More salsa!! (video)

More Merengue!! (video)

Museums of Coffee, Mayan Music & Mayan Dress

This morning we took a camioneta into Antigua and then took a minibus to the town of Jocotenango where we visited 3 museums (all on the same grounds). At the coffee museum La Azotea we were walked through the production of coffee, from planting to consumption. We learned about the different types of coffee as well as the different stages of cultivation and production. We had a guided tour of the nursery, coffee fields and the machinery used to process, dry and roast the beans. Then we went to the museum of Mayan music where we saw and listened to an explanation about pre-Columbian instruments as well modern-day ones. That tour ended with a 20 minute video of traditional Mayan music and ceremonies. The last place we visited was a room dedicated to traditional Mayan dress. The woman wears a huipil, a hand-woven shirt that is embroidered with designs that represent her town, as well as a corte (skirt) and faja (belt). There are only a few areas left where the men still wear the traditional clothing.

A coffee plant

And then there were 8... (Amy left this rnorning)

Community bath-time!!

They'll be doing the salsa all the way to the States...

A typical Guatemalan house

More salsa & merengue!!

After another afternoon of Spanish classes we headed back to Salsa Dreams, a dance studio here in Antigua. We reviewed the salsa and merengue steps from last week and then learned some more. Despite being exhausted from all the physical labor during the service project our students did a great job dancing! Here are some pix:

 

The sign on the bathroom door at Salsa Dreams!

On the ride home after dance classes we passed through San Pedro Las Huertas, a small town outside Antigua. They were having a feria and we decided to stop for a while and take a look around. Izzie, Lauri, Gabe & Phebe went on one of the rides and managed to attract quite a crowd of spectators. Apparently four gringos screaming their heads off for the duration of the ride was entertaining!

Our last day of work in El Hato

Today was our last day of work up in the aldea (small town) of El Hato. There were a handful of kids around to talk to and who helped us with our work. We completed about 40 meters of the wall that surrounds the sports court and also repaired the pole and fence on one end as well as sections of the floor that had eroded. Before we left today we swept the whole court to get rid of all the leaves and dirt. Many blisters and sore muscles were earned in the process these past two weeks! Our Guatemalan work buddy/leader Maco said that Berwick sent a great group of workers and that we accomplished a lot!

Melvin!

Melvin wearing Erica's sunglasses

The whole group with our Guatemalan project manager!

Bringing the sand down with help from Erick

Izzie & Lauri repairing the side of the court

Phebe, Amy & Rachel mixing cement

Gabe playing soccer with some of the local kids

Cam repairing the side of the court

Rachel getting some help from Erick, a student at the school

Melvin supervising the work!

At work in El Hato

Wednesday Spanish Classes

Rachel, Erica & their teachers trying to guess what (Spanish) word is written on their foreheads

Gabe, Sammy, Lauri & Izzie playing Scattergories (in Spanish it's called Basta!) with their teachers

Cam & Phebe playing Scrabble in Spanish with their teachers

Blessing the newleyweds

Salsa lessons! (video)

Wednesday morning work!

We were back up in El Hato today working on the wall. Gabe & our friend Maco replaced the end pole for the fence above the wall today as well. The students are a little tired, but got to experience an earthquake last night! A little after midnight a 5.3 (other sources say 5.7) magnitude quake shook our part of the country. Everyone is fine and most actually said that it was an cool experience. Earthquakes are quite common down here - there are a handful of small ones every week. Guatemala lies in a major fault zone that cuts across the southern part of the country, hence the string of 30+ volcanoes that dot the countryside!
Here are some pictures from this morning:

merengue lessons! (video)

washing clothes in the pila (video)

a work video

 

"We're working...with the cement and the wall...a lot and strong..."

Tuesday morning work!

Last week students were on their mid-semester break and yesterday was Teacher's Day, so there have only been a handful of kids hanging around the work site up in El Hato. But today students were back in school so we got to play soccer with and talk to a lot more kids. We are getting close to finishing the wall that surrounds the sports court! Only two more days of work left!

Rachel & Cam sifting the sand

Erica & Samito

Gabe playing soccer with the 3rd graders

Samito enjoying a mango while playing soccer

...and by 11 o'clock, the girls had started to crack!

 

Lauri & Rachel mixing cement (while Phebe goes for a shovel?)

Spanish classes (Monday pm)

Each afternoon students spend 3 1/2 hours with their Spanish teachers at Centro Linguistico La Union in Antigua. They have one-on-one instruction/conversations from 2 - 4 pm, take a half hour break until 4:30 and then resume classes until 6 pm. The second half usually consists of games in groups.

Playing Scattergories in Spanish

Scrabble in Spanish