Road Trip

Ahhh… and the adaptation of "Cobanero" life has gotten the better of me, and once again I've fallen behind on my journaling. As with many other young travelers' blogs, it almost seems as if I might forget my familial audience of four or five readers. Fear not! I've been busy, but I intend on inundating you with stories and photos over the next day or so. For now, let me recap the last few weeks.

November 7 - 17

A majority of our work has been focused on the documentary project. We shot video 9 days out of those 10, and sometimes even twice in one day. We're now left with hours of footage to revise, narrate, translate, etc. We have the next week (November 28 - December 3) to solidify themes and a storyline. Our release date (via YouTube) is December 3, when Padre Pedro presents it to St. Patrick's Parish in Edina. Again, this video will serve as a informational video to heed new or further financial support from donors.

While I don't want to give away what is in the video, I can say we've shot over 10 interviews with monks and different community members (including the Bishop of Alta Verapaz). We got further exposure to aldea life, and furthered our understanding of the community's interaction with the people of Coban.

Aside from video work (which truly took up a lot of time), we did the typical routine: a few Sopranos here and there, a few late-night whiskey drinks, some cat-naps on the hammock and PLENTY of coffee breaks.

ROAD TRIP PART 1 November 18

As you folks may or may not know, the visa situation in Guatemala is very interesting. As an American citizen, I am permitted a 3-month visitor's visa very easily. In order to renew that visa for another 3 months, I must leave the country for 72 hours. For our first trip, Justin and I determined that our destination was Placencia, Belize. Translation: "Required Trip to Paradise"

We were even more excited when we heard that Raul and Donal were going to Road Trip up to Placencia with us.

Raul and Donal fit in a very similar character description. They are both in their mid-50's, only speak Spanish, and are rich family men. They both appear rather passive but LOVE to drink scotch whiskey (and their bellies show it). Raul started a radio station in Coban in the early 80's (his connection with Bernie) and knows everyone in town. Donal works in the cardamom import business but has struck hard times recently due to a loss of a daughter, wife and aunt all in the same year. They seemed worthy enough travel partners, and we were happy to get a free ride up with two locals.

The trip started out rough. I awoke at an early 6:00am to find myself with a massive headache. Raul and Donal picked us up at 6:30am, clearly excited to "road-trip it" with a couple of young rascals. On the way out of town, we stopped at a gas station for the famous "Abre de ojos" (eye-opener) drink that Bernie had told us so much about. As I sipped on my so-called "Something Special: Fine Scotch Whiskey" and tried to get into the spirit of things, I realized that I felt worse. 

We packed up and headed out in Raul's Jeep: old guys in the front, young guys in the back. As soon as we were on the open road, Raul pulled out a burned CD Titled "Ingles," put 'er in the CD player, and CRANKED the volume. A variety of Pop blasted over the speakers, including Spanlish cuts from Pitbull, Enrique Iglesias, and other unbearable artists. While this music can be fun to some in a bar or club setting, I can assure you it is no fun when it's 7:00am and you're about to find out you have food poisoning. 

After a few feeble attempts to car-dance and look like I was having fun, I began to curl in to the fetal position, feeling my stomach tighten up in complicated knots. With each curvy turn in the wandering mountain roads, I realized I didn't have much time.

"Necesitamos PARRAR!" 

Click. Plunch. Burp. BLAHHHH!

I dropped out of the car on my knees and could barely hold myself up as I revealed what was inside my stomach. After I was done, I was bound in a cold sweat, drenched in my "100% Guate" Gallo shirt that I won at Oktoberfest. After I had my intimate vomiting session with the side of the Guatemalan mountain road, we carried on (blasting music and all) to a place for breakfast.

I ordered up a nice meal of steak and eggs. This did not work very well. My stomach didn't even ponder the situation; I threw up in the restaurant bathroom. As I returned from my second hellish episode, I resolved I would only be eating what I felt like. All I felt like doing, though, was lying down. This was something I was not able to do until 8:00p.m. that night.

The rest of the day is rather hard to recount, as I was either sick as a dog or sleeping. I excused myself once more on the side of the road and was dry heaving for most of the day. I consumed several glasses of sparkling water with Alka-Selzer, as well as a few pieces of pineapple. We made several stops along the way, doing this or that. Raul stopped several times to say hello to friends and relatives (during this time sat hunched in the car, hoping to be struck by lightning). The whole trip was plagued with 100% volume from the speakers. We hear our far share of Reggaetone, Pop, and awful Maringa music. Our playlist was also fairly concentrated. The next few songs were played the most; often times twice or thrice in a row..

(I'm convinced this is the worst song I've ever heard)

Pitbull...

and more Pitbull...

I was exhausted but relieved when we reach Raul's cabin in Peten that night, and in no condition to explore the place. I found a half-inflated air mattress in a small cement room covered with a thatched roof. I briefly looked for a pump (didn't realize it was in a bag hanging from the bed post) and flopped down on the bed. That was it. lights out.

ROAD TRIP PART 2 November 19

I woke to find myself on a rugged but pristine lake shore property. It was like something out of Robinson Crusoe: thatched roofs, dirt stairs, simple structures (see photos below). 

Donal, me, Justin, Raul

I felt better, and although I was not inclined to have fried fish and an "abre de ojos" with Raul, Donal, and Justin, I was game enough to go for a swim in warm Lake Iztbal. I caught a pretty good one of Justin with an "abre de ojos" after swimming.

(see photos below).

Abre de Ojos

The second road trip day was as the first: less conversation, more loud music. This time, Raul pulled out matching Coban Radio shirts (you can see mine in the banner picture below). We courted around Belize with these matching jerseys.. looked like one heck of a crew. We stopped several times to visit more friends of Raul. Crossing the boarder was easy, and Belize was fun to sightsee. After countless stops and drive-bys, I was able to pull these two gems out of the camera:

Guy riding horseback, wearing Do-rag

Banner

I hope I win the drawing...

Turns out everyone in Belize speaks English: what a wonderful break for us! In fact, the roles were reversed: no one spoke spanish! Our position was "translator" for the rest of the trip. We arrived in Placencia late at night, coincidentally the same night as a Garifuni (remember Livingston?) celebration. Thus the town was shut down and booked out. After talking to a few of the locals, we ended up lucking out and getting some rather expensive sea cabins which were only yards from the beach and ocean. We settled in, got cleaned up and went out for dinner on a seaside bar and grill. Food was typical American (Thank God!), and I had my first meal since the previous Thursday: a grilled ham & cheese, fries, and onion rings. It tasted wonderful, but I was full immediately afterwards and I still couldn't stomach beer. We at and watched a few local rastamen dance with some touristy young white women. While this was incredibly entertaining, we were tired from our journey, and retired to our rooms soon after dinner.

Documentary Days

Recently the multimedia project was put on hold. Several factors, including Giovanni's accident and the closing of the Guatemalan academic calendar, have recently made us leave our beloved Dell 1998's. More news to come about the multimedia project soon!

Now, we've picked up cameras starting another great project. In early December, one of the monks from Resurrection Priory is going to visit Saint Patrick's Parish of Edina, MN. St. Patrick's Parish is a primary donator to Resurrection Priory's support of their 85 aldeas.  They've not only helped with the donations of the water filters distributed in August, but also have stood sponsor to several young, poor Coban students. Justin and I have been put in charge of making a documentary about Resurrection Priory. The documentary is intended to detail the monks' interactions with the surrounding community, especially highlighting instances in which St. Patrick's Parish donation dollars are at work.

This documentary will be helpful in two reasons. Not only does it signify a "thank you" to donors, but it also is intended to gain more financial support for future projects (wink wink). The movie should last between 10-20 minutes. We plan on utilizing 10 minute video interviews from around 8 monks and several Coban community members to best represent the goings on of Resurrection Priory. Thus, we've spent the last week or so catching some great footage, some of which included "Day of the Dead" celebrations, Confirmation (last blog post), and the healing of the sick. The following week will be full of interviews. Our deadline is to have the video completed by December.. we've got work to do! We are thankful for this project as it has provided to be a topic of critical thinking as well as a chance to get to know the monastic community.

Monday 10/24 - Sunday 10/30
Aside from working on the documentary and a few computer repair sessions, Justin and I have been trying to meet up with a basketball league that allegedly meets on Wednesday and Fridays. We've gone to meet them twice, and the gym was closed both times. Our contact, "Emerson," another friend of one of Bernie's friends, has informed us that the owner of the gym has been sick recently, so the gym has remained closed. while we have yet to meet up with this mysterious basketball league, they are supposed to be having a game this Monday (11/7). Hopefully we'll meet up!

Last week passed by fast. Our evening events included a visit to Raul's house for a wonderful fettuccine dish, as well as a few other slightly awkward graduation parties. On Friday, we attended a graduation party via invite from one of Bernie's friends. The party was very nice, but awkward as we didn't know anyone there. The three of us posted up with Raul at a table in the courtyard and slowly sipped on Scotch. While it was awkward that we were wearing jeans and the average male guest was wearing a suit jacket, it didn't turn out to be that bad of an event.

Carlos and Eric

On Saturday, there was a farmer's market in Parque de San Marcos, a plaza-like place next to the monastery. Our friends Carlos and Eric, were in charge of a stand at the market, so we visited them. We ended up posting up outside a nearby tienda and having a few Gallo beers. Both Carlos and Eric are from Zacapa, and they've invited us to visit whenever we can.

On Saturday night, we attended the graduation party of one of Oscar's nieces. Oscar's family is Qui'Chi, so we knew that the experience would be a bit different than that of other other graduation parties we had visited. We weren't disappointed.
Alberto picked us up from the monastery and brought us right to the party. The party was held in a public park, amongst old cement and stucco buildings adorning entrances without doors. There were several tables lined up in a long line across the middle of the room. Atop the tables was a white linen tablecloth and plastic utensils wrapped with pink curled ribbon.  As we entered this long, cold cement  room with his abnormally shy wife and two young timid boys, no one said a word to us. 20 sets of eyes  stared on blankly as we quietly sat down and twiddled our thumbs until Oscar arrived. Except for the occasional whisper to another Qui'Chi relative or friend, the general population of the party was silent.
When Oscar finally got there, we went to a different table and sipped on our party emergency kit (tasty Scotch).

Alberto Playing with his Son

We hung around for a couple hours or so, mostly keeping to ourselves. When dinner was served, the young graduate (dressed in a beautiful light blue Prom-like dress) served all the attendees their dishes first. After serving all the guests, she was then required to dance with any men at the party that would oblige. Justin and I were, of course, pressured into dancing with her. As I awkwardly spun around with this young girl, I told her that the worst part was almost over, and asked if she received gifts from the guests. She blushed and nodded, saying that there were lots. As I bid her adieu for her next dance with a portly middle-aged man, and wished her best of luck with everything (especially writing thank you cards).
Before leaving, Justin and I were ushered into the long cement room with the tables again. This time, several young girls were sitting around the table. They all giggled and timidly looked at us. The other adults beckoned us toward the table, and while the awkwardness of the situation was unbearable, I tried my best to make conversation to the girls.
Conversation with these girls was a little better than trying to spark up a conversation with a brick wall. Granted, my spanish is still quite rusty, but they gave answers to conversational questions in as little words as possible. Responses were mumbled and jumbled. They said they were all in their twenties (but were most likely younger) and were in a university I had never heard of. A few were pretty enough, but uninteresting to say the least. Justin, who was engaged in conversation with only one of the girls, was a bit more successful than me. As we were leaving, suave Justin pulled a number from Mary, one of the cuter girls from the group. He has since been bombarded with text messages, and even a call at 6:30am the next day to see "what's up." Ahh... young Guatemalan love. As for now, better him than me I say.

Sunday 10/30 was fairly typical. We were invited to our friend Angel's house for lunch, which is right next door to the monastery. During the afternoon as I was playing a few folk songs on the deck, a few young teen Guatemalans asked if I might be able to play some songs for the kids in their faith formation class. I told them that I had not yet learned any Spanish songs, but they were welcome to use my guitar. I ended up shooting some nice footage of the group performing a few Church songs, along with a prayer session. Here are a few products of that Sunday afternoon...

Quite the Audience

Jump for Jesus!

Deep in Prayer

Monday 10/31 - Sunday 11/6
The past week was riddled with several opportunities to shoot some great footage. On Monday, we followed Padre Carlos to a local food shelter, where Padre goes every Monday to help distribute a lunch to poor, mostly orphaned children. On Wednesday, we followed several monks to the Cemetery to celebrate Mass for Day of the Dead. On Thursday, we visited several very poor houses to witness Padre Carlos administer Communion and Anointing of the Sick to old or disabled community members.
Because all these instances will be well detailed in our documentary, I'm being rather brief in my description. I assure you, however, these were incredible experiences, as you will soon see in our finished product.

Day of the Dead Pilgrimage 

Fulfillment of Will

Aside from brainstorming interview questions and meticulously editing footage, we did have a few parts of our schedule for  free time. Tuesday (All Saints Day) is a holiday here, and we took it as one. On Saturday we were completely open, so we decided to take a trek out to the Caves of Rey Marcos. After turning down a few rickety roads (more like a constant stream of potholes and washed-out gutters), we finally arrived at Rey Marcos. The area not only included caves, but also a few waterfalls and hiking trails. Justin and I were happy to escape the structured monastic life by exploring this terrain..

Spelunking Rey Marcos

Later on that evening, after visiting Carlos Estrada's house for a few whiskey drinks, we made our way out to our friend Chato's house for a birthday party. In the Guatemalan Constitution, it is illegal to consume or sell liquor 36 hours prior to a presidential election. Our good Guate buddies had forgotten this. We arrived to find our friend Eric, Chato, and Carlos as sober as can be, chain smoking cigarettes and hanging out. We gave Eric a crappy cigar as a birthday gift (recall, no liquor stores were open), and chatted for a bit before returning to the monastery. It was good to catch up with our friends again.

We wrapped up our weekend with a Sunday lunch at Carlos Estrada. I got the great pleasure of meeting Carlos' friends, siblings, and sons. The food was phenomenal, and the company cheerful. In the next week, we've got quite the work cut out for us in regards to the documentary. More great footage and pictures to come!

Rain and the Rest of It

In the past week, Guatemala has yielded extreme rainfall amounts. While we remain relatively safe almost a mile above sea level, flooding has inflicted severe damage in cities around Coban. Our plans for the last weekend were to visit a fellow Minnesotan and Bennie, Nora, as she visits her host family in Xela. Unfortunately, roads between Xela and Coban have proven recently to be very treacherous or completely washed out. Needless to say, I was obligated to cancel our plans. We enjoyed a nice weekend in Coban nonetheless. I must say, however, I can't wait to get out and travel again soon. After being in the confines of the monastery for most of my work periods, I've realized that I miss the open road.

Monday 10/17 - Friday 10/22

Most of our week was dedicated to the work with the computers… again. Also, we prepared, cooked, and cleaned a meal for Father Bernie's Rotary group. The entree included barbecue chicken and potato salad (okay, the kitchen made the salad). The rotary club is an active sponsor of Father Bernie's aldea projects, and this was a nice way to give thanks.

We also helped deliver about 50 potato sacks of assorted clothing to a local hospital...

On Thursday, Justin and I took one of our favorite community members, Julio, out for dinner. We felt that we owed Julio a dinner since he often helps us clean up dishes after meals (which we do every meal, at first intended as a good-will gesture but is now expected). Julio is what the monks here call a "licho," or layman; he is not a monk. He's very intelligent, articulate, and has an incredible life story (he also speaks English). We went to his favorite restaurant which, while expensive, was an incredible experience. If ANYONE comes to visit me down here, you will go to this restaurant with me! Here is a picture of us enjoying a nice bottle of Merlot after dinner.

On Friday, we served as camera crew at a Confirmation ceremony at a nearby aldea. About 200 "jovenes" were confirmed by the Bishop (who we've met several times now).  100 pictures and about 30 minutes of video later, I am now prepared to begin my first lesson in video editing! Father Bernie would like to create a comprehensive video depicting the monastery's efforts and involvement with the local community, especially for future volunteers of Resurrection Priory. I'll make sure to post the finished product for all of you. For now, here's a glimpse of what kind of footage I was covering..

On Friday evening, We were invited to Marines' (Chilio's daughter) graduation. Bernie intentionally neglected to tell us that dress for this occasion was formal (we don't have any formal clothes, anyway). As we arrived dressed in jeans and collared shirts, Justin and I winced as beautiful girls waltzed around in shiny red dresses while suave, hair-gelled hombres gave off dashing looks. The gringos have done it again!

Saturday 10/23

Saturday proved to be a very uplifting day for our computer project. Giovanni returned and completed the application installation of 20 computers. This means that we will possibly deliver computers to a school in the next couple weeks. I look forward so much to being able to teach the aldea communities how to use the computer's applications. We celebrated with popcorn and Fanta pop!

After Giovanni took off, we left immediately for Chilio's farm for Marines' graduation party. I got the great pleasure of talking with the whole extended family, and even met a few gringos in the mix. One middle-aged man, Seth, a California native, moved to Guatemala 10 years ago. He now works the Dusseldorf Coffee plantation and does very well for himself.  His wife is a light-skinned Guatemalan ("canche"), and his American-looking kids (one named "Thomas") were all bi-lingual. The youngest one, however, had a native look about him.

"What's this guy's story?" I asked.

"Well, he was left on our doorstep almost 2 years ago. He's been with us ever since," offered Seth casually.

Wow! Incredible story… clearly a very giving family. Seth had specialized in International Business. His advice to me (you'll like this one, Dad) after I mentioned my interest in graduate school was this, "Get into finance. You can't go wrong with it!" Good to know. It was refreshing to talk with a fluent English speaker again.

Sunday 10/24

As usual, Sunday started out quite lazy for us. We slept in for the first time in a week, and used time to catch up on things. By about 12pm, I had cabin fever and had to go out and about. Justin had already gone for a run, so for about 3 hours I wandered the Sunday afternoon streets of Coban by myself. 

There was plenty to see. At one point, I got lost in one of those tarped flea market plazas. It was clear I didn't belong; plenty of Qui-chi cat calls from passing native women and peculiar looks from men. I made it back to the city plaza and ended up buying a soccer ball for playing soccer with a few local workers at the monastery. 

During the afternoon, I met up with Alejandro, Tavo's brother, who had mentioned game of poker on Sunday. Even though I had misunderstood the location of the game, Alejandro drove 15 minutes out of his way to pick me up before getting to the poker game. It was a nice gesture.. I'm finding out that Tavo's family is just as giving as Chilio's.

Poker went pretty well. I made it to the big table but lost (It's okay though, only a 75 Quetzal game!). The nice thing about poker is that no words are necessary. Aside from the occasional numeric clarifications (of which I had quite a few), not many words are needed. This allowed me to be comfortable to sit quietly while I soaked up all the local ligo, "palabras malas" I could. After losing, I took a quick 2 Quetzal (about 15 cents) taxi back to the Priory. 

Note: I will add pictures to this post soon!

Computers and a Coban Oktoberfest

During the last week or so, it's been a straight grind with computer work. It can be very dull and slow-moving, but necessary. A very unfortunate incident has rippled into the advancement of our project. Giovanni (the tech student from the local unversity assisting with our Multimedia Project) got in an accident on his motorcycle last weekend. While he has walked away from the accident, his friend passenger did not. We want to give him ample time to mourn and return to the project whenever is best. Please keep Giovanni, his friends and family in your prayers.

Thus, aside from a few weekend adventures, our schedule has stayed very steady (8:00a.m. wake/begin work, 10:00am coffee, 12:30pm prayer/lunch, 1-2:30 siesta, 2:30- 5:30pm work, 5:30pm prayer, 7:00pm dinner). Stability is certainly a theme here. Justin has began running again. While I haven't felt the running spirit lately, I will often take time to get out of the monastery and walk around, even if its for a quick 15 minute break. it's amazing how refreshing a quick walk around the block. I've also been working on my Spanish... slowly but surely.

Thursday 10/6 - Friday 10/7

Justin took our work period for Giovanni's visit on Saturday, when many of the computers were to be installed with the new software. Aside from this, we polished off Season 3 of The Sopranos by Friday night.

Saturday 10/8

During the morning hour, we worked with Giovanni on the computers. While we had set everything up perfectly, a few computers' softwares malfunctioned when they were rebooted. All in all, we got 6 completely installed, while trying to figure what was wrong with the others. We ended the session a bit distraught, planning on meeting with Giovanni later in the coming week (that night, Giovanni had his accident). 

In the afternoon and after the first half of the Notre Dame game (ND dominates Air Force!), I met up with some friends from Tavo's party. They had found my hat at the party and were nice enough to come by and drop it off. I decided to buy them some beers, and got the great opportunity to know Carlos and Eric, my two new Guatemalan friends. Both are from University of San Carlos, and both know a little bit of English. They're very friendly, genuine, and easygoing, as well as educated. When going out for beers, they each paid for a round or two. I returned back to the monastery later that evening feeling excited in knowing that I was becoming even more familiar with the young generation of Coban.

Sunday 10/9

Ocsar took me to Coban's futbol match. This time, it was held in Coban. Once again, I neglected to bring a camera, but next time I go I'll snap a few pictures for you all. The field is positioned in forest-like bowl. Many people prefer to sit atop a few cliffs or grassy hills above the stadium, just like in Collegeville. 

Coban won 1-0. It was a close game.. and my favorite  player #12 William something (who I call "William Wallace"). This Costa Rican has a full-head of dreads, and kind of looks like "Predator" on the soccer field. Very fun guy to watch. I even bought a jersey afterwards for 50 Quetzal. Coban is first place in their league, so I think I might just start following them (not many teams to follow in MN anyway). 

Monday 10/10 - Friday 10/14

Donations to Hospital (Justin Left, Alberto Right, Oscar center)

We discovered the news of Giovanni's accident on Monday. Knowing that Giovanni wouldn't be coming soon, Justin and I have moved back to the old towers and hard drives that were malfunctioning. While the process is slow, I seem to be gaining ground on it. I've fixed on average 3 computers per day. Assembly of these computers were almost from scratch. We did get a break during the week to help paint more projector screens and to assist in the transportation of a few donated crutches, wheelchairs, and walkers to a local hospital.  Steady work, fast week.

Openin' up a computer

Saturday 10/15

After a week of quite steady work, Justin and I were prepared to cut loose a bit for the weekend. Coban's Oktoberfest provided for exactly that. 

Picture that church-like fall festival mixed with a ritzy country club atmosphere The proceeds from the event goes to some charitable cause that no one knows about. There are several overpriced bottles of liquor, gift baskets, cakes, cookies and auction items for bidding. Everyone dresses to impress and talks local politics while sitting at roll-out tables and folding chairs.

There were all the major beers on tap (which made for about 5 different taps), as well as other beers for sale in the bottle. Lots of beer was given out for free, and the entrance ticket provided for a nice meal of weinerschitzel, german potato salad, and a giant soft pretzel. We stayed there for the whole afternoon and enjoyed each other's company. Chilio, Maria, Raul, Raul's wife, Justin and I all sat at a table. Tavo and Ines were working one of the pastel stands, and Carlos and Eric also stopped by to say hello. Once again, that community-welcoming feel came on, and I felt very lucky to have gotten to know so many nice cobaneros.

The event was sponsored by Gallo Beer, Guatemalan's national brew. While other beers were distributed by girls dressed in typical Bavarian style gear, the Gallo girls were scantly-clad with half a bra-top and tight leggings. Some skinny guy with a nerdy red "Gallo" polo was courting these two floozies around, taking pictures with pleasantly surprised 60-year-old rich men. Any country club member in the U.S. would have been mortified, but this seemed to be normal here.

Anyway, at one point, the Gallo girls were in pursuit of a few male volunteers for some terribly embarrassing stunt. Several of my friends all pointed at me, and I naturally refused 5 times. Finally, I relented, approached the stage (beer still in hand). Two other young Guatemalan men soon joined me.

The competition was simple: do a runway routine with a liter bottle of Guatemalan beer. The biggest challenge facing my routine? The bottle was empty. My first two competitors walked suavely forward and back, trying to look cool and collected. You've got to be kidding me guys! Warm the bus.

I played the whole runway, starting with a Michael Jackson-like figure snap. I utilized my wide hips in a sexy duck-waddle walk up to the front. In meeting front stage, I thrust my buttox forward, then the bottle of Gallo over it with my arm. The crowd roared. I returned as I had come, blowing away the imaginary gunsmoke from the tip of my left index finger.

The winner was determined by a "Crowning for Homecoming" style finger-pointing, electing me as winner by loudest cheer. My prize? A crappy women's running hat and a boring white Gallo shirt. 

The biggest tragedy out of the whole event? You guessed it. No camera (actually camera was there... batteries died). Typical.

Sunday 10/16

Today I've spent all day relaxing and blogging. I'm know we've got more work to go on the computers in the coming weeks. Soon, I will have to plan my trip to Belize. My visa ends in mid-November. Can't wait to hit the road for another adventure.

The Coban Community

In the last week or so, I have gotten the great privilege of meeting and befriending many local cobaneros. From enjoying a few sips of whiskey with distinguished, middle-aged folk to swapping tunes over a loud set of speakers from a fast-speaking 19-year old, to even sharing a good view of a mountain with some kid hikers, I've become familiar with the persona and thought processes of each "cobanero" generation. While the work with the multimedia project has been very slow in the past week, it has been comforting and  encouraging to familiarize myself with the community in Coban.

Saturday 9/25
I began teaching English at a local university in Coban. There are three classes (2 classes intermediate, 1 advanced) that Justin and I have signed up to help out with. Each class has a bi-lingual Coban-native teacher (some who really don't speak the best English); we've been brought in to help with pronunciation, grammar, and to help the students adapt to the English/American accent. I began my introduction saying (in Spanish) to not be worried, because my Spanish was probably worse than their English.

This turned out to be half-true. Some students spoke almost fluent spanish; some spoke barely at all. I tried to speak slow enough so as to be understood but not to offend. This seemed to help. The class time (8:00a.m. - 12:00p.m.) went really fast. I had basic English conversations with several students, helped them with their homework, and even improved my Spanish vocabulary a little bit. As Justin and I left the university knowing that we were going back the next week. It was incredibly helpful for everyone involved!

During the afternoon and evening, I attended my friend Tavo's 24th birthday party. Tavo is Bernie's friends' daughter's boyfriend; a nice guy who's just finishing up his education at the University. After just meeting me once, Tavo was nice enough to invite Justin and me to his big birthday bash at his college buddy's place.

The fiesta was just like any college party; actually, it was like any Saint John's college party. Plenty of booze, plenty of great music, and plenty of ... guys. The only girls that showed up to the party were inevitably dating someone already at the party. Even though fraternizing with girls would have been nice (remember, folks, I've been in a monastery for a full month now), it was still a hoot. I found it uncanny how similar some of the Guatemalan guys were to my friends at home.

The only difficulty? Language barrier. Even without the addition of a few drinks, Tavo's friends (Vjango, Tosho, Carlos, Juan Miguel) all spoke very fast. With beers, they spoke even faster. I had a hard time understanding anything at times. I would nod, say "Si!" or "Como no?" or "No entiendo." Responses ranged from blank stares (usually warranted by my previous attempt to respond to their comment in Spanish) to laughs, to an awkward silence. Ideal? No, of course not. But what are you gonna do? The kids were very forgiving. If I didn't understand something or couldn't respond, the young men would chuckle and continue a different conversation on with themselves. It gave me time to recover and again translate in my head what was going on in the current conversation. If I had nothing to contribute, I would just busy myself by picking the next song on the speakers. I am especially thankful for Tavo, who not only throughout the night asked me if everything was okay, but also got one of his friends to give me a ride home in the late evening. I hope to see more of my friends in the future!

Sunday 9/26
With whiskey still coursing in our veins, Justin and I woke early the next day for our first soccer game in Guatemala. Oscar offered to take us to a neighboring pueblo to see Coban Imperial vs. Carcha. Oscar's whole family was in attendance; which includes his wife and daughter, Ashanti. We weren't the only ones to be seeing our first soccer game in Guatemala: Ashanti is only two years old and it was her first game to ever see. She seemed pretty excited when we gained entrance to the stadium.

Ashanti's first Futbol Game

The actual game was as good as any other soccer match. There were a few yellow cards, a few goals, and Coban Imperial even won the match 3-1. The atmosphere was crazy. While getting into the stadium with booze was supposed to be impossible, apparently entering with fireworks was no problem. Spectators sporadically ignited and threw LOUD crackling fireworks onto the field throughout the game. While not one machine-gun-sounding string of dynamite landed on the actual playing field, several were thrown just in front of the visitor's dugout. Visiting players and coaches would hastily cup their ears before the sonic boom erupted from the dynamite. I couldn't help but laugh in amusement over the scene.

During the game, we were offered everything from action figures to pizzas to peanuts every 30 seconds. After the end of the game, I happily dashed through the crowd of celebrating cobaneros, chanting, "CO-BAN! CO-BAN!" I was received with a few high-fives, laughs and smiles.

Oscar offered to take us to more games throughout the year. I told him I'll always be there.. I'm buying a jersey next time!

Before turning back home, we went out to the local "centro" to get some post-game beer and pizza. As I entered the mall, I was greeted by not 1, not 2, but 3 people! First, Bernie's friend Otto said a quick "Hello!" as he went into the supermarket for food. Afterwards, I briefly had an awkward hello with one of Tavo's friends from the party. I had forgotten his name because I had been introduced to about 15 people the night before. Finally, the beautiful girl working the Tigo cell phone stand (who I now know is named "Melisa") said hello and asked if my credit card trouble went through alright. I felt so welcomed by a community that, less than a month ago, was a mystery to me. 

Monday 9/27 - Friday 10/30

More computer and paint work

This week was filled with more of what was before: we painted several more white screens for projectors, and also advanced a bit with the computers. Giovanni was able to come in on Thursday and install the educational programs that will help the people of the aldeas. While I wasn't impressed with Linux's Tux Paint, I will say that the typing, geography, science, and grammar programs are quite nice. The installation process is slow, however, and it takes lots patience to do it correctly. Giovanni as only installed a few.. and we've got at least 25 more to go. More work with computers to come I suppose.

Aside from the work week, we did get a chance to meet up with a few of Bernie's friends for dinner. Last Thursday we drove over to Carlos Estrada's house. Maria and Chalio were there as well. We enjoyed fine whiskey, steak and tortillas, and... Dudo? We played a game called "Dudo." This game was very similar to "Liar's Dice" from the Loon Inn, but the dice were encoded with "9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace" instead of the normal numbers. The game ended in a face-off between Maria and me. I let her win.

On Friday afternoon, during siesta time, I found myself restless. Instead of reading, I decided to grab my camera and take a hike up San Jorge, a scenic hill about a quarter mile from the monastery. From here, I was able to see the whole of Coban for the first time. While taking pictures up there, I met Brian, a 14 year old student from a neighboring school. Soon, Brian's friends arrived and invited me to try Fresh Sugar Cane found on the side of the mountain. I offered my pocket knife to aid in their stripping of the bark. Afterwards, I took a picture with my friends. Here is my proof!

 On Friday evening, we made it over to Doctor Luis Torrebiarte's for another wonderful meal and fascinating conversation. Dr. Torrebiarte is very smart and speaks English. He is also well-traveled.  I've tasted the best coffee, coffee-cake, and steak in my life in this house, and I reminded the Doctor of this with our last visit. Of all people to visit with in Guatemala, I like Dr. Torrebiarte the most.  He is an eloquent psychiatrist and historian, native to Guatemala but also fluent in near perfect English. Conversation is always interesting with him, and every time I walk away from his house I feel as if I should've paid for the session. Both Justin and I feel more intelligent after every dinner.

Saturday 10/1

Our first peaceful, normal Saturday in the monastery. During the morning we finished up a few paint jobs and computer work. Our afternoon was lazy and relaxing. I spent my time reading and took a walk around the city. It's funny the number of people that I recognize on a day-in-day-out basis. This city is turning out to not be that big! Notre Dame won against Purdue (a highlight for Bernie and me). We turned in for the evening with a movie and snacks.

Sunday 10/2

Justin and I woke to the sound of marimbas blasting outside of our room. The courtyard below was full of people. Apparently the parish had planned a big "bake sale" kind of event. Kids chased each other around as parents relaxed and conversed. At first sight of this scene, I had a flashback of St. Hubert's Fall Festivals, 3rd and 4th of July parades, and even the 'post-mass' doughnut sessions. Justin and I got the chance to wander around and meet people. A big match of futbol on the basketball court was the main attraction. Teams were already organized, otherwise I would've definitely gone out there (to be laughed at, no doubt). Between the god-awful Vikings game, Skype, meals, and prayer, everything... there was still the booming Reggaeton, Marimba, and American-pop songs blaring from the speakers.

While most of the day was spent at the monastery, we did get the opportunity in the morning to go to the monastery's "finca" (farm) which is about an hour's walk outside of the city. There, Brother Nicholas showed us the sheep (of which I took SEVERAL great picture, see right), trees, a raging, overflowed river, and cows. The farm is primarily a tree farm, and a majority of the trees were planted by either Brother Nicholas or Brother Alejandro. The finca spans for acres, and I believe pictures will do a better description that what I can detail.

The river was high...that's a cement bridge behind me... almost submerged

Monday - Wednesday 10/3-10/5

This week has been (you guessed it) more computer work. I'm now actually learning about hardware set-up with Bernie. Sometimes we need to switch hard drives, memory sticks, functional CD-ROM readers, etc., in order to make one computer functional. I can now locate and name the basic parts inside a Dell 1998 computer. Useful? Doubtful, but we are saving quite a bit more computers than I had anticipated. Even though these computers are slow, they'll make a huge difference to the people that will be using them (especially considering most aldea members have never operated a computer before).

We've heard great news this week! Padre Bernie heard back from the bank. A $25,000 grant from the bank was rewarded to Fr. Bernie for the multimedia project. Also, Justin's 500GB crashed hard drive was recovered by one of the professors from the university that we teach at. Finally, we've saved 4 computers this week. Time to celebrate! Bernie has invited his friends over tonight for White Horse whiskey drink and good times.

 Hope all is well!

Forming a Routine

For those of you still left reading this potentially long-winded blog (Hi Mom and Dad!), I have some good news! We've now started to follow a rather solid routine here in Coban, and that means a bit more repetition of things. The importance of this to the "I'll-scan-the-text-and-look-at-the-pictures" reader? I have less to tell, so you have less to read!

9/15 Thursday (Guatemalan Independence day)
Guatemala gained its Independence from Spain on this day in 1821, and, must like our 4th of July de Los Estados Unidos, they've been partying on that day every year since. A long, fancy parade marches down the street. Kids show off their exorbitant "Indepencia" costumes while marching in lines. I found it quite amusing, and reflected upon what it would be like for one of these Guatemalans to attend the 4th of July Parade through Chanhassen. Below is a video of the experience.

Our morning consisted of taking in the parade. During our afternoon, a monk invited us to lunch with one of the local "jovenes" (young people) from the parish. After stopping in a nice roadside restaurant neighboring a dairy farm and an endless range of looming mountains, we stopped by a bar on the way back to the monastery. It was still light out, but eh...what the heck? You can only celebrate Guatemalan's Independence once a year.

The bar session was interesting. I sampled several different beers, and I settled on Moza as my favorite. When I say "favorite," this doesn't mean I was impressed. These bloggers describe the beer well: http://www.ratebeer.com/Ratings/Beer/Beer-Ratings.asp?BeerID=6975
I like dark beers, and this had to be the closest thing that I could get to a Guinness. Everyone likes "Gallo" down here, but the taste of it reminds me of a rundown multiplex in Saint Joseph, MN. Good memories, not so good beer. Oh well, I'm sure I'll get used to it.

A few necessary events to recount from the bar: 1) After several plays from random latino singers, my jukebox pick of Michael Jackson's "Will You Be There?" blasted loudly from the speakers. The locals were slightly confused but seemed to enjoy it. 2) I was able to explain the concept of "icing" to the locals of the bar. 3) A street vender came in trying to sell ripped-off CD's to everyone. After declining a CD, I bought the guy a beer instead. He happily enjoyed drinking the one beer and talking for about 20 minutes with me. Before taking off, he offered any CD on his carry-along rack. I asked him for the CD with the best party music. He gave me some ridiculous Reggaetone CD that I have since lost.
Biggest disappointment about the whole ordeal? Forgot my camera. Sorry folks! There'll be a next time.

We arrived back at the monastery in time for a quick bite to eat and a Sopranos episode before retiring for the night.

9/16 Friday

Montezuma finally turned his ugly head. I was up several times during the night. No nausea, just... well... bad times. Having seen Justin suffer for just under a week, I wasn't messing around. Time for stool sample testing (costs about $3). Verdict? Parasites, or as they say here, "Las amoebas." Got the proper pills from the pharmacy and spent the rest of the day in my room. Even by 3 or 4pm, I felt better. No further problems after the administration of the antibiotics. Dinner and Sopranos once again capped the night.

9/17 Saturday

Notre Dame finally wins! I think Bernie was more excited than I was.. I'm too used to seeing these guys tank in clutch situations at the end, like another team I know (Damn it Vikes!). After the Irish victory, our relaxing afternoon consisted of reading, plucking the guitar, and munchin' on our football game snacks. Nothing exceptional; just a day in the life. Livin' the dream!

9/18 Sunday

A similar approach was taken to the Vikes game on Sunday (unfortunately our team for the day didn't win this time). Justin and I bought fried chicken from a cheap restaurant down the road from the monastery and explored the town a bit. The day ended as it always does: Prayer, (Mass, maybe), dinner, Sopranos episode.

9/19 Monday - 9/21 Wednesday

Our work for this week has resulted in slow progress. With the installation of Linux on the computers, several CPUs will sometimes fail to install the software. Seeing as all these computers were made in the 90's, downloading and operating are slow. Way slow. I think the paint for the screens dried faster than some of these old Packard Bell towers.  While it can be frustrating, it still gives me a chance to practice my Spanish with Alberto, the fellow Guatemalan worker that actually opens these computers up and fixes them.
The wires are mangled... yellow here, blue there, orange under this and that. I am amazed that this guy knows all this computer mechanics, but I've began to notice that many Guatemalans are mechanically inclined. Cars are a rare purchase here, so more people choose to learn how to address mechanical issues themselves. This is, after all, the reason there is a hardware store in every block of this town. Ethernet cables, audio splitters, tools, gizmos, power cords and surge protectors are sold in the stores and on the street like they're the next big thing.
While quite shy, Alberto is great company and is doing his best to make us feel welcome. After morning work on Tuesday, Alberto invited me to a pick-up futbol game on the basketball court. 3-on-3, and the goals consisted of wooden boards constructed into a small 4'x4' square. I wore running shoes, shorts, and a workout shirt while the Guatemalans wore jeans, polos, and either hiking or rain boots.
To make a long story short, I was embarrassed beyond belief. I did manage to score 3 goals, but that didn't come without a long breather break in the middle of the game, as well as very slow walks to either end of the court during the game, which lasted about an hour and a half. During my break, I did manage to snap some great photos of the guys...

Rubber boots?

Can't lose your footing on this pavement... you'll bust your knee open

Alberto about to score

After work on Tuesday, Alberto and Oscar (another worker and great friend, a bit more outgoing than Alberto) took us out to a chinese restaurant. The food was great; very filling. During dinner, Oscar and Alberto invited us to a soccer match on Sunday between Coban Imperial and a neighboring pueblo's team. We're very excited to be in the crazy atmosphere of a fubol match... rivalries get intense down here!

9/22 Thursday

Thursday was a rather eventful day. I was able to recommence my Spanish lessons and set a schedule with Mirna, my Spanish tutor (now I will be having lessons twice a week, Monday and Wednesday at 4:00p.m.). We also were fortunate enough to meet Carlos Estrada, another friend of Bernie's. Carlos had us over, along with many other Bernie friends (Raul, Chilio, Maria, Donal), all adults from the ages of around 45-60. We dined on a wonderful steak dinner with plenty of whiskey for all.

9/23 Friday

Today was a slower day. We went out for breakfast in the morning, and Bernie told us to take the afternoon to catch up on things like blogging. I'm anxious to get more work done around here, but it is just a slower process than the fast-paced work environment in the United States, and I've come to accept that. I always have a laundry list of things to do when I have spare time, so I don't ever anticipate being bored here. This evening, I experienced my first migraine ever in my life. It wasn't too bad after a nap and a couple Advil, but I now know from experience that migraines are not fun.

Tomorrow morning I wake early to go help teach English to students at the local university. This will be a great way for me to work on my Spanish a bit as well. Hope everyone back home is having a good fall. To all those attending Homecoming this weekend, cheers! Have a blast and go Johnnie Red. Thanks for reading... more to come!

P.S. I forgot to mention in a few posts back that when we went to mass at Livingston, the offertory song at the Mass was the same exact tune as Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind." The words were different, but I was baffled by the fact that some cantor had taken Dylan's tune and put religious lyrics with it. Unique, huh? It's simple things like that that help define the contraction of the "travel bug."

Livin' the Dream in Livingston

I finally have time to blog the week! As usual, the weekend flew by, and all of a sudden I'm left wondering, "Was that trip to the Caribbean a dream? Did I really live that?" Pictures are great for keepin' my story straight.

9/9 Friday

Biggest Export in Puerto Barrios

A travel day. After five hours on exhaustingly long, curvy roads, Justin and I finally arrived in the evening at Puerto Barrios, a barge city used mostly for industrial purposes (Biggest export in the harbor this past weekend? Chiquita Bananas, of course). We were warmly welcomed by a monk's family. The night consisted of Mass, Dinner, and hammock/reading time, bed. The food was good, and hospitality better.

9/10 Saturday

View from our Hotel Deck

While it took a bit longer than we expected to get up and at 'em in the morning, Justin and I finally got a ride to the boat launch, where we would take a $5, 15 minute boat ride across the Caribbean Sea to a beautiful, touristy port village. Because of the cheap prices due to a recent lull in tourism, Justin and I found a room for $25 a night, fully equipped with a posh restaurant overlooking a beautiful view of the Sea and walk-out to a private beach. Couldn't get much better. Justin and I took an hour or two collecting necessities from the village: food, ice (which came as one big block of ice in a sealed plastic bag), drinks, and a few cheap trickets. After gathering this important material, we spent the rest of the day reading, swimming, and lounging around on the beach. It was a wonderful rejuvenation of the senses.

Our night was rather interesting. In trying to find a proper place to dine, we came across "Alexandar the Great," a local who told us he knew were the best food was in town. We decided to trust him. Although what appeared to be at first a sketchy situation turned into a blossoming night: Our fried fish and "moriscos" soup was served right by the oceanside by a poor Garifuna family.

The Garifuna are descendants of runaway slaves from the 17th Century (please read about them!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garifuna_people). The Garifuna have their own bastardization of the Roman Catholic faith. They also speak their own language, and live primarily in Central America. There are about 600,000 Garifuna in the world, and the only community in Guatemala exists in Livingston.

Regardless, they make GREAT seafood. Our meal was relatively cheap, and even though we had to pay off our tour guide "Alexander the Great,"it was worth it.

9/11 Sunday
After taking a small amount of time to reflection upon the tragedies which occurred on this day ten years ago, I was swiftly reminded of the impact of 9/11/11 in Guatemala: The Presidential Election! The night before, while we were returning home, we were followed by a huge mob marching down the main street of Coban. After thinking that us two gringos were doomed, Justin had quickly reminded me of the demonstrators/protesters that would likely be out in full force due to presidential elections.

Centro de Votacion

Today was no different. As we walked off to our boat tour for the day, we saw a huge line outside of the biggest building in Livingston. The building had a big sign above the entrance, "CENTRO DE VOTACION" with several hundred people lingering outside. Streets were blocked off with police caution tape, and villagers would casually walk under and over the yellow tape. Soldiers stood idle nearby with shotguns in their hands. Pretty intense.

Policeman Moderating at Voting Center

While the voting situation was intriguing, Justin and I were definitely happy to hop on a boat for a nice tour of the Rio Dulce, the coast along Livingston and beyond. The ride cost about $12 bucks, and was probably worth $100. Our first stop was at the Seven Altars (see http://guatemalaguides.com/Izabal/25-02-2011-A-destination-with-Seven-Altars.htm). We took as many pictures as possible, enjoyed the water, and tried our best to soak up the atmosphere. The pictures won't do this trip justice, but neither will my words...

Seven Altars

Jumping from the Highest Altar

Our second stop was on a white sandy beach further along the Rio Dulce. Here, we were served Coco Loco (Rum served in a coconut) and a few Gallo beers. While Justin read in one of the several hammocks along the beach, I chose to explore the stretch of beach as best I could. Snapped quite a few great pictures (all of which are copyrighted, all rights reserved... I may add haha). I continued exploring until a pack of wild, seemingly starving dogs began to follow me. As I turned back to return to the beach, the alpha male began to flank me on the right while the others began to close in on the left.

White Sand Beach Stop

Rio Dulce

Hungry wild dogs

"They're beginning to surround me!" I thought. Immediately I grabbed a large stick off the ground and ran ahead of all the dogs, yelling nonsense and batting the air with my natural dog-smacking club. As I passed the Alpha Male swinging the stick in the air, he growled and barked at me, almost as if in disappointment that I wasn't interested in contracting Rabies. So long as I didn't turn my back on those dogs, they did not advance on me, and I made it back safely to "base beach."

Once our time was up on this beautiful get-away spot, we returned to Livingston quite satisfied from our adventures. After grabbing a cheap burger at a local diner and snapping a few more pictures of the Voting extravaganza, we returned to our hotel for more lounging and napping.

Streets of Livingston

Afternoon turned into evening, soon enough it was time to get dinner. One problem: we're outta cash. With some footwork and a few discussions with the locals, we discover that none of the ATM machines (x2) currently work in the village. What to do? Thankfully, we found a restaurant which accepted cards. The next morning, the ATM was functional, and we were able to get money for the way home. Regardless, this put a bit of a stopper on our Sunday night. We needed to be conservative with the cash that we did have; thus, a few minutes of horrible television coverage of the election, then it was off to bed.

9/12 Monday
We awoke to overcast skies and a light rain. Time to get in a boat! After getting safety cash, Justin and I hopped in the commuter boat for a wet ride back to Puerto Barrios and our 11:00am departing bus. After a few abrupt stops, bus switches, phone drops (yup, I lost my Guatemalan phone. Good thing they only cost like $20 to buy), we were dropped off at Rancho (neighboring village of Coban). Here, we were picked up by a commuter van which can seat 15, but typically was jammed with about 25 people. These commuter vans try to fill up spaces as much as possible, making for a very congested 1.5 hour return to Coban. All the while, I've been reading Mario Puzo's The Godfather, so I was quite occupied, especially important for some of the more claustrophobic moments of transportation. Returning to the monastery was like returning home. Thank God to be back in a familiar place with a familiar face.

9/13 Tuesday
Back to work! Today we moved several donated medicare beds from the monastery over to the old folk's home in downtown Coban. The work was hard, as the beds were very heavy, but also rewarding.  The afternoon consisted of more computer work, along with a nice Gallo beer happy hour with our work partners Alberto and Oscar. After a few beers, we went out to dinner at a local Chinese restaurant. By the time I finished with that meal, I was busting at the seams. No surprise, however, that I was hungry an hour later.
(Chinese food is weird like that... ya always get hungry sooner than expected. Man, if you're someone that likes eating, you belong in China. John Murray must be in heaven right now).

9/14 Wednesday
Yesterday consisted of more computer work. As I may have mentioned before, we are working through about 60 donated computers. The plan is to bring these computers to the aldeas (that have electricity) and train the people in how to use computer programming and educational software. The project is still in the beginning stages, as right now we are checking the functionality of the donated Desktops.
Here are the statistics after Wednesday's testing...

CPU's/Hard drives
Functional: 40 Nonfunctional: 20

Monitors
Functional: 48 Nonfunctional: 12

Keyboards
Functional: 50 Nonfunctional: 10

Mice:
Functional: 52 Nonfunctional: 8

Not bad. Fr. Bernie is a computer wiz, so he will probably be able to get a few of the nonfunctional CPU's up-and-running as well. All in all, I expect we'll be able to distribute 50 computers to poor villages around the area. This may not seem like much, but the educational impact of this program has endless possibilities for these people.

9/15 Thursday
Now that we've worked through the initial testing portion, it's now time for us to work on the computer programming bit. Giovanni, a tech student of the local university and friend of Bernie, has offered his help with assisting us in the installation of the Linux programming. Today, I anticipate a few trial runs with this new software on the computers. Hopefully we can get this machines up and running for the villagers soon!

Also, today is Guatemala's Independence Day, so fireworks, drums, yelling and street dances will be taking place all day today. If we get the chance, we'll take a break from our computer work to watch a few parades and musical performances (as long as it remains safe). Should be fun!