Adventures of a TwentySomething

Guerillas, Waterfalls, & Laundry

Oh Suchitoto is so beautful! We have been spending all of our mornings in language school and then doing different activities in afternoon. A couple days ago we took a big truck out into the country, down this old stone road to a farm. They cleared the cows out of one of the pastures and we played softball, attempting to understand the differences in rules and avoid stepping in the hundreds of piles of cow dung! They also had a newborn cow that was only a day old and we got to pet some of the other animals too. The trucks here are incredible - I wish I could travel like this all the time! You all pile in the back and stand, holding onto these rickety metal railings and each other! On our way back from the farm, my friend Iveth and I stood up on the front of the truck because their was a ledge on the back part of the cab, so we had all the wind in our face and were way above the traffic and ground - it felt incredible!

Later that day we had dance lessons at the school and then went to a local bar and then the discoteca! So loud, so fun, kind of awkward - the discoteca had mirrors on one wall and all the locals were doing their dancing\grinding while staring at themselves - yeah, a little awkward. But all of our groups (us students and our local teachers\friends) just had a great time getting sweaty and showing off our moves, or attempts at them!

Yesterday we went to El Bosque de Cinquerra, which is an ecological and historical reserve about 45 minutes outside of Suchitoto. Our guide was a guerilla in the war for 12 years and he took us hiking in the mountains to see their old campsites, kitchens, lookouts and everything. We learned about how they got supplies and disarmed unexploded bombs, only to rebuild them and send them back to the army as a ´gift´ of sorts... he was really funny and an incredible living history and testament to what this country has been through - really hard to comprehend the reality of it though, even though we see the impact of the war everywhere, from tourism to houses, to the economy.

After the hardest part of the hike (it was pretty brutal going up, but great coming down), we ended up at this incredible waterfall and pool area.... their was a dam that they had built in order to create this pool and their was a stone patio of sorts all around it and trees that sat out over the river that we hung out on. We climbed up the waterfall and pools and found another waterfall that we stood under and took pictures and showers of sorts! I can´t even begin to describe it, but trust me, it was beautiful! Our teachers came with us their and they had lugged in tons of fresh fruit and these amazing chicken sandwhiches, so we had a gourmet feast with huge containers full of freshly chopped strawberries, papayas, apples, pineapple, grapes, watermelon, & canteloupe. And swam a lot. It felt so good after sweating off half our body weight on the hike.

Last night we had a little bit of class and then all came to the Plaza and our restaurant to just hang out and have drinks. It was so beautiful and one of our first nights that we all just got to hang out together and with one of our teachers and his friend. After we went back to our house, my roomie Iveth showed me how to wash clothes and we spent about half an hour hand scrubbing our clothes on the stone wash basin. So fun, but tiring and I´m sure so much work for people to do all the time and for years on end. I also got to have an amazing conversation with my host mom and she invited me back to come stay with her again, for longer, at some point in the future. She was surprised the other night that I was able to understand her and speak back, and since then we have been able to communicate better, because I think she is eager for me to learn more. Living with her has been amazing - she is so beautiful and has had an interesting life, some of which we got to hear about the other night. She laughed at me yesterday because I asked to eat an orange, picked one from the tree and she peeled it for me... then on I sat in a rocking chair in the courtyard of the house and just loved life - she walked by and laughed when I said ´Esta es la vida buena´ and continued to come and laugh at me for quite awhile! Overall, this past week has been incredible and I am so thankful for the relationships we have formed here and for the welcoming culture.

OK, off to do some shopping :) before our papusa making lesson tonight... love to you all and thanks for your comments and updates. And Happy Birthday tomorrow Dad! Love you lots!

posted by KacieAnne @ 3:28 PM