Week 1 of School

This week we´ve shared our house with five other great students that we´ll really miss when they leave, Liz being one of them. We had a fiesta last night because it was our last dinner as a ¨family¨including salsa dancing with Tom. It is so cold at night in our little casa that keeping our feet warm is necessary to our well being. Mom wears tennis shoes in her bedroom while doing homework. We were very happy to see Cody when we arrived in Xela and he showed us around a little bit. We went to a government building with a beautiful atrium and while we were admiring the flowers a bunch of policemen went running down the hall. We decided we should run the other way so out we went with all the other people. After that we went to a restaurant for celebratory drinks and sat on the balcony in the rain. Every Wednesday night, our school takes a trip to La Rumba, the local salsa bar. Liz got friendly with the giant blowup beer bottle out front while waiting for a cab. We took an afternoon trip to the natural hot springs located about 45 minutes up a windy narrow mountain road. It was fabulously beautiful and warm. We felt clean for the first time in a week. We also took a trip with our school to the chocolate factory (a Guatemalan staple) located only two blocks from our school. The ¨factory¨is really a home and the woman´s family has been making it for five generations. You can see the sixth generation attached to her skirt. He loved the chocolate covered fruit almost as much as we did.

Xela

We made it safely to Xela via a windey muddy road full of potholes. It got colder and colder as we went from Antigua to the highlands. We were freezing!

Our homestay family is big. We moved in with Delila and her 5 other guests on Sunday. We took this picture of Liz from our rooftop. Note the random car bench that Liz is sitting on, with a giant hole, surrounded by laundry. This is the sweet life.

Delila speaks no english so it will be hard to communicate in depth for a while. The next picture is us in front of the house. Delila´s is the white gate. The large structure is in town square. See us waving inside of it?

We took this picture of Hannah in her bedroom specifically for Mary. Douglas, the monkey that provoked many laughs from our homestay family, is enjoying his trip immensely.

The picture of Alison and Liz explains itself: we are battling the rain on a daily basis.

Antigua

Here we are in front of our hotel room in Antigua. There are three (rock hard) beds and our own private bathroom with a (cold) shower. Alison has been appointed la mujer de llaves. Our blankets are disgusting so we attached a picture for Mariah. The material is basically what you would find under a rug or a horse's saddle. The third picture was taken by our guide Tino that we paid to take us around the city yesterday. It was a slight ripoff but we thought he needed the money. He was very nice. The next picture is of Mom in front of the same fountain. The mermaids shoot water our of their boobs. This was our favorite part. Lastly, the picture of Liz and Hannah was taken under the arch in Antigua. All the roads are cool and cobblestoned. A very charming city full of english speakers! We had bagels for breakfast!!! Dad would be ashamed.

Bienvenidos

We´re here safe and sound! It´s cold and humid here. It feels great!
Today we´re getting on a bus to Antigua. Liz met us here and hasn´t slept all night!
On Monday we´re starting school in Xela. Talk to you then!