More Class Info and Recommedations!

Hey, everyone!

This week, I’ll be telling you a little bit more about how my classes have been going and what you may be able to expect if you are going to be doing classes here in Guatemala. As I’ve already gone into some detail about daily classes and class structure, I will be telling you about some of the things that do not pertain to daily lessons. Also, I will include one or two more tips for those traveling abroad and some great places to visit if you happen to be coming to Antigua.

Spanish lessons have been wonderful and I enjoy them immensely. As I come nearer to the end of my time here, the great things about home are moving to the forefront of mind and compensating for the things I know I will miss about Antigua. The one thing that I know I will never be totally ready to give up is Spanish lessons. I have found that each weekend, by about halfway through Saturday, I become antsy and missing Spanish (I don’t frequently speak Spanish during the weekend, as I do not have my classes or my practicum.). I am currently looking for strategies to continue my learning and practice of the language while in the Sates. I realize that I may never be in a similar situation where I can speak and hear Spanish so much so frequently, and am trying to take advantage of the rest of my time here. Love of the language, however, is not the only reason I’ll be missing classes.

Not only have I become accustomed to speaking in Spanish and learning very intensely every day, but I have grown close to my teacher, as well. Julio, my “maestro”, and I have become good friends, spending four or more hours together every day. Most of this time is spend doing exercises and learning new grammar, but a large part is also spend talking, laughing, and learning about each other. It will be very hard to say “Adios.” While we spend so much time with our teachers, they have the opportunity to take us on outings during class to make sure that our experience of Antigua and the Spanish language is not all on paper. After our test (every Friday) is a good opportunity to take a walk and speak Spanish to each other!

One of the things that we have had the good fortune to experience with our professors is a trip to a botanical garden here in Antigua. We saw many flowers, trees, and other plants that are native to Guatemala and read the explanations behind them. It was very interesting to see them all in one place. All in all, this was a good chance to get out of daily class and experience another part of the city.

This is the botanical garden in Antigua! I recommend it. It's free and there's a great cafe inside.

My teacher, Julio, giving us some info about the flowers in the background.

Really cool plant. There were lots of beautiful flowers to see!

This is a tiny, but powerful pepper.

A huge leaf. That's all.

One day, while talking to Julio, I learned that one of our class periods was overlapping one of the holidays that Guatemala celebrates. Antigua typically accommodates the desires of tourists and, for that reason, businesses are open during national holidays. When I asked him if he would be able to celebrate with his family, he informed me that our class was during that time. I asked him if we could reschedule class for a weekend and that is what we did! As my teacher is a good friend of my friend Kayla’s teacher, we were able to schedule our classes at the same time on Saturday. This, my friends, was the most enjoyable class period that I have experienced in Guatemala, maybe of all time! Because it was the weekend and not many other groups of students were present, we were able to be a bit more relaxed. We studied for about an hour separately and spend the rest of the time playing games, talking together, and eating oranges, which grow in the school courtyard! Games, such as Scrabble, Basta (Scattagories), and a game called “Scrupulos” are a good way to take a break from class, while still practicing Spanish.

A weekly custom of ours is to, after the test, go down a couple of blocks to a street vendor that sells “Atol,” a cornflower based soup. We have started bringing other students with us and customarily play games afterwards back at the school.

A street vendor that we frequent.

This brings me to the next section of my post! I’m going to let you readers that are coming to Antigua know my favorite places to visit and eat so that you, too, may experience them!

Por Qué No? – Literally translated “Café Why Not?,” Por Qué No has the best environment of any restaurant I have been to in Guatemala. With a cozy size, the staff, personal friends to all who enter through their doors, are able (and excited) to converse with their customers. Every new visitor is treated as a friend and served delicious food and unique smoothies or juice. A common thing to hear as you enter is “Hello! Welcome! This is your home!” (Corner of 9^th Calle and 2^nd Ave.)

Atol Vendor – On First Avenue right by the gas station, there is a woman that vends many delicious types of traditional Guatemalan food such as white and yellow atol, tamales, tacos, and tostadas. Best atol in town! And inexpensive.

La Canoa – Great place to go and catch a football game or UFC fight (or any sport) from the States. Decently priced food you would find at any sports bar in the States. Kind of a little taste of home!

Here are the tips of the week!

Don’t be too scared of the street food. Although advised against being too trusting of the food that can be found in the market and on any given street, I have been growing more adventurous and trying more food on the street. I have not yet gotten sick! After you give your stomach a chance to get used to the food in your host home, try some of the street food! Ask a local where to go.

Text in Guatemala! As you may already know, there are a lot of services out there that provide free texting over wifi. As wifi is relatively commonly found in cafes and some host homes around Antigua, the occasional text is useful and can help keep in touch with friends and family at home! Although there are many services, I prefer Google Voice. This is a free service of Google and is among the best. You can utilize it on your computer’s browser, Android phone, or iPhone/iPod touch. The catch here is (many of my friends have experienced this) that this service is not available in Guatemala. This means that if you have already signed up for the service in the US, it will be available to you in Guatemala, but if you haven’t, you won’t be able to when you get here. So sign up before you leave the States!

Everything is going well here! I am getting excited for Christmas and it seems very odd to think that it will be less than two weeks until the 25^th when we get back! I am foreseeing a culture shock on our way back in.

Nice pool at the hotel!

This weekend, we had a relatively relaxing time. We ate at a hotel here in Antigua on Sunday. There was a buffet and a swimming pool at our disposal. Dangerous combination? I think so… I worked extra so that I could finish my internship earlier this week, as we have many activities coming up.

Lots happening. Lots to come!