A couple of the kites in Santa Maria Cauque.
The youth of Santa Maria Cauque preparing for the kites.
Dona Anacleta, myself and Don Francisco at the Ambassador's house.
The Food Security group with our trainers on the left, David and Jacobo.
All of the volunteers that I came to Guatemala with.
All of the volunteers of Santa Maria Cauque and our families.
Myself and one of the technical trainers David Castillo, who is quite possibly the funniest man on this planet.
Being sworn in as volunteers by the US Ambassador.
On 11/2 we all parted ways for our respective destinations in Guatemala. I made it to my aldea on Sunday around noon and was able to track down my landlord and get the key to my house. Unfortunately for me, the well that my house is on was out and remained so until Wednesday afternoon. I was a pretty dirty guy for those few days, but it seems like a fairly appropriate start to Peace Corps I guess. Once I got there, arranged a few things and began to settle in, it dawned on me that I was going to be here for 2 years, the closest volunteer is at least 1 hour away and I am not sure how to get ahold of this person. The closest Americans I do know are 2-2 to 3 hours away. Training was definitely much easier than adjusting to life on your own in Guatemala, without Americans around to converse with, a family to do your cooking and cleaning and Peace Corps to schedule everything for you. So far, so good though. I have my house in some semblance of order and was able to get out to some other aldeas in my area to meet with people who are interested in my program. On Wednesday, my counterpart and I went out to an aldea, which was about a 2 hour hike from my aldea, passing through mountains covered in pine and oak trees. It was very scenic and I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera. I will have plenty of opportunities in the next two years though. After we worked in the village all day, we headed out a bit late and got to the main road as it was getting dark, 5:30ish. We began walking back, about an hour or so, but luckily were able to find a ride in a pickup. However, the pickup was filled with wood, so we had to ride on the bumper, holding on for dear life for the remainder of the trip. It was quite a day and I was beat by the time I made it home. I am very excited about my work and my location, I am sure things will get tougher, but for now, everything is going well.
Also, on 11/1, All Saints Day, the towns of Santa Maria Cauque, Santiago, and Sumpango have a tradition of constructing enormous kites for display and some for flying. We were able to check them out and they were pretty impressive. I have attached some pictures of the ones for exhibition, they were all built by kids and looked great.
If anyone wants to get in touch with me, I have a cell phone and you can call me from the States on www.skype.com for 10 cents/minute. My number is 502-4091-9468 and I believe you have to dial an international code to get out. I am sure you all can figure it out. That is all for now.
