Water Fights On Christmas

Well it is Christmas time again though this year will be quite different from the last. It will be difficult to be away from my family and friends this year. I am doing my best to remain positive and not dwell on missing everyone. After all, how often do I get to spend Christmas in Guatemala!

Though I miss the snow, I definitely cannot complain about all the sunshine we've been having. I've never experienced a Christmas that is 30 degrees! We made the best of the sunshine and had a huge water fight, I wish I had a camera to take pictures because it was so incredibly fun!!!

I hope your Christmas is full of fun and laughter. I will be thinking of you and wishing you well.

¡Feliz Navidad y Feliz Ano Nuevo!

Run For Your Lives!!!

I woke up yesterday morning with a jolting fear. It was 5:30 in the morning and a resounding bang echoed in the air, followed by ambulance sirens and a loud voice booming over a speaker. The voice, in Spanish of course, was shouting something I could not understand. I lay in bed as my heart was pounding and my mind was reeling with questions of what was going on. If I were presently in the Middle East, I would be hiding for fear of being harmed. I eventually fell back asleep with the subtle comfort that the other house members did not seem greatly alarmed. I later learned it was nothing more than an anniversary celebration for a local bank. They will definitely not be receiving any business from me!!! It appears to be very customary to drive up and down the streets blaring announcements over giant speakers. It is definitely a distinguishing feature of Central America and would cause a great uproar of complaint if it were attempted in North America.

I thank God that I am blessed to be in a peaceful country and protected from the battles humans wage upon one another.

Here's another one

I think the cause for the procrastination in my blog posts is due to the feeling that I must have something really exciting to tell you because I am in a different country. Okay now that my excuse is out of the way I should update you on what I've been doing for the last while. Well I went to Honduras with Zaak, Amber, and Blaise for Ambers 28th birthday treat. We went to the ruins, did some shopping, watched TV (in English), and restaurant hopped (we eat more than chicken and beans!).

The following week I went to Antigua for 6 days for a teachers retreat. The place we stayed at was very beautiful, it had nice gardens and there are volcanoes surrounding it. I don't really know why anyone would settle in a valley with three volcanoes around it, seems crazy but it is beautiful. The retreat was a nice opportunity to get to know some of the local Spanish girls better. They are a lot of fun. However, they like to get up at 5 in the morning and make lots of noise!!! I was not very pleased as I truly enjoy my sleep. Aside from lack of sleep I had a nice time.

I watched Miracle of 34th Street with the Peters family. It made me a little sad as I would not be enjoying the snow and hearing Christmas music every where I go this year. This will be a very different Christmas but I suppose everyone has to experience their first Christmas away from home at one time or another.

As far as my daily routine it's pretty well the same. Tutor in the morning, Spanish lessons, English lessons, time with the kids, suppers at Zaak and Amber’s house ;) (Thank you my second family). Amber and I will be teaching English in the school. I'll take over full time when she has her baby, but I'm so thankful to have her help as I have never taught before let alone prepare all the class material. It will certainly be an adventure!

Well I believe that is all for now...I'll try to be a little more prompt with my next post.

Merry Christmas all :)