Antiguatemala

See how I did that? Nice.

Here are some photos from NYE in Antigua, Guatemala. We rang in 2012 with some chispa, drinks and quite a few Gallos.

Met some lovely people, including the "Colombian Dave Grohl," the two goofy Louisiana boys who bought a bottle of rum for the bonus dominos, and Krystal's lovely mom, Alex.

Anyhow, NYE...

I have always considered myself to be a very lucky person, but I have this sinking feeling that my luck ran out during that 10 minutes in the Antigua plaza, wherein at some point 2011 turned into 2012.

I feel like I'm recovering now from this crazy trip, and I hope that any little remnants of my buena suerte last me until I go back up North. Bad luck there is getting locked out of your car, or forgetting a bag at the grocery store. Bad luck here? Getting robbed at gunpoint.  GO 2012!!

 El Arco de Antigua

Sirenas

 Ghost whispering

Parque Central, by morning

Taken from one of the only hotels with a roof in all Antigua. ;)

Delicious  Life destroyer

 "Hey ladies."

 "Hey ladies"

 Hipters ruin everything.

 Cotton, the fabric of our lives.

Why climb up higher? That's what it looks like.

La Navidad, Part Deux

Well, I took a lot of photos, as practice for my Farewell Tour '12 of Central America. I have about 51 days left until I shuttle out of Playa Tunco to Antigua, Guatemala, then to Honduras, and finally Nicaragua. We're going to end where we started by swinging back to San Salvador for a 2 am flight Pal Norte. Being a tourist, a mochilera, will be strange... but at least I know I'll never feel like a tourist in the Savior.

Anyways....This little Christmas Break to La Barra has chalked up to be just the right way to say goodbye to the Gallardos. The best holidays are the ones where you can celebrate and enjoy, instead of rush around, stress out, and go broke. We "remember the reason for the season." For them, it's vaguely about Christ, and for me, it isn't at all. So we ate, drank, and were merry all together.

Tomorrow morning I'm hitching a ride out of the painful heat of La Barra and taking the long ride back up to my "helado" La Palma. Less one guitar, one box of christmas cookies, and a full, kind of uncomfortable fullness in both my tummy and my heat. Aweee.... Touching.

Dinner, Indio

 No longer alive..

Those bad ass old fashioned metal sparklers.

 Nina Carmen and Don Jorge

Sand Pyramid...kinda

"He's floating like Kris Angel" they said.

La Barra at it's worst. Apparently two vacationers were pulled out by the riptide and two lifeguard types went to save them. They were probably swept out too, if we're being honest.

  

Tide's in.

Widowmaker.

Un, Do, tre, BRINCA!

La Navidad, Parte 1.

After sitting in a  slowly crawling chicken bus for an hour past the broke down Rio Ateos bridge in the noonday sun, and being violently pushed aboard my former "going home bus" the 259, I arrived at the desvio for La Barra de Santiago and hitched a ride into town. 

Since then, I've had delicious lemon juice covered fried fish, chuco, icy cold bottles of coca-cola all in my swimsuit. My swimsuit, juntos with "campo appropriate" layers. Shorts. T-shirt. I brought my twin 12 year old host sisters down to the beach today, and went swimming in a denim skirt and tee. Felt like I was going to drown.

The best part of it all is that I get to spend all day, every day with my former host family. Milena and I were up till 11 pm last night gossiping. While we're culturally from two different worlds, she is the best friend a gringa could ask for when it comes to good conversation and a good laugh.

Today is "Christmas Eve" in El Salvador, since we will be doing our celebrating tomorrow. Fireworks, pollo dorado, singing and most likely, lots of impromptu dancing on my part.

I have to say, Christmas without the presents, the shopping, the hustle and the bustle is the best version of Christmas I can imagine. Unfortunately in the states we all get caught up in it, and expectations for the holidays set us up for failure. Here, at least from where I can see, everyone is happy because no one expects big gifts or feels the need to give them. One plus of being broke, all of us.

While I'm enjoying La Navidad here, I hope you all are enjoying Christmas there. Hasta la Proxima.

My 2nd year PCV haggard self with my girls.

The girls playing my guitar. I gifted it to them for Christmas.

 I can't wait to get back to my REAL guitar back home.

She's got a style going

One of the twins preparing the fish for lunch. 

The kids rolling around in the sand. One of the worlds most itchy games.

Asi es la Vida

The changes being implemented in PC Central America were interesting enough for the New York Times. Unfortunately, a similar story went out in a Salvadoran newspaper and the online comment board that followed was a sad handful of pretty harsh comments on PCVs which, while they sting, are really just another irritation.

Well, I can't say with absolute confidence, but it looks like the about to COS group that was scheduled to go home in March now has the option to leave sometime after our Closing of Service conference in mid-January. Still planning on traveling Central America after service, my friend Dan Clarahan and I have tentatively rearranged our travel plans for February, which would get us back in the US before the end of the same month.

This is a very sad situation. This place is near and dear to my heart, as is Peace Corps El Salvador. I hope that the staff, especially those in San Vicente, are not fretting over the holiday season, and that they are able to keep their jobs despite the big changes.

As for me, I just finished my med visit, and am only waiting for the PCMO to call me and tell me to get out of Dodge. I am so excited to get down to La Barra de Santiago and spend time with the Gallardo family for Christmas. However, being a short 7 kilometers from my former site and all my friends and not being able to visit them will be hard. El Cocolito is just not the place for me anymore.

Very Happy Holidays to everyone, and I will catch you all on the flipside.

Good Morning, El Salvador.

Time in El Salvador is a tricky mistress. I hardly left my house all day yesterday ( you would have found my in my PJs, on my floor, embroidering and watching episode after episode of Arrested Development ) and yet, when I rolled into bed around 8:30, the day felt like it zoomed by.

The PCVs and incoming trainees got some interesting news on Friday afternoon regarding service in El Salvador. All the incoming trainees for El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua will not be brought in for "safety and security reasons." Fair enough, Central America isn't the safest or securest place in the world, which we see in the article on Genevadeclaration.org called Trends and Patterns of Lethal Violence. I'd link it, but why place worrisome information directly into my mother's hands? Lets just say: Doesn't it feel good to be number one?

The decision to halt the entry of trainees to El Salvador wasn't, in my opinion, a bad one. I love El Salvador. I really do. I generally feel safe (maybe just because I'm a streetsmart badass) and I feel that the PC wants to keep their volunteers safe. But there are only so many steps one can take to insure safety. No matter where you are, you never know what might happen when all your safety and security training falls just short. I feel horrible for the sites that are going to hear the bad news that no one will be coming to help them, but as the security continues to deteriorate, I'm glad that PC seems to be acknowledging the difference between the PC experience of cultural missteps, big projects, and exciting adventures and the experience of desensitized gringos, real anxiety and a legitimate unease in public transportation.

Anyway, the initial result for PCVs here in country when we heard the news was "and THEN what?" As always, the appearance of "chambre" worthy news led to the great gasto of tigo saldo, and everyone was telling or hearing tales of so and so told so and so and that fulano said that we're being evacuated by midnight... or some such nonsense.

Do I love El Salvador? Yes, absolutely, this is my home.... Would I mind if they sent me home a month  or two early? No. I spend my days shooting the breeze with my women and embroidering tablecloths, not a hard way to live till March, but.... I would welcome a little Yusa in my life. (Lets not exaggerate what that would look like. Think, embroidering on  my couch, watching expanded cable and being constantly on the grid. At least for the first week, while I work on washing the campo off my skin and re-learn using a fork.)

All I ask for is that I fulfill my winter plans. Christmas in La Barra de Santiago with my very beloved former host family, and New Years in Antigua, Guatemala, with my two beloved Daniels.

Anyhow, I'll be disconnected throughout Christmas, but, I wish you all very Happy Holidays. Try to reign in your jealousy that I get to play around on the beach, eat chicken foot soup and light off fireworks throughout the holiday. I'm pretty excited for it.

Paz, amigos.

THREE!

Ladies and Gents, I have less than three months left in El Salvador. Sweet baby Jesus. I hit the 3 month mark while floating with a liter beer in a pool at Playa Tunco. If that isn't best way to recollect that I have to take these three months by storm, I absolutely don't know what is. I'll keep the thoughtful, emotional reflections for later, when I assume I will feel them... for now, I'm counting down and soaking it all in.

Next week I have my final visit from my Jefa, Clelia. After that I plan on going down to La Barra de Santiago to spend Christmas on the beach with my Salvadoran family (Milena, Ben, Mi Comadre and all the kids) I guess I do already feel this sad reality. It will probably be the last time I ever see them, and I will miss them so so much.

But anyway...

Since my last post El Zarzal has been a hopping place. A week and a half of constant, depressing rain, Fiestas Patronales, weddings, baptisms, and Gringo visitors.

I don't have much to say about any of that because, as I do, I waited too long to post and none of it seems terribly interesting now. Besides, I have the sneaking suspicion that while few people view my blog page, even fewer do more than scan the photos. So I added some photos I never got around to editing of the "Baile de los Viejos" from our fiestas. Everybody wins!

Chepito and Tita

Don Jesus defending the baby from zombie attack.

My neighbors

Where did they find these masks?

And finally, Andrea in her first communion outfit. Got her to smile. :)

Kelsey's Dinoapron