Esta AQUI!

That means- I AM HERE!!!!

Whoa. So I've been in Guatemala for three days, and there is so much to write about. Es loco. I will try not to let this post get too long, because if you are anything like me, you have a short attention span to when it comes to reading things on a computer screen. Here, I'll put numbers on my paragraphs to make things easier:

1. GUATEMALA IS A BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY. The drive from Guatemala City to Xela was truly breathtaking. Xela is about 4,000 up, so the drive was filled with mountains. And corn. Corn grows EVERYWHERE. There will be little patches on the sides of mountains, it's really weird to see. there is a lot of garbage around towns, which is unfortunate, but what ya gonna do?

2. MY HOST FAMILY IS NICE. We have bottled water, so I don't have to worry about that. My room is nice, the people are friendly. My host sister has an adorable baby. It's funny, because she looks to be about 15 years old. She still has braces on. Yet she's a mother, I've seen her breastfeed. She seems like a really awesome mom, too. She spends all her time with the baby, Maria Alejandra, and she seems really really happy. Her husband seems really really happy, too. I had a talk with one of the brothers about how in the US, families don't live together. He told me that here, they often live together out of neccesity, because it's too expensive. He said it's hard, to have so many people living together. I say, at least you have your support network right in the room next door. Although they can probably hear you have sex, too.

3. MY SCHOOL ROCKS. BUT IT IS NOT THE SCHOOL OF ROCK. After my first day of school, I went out to a bar with three teachers and a bunch of other people from the school for Merengue lessons. It was super fun. (don't worry, I walked home in a big group.) (now I think i want to take dancing lessons like, all the time) Today, we went to a pueblo just outside the city and saw people do some crazy weaving stuff (the traditional mayan women's skirts are like, 50 meters long or something, and are just wrapped around hella) and bought illegal Guatemalan booze. You know that's an awesome school. And seriously- I feel like my espanol is improving every day. It's really fun to learn.

4. ODDLY ENOUGH, I KNOW HELLA PEOPLE HERE. First- Gemma's sister Claire, and her boyfriend Peter. Second, Nikki's cousin K-Ro (who picked me up from the airport, and drove me to the bus stop, and made me a sandwhich, and called the school to make sure I arrive ok, and gave the information of her cousin's cousin in Xela who I have to call). Third, and this is MOST random, a girl at my school named Diane, who I ALMOST lived with in seattle this summer. WHOA! What? Es verdad. She lived with Sarah, who worked with me at Plmouth House. I was going to take Sarah's room, until I decided to ask Sue if I could live with her at the overture instead. but I had met her once at dinner at the Plymouth House. AND she went to high school with Sarah Light from Brandeis. Crazy, no?

5. I HAVE TO GO TO DINNER NOW. bye.