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Published On: Jun 21, 2005 12:05 PM
Total entries in this category:
Published On: Jun 21, 2005 12:05 PM
Antigua Mother's Day
We have spent the last three days with a
wonderful family of four in Antigua, Guatemala while we are doing our Spanish
studies. The Jimenez family consists of Pablo, Flori, Diego, and Maria.
They are very nice and patient with us. Also living here is another student at the school whose name is Guiseppe.
He is from Italy, and speaks Spanish very well as well as French, Italian, and English!
Pablo and Flori make us feel right at home. Their ten year old son, Diego, is crazy about soccer. He, Leif, and Gage like to jump rope. The five year old, Maria, has been initially shy, but Guiseppe says we should just wait!
Additionally, there are two other ladies who help out the family. Susi works for the family during the day.
And at night a neighboring woman helps out to make dinner. Her name is Elizabet. Everyone is extremely nice and helps us all with our Spanish.
The weather here is much cooler than on the coast. We are at about 5000 feet of altitude. Almost every afternoon or evening it rains with lightning and thunder. We had to buy jackets because of the chill and the rain.
The town is practically surrounded by volcanoes. We haven't seen one erupt yet, but we understand that there is an active one close by that you can tour and see it erupting.
Our classes are split in half. Leif and Gage are with one teacher, Gonzalo, while Roma and I are with another, Monica. In addition to teaching us Spanish, she tells us many things about Guatemalan life and culture. For instance, there are many irresponsible fathers in Guatemala, and as a result, there are many abandoned children as well as children without fathers. Since there are no labor laws here, many of these children work in the streets, selling bananas, shining shoes, selling gum, etc. Some simply beg. It is sad.
Also, in Guatemala City especially, there are many gangs of young people. These gangs require their new members to kill someone and bring the finger as proof for entry into the gang. They kill people without remorse and for no reason. If they see you and want your sunglasses, they just shoot you and take them. They tattoo themselves with a teardrop on their faces for each person they kill. Once a person is in a gang and gets tattoed, he will never be able to get a job: anyone seeking a job with tattoos is summarily dismissed.
Another result of the lack of fatherly responsibility is a great affection for the mother. In Guatemala, Mother's Day is a HUGE deal and is celebrated on the 10th of May. The people here start shooting off fireworks at 3:00 AM on the 10th. We got zero sleep from about 4 AM until 7 AM or so because of the number of local firecrackers being lit off! The noise and celebration continues all day long. Historically, the serenade of the mariachi occurs between 1 AM and 4 AM! So this early morning celebration is normal.
Antigua is a beautiful little town with very nice people. I can't say enough nice things about the Jimenez family. We are having a great time with them.
Many clothing brands (Nike, Diesel, Gap, Esprit, Old Navy, etc.) have manufacturing here. On Mother's Day, Roma went to a local outlet and got us Nike rain jackets for Q$100, which is about US$12.50. We told our teacher about our great deal, and she said that Q$100 was not cheap. The people here are not financially wealthy.
They are very nice and patient with us. Also living here is another student at the school whose name is Guiseppe.
He is from Italy, and speaks Spanish very well as well as French, Italian, and English!
Pablo and Flori make us feel right at home. Their ten year old son, Diego, is crazy about soccer. He, Leif, and Gage like to jump rope. The five year old, Maria, has been initially shy, but Guiseppe says we should just wait!
Additionally, there are two other ladies who help out the family. Susi works for the family during the day.
And at night a neighboring woman helps out to make dinner. Her name is Elizabet. Everyone is extremely nice and helps us all with our Spanish.
The weather here is much cooler than on the coast. We are at about 5000 feet of altitude. Almost every afternoon or evening it rains with lightning and thunder. We had to buy jackets because of the chill and the rain.
The town is practically surrounded by volcanoes. We haven't seen one erupt yet, but we understand that there is an active one close by that you can tour and see it erupting.
Our classes are split in half. Leif and Gage are with one teacher, Gonzalo, while Roma and I are with another, Monica. In addition to teaching us Spanish, she tells us many things about Guatemalan life and culture. For instance, there are many irresponsible fathers in Guatemala, and as a result, there are many abandoned children as well as children without fathers. Since there are no labor laws here, many of these children work in the streets, selling bananas, shining shoes, selling gum, etc. Some simply beg. It is sad.
Also, in Guatemala City especially, there are many gangs of young people. These gangs require their new members to kill someone and bring the finger as proof for entry into the gang. They kill people without remorse and for no reason. If they see you and want your sunglasses, they just shoot you and take them. They tattoo themselves with a teardrop on their faces for each person they kill. Once a person is in a gang and gets tattoed, he will never be able to get a job: anyone seeking a job with tattoos is summarily dismissed.
Another result of the lack of fatherly responsibility is a great affection for the mother. In Guatemala, Mother's Day is a HUGE deal and is celebrated on the 10th of May. The people here start shooting off fireworks at 3:00 AM on the 10th. We got zero sleep from about 4 AM until 7 AM or so because of the number of local firecrackers being lit off! The noise and celebration continues all day long. Historically, the serenade of the mariachi occurs between 1 AM and 4 AM! So this early morning celebration is normal.
Antigua is a beautiful little town with very nice people. I can't say enough nice things about the Jimenez family. We are having a great time with them.
Many clothing brands (Nike, Diesel, Gap, Esprit, Old Navy, etc.) have manufacturing here. On Mother's Day, Roma went to a local outlet and got us Nike rain jackets for Q$100, which is about US$12.50. We told our teacher about our great deal, and she said that Q$100 was not cheap. The people here are not financially wealthy.
Posted: Wed - May 11, 2005 at 08:26 PM