Guate Curios

I'm sorry for my sporadic blogging. There is so much to tell you; life here hasn't stopped. Instead of trying to catch you up on every detail, I've decided to include some mysterious curios of Guate.

Exhibit A: Obleas

One of my fifth graders recently went on a trip to Mexico. This is the child whose pencil case spills every day and who thinks fish are clothes. Last week, he brought me a gift which puzzled me--wafers with sunflower seeds glued into them. One of my Guatemalan friends, Karen, told me they are "obleas", wafers. I still don't think I am going to eat them. Speaking of Mexico, I asked my fifth graders what they knew about Mexico and I received three responses: tacos, it's big, and it smells.

Exhibit B: Softball hat

Heather and I joined a Guatemalan softball team with our friend Emily. We play every Saturday and we're actually pretty decent...best women's team in the C League=bragging rights. Last weekend, we got our uniforms, including this very stylish hat. It's debatable whether I was more puzzled by the obleas or the "I We Make a Great Team." I was finally informed that "I" stands for "Internacional" our team name. Oooh...Unfortunately for Spanish speakers, there is still an "I" in "equipo."

Exhibit C: Pan flute classics

Sadly, I have no image for this curio. But in every major shopping center there is a common soundtrack: pan flute pop songs. Aerosmith and the Beatles have unfortunately been trivialized to the sweet, cheesy sounds of the pan flute and I can't get "I Can Be Your Hero" by Enrique Iglesias in pan flute style out of my head. Thank you, Guate.

Heather and I took a wonderful trip to Antigua this weekend. Another update to follow.