Jo’s Jovial Jolly Jocular Journal

I am learning to scuba dive. Whilst Australia is the best in the world for it, in Guatemala it is certainly cheaper to learn. So I am learning, and so far it is pretty fun. And in the middle of August we will be going to Belize or Honduras to dive. Fun!

It is a beautiful full moon outside and the clouds are moving with great haste across the sky. This is probably the first time I have appreciated the view outside my bedroom window.

I’ve always had a bit of a dream to work in the Postal Industry and yesterday just fueled that dream. I had to go and pick up a package from Mil and I walked into this big warehouse that reminded me of Santa’s workshop or something. There were rows of motorbikes as you walked in and then many little people dressed in red sorting mail with gusto to the sounds of some joyous Latino rhythms. Oh they looked so cheerful and contented with their all-important job of sending communication out to all the world.

Yesterday I was with a client and her Mum. We were walking to the parking lot to get the car but it started to rain and I had forgotten the umbrella. I went back to the office to get one and they waited for me on the street, sitting on a step. I was gone all about 2 minutes and when I returned the Mum had some money in her hand. A random woman on the street had just walked past and decided to give them some money “to get something to eat”. They hadn’t asked or anything, they were just sitting there. They were so happy and kept counting the money. Seven quetzales it was. There are so many mixed feelings about giving money but I know that this family really appreciated it and will use it to get something to eat. I think it was a really nice random act of kindness.

Victor has started working out of town, which means he is only going to be around a little bit from now on. Anyway tonight I received a phone call from his Dad, just ringing to tell me that if I needed anything, or if I wanted to go around at any time, they wanted to remind me that I was so welcome, even though Victor wasn’t around.

The other day there was a long weekend in Guatemala and on the Monday Victor and I went to visit his family’s farm in a place called Santa Rosa. The story of his Grandparents who used to own the farm is that his Grandfather was extremely poor and his Grandmother from a very rich family. When his Grandfather proposed he said “I may not have any money or know how to read or write but I have strong arms to work hard with and a big heart to love you with”. They got married, he worked very hard, they were very prosperous and had a beautiful, massive farm in Santa Rosa. Now the farm is divided amongst the many children that they had and Victor’s family owns a part of it.

My experience of farms has generally been really flat, large areas, because I guess that is how Australian farmland is. However to walk around this farm we were climbing up and down and around hills. Being quite high too, the view was really beautiful. The farm is mostly coffee, corn, and the most recent addition, that Victor has been really involved in- pineapples. It was really exciting walking through the pineapples in the hills and seeing them at different stages of growth. Apparently Santa Rosa is the best area in Guatemala for growing pineapples. The coffee will be ready for harvest later in the year and so will the pineapples, so hopefully I will get to help with picking. In the past they did every stage of the coffee production there on the farm, and there are the remains of the giant vats that were used to make the coffee.

We walked around the whole farm and at the bottom is a little river. We took our shoes off and waded in the river and saw a really giant crab. Then it started to rain and we were at the bottom of the hill and the house is at the top. We climbed around the banks of the river trying to find a tree that we could shelter under but under every one we got wet. That was when we got to see the crab though. So then we decided just to walk back up the hill and brave the weather. We arrived back at the house pretty wet and happy.

I have spent so much of this week sitting in traffic. On Wednesday all the power in the country went out at about 3pm. It didn`t come back until about 5:30pm. That meant that I was in my car for about 2 1/2 hours driving what usually takes about 1/2 an hour. Then again the other night we spent about 1 1/2 hours on a 20min trip because the buses stopped running due to one of the drivers being killed. By the end of the second trip Victor and I were feeling rather desperate and I taught him to play word reference which lasted for perhaps 15mins of the trip. I may need to get more suggestions about good car games for future traffic jams.

On the weekend I went on a Women’s Retreat. It was great to get to know the some more women here in Guate, although I was by quite a few years the oldest not including the leaders.

Rainy season continues in Guatemala. Looking out my window there are yellow block houses and grey skies.

Yesterday Victor and I found a little spot that we loved so much and are so happy and proud to have found. It is a bookshop/coffee shop and after we browsed around the bookshop for a very long time we went and sat down to have a drink. Well, we opened up the menu, and there was the longest list of tea I had seen for a very long time. Guatemala has yet to discover tea, but here, in our little gem of a find, was all types. Just sitting here and thinking about it now, I want to go back!

Ahhh internet has returned to my home. That is a happy thing!

I meant to write in the last post about how much translating and interpreting that I have been doing lately and how helpful that is for the Spanish. But how tiring too!!

The other weekend I went shopping and you wouldn´t think that I was a poor volunteer because I bought myself sooo many clothes. I have been bit by bit this week wearing some of them and it is making me happy. Also I was happy because it looked like I may not have to go shopping again for a long long time. When I was leaving the shops I wasn´t exactly sure which way to drive. I stopped off in some fast food place and asked one of the security guards to help me. He had no idea and in a few minutes I had 4 different men with guns from 3 different fast food joints surrounding the car in an attempt to get me home.

Tonight is the Pedida of Chochy, Victor´s sister. Her fiance is coming to the house with his family and they are going to ask for her hand in marriage. I get to go too, as part of Victor´s family. Fun. At the last family event we were all sitting around a big table and we were talking about these traditions and I was telling them about Australian engagement and marriage traditions. I talked about the man asking the parents of the his girlfriend permittion to marry them. Victor´s Mum made a joke like ‘Oh and have you done that before Joanna?’, in front of about a thousand Aunties. And I laughed ‘ha ha ha’ and quickly looked down at my food, not exactly wanting to tell the long story to all the Aunties. Anyway, have to go formal to the event, and so it looks like I will be back in the shops this afternoon looking for a formal outfit for the occasion…

I am at an internet cafe where I am paying about 70c for half an hour. I think that is a bargain ey.

I have had a big week. It has been long and full of work. I have been tired and missed home and missed every phone call that Jem made to me. It is wet and rainy and dark. Just found out that Victor is being posted to work on the other side of Guatemala. At least Guatemala is smaller than Australia…

But it is the weekend. Long awaited weekend, and I give thanks for that.

I have had to travel every day to Antigua. The last two days have been interesting because we went to visit a town on a volcano, we went to visit the court numerous times and I was the closest to one of the perpetrators that I ever have been. We also had visitors from Bolivia, Peru, Honduras and the USA come for a regional meeting of Aftercare. I have been thinking alot about my job and our work here in Guatemala and my work of the future.

This is not a very witty or intelligent or interesting post but as we still don’t have internet at home it is the best way to assure you all that I am still out here.