Estoy Aqui

Today I am writing from Guatemala City. Yesterday, at a cruel hour before dawn, my fantastic parents drove me to the airport to ship out to my internsip. Boarding my final connection in Houston, it wasn´t 5 minutes before I was chatting with my seat neighbors. (And though most of you assume it was I who initiated since I have a talking problem, it was indeed my Guatemalan co-passengers). It was a good opportunity to warm up my Spanish-speaking abilities (which people have told me are fine, but I feel are insufficiently warm). By the time I got to the baggage claim I had 3 people´s contact info.

Having no trouble uniting with my host family, I put my bags in my host sister ¨J¨s car. They took me out for traditional Guatemalan cuisine--chicken strips at TGI Friday´s. While this is obviously not a Mayan specialty, there are 3 Fridays in Guate along with a slew of other imported fast food joints. There is even a call button in the center of the table to page the waitress. Marveling over the button, I was promtly laughed at by my host´s 4 year old niece.

My living situation is ideal. I have my own quarters in a large house in a nice neighborhood. 8 Boarders live upstairs and the Senora and her daughter J occupy the middle floor of the home. The home is complete with 2 parrots, 3 parakeets, a dog and her litter that live in the garage, and a seemingly endless flow of tortillas, juevos, y frijoles. My hosts have been extremely generous, shuttling me around from the bank to the embassy to the supermercado. It is difficult to get around the city safelt and efficiently without a car, but I will be working within spitting distance of the house. I met with my friend M from ASORGUA (Guatemalan Association of the Deaf) last night and dined with her and her family. The people here have, in one day, already proven themselves to be incredible.