I was a lot more productive today than I imagined I would be, and it's a pretty nice feeling.
I woke up early (not, like, early, but earlier than I would have liked to have been awake if I'm being honest), and immediately got to work on reviewing those quizlets I've talked about. My studying was driven by a fear of not being able to explain to el agente de aduanas (the customs agent) who I was and why I was in the country, and, because I couldn't communicate that, being promptly kicked out of the country. An irrational fear, I know, but it ended up being an excellent motivator.
Before I knew it, it was time to go meet Journey for lunch. We met up at the Panera just past the shopping center that had a Willy's, a Starbucks, and a Chick-fil-a in it over near Lovett (but not the shopping center with a Willy's, a Starbucks, and a Chick-fil-a in it over near Lovett that I was thinking of... I was late, and lost for a while). Once I got there, we started to talk about what we were looking forward to most about Guatemala. For Journey it was food, and for me, it was the chance to explore. We decided that while we were there, we'd try to hike a volcano and visit some Mayan ruins. We also talked about what we'd learned; I gave Journey a crash course in Guatemalan history, and she spoke to me in Spanish for a little bit. It was a fun and productive outing.
The rest of the day was dedicated to Guatemalan culture and slang.
One of my favorite things about the culture in Guatemala, and one of the things that makes it incredibly unique, is that it's an almost equal blend of Mayan and Spanish influences. The culture is a little different in each region of the country because of the different nations descended from the Maya. Here are some quick fun facts about culture:
On Thursdays, they typically eat a food called patches, which is basically a tamale made out of potatoes. They eat primarily unsweet corn, which is called maize, and they call the sweet corn (like corn on the cob, the stuff we eat in the U.S.) elote. Guatemala's national instrument is the marimba, a type of xylophone. Each Mayan village in Guatemala has its own distinct clothing pattern. The local saint of Guatemala is called Maximón and is locally known as San Simon - he's the patron saint of male fertility and prostitution. He seems like a fun guy.
As for slang (since every Spanish speaking country has their own way of saying things, just like how we call elevators elevators and the British call them lifts), I have a few new favorite words that I'll share with you: chucho (dog), de plano (yes, of course), mango (handsome), macho (a fool or stupid person), patojo (kid), pisto (money), boca/boquitas (snacks/appetizers), and of course chapín (what you call a Guatemalan person). The last one is where our project title comes from.
I'm very excited about how well today went, but I'm even more pumped for tomorrow! Journey and I are planning on making mixtas - Guatemalan hotdogs!
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