out of the fish bowl...

From left to right...

Nathaly: Just recently turned 9 years of age. Drama Queen. Loves Hello Kitty and all things related to stationary. Likes to draw and paint, and aspires to be an actress in the future.

Roberto: At the hyper-active age of 10, he is Real Madrid's biggest fan. Intrigued and fascinated by techy "toys" (eg my camera, cell phone, discman). Biggest dream: to fly to Spain and watch a Real Madrid soccer game.

Esmeralda: 34 year old mother of 3. Separated from her husband for about 1.5 years. She spends most of her time taking care of her children and selling chocolate covered fruits, enchiladas, and hot drinks to the students at the Spanish school across the street. As well, she is studying to become a lawyer and wants to help woman fight for their rights.

Alejandra: (or more often Alejandrita) Only 8 months old and is one of the most well-behaved, happy, and cutest babies I have ever seen. She can sometimes mumble out the words "mama" and "papa", but overall is eager to speak and interact with her older brother and sister. Also an eager independent as she loves to grab the spoon from her mom while she's being fed.

Jolanda (Joli) [on the left]: 21 and has been more or less working since she was 5. Things seem to have smoothed out between her and Esmeralda and she'll be staying for another year before moving on. Super hard worker (she wakes up at 5:300am and then starts to clean and cook until about 10 or 11pm) and always smiling. She hopes to be able to go back to school one day and looks forward to taking care of her own family. Expert tortilla maker.

me: How much do the avocado's cost?

vender: 2 for 5Q and 3 for 10Q.

me: Umm, ok. But doesn't that mean it's cheaper to just buy 2 avocados?

vender: (slightly puzzled look) 2 for 5Q and 3 for 10Q.

me: Yes, yes, I understand (as in I understand Spanish). Ok, so how much does it cost for 1 avocado?

vender: 2.50Q

me: Alright, but it costs 10Q for 3 avocados.

vender: Yes.

me: But what if I want 4 avocados? How much would that cost?

vender: (very puzzled look) 2 for 5Q and 3 for 10Q.

me: Right. But you said 2.50Q each, so shouldn't I be able to buy 4 avocados for 10Q?

vender: 2 for 5Q and 3 for 10Q.

me: Riiiiiight.

note: also works with apples.

So on the first day back to work, we had a big office meeting and told we were moving offices. Everyone packed everything up and has been half working ever since. Would you believe we still haven't moved offices??? It's been 3 weeks!!!

But on a brighter note, Laura and I have more or less taken over the Big Boss' computer which happily is relatively quick and even has internet access! (mainly for online research). As well, it appears that we have become official English-Spanish, Español-Ingles translators, translating everything from the CEDEPEM webpage, to applications for EU Grants, and technical papers about Agriculture.

We're hoping to be able to have the most impact by helping the organization restructure itself. Up until now, we still haven't been able to talk to the Big Boss and haven't been able to move forward... at all. Very, very frustrating. We see a lot of potential, but it never fails to be lost in the inefficiency. *sigh*

We voted! Last week Friday we hired a private shuttle to take us to and from the Canadian Consulate in Guatemala City. Canadians must be really trust worthy because they didn't check any of our ID's before handing us our voting ballots! And I guess knowing who the candidates were in our respective ridings ahead of time would have been helpful :P On our way back to Quetzaltenango, we stopped in Antigua to take this (left) picture for Andrea's article - we ended up on the front page of the Terrace local paper!

The Japanese are working on a water project here in Xela where they're trying to get potable water to every household. So in that process, they shut down water in parts of the city (more specifically, my part). The idea was that the water pressure would end up being lower (i.e. I wouldn't be able to take a shower for 3 days), which was fine by me, but come day 3, the water pressure had not returned and in fact, had stopped completely. You learn quickly how dependent you are on water, even if there's only a little bit of it. Good thing MacDonald washrooms weren't very far away and thank goodness for friends willing to let me use their showers!!

H.R. 4437 - There was a newly proposed bill in US Congress last December (you might have heard about the extra length of wall that's going up at the Mexican-US border). It basically cracks down quite harshly on illegal immigration and doesn't address the root of the problem. Some Guatemalans here, the ones who know about this new bill, are joining the fight against the passing of this new law, also not addressing the root problem. What do you think?

The election back home is coming up fast. I plan on exercising my democratic right... but I'm really not quite sure who to vote for - ???

I'm not so sure the Liberals are the correct choice, and the idea of Stephen Harper as PM frightens me. NDP policies, although lovely ideas, could very well leave us near bankrupt and there's no reason for me to vote for the Bloc (even if I could). So that maybe leaves the... Green Party?

What to do, what to do...

Dec 16th: Convivio with the compañearos. Piñatas, regalos, Cuba Libras and plenty of merengue

Dec 17th: Sleep? What means sleep? Andrea and I are off to the bus station at 3:30am. One bus, a shuttle, a pick up truck and nearly 12 hours later, we arrive at Las Marias in Semuc Champey.

Dec 18th: Enter the caves. Need to see? Light a candle. Need to swim in the cave and still want to see? Swim holding the candle (ideally above the water). Need to climb a rope up a waterfall and STILL want to see? Close your eyes and pray.
Spend the afternoon lounging in a series of aqua marine pools. Enjoy the free skin exfoliation from the fish.

Dec 20th: Finca El Paraíso - Lonely Planet said it was a SHORT walk, but really they meant a 30min hike to the finca. Spend the afternoon enjoying swimming in the lagoon of a natrual HOT waterfall.

Dec 21st: After hitching a private ride into Río Dulce in the back of truck, be thrilled that you were convinced to stay at a lovely hostel called Tortugal. Chill in the restaurant and hang out with the yachties also staying there.

Dec 22nd: Take a lovely boat ride down Río Dulce to Livingston. Topado - seafood, coconut and plaintains together at last!

Dec 24th: Walk all around Tela looking for a restaurant that's open. Mamma Mia's - didn't they tell us earlier they would be open? Los Angeles - it's a Chinese restaurant... they're actually closed on the 24th? Café Azul - be seated and decide what you'd like to eat, only to be told that they're closing when you're ordering. AutoPollo - can't believe we considered eating there, but we couldn't because they weren't serving anyway. Sherwood's - *finally*, a pleasant hotel restaurant on the beach.

Dec 26th: Arrive in La Ceiba. It's raining. WHY are we here in the carribean again???

Dec 27th - 29th: Hang with the Kiwi guides at OmegaTours - rafting, kayaking, horse back riding in the morning, followed by delicious dinners and Port Royal beers in the evening.

Dec 30th: "Sometimes you just wanna go where everybody knows your name..."
Andrea and I divorced at 4am - She's off to Nicaruaga and I arrive on Utíla (Bay Islands), Honduras, apparently famous.

Dec 31st: Eat, drink and be merry. Watch sunrise with the presence of good company.

Jan 1st: Spend all day lounging in the sun on the dock with a good book, or jump into the ocean to cool off.

Jan 4th: Become a certified open water diver! Then Get up close and personal with the fishies =)

Jan 6th: It's going to take me HOW long to get back to Quetzaltenango???