Semana No. 1

Hola! It's been just over a week since I've arrived in Quetzaltenango, commonly called Xela ("Shay-Lah"), Guatemala, and I couldn't be happier. On first glance, Xela looks like how you'd imagine a typical small/mid-size Central American city: bustling markets; narrow winding streets crammed with motorcycles, cars from the 70s and old US school buses painted and converted into what are called chicken busses, carrying loads of people; panaderias (bakeries) emitting the sweestest of smells; and a lovely colonial-style square that serves as the central hub of the city. Oh yes, and dogs everywhere. But it doesn't take long to get wrapped up in Xela's charm. One of the most common things I hear on nearly a daily basis from other travelers I meet is: "well I planned to stop through Xela for a couple of weeks, and 5 months later I am still here..." Nestled in a valley in the western Guatemalan highlands, surrounded by mountains on all sides, Xela has a breathtaking beauty. But more than that, there's a certain calming energy here that is a bit hard to put into words.

Spending 5 hours each day in one-on-one Spanish class is starting to pay off. By the end of the day, my head hurts a bit from all of the vocabulary, grammar, reading, writing, and conversing, but I am loving the process. It's refreshing and challenging and has been so rewarding to be able to go back to my homestay family in the evening and have a full 30 minute conversation (albeit a basic one) in Spanish. The ease at which I am meeting other students, expats, travelers from all over the world, and locals has been a bit astounding, and I am having so much fun. I've found a running buddy for early AM runs before class, and have joined an amazing little yoga studio for $15/month in town (which has also been great practice for learning all the parts of the body in Spanish!). This weekend I took a 2 day trek to the top of the Tajumulco volcano- the highest point in Central America, at 4220 meters, some 14,000 feet. After a pretty grueling trek that basically just went straight up the whole time, we reached the top just before sunrise. I've never imagined a sunrise like this before-- with an entire volcano range ahead in the distance, and two erupting volcanos set as the backdrop. And the coolest thing about the trek is that I went with a trekking group called Quetzaltrekkers that is completely volunteer run and 100% of the profits fully support two local organizations in Xela that work with impoverished youth, helping them get to school and succeed there. That's the other thing I really love about Xela- there is a flurry of social activism and local organizations doing all kinds of amazing work on everything from advocating for rights of the indigenous populations to domestic violence and combating the western land mining companies that have been devastating communities here. I'll be meeting this week with a health-related non-profit called Primeros Pasos to see if I might be able to work on a project with them while I am here in the afternoons. In particular, there has been a huge surge in diabetes here in Guatemala, as well as throughout Central America, and a whole lot of misconceptions as to how the disease develops. I am interested to learn more about what kinds of work, if any, has been going on in this area, because I imagine this is going to be a HUGE issue in the years to come. 

I must be off to school now, but sending muchos besos from Guatemala! I'm feeling very happy and healthy in every way, and very grateful for this special opportunity I have here.

-sami

Hello World!

On Saturday, January 18, 2014 I will be headed out to Guatemala to begin my little backpacking adventure through Central and South America! While my travel plans are less than concrete, I will be using this space to share my experiences and photos with friends and family.


I will be flying to Guatemala City and traveling by bus to Quetzaltenango (commonly known as Xela), where I will be enrolling in a Spanish language school:

El Quetzal
6a calle 5 – 52 "A" Zona 1
Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. C.A.
tel: (502) 7761-2784
elquetzalschool@yahoo.com 
http://xelawho.com/elquetzal/