From Hostel to Home...Life in Guate

from mexico to guatemala

the day before we left on our trip to belize, i felt a small bump on my gum below the tooth i had fixed in mexico. years ago, i didn't have dental insurance and the amount of money it cost to get one tooth fixed was more than everything i owned in my apartment. the tooth NEEDED to be fixed because i was packing my bags to move to ghana at the time. with mexico being a stone throw away, i crossed the border and had a root canal done. not bad really, i was well taken care of and the dentist office was quite nice. anyhow, years later, the tooth is coming back to haunt me! i've been scared to go to the dentist, but i bit the bullet and went. nothing to worry about, it's just a small infection and the dentist gave me some antibiotics to clear the infection.

my school gives us "vouchers" for the visits, and i wasn't really sure how much they covered and what the damage would be in the end. after i told the dentist my issue, he took ex-rays of my teeth and sat down and explained what he saw. already spending about 45 minutes with the dentist, i thanked him and asked for my prescription. he literally said, "you're not getting out of here yet." i sat back in the chair and he gave me a cleaning. overall, the appointment lasted about an hour and half.

i love guatemala for their health-care! all the doctor's i've seen take their time and make you feel as if you are their only patient. it's so completely different from the states! waiting in the cold room for the doctor to come spend 35 seconds with you and not really listen to what you're saying, and making you feel guilty for actually taking up their 35 seconds of time. it's honestly the opposite here!

it's kind of a bummer to think the tooth i got worked on in mexico may have to be redone in guatemala, but at the same time it's sad to think that getting it done in the states is out of the question because of the price. hopefully the antibiotics work and i don't have to see that chair again for awhile...

oh yeah, the voucher covered the ex-rays, consultation and the cleaning! it's worth 280 q which is about 35 dollars. and that...is the reason for my rant.

RAS (Raffles American School)

check us out on facebook! the team is getting ready to open the new school in the fall, and now leaked pictures of the site of the permanent site! it looks amazing!

i can't take credit for this adorable bananagram art, but i love it.

the school site

excited? um, yes.

adventures of wildlife in malaysia

if THIS doesn't get one excited about moving to malaysia, than i don't know what would. we've been doing nothing but research after the good news that we got the job in iskander. one of our favorite research topics, wildlife in malaysia, and we're so excited!!! another great topic to look at are the cheap flights to ridiculously beautiful places close by.

when we got the call about the job in guatemala, a whirlwind of emotions took over us both. ben and i sat in our comfortable apartment, with our comfortable jobs, nice cars, iphones and smartphones, and the list continues...we felt so overwhelmed, scared, excited, nervous, etc. so much to do in such little time. this time, it's the opposite. now that we sit in our furnished apartment, enough time to process, fantastic jobs, crappy phones, no cars...the whirlwind is more like a kick of dust. the sense of excitement is much more abundant and the feeling of fear is significantly less.

it's been hard to study spanish knowing we'll soon be in a different world with a different language. it's been a bit challenging to stay focused on guatemala and not put all energy into thinking about and researching our "new" country. the chance to become a part of a founding team for an international school is honestly the most exciting thing that i may do in my entire life. i love being a teacher, and this is just amazing. we're a team of 8 at the moment and will be teaching in a temp. site for the first year while the school is being built. 8 teachers! and ben and i are lucky enough to be a pair of them.

much love from guate!

small greetings in passing

one thing i love about guatemala is the greetings in passing with random strangers. in the states, sure you say good morning to co-workers in the morning, but rarely random people you pass by on the street. i love it.

when i was living in ghana, i swore i was going to come home to the states and adopt some of the everyday life that i appreciated. things like; eating together out of one bowl, celebrating death, using cloth as support for babies, and my ultimate favorite...carrying weight as something to be proud of.

guatemala has daily life differences that i hope to carry on, and some i hope to forget. one large difference between guatemala and ghana is that most my friends are also foreigners, so i'm not forced to live like a local. i do love the small greetings in passing. this i hope to bring home with me, whenever and wherever that may be.

buenos días (good morning)

buenas tardes (good afternoon)

buenas noches (good night)

try it, it's nice.

much needed mail order

i'm braving the guatemalan mail system  for a pair of new shoes! my fingers are crossed that they will make it here, and actually fit well.

work, and...

play. i'm so excited...

the secret is out

thank you iss (international school services) for all the support of posting amazing teaching jobs around the globe, and allowing us to continue to live exciting, adventurous lives. we moved to guate only a short 4.5 months ago, yet so much has happened. we're sad to say goodbye to this beautiful country in 6 months from now, but beyond excited to move to our next international teaching destination. drum-roll please...we got the job in malaysia! we'll be heading to iskandar in august for one of the most exciting teaching jobs you could ask for. ben and i will both be teaching elementary at a school that hasn't even opened it's doors for students yet. together, we'll become a part of a team that lays the foundation for success. words can't describe how enthusiastic and excited about starting a new school in malaysia. it's every teachers dream to be a part of something so powerful, and ben and i get to live the dream together. congratulations to us! with my experience and ben's charm, we did it, and we are so happy! malaysia, wow! this really is the life.

it's silly, but i'm really looking forward to the shopping, food, stylish glasses, technology, traveling, but most of all, the work that ben and i will be doing at the new school. we have 6 more months here in guate, and we plan to appreciate the country to the fullest. i'm also looking forward to going home for the summer and spending time with my friends and family before heading to malaysia for the next two years. when i first met ben, i shared this dream of one day internationally teaching, and here we are, living the dream...

much love from guate! and congratulations to ben for getting his first teaching gig in one of the most beautiful places in the world!

some shots of the wildlife

these little guys were crawling all over the jungle in quirigua...

ants! so many ants...our guide told us that for the punishment of children, they would be sat down bare bummed on the piles of ants.

early morning walk in tikal, we spotted some interesting little frogs.

and many, many spiders!

iguanas on the bike-ride of san pedro

beautiful butterflies in tikal

coati's were my favorite:) running around owning the place in tikal

and finally, the magical ceiba tree looming over the jungle in tikal. although not an animal or critter, it's very much alive and this is ben's favorite picture of the trip.

we also saw some spider monkeys and heard many howler monkeys in tikal. ben and david ran off the trail to finally spot a howler monkey to complete our very long day hiking in tikal.

much love...

we're back

home sweet home, guatemala city.

we packed our bags and left on a trip as soon as the school bell rang! it felt good to be a backpacker again, but it also feels good to be home where the water is warm and bugs aren't biting at night. ben, friends and i traveled around belize and guatemala where we spent christmas and new years in style. we both have so many stories to share, but for now, i'll start with one photo from each place and just our itinerary in a messy list.

shuttle picks us up in guate.

pit stop in quirigua (ruins in guate)
rio dulce (boat ride to livingston)
casa iguana (hostel)
punta gorda (belize) took a bus to dangriga
charlots (hotel)
belize city (boat to san pedro on ambergris caye)
pedros inn (hostel)
caye caulker
barefoot carebe (hotel)
tikal (stayed in the park)
jungle lodge (hotel)
flores (new years)
donda goga/ casa de los amigos (hostel)
lanquin (semuc champay)
el retiro (hostel)
guate (home)

firs stop...quirigua (ruins in guate)

back on the shuttle until we got to rio dulce (where we took a boat to livingston)

we then crossed into Belize borders (by boat) at punta gorda and took a bus to dangriga

*we did stay one night in dangriga, but i didn't take any pictures.

we then took another bus to belize city and boat to san pedro on ambergris caye

short boat to caye caulker

MORE BOAT AND BUS RIDES to tikal

we then moved a very short distance to flores where we spent new years. this is the one picture i have from flores, and it's of ben in our hostel. i was getting tired of taking pictures at this point in the trip.

we then had a very terrible bus ride from flores to lanquin where i was brave enough to go into the bat caves at the time they were all flying out(stories later)

and finally, semuc champay (one of the most beautiful places i've ever been)

and...now we're home! i'm exhausted from all the traveling we did and kind of happy to be back in the city. i have so many stories to share about our trip, and i'll do my best to get some more photos up. i'd been to most of these places the last time i backpacked around central america, so it was really fun to be able to do it again with ben. enjoy the photos, and here is my favorite shot of the trip, taken on ambergris caye.

happy holidays & much love