Back to school et al...

Tombstone at Xela cemetery -messages for Vanushka who died of a broken heart

Trek to Chikabal a Mayan sacred site

fog shrouded the lake

612 steps down, and up again!

recycling Guatemalan style!

this young chap asked us for food

Mayan altar on the shore of the lake

fog lifts

fellow Aussies

we walked with this lady and her son for a while

Election campaign in Xela

 family visiting cemetery

silent sentinel

colourful resting places

impressive family vaults

Vanushka's tomb

Xela friends flower shopping

The last week has flown by.

I have been at school all week for 5 hours a day with Ronnaldo at Cela Maya, hung out a bit at the Red Cross clinic, trekked to a sacred Mayan site, had some salsa lessons, watched locals break-dancing, watched Frida (a movie about Frida Kahlo, the amazing Mexico artist ) attended an information session by 3 intrepid adventurers travelling from Mexico to Argentina making short films about interesting people and projects they have encountered, visited the local cemetery and continued to immerse myself in a fascinating culture and country very different to my own.

Every morning I have a chat in Spanish with “Chiky” the gentle Mayan woman who cooks me breakfast before I rush out the door for my 25 minute walk to school and I take the opportunity to use my Italengospanish whenever I can!

Spanish school has been challenging. Ronnaldo my teacher is professional, passionate and very skilled. He is only 24 but has aspirations of working internationally for the Spanish version of Dante Alighieri or Alliance Francais. He loves art and music and the lessons are interesting but he is also a hard task master. I do okay with my homework (tarea) and comprehension but struggle with conjugating verbs and prepositions as often the rules seem to be directly opposite to the ones that exist in Italian or English. I do really badly on my written test after a week, but think it as much a function of my performance anxiety as of my memory lapses! 

Anyone who is worried about me please stop reading now as I am about to tell you a story that may upset you, but I want to emphasize these events are random and can happen anywhere!!!!

Although I have not had any problems at all, and don’t feel unsafe here, I have been hearing some stories about people being harassed and attacked around Xela, so I always take a taxi at night and the small group of women I go out with look out for each other making sure that we all get home safely after being out at night. Even so, one of my friends has been groped and the other night Ronnaldo, my Spanish teacher (a local) was walking home to his apartment when he was held up at knifepoint and robbed. Luckily he was not hurt but was understandably very distressed as his camera with irreplaceable family photos was taken. This incident triggered some underlying issues for him and I spent some time trying to support him over the next day. He felt violated and blamed himself for not resisting even though that would have been foolhardy and dangerous. I am telling you this because unbelievably 2 days later, he was walking in the same area with 2 girlfriends about the same time as the attack, when he saw the offender walking towards him. Without thinking he confronted the man and threatened him with physical harm demanding that his camera be returned. After initially denying he was the offender, the man confessed but said he had already sold the camera to a taxi driver. Ronnaldo demanded the taxi driver be contacted and the end result was that he recovered his camera and his confidence at the same time. To see him the next day was a joy. This physically small man stood tall and proud, incredulous at the lucky coincidence that had led to him recovering his camera.      

My time at the Red Cross has been interesting. Staffed mainly by volunteers, it runs a number of programs including community development and crisis projects. I have spent some time observing and talking to the staff and patients of the busy clinic that they operate near the Parque Central and am due to meet with their psychologist today.

There are many NGO’s in and around Xela offering voluntary work opportunities and some run programs specifically for teachers, medical staff and social workers. My intention was to do some voluntary work but after some research and talking to lots of people I decided to observe and learn this time rather than volunteer, partly because to make any meaningful contribution I think you need to be in a community for a period of time to understand the needs and also because you need to consider the unintended effects and long term implications of your “contribution”. For example who will continue the work when you leave and what expectations have been set up in the community, otherwise you could create more problems for the community than you resolve.

From what I understand the major health issue in Guatemala is nutrition, many people suffering from preventable health conditions. The community is also vulnerable to natural disasters like Hurricane Agatha which left many locals homeless last year. There are many worthwhile projects looking at cleaner, more efficient energy sources including bicycle powered corn grinders and huskers and efficient cooking stoves. The effects of the 30 year civil war are still being felt, particularly in the area near Peten called Dos Erres where a massacre occurred.  It has taken 15 years, but finally 4 perpetrators have  been held to account for atrocities committed and the murder of an estimated 500 people and have been sentenced to a total of 210 years jail time sending a symbolic message echoing the words of the report “Guatemala, Never Again”!

It has been hard to find out whether programs to redress the psychological trauma endured by survivors have been effective. There is still distrust of the Church and State on the part of the Indigenous Maya community which still endures difficulty and discrimination. Sadly, there is little faith that elections due next month will significantly alter the situation. Reports of vote buying tactics on the part of some candidates and other corruption abound.   

Hugo is my dance teacher. He is a compact, tiny little ball of energy with a glorious smile and some killer moves, whose warmth and encouragement are a joy. He listens when I tell him I don’t want to be technically good, but I want to be able to dance confidently and have fun. My dance class is the highlight of my day. Hugo glides across the dance floor and I follow, more elegantly some times, than others but always happy to repeat and continue because it is so much fun. Today I asked Hugo about his dreams. He told me it is to write a book and keep teaching and building up his studio because he wants to encourage and inspire others to believe that anything is possible. He tells me that after dancing for only a short time, he was invited to compete in Antigua some hours away. He almost didn’t go because he didn’t even have enough money for the bus fare. He danced without shoes and slept in the park and in an ATM booth, so embarrassed about his situation that when he met a friend he told them that he had been robbed! Looking at this confident and generous young man now, it is hard to believe that all this happened just 18 months ago.

Chicabal is a sacred Mayan site, a couple of hours away from Xela which I visit with a small group and local guide. The lake is 612 steps down into a crater on top of a hill and the hike there is a tiring gradual ascent through forest and small villages. It is good to be out of Xela and in nature again. The group is an interesting bunch and we get on well and our guide tells us of the significance of the lake to the Mayan people and of the rituals and ceremonies that take place even today. When we arrive at the look-out on top of the lake there is an eerie silence and the lake is invisible, shrouded in thick fog.  

We climb silently down into the crater and sit respectfully in front of an altar of flowers for a while, disappointed that the lake is not visible. Our guide tells us to be patient and that the situation can change completely in just 5 minutes. I only half believe him and am happy to sit in silent meditation when miraculously the fog lifts and reveals the lake, and then just as quickly, while we watch it covers the lake entirely again.

It’s Sunday morning and the safest time to go to visit the cemetery in Xela.

The huge burial site is dotted with interesting tombstones and rows of colourful memorials. We make our way to Vanushka’s tomb, a famous shrine covered in flowers and messages dedicated to the young woman who supposedly died of a broken heart!

It is a strangely peaceful place in the morning sun. We pass family groups and people selling food and others sweeping and cutting long grass away from burial sites. I see people crouched in prayer and children playing among the tombstones and a man on a bike with a toothy grin says hello. We climb some steps that lead to an old overgrown part of the sprawling site and look out across the huge expanse and in the distance a cloud covered hill looks down over us all like a silent sentry.

I meet with Yully, the psychologist today. She is a bubbly, energetic woman with a beaming smile who loves Frankl and Freud and is happy to tell me about her work with the Red Cross. She tells me of the significant number of people in the community with mental health issues and the lack of resources to help them. She has negotiated with the one psychiatrist in town to provide services to poor patients for a nominal fee but the cost of medication is approximately 100 AUD per script. She is working on a project to set up a day hospital to provide individual and group therapy for patients with dementia and psychoses offering various therapies and programs of support. She is doing all of this on a voluntary basis in addition to her work with the Red Cross.

The aromas from Artesan are inviting and not disappointing. Carlos, the owner, is a shy, gentle chap and an amazing baker and cook. His small café is my favourite spot for lunch. The salads, toasted sandwiches and soups are fresh and delicious and it is the one place in town where I can confidently eat healthy food. I am sitting on my own doing some study and thinking about the next few days.

It is my last week in Xela. Next Monday I will take a bus and head back across the border to Mexico. Thursday I will do an overnight trip to Lake Aitlan to visit a couple of small

communities but otherwise I will stay here in Xela doing my Spanish and salsa and getting to know this place and myself a little more.

Hasta luego

Mon x  

www.proyectochakana.org  fascinating project recording short films of a journey from Mexico to Argentina

http://www.celasmaya.edu.gt one of the many Spanish schools in Xela offering a comprehensive program including activities and home stay

http://www.entremundos.org/en/index.html umbrella organisation that can link volunteers to projects

http://www.pop-wuj.org/ another language school that offers programs for medical, teaching and social work volunteers