One of those Days...

Well, I am about to complete my forth week down here and it amazes me that time is going so quickly. Each week is going faster and faster. This week my kids have finally settled into my schedule and I am understanding them more and more. Yesterday was, ‘one of those days’ which always makes things a little tough. Luckily, I woke up in a great mood so I was able to laugh most of it off. It all started with it being trash day…that’s right, trash juice all over my very clean pants. (I feel like I need to take a second and explain the different levels of ‘clean.’ I say these pants were very clean because I hadn’t worn them yet. They were fresh out of the laundry bag. Today, I am wearing clean pants (but not very clean) because I have already worn them once or twice. I had some ‘soft’ pants that I just washed for the first time this weekend since I have been here. I had worn them 2-3 times a week since I had been here and I hadn’t washed them yet. Granted, they were jeans but I just wanted all of you to understand how disheartening it was to spill trash juice on my very clean pants…) Okay, we are back…so, then, on my way to the bus (about a ten minute walk), I trip and stumble in front of a guy that is always out sweeping the streets (always reminds me of Brian Manhart!) The day with the kids was great. I had to stay after school and help test a child that I will be working with and his grandmother gave me a ride home from school. I sat down in the backseat and immediately felt something wet and cold on my bum. My first thought was that my water bottle had leaked all over her seat but to my amazement, when I turned to look, it was a half finished Butterfinger McFlurry! So, at this point, I start laughing and pointing to what had happened (the g-mom didn’t speak English). She handed me a towel and I sopped up as much of the milky-wetness as I could knowing that my pant were already dirty so I just sucked it up. What I forgot was that I was still going to have to walk 10 minutes to my house from where she dropped me off. So here I was, dried trash juice on my leg and a McFlurry bottom walking around the center of Xela.

Regardless of all of that stuff, it was still a good day. After I got home, I headed up to McNabb’s for dinner (I think we ate something called Pichatas or something like that. It was a Guatemalan food and it was really good. They are cooked in a big leaf like a tamale but they have a potato substances in them) and to meet the newest addition to the family down here! A beautiful Golden Retriever puppy that remains nameless at this point! Let me tell you, she is a butterball. I figure she will be a good companion to take for a run around the city when she gets a little older this spring.

So, overall, things are still going well. I have started thinking more about what I will be doing once June rolls around. I have a few new ideas but I think I’m just going to try to not think about it for awhile and just enjoy being in Xela!

Be looking for another update in a few days! I’m going to the rubber farm this weekend!

liz

Playlist:
Roscoe by Midlake
Saving Grace by The Cranberries
Breakin’ Up by Rilo Kiley
I’m Alright by Jo Dee Messina
It feels like home by (I forgot)
Who’s to Say by Pat Green

The Beginning of my 25th year!

The first picture is from my birthday. These are the girls I live with!

The second picture is from our Sunday afternoon cookout! Yum!

First of all, I can't believe that it has been a week since I have written...this week has been full of fun and settling in.
I have realized that this crazy place is my home for the next 4 months (and maybe another year?) and I need to make it my home.

This week, I celebrated my 25th birthday and let me tell you, it was probably the best birthday I have had so far! I wasn't expecting anything (even though I knew that birthdays were a big deal down here) and I was absolutely swept off my feet!
The mothers of my pre-k kiddos threw me a surprise party (the first surprise party that I have ever had) with cake, food, flowers (yellow roses since I lived in Texas!) and homemade cards from the kids! They also gave me a beautiful native purse that I love! Later that evening, about 20 friends (from school and friends or significant others of teachers) and I went to eat at the best Italian restaurant that I have eaten at in a long time. I was blown away by the support that I have here in such a short time! I also got a Super Chivos jersey. They are the local soccer team. With all of this, it has been a great start to the 25ht year of my life!

My class was really great this week. I feel like the kids are listening better and we are actually getting somewhere!

This weekend was also a lot of fun. Friday night, I just hung out with the girls and watched Grey's Anatomy. And when I say the girls, I usually mean the girls that I live with (Stefanie, Carrie, Randi, Tiffany, and the other Liz). They are a great group of girls and it's nice to actually be in a community that has more than one other girl around...I'm not one to be around girls all the time but the time that has been shared with these girls has been so great thus far! We had a Reading workshop at school Saturday morning so I got up and went to that. After that, I went and ate with some of the girls and then met up with McNabb to get tickets for the Super Chivos game! This was actually quite an experience. He was with two of his Guatemalan friends and they are characters! We ended up getting stuff to grill and we were going to head back to my apartment to meet up with rest of the crowd. The grill wouldn't light so that meant that we were once again given the oppurtunity to eat the 'chicken that will change your life!' And once again, it was wonderful! We made our way to the stadium and it was incredible. We were playing the big rivals, the Rojos from Guate City. Luckily, I was well prepared in my new jersey!
The game was great. It was the first soccer game I had ever been to and it was one to remember. The game ended in a tie but it was still fun. I was able to work on my Spanish even though the things that I was learning are not repeatable! It was much more fun saying them when I didn't know what they meant! After the game, we went out to a dance club and had quite a time! Today, we ended up grilling the meat and veggies that we couldn't last night. It was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon...

I hope that all of you are doing well. Sorry this update doesn't have anything that is too fun...I guess that is part of settling into a place...the normal things that happen...this coming up weekend we are going to our directors rubber farm so be expecting an update from that! Continue to Live it Up!

Playlist:
I've Never Been to Spain by Three Dog Night
You're All I Have by Snow Patrol
Low by Flo Rida
Sorry Am I by Ani Difranco
For the First Time by Kenny Chesney
Needful Hands by Jars of Clay
It's Raining Men by The Weathergirls
Broken by Norah Jones

A walk in the Clouds

The first song on the playlist is quite appropriate today because of the topic that I will be telling you about! Yesterday I went to the Hot Baths. They were located up in the cloud forest. I have never been to a cloud forest before but let me tell you something, it was amazing. It was like the rain forest but much cooler and less muggy. The trip was just as exciting as our time in the Hot Baths. Stefanie and I went with the Macy’s (Lorrie, Josh, and Josh’s Dad, Papa Macy aka doug). We started out on a Chicken Bus (an old school bus that is painted in all sorts of colors and they pack people in…they also pack whatever they may be caring with them…thus the name, Chicken Bus.) We drove through a town that is known for growing the largest vegetables in Central America. I’m talking carrots that are 1 lbs.! It was absolutely beautiful to see the patchwork fields and all the workers. The people of this village believe that God shows favor to them so 90% go to church. I didn’t know get the whole story but 15-20 years ago, a missionary came and shared the Lord with them. They had lots of bars and now they are all churches. Before the missionary came, their vegetables weren’t as big as they are now! It is pretty interesting. We continued on our trip up to Zunil. This is where we caught a truck. We rode in the back of the truck up a long and curvy road. As we climbed up the mountain, we entered the cloud forest. It was one of the coolest things I have experienced. Not only did we get to see the difference in the vegetation and climate, we experienced it because we were standing in the back of this truck, exposed to the elements. Again, Mom and Dad, don’t worry...I’m not stupid, I wouldn’t do anything that was terribly dangerous! We arrived at the Hot Baths and walked along a path that was lined by calla-lilies. The Hot Baths were so relaxing and inviting. We could only stay in for a short time. Stef, Lorrie and I enjoyed just getting some hangout time as well. On our way down the mountain, we picked up 3 different groups of indigenious people caring everything from cut wood to radishes. It was truly a wonderful day!

It was nice to get away from Xela for a couple hours. I have been here for two weeks now and I have just been in the city. I have enjoyed the luxuries of McDonalds and Wendy’s but it was great to see a few villages and get in the mountains.

I have also been thinking about next year a lot over the weekend. I know that the decision to be here will be a hard one. I love it here. I don’t want to miss things at home but I don’t know if five months will be long enough to experience everything that I want to see and truly be a part of the community here. I guess we will see!
Hope all of you had a wonderful weekend! Email me (liz.cromwell@gmail.com) and let me know how things are with you! I miss you and the states!

Playlist:
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
Sons and Daughters by The Decemberists
She’s My Kind of Rain by Tim McGraw
Fix You by Coldplay
Long Ago and Far Away by James Taylor
Package Song by Zach Winters
Open Your Eyes by Snow Patrol
If Tomorrow Never Comes by Garth Brooks
You’re My Home by Billy Joel
All At Once by The Fray

So, today is Friday and I am about to finish my first full week. Before I came down here, I thought it would take me some time to get adjusted but 10 days into everything, this whole thing is starting to feel more like normal. Whatever ‘normal’ is. It amazes me at what it is considered ‘normal’. Everyone has their own definition of what constitutes normal.

I have adjusted quite well to life in Xela. I have 5 great friends down here so it was like walking into a family. Without them, I know that this whole process would have been more difficult. I have also become an American TV show series junkie. I have described it to a few a my ‘comfort food.’ Speaking of comfort food, I ate McDonalds the other night. I never thought I would think of this fast food chain as something that was ‘home-like’ but it is amazing how identical everything was. The burger even had pickles! (This is the first time that I have eaten to seen pickles since I have been here)

Well, I don’t know when I will get to put this up. Our internet is down. Some say it is because it is really foggy this morning, others claim it is just Guatemala. Either way, it seems to be ‘normal’ around here!

Life Continues...

From Jan. 14
Well, I guess I have dropped the whole mile thing…oops…It all started with forgetting my pedometer in Oklahoma. Oh well…I will add it all up eventually…So I am in my second week and it is going well. I do feel like the kids get a little frustrated with me when they try to tell me something and I have no idea what they are saying. Socially, things are going really well. I really like the teachers that are down here. In a way, it is a lot like camp because we work together and play together. Our time isn’t quite as structured but it resembles camp life. I have really enjoyed being around the old school CBSers. There is something about being with old friends that is so special. It makes me feel like my parents and there old friends, just getting back together to experience another aspect of life. I am so grateful for this.

Playlist:
Honesty by Billy Joel
Somewhere Down in Texas by George Straight
The Crane’s Wife by The Decemberists

From Jan. 15
Today is a very special day. It is the first birthday of my precious ACL. It is hard to believe that one year ago today, I was in Temple Texas ‘under the knife.’ So, not only is it good for me to be here to experience all the newness but it also really good for my knee because all the walking and exercise it gets! We (my knee and I ) will both come back changed!

Anyway, the kids were good today…well, all of them except one. I have a girl who is very smart but she is also very emotional and has cried 3 out of the 5 days that I have been her teacher. I mean, I have dealt with homesickness on my occasions at camp but this is a totally different scenario. At camp, there is a period where you just let them cry it out but when I am only with them 4 hours a day, what am I suppose to do? Well, McNabb to the rescue…I guess that is what principals are for (or is it because he’s one of my best friends and he feels bad for me)? Who knows, either way, he was able to translate for us and she finally stopped crying after an hour and a half. Mind you, this is the same cute girl who was singing ‘Jingle Bells’ last week like this: “Tinker Bell, Tinker bell, tinkle all the way!” So cute! Anyway, enough about my students.

I went to the Democracia yesterday and got the most beautiful vegetables that I have ever seen. I’m talking Avocados the size of softballs! Huge and Delicious! And fresh limes! So good! I also got a fresh bell pepper, potatoes and an onion. I sautéed all of this together with garlic and called it dinner last night! I will def. be spoiled with all the fresh veggies when I get home. I promise to take pictures soon of all of these things! There is a part of me that doesn’t want to take pictures yet because I feel like a tourist and I’m not a tourist, I’m a resident and I want to be known as a member of the community instead of someone who is just passing through…but maybe that is all I am…I’m just here a little longer than what I consider tourisy. But this city is full of people who come for a couple of months to study Spanish.

I do have a different view on living aboard now. I used to think that it would be really hard and foreign. But now I realize that life goes on. No matter where you are, there will be things that are challenging and there will be things that you don’t understand but there is still a sense of normalcy. I can’t believe I have waited this long to live somewhere other than Oklahoma or Texas. Honestly, Texas feels a lot more foreign than Guatemala. Okay, maybe I’m kidding a little bit…that’s was just to give all my Texans a laugh…but then again, I have to remember that I am a legal resident of texas…oh well…

I know there are stories to tell but I can’t think of any right now. Everyday, something comes up that is humorous. But that comes with the territory of living in a third world country. Well, until next time…live the adventure, no matter where you are!

Playlist:
A Case of You by Joni Mitchell
Everything by Michael Buble
You’re My Home by Billy Joel
Let it Be by The Beatles
Little House by The Fray
When you Come Back to Me Again by Garth Brooks
Always on His Mind by Misty Edwards

we've only just begun!

I wrote this yesterday...

So I just finished my first day with my precious 4 year olds and I was quite surprised at how well it went! I arrived at the school at 7:20 and talked to the previous pre-kindergarten teacher. She is great and helped me out a lot. I went and got my kids at 8:00 and they didn’t seem to be bothered that I was new. I guess we will see how long that lasts. I must say, they are the cutest group of kids I have ever seen! Their English isn’t very good and my Spanish is minimal so that combination may cause some problems for us but it’s nothing that we can’t work through!

The view from my classroom is amazing! Our school sits on a hill on the outskirts of town. There are trees that hide most of the city from my view but above the tops of the trees are beautiful mountains, including a 12,500 dormant volcano that we will climb later in the semester! Xela sits at just under 8,000 feet so it is cold in the morning and very warm in the afternoon. I hear that it will start being more consistently warm in March.

Oh! Last night we ate ‘chicken that will change you life’ according to Josh Macy. And I must say, it was pretty remarkable. It was called Pollo Asado and it was served out of a truck next to the local soccer, I mean football, stadium. I know Dad, I’m not suppose to eat food off the street but this was seriously the best chicken I have had in a long time if not the best ever. It was cook on a grill but then the sauce they put on it was very lemony with cilantro and parmesan cheese. SO wonderful! I wish I send some to all of you!

On a personal note, I think I have found an apartment! Stefanie (my friend from camp that is down here, well, one of my friends from camp) and I will live together. We are going to go look at the apartment today so I really hope it works out. It sounds like it has everything that we need and we would be in the same apartment group that 4 other female teachers live in so that would be nice to be close to them. We would also be a 5 minute walk to the Macy’s and to McNabb house.

I feel really good about this spring (even though it sounds like there are gun shots being fired in the next neighbor hood over!). I’m excited about learning the language. I can tell a difference in my Spanish just in the last two days. I hope that this continues and it will continue to improve over the next five months.

Playlist:
Through You by Alanis Morissette
God Only Knows By The Beatles
Set the Fire to the Third Bar by Snow Patrol
Southbound 35 by Pat Green
What Am I to You By Norah Jones
Oklahoma Girl by Eli Young
Life for Rent by Dido
Visiong of You by Shane and Shane

Later that night…
So, a funny thing happened to me after work today. I went to see Stefanie’s classroom and visit with her. As we were talking, we decided that we were going to walk home today (it’s about a 40-45 minute walk) and I insisted that we stop at a tienda as soon as we could because I was so thirsty. I explained to her how I was planning on buying water on the way to work today but nothing was open yet. I was a little concerned but I figured I could make it until after school to drink something (I hadn’t had anything all day because we can’t drink the tap water!) At this point, Stefanie looked at me slightly bewildered and informed me that the tap water at the school was drinkable. Much to my dismay, I grabbed a cup and chugged two of them because I was so thirsty (not only because I was parched, but also because of the elevation.) It just goes to show that sometimes the small things that are left out tend to be really important…like, it’s okay to drink this water…I feel like this should be a sign that the school is a little slice of home…because I have now changed my slogan of ‘home is where my bed is’ to ‘home is where my bed is and where I can drink the tap water without getting sick.’

So, I made it to Xela after traveling all day! My day started at 330 this morning and it hasn’t stopped until now (11pm). I had my first bizarre Guatemalan experience on the plane today. I was sitting next to a father/son combination, they were probably 55ish and 75ish. Well, the son who was sitting in the middle seat, got up and moved to the row behind us, leaving the cute old man and myself. Before I know it, grandpa has gotten up out of the aisle seat and proceeded to sit down in the middle seat. That’s right, it’s just the two of us and he gets up and sits right next to me. Then he starts speaking in Spanish and he doesn’t get it that I don’t know Spanish. I tell him I don’t understand but he just says it a little slower…it made me laugh.

By the time we got to Guatemala City, we (Stefanie, McNabb, and I) had made a new friend who was also going to Xela to study the language for 3 months. He is from Seattle so that made Soups happy. We had to take a bus to Xela. It turned out to be a 5 hour trip on the longest, curviest, mountainest road I have ever been on. And that’s not mentioning the smoke on the raod that we had to stop for. I still don’t know if it was an intentional fire or an accident. I thought I would make the trip without getting sick because I am wearing a motion sickness patch, but alas, I ended up getting sick in the bathroom of an old charter bus, still on the curves so it was really hard to stand still. It was defiantly the most difficult place I have ever thrown up! (sorry for the details!) When we finally arrived, we took a cab to McNabbs place and got something to eat. I am very anxious to see what the next 5 months has in store! It should be quite an adventure! Love you guys! Thanks for reading!

Leavin' on a jet plane...

I don't have long to write but I thought I would at least check in and say hello because I don't know when the next time I will be able to access internet is. It may be tomorrow or it may be next week.

I am currently sitting in the airport terminal in OKC getting ready to leave for awhile. I'm feeling really good about everything right now although I"m a little tired since I've been up since 3:30am...but that's how it goes!

I hope each of you are doing well. I will update as soon as I can with what the city is like and what my kiddos are like! Thanks for checking back and reading this!

A year in miles...

As I sit in Doyline Louisiana on the last night of 2007, I realize how appropriate it is that I am here, in this place at this time. When starting a new project like the one that I am about to begin, the right place, the right song, and the right frame of mind must all be present. I do think that the easiest of these things to come about it the place considering I have no choice where I am at this very moment. The harder decision in all this was the song to accompany this writing…after much debate, I chose to put the ever trusted ipod on shuffle and see what came up: Boston by Augustana. This is convenient considering this is a song about newness and getting away from something or someone…and getting to a place where you are isolated from all those around you that truly ‘know’ you. I, on the other hand, am going somewhere totally new and different but I have entering in to a group of friends that have seen me through some of my biggest times of growth that I have ever experienced. I will introduce each of them to you at a later time. Now, more importantly, I want each of you to know what I will be doing in the process of this year. As most of you know, I will be teaching pre-kindergarten in Guatemala for the next five months. With this, I will be living with friends in the highlands of the second largest city in the country. The cities name, Xela (it’s a nickname, I will get the actual name at a later time), is surrounded by three volcanoes. I will be an hour from the beach and I will be consuming some of the worlds best coffee! I plan on keeping track of the miles that I travel and logging them daily. I will record all travel which will include on foot, plane, train, water…everything really. We’ll see how it all turns out! I will always be able to be reached by email (Liz.Cromwell@gmail.com) and I would love to hear from each of you since I won’t be able to talk to you or see any of you. Please check in with the blog occasionally as I will try to update it weekly if not more. I’m not sure of what my time will be like but again, I would love to keep in touch with you. With this blog, you will have to realize that you are going to see quite a bit of randomness of Liz Cromwell. I have strange thoughts and I will be most obliged to share them with any and all who are reading this. Please bare with me. A few requirements that I am setting for myself will be always wearing a pedometer to get an accurate reading of distance traveled, I will update at least once a week with outtakes from my personal journal, and when I write, I will put my ipod on shuffle and keep a record of what songs are playing as I write these entries (this is just for the fun of it! I don’t see any real reason behind this!) When I am traveling by other methods other than foot travel, I will simply mapquest the distance or do something equivalent. Well, happy 2008 to you all. I pray that God will bless each of you in extraordinary ways and that He will challenge you in ways that will cause growth and uncomfortableness that will make you turn to Him in a real way that makes you truly acknowledge that you have no control over your own life. He is the only one that sets forth your path! Thanks for being someone who is special enough to me to make the list of those-I-would-like-to-keep-in-touch-with! You have each touched my life in way that is unique. Please pray for me over the next five months. Thank you all.

elc


Playlist:
Boston by Augustana
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Till Kingdom Come by Coldplay
Austin by Blake Shelton
Don’t Miss You At All by Norah Jones
Sweet Pea by Amos Lee
Under the Sea by The Little Mermaid
Hello Darlin’ by Conway Twitty
Say Hello Wave Goodbye by David Gray