school buses painted fun colors. legit use them everyday, all day. I miss driving. Probably my diet too, kinda had to teach myself to cook which has been fun, i call my dinners "food victories' lol. In my site i don't eat much meat, actually none. I simply can't handle it if i want a chicken i have to go buy it from a lady with a stand who sells whole chickens with their heads and feet cut off to order. NO. In training our teacher took us to the market to practice spanish and she made me buy half a chicken and i gagged in the ladies face and couldnt do it. And beef is just a gross set up too, they just got the cow all sorts of cut up hanging on hooks, but dont worry they'll keep the hooves and head right on the counter if you'd like that too. Now i know this happens all over the world even in America but its the in-my-face part I can't take. BUCKET BATHS OMG! well i just last week moved into my very own house yayy! I've been living with a host family since ive been here but the biggest excitement is RUNNING HOT WATER! Everyday i would heat up water in a bucket to take a shower-ish type thing. Easy from now on, easy from now on. My host family was a little upset that i chose to move out, it's a cultural thing, they simply cannot wrap their heads around a young woman wanting to live alone-it IS an american thing, i often forget, you know that whole independent woman thing. But that's simply who I am. Its so much better, but i mean living with a family was a blessing in my first family there was Wilson, "mi novio" or my boyfriend..GOD I MISS HIM!

Here he is dressed up as Moses for Feria!

In my new host family, there was a 2 yr old girl, i called her Guapa, too ashamed to admit to myself i had lived their too long to ask about her real name..haha but everyone called her "nena, or mami" so i wasnt the only one. She was born with a birthdefect in her hips and legs so for the first 3 months i lived there, she was ina full body cast from her toes to her armpits...omg the poor thing! but those are off now, after she got them off, two days later she fell and had to be back in them for another 3 weeks..UN BELIEVABLE, but she was so good with it, still a happy little girl! here she is!

Guapa's BDay!

Well thats it for now I guess... I'm gonna keep up witht he blog I swaer..it'll be easier now that ive condensed the last 7 months...poco a poquito now! ps im really proud of myself for my progress in spanish... maybe if there was a "most improved" trophy, I'd get it...just a thought Peace Corps...just a thought..nos vemos!