When I was a kid, my dad would ask me to write travel reports about our
family vacations. These reports served the dual purpose of preserving a memory and
being writing practice. I only did it a few times, but there's no reason I
can't continue the tradition.
This journal is my answer to friends who ask, "What was your trip
like?" If I wrote about you, I didn't think that you would mind. Feel free
to browse.
How we found ourselves in Guatemala
Erin was explaining to me that one of the most significant experiences in her life was going to Guatemala in early 2007. It really put things in perspective to see people with so little, in terms of health and wealth, express such joy in living. She told me that she definitely wanted to go back. I asked if I could go with her.
Months later, we still planned to go, but not merely as travel companions. We were now dating, and the trip became the Guatemala test to see if our relationship could survive the crucible of two weeks of nearly continuous contact. I'll give away the ending: it did. If you'd like to know how this actually unfolded, feel free to continue reading.
5/24/2008
This trip required a little more packing than usual. No, you don't need special equipment to survive in Guatemala. No, Erin doesn't bring ridiculous amounts of stuff everywhere. In fact, she brought less than me.
The main reason was that we weren't just packing for ourselves. We were packing for all our friends and coworkers who generously offered their clothes, shoes, toys, and even luggage to their less prosperous neighbors in Guatemala. Fortunately, we managed to squeeze everything into two carry-on and four check-in pieces, exactly what the airline was willing to take without a surcharge.
5/25/2008
Something we underestimated, however, was the difficulty of using the metro to actually take all of this stuff to the airport. Fortunately, with the timely assistance of some helpful strangers, we were able to do so.
This gave me a chance to enjoy Erin's homemade cookies at the airport.
Cookies, a vital part of any carry-on luggage
Guatemala, here we come!
As I stepped off the plane, one thing that struck me was how clean and modern the airport was. I expected something more dirty and run down, something that would be a tell-tale sign of "developing world." Erin remarked on how it didn't seem like the same airport that she arrived at last year. Indeed, it turns out that they had done a lot of remodeling.
After passing through customs, we were greeted by Susy, our host, whom Erin had visited last year. Susy was born and raised in the United States, but 23 years ago, she came to work at a Guatemalan orphanage and never looked back. Several years later, she started volunteering at a hospital, doing social work with child cancer patients, and now she spends the bulk of her time with the patients and their families. Over the next few weeks, Erin and I would get to know some of them.
5/26/2008
Ostensibly, we had come to help Susy. She told us, though, that she wouldn't be offended if we didn't want to perform any particular task. For example, it was fine if we didn't want to clean the water tank. We'd just have to live without running water for the next two weeks. Guess what we did?
The hole
In spite of the various tasks that we helped out with, we ended up still having plenty of free time.
This is how I lost a game of soccer to a one-legged man.
Reading, an everlasting wellspring of enrichment and amusement
Eating, even better!
5/27/2008
Even though Susy is based in Guatemala City, she has friends all over the country. Our visit gave her extra incentive to visit them. Usually, the visits would go something like this:
After some greetings, we'd sit down and talk. Unfortunately, neither Erin and I are particularly good at Spanish, so we mostly tried to listen.
Susy's assistant, America, a nurse, would offer some medical advice.
We'd give them gifts of food, clothes, and toys. They'd offer us refreshments.
We'd take some pictures.
We'd play with the kids, doing things like blowing bubbles.
This first family that we visited seemed particularly big and happy
They have five kids!
Erin blowing bubbles...
which the children tried to catch...
Successfully!
She was able to poke it too!
Our hostess preparing us a freshly-macheted coconut.
This was the first time that Susy drank it straight from the fruit!
We visited another family in the afternoon. It was an interesting contrast. Whereas with the first family, everybody sat around and talked with us, in this one, we talked primarily with the patriach, an old maize farmer. The younger people stood on the side, watching respectfully.
Notably, his son wasn't around. He lives somewhere else and sends remittances home. This meant that they were materially better off than they would be otherwise, but I'm sure his presence was missed.
Some new toys
The corn fields out back
Chickens, a staple of Guatemalan households
5/28/2008
Erin demonstrates a cat's cradle
The next family we visited is an older couple who lives by the Pacific Ocean, in Sipicate. Of course, we also went swimming at the beach.
The couple keeps a pig who digs around in front of the house.
They also have a bucket of crabs which they're raising for a special occasion.
Watch out!
5/29/2008
The orphanage where Susy had started is now a school. They needed a little bit of work: the ropes in their playground were frayed and needed to be replaced.
Redoing this ladder was like restringing a tennis racquet. Fortunately, my roommate had taught me how to do that earlier this year.
