You Know You've Been In Guatemala For a While When...

• You sentences are neither in English or Spanish and you forget how to speak both languages on occasion.


• You are a loyal customer of Fanta and Doritos (I'm addicted to Doritos here, even though I hate them at home)


• Your bus ride to Antigua may consist of sitting on a broken down bus for 20 minutes, listening to blaring music (of many different genres), to being stared at for being white, to meeting someone new


• Bartering for even the smallest of things - i.e. bananas. Not allowing the locals to take advantage of foreigners with big wallets.


• Bartering and being stubborn for fair prices. Using multiple techniques to obtain goods at a fair price you want. This may mean - walking away to get them to give in, repeating the same price 10 times as they lower to your price, telling them other tiendas sell the same product for cheaper, taking a Guatemalan amigo with you, etc... the ways are endless.




• My last Sunday - cruising around Guatemala on a motorcycle with a new friend from Julianna's church! *Here I am in San Antonio (a half-hour moto ride up the mountain!)


• Wanting to Shower but having no water. (Water is temperamental in the afternoon)



• Having water but having no electricity.


• Seeing so many moustaches that the guys decided to grow their own for three weeks.


• When it rains (usually in the afternoon or evening), conversations are postponed. Tin roofs are loud!


• Conversations begin to revolve around the sickly street dogs (such as perro feo - ugly dog). It may include: their "shaz" seen on the streets, the holes in their head (serious), who they might be friends and enemies with.


• Throwing rocks at dogs is totally acceptable. Let me re-phrase that: Rabies or rocks?


• ESL - Hearing hilarious miscommunication in English pronunciation. (i.e. Kat is brushing her teeth - becomes - Kat is brushing her teet.)


• Falling in love with my new Guatemalan friends and the world they live in.

Well my friends, I am off. I love El Tizate. I love my family here. I love my home.

Your Chapin (Guatemalan)!
Andres

P.S. I apologize for not posting pictures. I tried, but the internet connection is not working well tonight. I will add them to my blog at a later time.