I think I'm in love...

No mom...I have not found a nice Jewish boy who is both a surgeon and a lawyer. But I am officially in love with this city. And I must admit...it was not love at first sight. I know I was going to write about Spanish school today but I’ve decided that I can’t go any further in this blog without giving you a little introduction to Antigua...the little gem of Guatemala.

When I first got here, I was in a complete daze of confusion, homesickness and frankly...pure exhaustion (I suppose that is what happens when you spend the last 10 nights before you go up going over your packing list...) But it all changed.

It happened two nights ago just like how everybody says it does...when you least expect it. It was about 6:30 at night after my second day of teaching. I was walking all the way across town to meet a “friend of a friend” (more on that later...). I was just going through the days events in my mind and asking myself the typical 3rd day questions...Can I really do this for six whole months? Will I ever learn Spanish? Am I going to do permanent damage to my students?

All of the sudden, the questions quieted and I looked up and the entire sky was pure pink. Behind me was a huge hill covered in trees and speckled with ruins. In front of my was a smoking volcano. I was walking through the central square which is really the heart of the city. And that is when I realized that I was actually IN Antigua.

I know it sounds crazy...of course I knew I was here but for some reason at that moment, it struck me that last week at this time, I was playing Guitar Hero in my condo and today, I was walking through the streets of Antigua under a painted sky...it was amazing!

Ok ladies and gentlemen...a BRIEF history of Antigua...

Antigua was once the capital of Guatemala but it’s not anymore. Basically a volcano erupted or an earthquake (can’t remember which) and it was pretty much demolished. SO after that, the capital was moved but Antigua became a completely colonial city. (Ok...so I’m not a history buff, what do you want??) But the moral of the story is that Antigua is literally stuck in time. All of the building are bright colors. All of the streets are completely cobblestone (makes walking in sandals VERY interesting) and there are rules about no big commercial signs. So for example, there is a McDonalds but it is VERY hard to find! And lastly, there are ruins all over the city. Just nestled between a Domino’s Pizza and an internet café...bizarre.

Speaking of bizarre, the night I fell in love, I went to a party of a friend of a friend. It was a birthday party of some girl who is some niece of some woman of some friend of a person I have never met. It was in a neighborhood just outside of Antigua where ALL of the “gringos” live. To say this house was incredible doesn’t exactly do it justice. Let’s just say if Robin Leach were to come here, this would be the house he’d visit. (and for those of you who don’t know who Robin Leach is, that is what Google is for...)

The party was on Earth Day so all of the guests were required to wear green. These people knew how to throw a party. Even the toothpicks for the cheese cubes had mini silk flowers on top of them to celebrate the occasion. The food was DELICIOUS and there was a canopied backyard with tableclothed tables in the garden for the occasion. Keep in mind, the birthday girl was 23!

In any case, it was a great party...really nice people and some good stories out of the deal (and everyone got a party favor...) But when I returned to the city, it was like I fell in love all over again.

Ok...well that is all I have time for for now. I am off to meet another pretty random person (a friend of my dad’s, daughter’s fiancé who lives here!) for pizza and out on the town. This will be my first night exploring Antigua nightlife so I’m sure I’ll have more to post soon.

I’m having a little trouble with the pictures but really hope to have them up ASAP or at the very least, post a link to Shutterfly. For now, all you Google-ers out there, if you are looking for something to do to distract you from what you REALLY have to do, why not so a quick search of images of Antigua? Take a look around...you may just fall in love...

xoxo,
Debra