We arrived here safely yesterday and were met at the airport by the director of the school/NGO that we are working with (Probigua). We took a long winding drive through the backroads out of Guatemala City to Antigua, inhaling diesel fumes the whole way from the school buses that are used for mass transportation here. As we have learned is customary of the families who host students and volunteers here, our host family is also hosting three other people (from Germany) who are studying and volunteering here. While it is not quite what we expected from a homestay, our host father Thomas, who is the assistant director of Probigua, has a very good heart and has already conversed with us about how the organization got started over 16 years ago. Probigua works with remote pueblos to provide educational opportunities for kids. They have more than a dozen libraries that they have created in rural areas, provide scholarships for kids to get a better education, and run a few computer labs for rural kids in the pueblos.
After a traditional breakfast (tamales and a special christmas punch) with the maestras (teachers) at our school, we spent today wandering the city and working on our Spanish. We met up with some friends in the evening (who also happen to be here at the same time!) and Aaron managed to lose his bag within the first 24 hours. Fortunately, the local pub had it for him when he ran back. Tomorrow we will travel to one of the pueblos with the school. Since email is fairly prevalent in the youth hostels here, we will be able to provide some updates on our first few weeks here. More to come!
Some photos from our first 24 hours...
At the airport with all of our stuff.
Traditional punch for Christmas/Navidad
The center square in the village.
Friends in Antigua!
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