Feliz Año a todos y todas!
Wow, how is it already 2012?? Supposedly the last year before the Mayan-predicted end of the world. Fun fact: the Mayans don’t really believe it will be the end of time; it’s just the end of this current cycle of the world and the start of the new one. No Apocalypse is expected, just major changes, like climate change and maybe political chaos. Hence 50-degree weather in NY in January and a gridlocked Congress lol
Anyway, after spending a fairly stagnant month of December in site, I got to spend a wonderful New Year’s at the BEACH! First, December: I literally only worked 1 day after my last update. It was a slow freaking month. My Peace Corps ag director came to visit me during that time and was highly impressed by all the projects/groups I have going…I chose to hold back the fact that I’ve only been meeting with each group like once a month, so that’s maybe 7-10 days of work in every 30… We also had a big meeting with the Save the Children Medios de Vida (Livelihoods – food security and marketing) staff and some light was finally shed on the end of their project here. Turns out that they were supposed to leave in September/October 2011, but extended for some more months and will be gone by May of this year. I’m here until October, so figuring out how my work will continue should be interesting. My final bout of productivity was attending a convivio (end-of-the-year gathering) hosted by a women’s group I work with in town that makes beaded jewelry. They invited the new mayor to solicit a storefront in the muni and I helped them present before him and sell their goods to his entourage. He surprisingly seems like an open-minded and eager guy, so we’ll see what happens to Cunen under his leadership beginning mid-January.
Of course, there was also a plethora of unproductivity on my part during the month, namely lots of movie-watching in bed. I went to the Chichicastenango feria with Kate and her visiting friend, but managed for the second year in a row to miss the palo voladores – men flying around a giant pole erected in the town square. FOR ANYONE WHO COMES ACROSS THIS AND WANTS TO SEE THE PALO VOLADOR IN CHICHI: THE FERIA IS DECEMBER 21 AND THEY FLY ON THE 19TH AND 20TH, ONLY. I had to get that out there, since contrary information is up for grabs on the internet. Despite that letdown (which I will hopefully avenge in August at the Joyabaj feria, another Quiché town with the same tradition), a weekend jaunt in my favorite place Panajachel made everything right :) And then before I knew it, it was Christmas! (Hanukkah was celebrated quietly with Kate and her friend and homemade potato latkes and apple sauce.) Here they celebrate Christmas Eve, which I spent with my friend Jenny and her family in town. Most notable moment: when we were hanging out with her married friend and she sent her 6- and 10-year-old girls to the cantina to pick up whiskey! It was super fun spending time with Jenny and her friends, walking around seeing all the nativity scenes (nothing like American ones!), and of course doing the midnight traditions with her family: setting off fireworks, drinking hot punch, and eating tamales. I don’t know if it was because we hadn’t really eaten dinner or what, but Jenny’s mom’s tamales were the best I’ve ever had! I was happy because I’d been dreading the moment lol. The next day I cooked an Asian stir-fry with Jenny, saw the children’s convite, and watched movies in bed – an almost normal Jewish Christmas!
Children's convite
Fast forward a week of literally doing nothing and I was off to the beach for New Year’s! The weekend started with seeing the American band known for party rocking in concert…fantastic! Dragging ourselves through heat and hangover, we then made it to Monterrico to meet up with the rest of our group. I can’t even describe how happy I was…I truly LOVE beaches. There’s nothing like baking in the sun with sand in your toes and hanging out in the ocean (although I didn’t actually go swimming for fear of the crazy riptide). Anyone who knows me knows that I am queen of awkward tan/burn lines, and this trip was no exception: I started out with sunblock (dermatologist-prescribed!) on only my face and shoulders, so the rest of my body got super burnt while I managed to actually exacerbate my previous farmer’s tan! My skin is still prickling, but it was so worth it :)
Now I’m back in Cunen and it is COLD and RAINY. I’m seriously missing that choking coastal heat right now! This is a pretty easy week, but with enough work to exceed all that I did last month lol. January is looking pretty busy, for which I’m grateful. It’s also austerity time since I spent most of my month’s allowance within its first 2 days…
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