Aviones, Buses, Carros y Lanchas!

It is a surreal experience sitting here in my bedroom at home in SoDak, reading over some of my past blog posts nearly a month after finishing the Somos Hermanos program in Guatemala. Some things have returned back to normal as I work on settling back into life in the States, and other things remind me that a part of my life (and heart) will always be in the mountains of Guatemala.

The last month has flown by with a nearly 50-hour bus ride throughout Central America to visit Mike, a great friend from Creighton, followed by the holidays at home and a family vacation down to St. Maarten. It has been a lot of traveling, a lot of eating, and a lot of family time: all great things in my book.

Adyson and I have been working hard to stay in shape after all of those Christmas cookies...

The trip down to Ecuador was…eventful. I am proud to say I actually made the bus ride from Guatemala to Panama before flying down to Ecuador, and I met some great people along the way. We had a nine-hour layover in El Salvador, where I was able to meet up with the girl who coordinated our group trip there, and we had a great time (including karaoke, español style!). The bus had some issues in Costa Rica, and so we ended up getting to Panama only an hour before my flight. Bags flying and totally stressed out, I found a great taxi driver who tried to help me make it to the airport in time any way he could (I'll leave it at that). After a little begging, I was able to get on the flight to Ecuador that left only 25 minutes after I got to the airport. Whew!

Scuba diving in Ayangue, Ecuador -- Merry Christmas from under-water Jesus and me! 

Once I got to Ecuador, I spent a day on the coast at Ayangue to go scuba diving and relax before heading to Guayaquil to see Mike. It was a great time to unwind! And, seeing Mike – and his girlfriend Emily, who was visiting at the same time – was incredible. It was great to meet the people he works with and spend time in the community where he is volunteering this year.

Reunited in Guayaquil!

I made the flight back home and surprised my parents by getting back a little early. It was really surreal being back with my family, and it was great to be home for the holidays! I’m sure they have seen more pictures and heard more stories from my last few months than they were expecting, but they have been great listeners and I love sharing.

The family at Christmas, finally all together again.

Two weeks later, I packed my bags again for a family vacation to St. Maarten in the Caribbean. Honestly, it almost felt more like ‘going home’ than going on vacation in a way – and it was great to speak a little Spanish and enjoy the sun! We came back on Saturday night to freezing temperatures, snow, and ice. All I can say is…brrrr.

Enjoying the relaxing isolation of Shoal Bay. I could have stayed here a while longer! 

So there you have it – a long-overdue update on where things are at post-Guate! If I had to pick one word to describe my life over the past six months, I think it would be ‘packing’. And, it continues. I am packing now and getting ready to head out on my next adventure by moving to Colorado to live with a great friend, Kelsey, and get my first ‘real job’ (and hopefully keep traveling a little bit!) until I head out to D.C. in the summer to start med school. I’ll be making a short stop by Omaha to see friends on my way and absolutely cannot wait.

Every day continues to amaze me, and I am loving the adventure. It’s time for another chapter and another change. One of the biggest things this year has done for me so far is help me realize that change is what you make it, and adaptability is vital. With that in mind, I am going to continue trying to make my entire life (keyboard included) fit into my car and make the long trek to the Rocky Mountains.

Te extraño, te quiero, and if I haven’t seen you yet, I hope to see you soon!

Paz,

Nico

Mi último blog de Guatemala.

Wow – ya estoy escribiendo mi último blog de mis experiences aquí en Guatemala. Hielo (frost/ice) is starting to make a regular appearance on the grass here in the mornings, Christmas celebrations are in full swing, and we just got back from our weekend trip to Antigua…which means, although I can hardly believe it, my time in Guatemala is coming to an end. A week from now, I will have arrived in Ecuador to visit one of my best friends, Mike, for a few days before heading home for Christmas. I am really excited to go to Ecuador, and to see my family and friends back in the States, but at the same time it is going to be very difficult to leave the place I have come to call home.

Practicing our salsa dance before the big show tomorrow night!

Things are coming around full circle in the school. My teacher this week, Vilma, is one of the only maestras who has had all of the Creighton grads at some point (myself and Becca this year, as well as Rachel a year ago). She is great to talk with and I am learning a lot! We have a graduation ceremony on Friday, complete with our host families, diplomas, and a reception. It should be fun!

 Making pumpkin pancakes at the school after our final exam! Yummm. 

The parties here haven’t let up a bit; we had Sergio’s (my host dad) birthday party last Thursday. After some convincing from my host family, I decided to try making my mom’s tuna casserole for what I though would be a small family lunch. The guest list grew quite a bit, so I ended up doubling the recipe. But, the casserole and brownies turned out great (thankfully!) and it was really fun to have everyone together again. I am getting used to a few large family gatherings per week now!

My host mom, Carolina, and I with our tuna casserole. 

This weekend, we packed ourselves into the microbus one last time for a group trip to Antigua, a small tourist town between Xela and Guatemala City. Although the town was a little touristy, we had a great time together exploring church ruins and a chocolate museum (yum!), as well as finishing up last-minute shopping before heading home. We stayed at a hostel in the mountains twenty minutes outside of the city, and it was gorgeous! It is going to be hard to leave the landscapes of Guatemala, where seeing active volcanoes and beautiful lakes has become normal. Throughout the weekend, we had a lot of time to enjoy each others’ company and reflect on our personal experiences here in Guatemala as well as how we have bonded as a group.

In case you were curious, here is how we pack into the microbus for our trips...sometimes for 12 hours or more at a time..

When I arrived in Guatemala nearly six months ago, the program coordinators asked us to set some goals for our time here. I remember my first goal being to ‘have a very difficult time leaving this place and the people I have developed relationships with.’ It sounds a little weird, and maybe even a little backward at first, but the idea is that the more something has become a part of who we are – and the more positive the experience has been – the harder it will be to leave. My time in Guatemala has, in one way or another, touched and affected nearly every part of my being. Learning about this country’s history and current affairs has challenged me to become more informed about global concerns. Living with a host family has demonstrated the true depths and meaning of ‘hospitality.’ Traveling throughout Central America has opened my eyes to a world I had never experienced and ignited a passion to continue exploring the world. And getting to know a group of twelve amazing people who are passionate about medicine has, in addition to giving me faith in the next generation of health care professionals, reaffirmed my passion and desire to pursue medicine.

So, as I sit here now after six of the most exciting, challenging, and formative months of my life, I am happy to say that leaving will indeed be a very challenging experience.

I was able to take my host family out to their first Italian restaurant last night as a thank-you for the last six months.
We loved it! 

Thank you so much for joining me throughout this experience. Thank you for your thoughts, and thank you for your prayers. I still have a lot of changes coming my way in the coming weeks and months before heading off to medical school at Georgetown, with a trip to Ecuador next week and moving to Fort Collins, CO, after spending the holidays at home, and so I am going to continue with the blog every couple of weeks.

Until next time, espero que todo esté bien y que tengas una buena navidad. ¡Nos vemos pronto!

Paz,

Nico

Fiestas, Despedidas, y la Navidad

Hola todos, y ¡feliz diciembre! The nights are starting to get cold here in Xela, my host family and the Spanish school have their Christmas trees up, and all of the cafes are playing Christmas music. It is a really exciting time here, and also pretty busy (and sad) with the program starting to wrap up. My family just got back from a wedding in Guatemala City, and I have spent a lot of the day wrapping up my thesis over the Affordable Care Act in the States. Good news is, I’m done! (with the first draft, anyway)

With Andreita, packing sweets for the kids in San Marcos, Guatemala (hit hard by an earthquake in November).

As for class--- this week, I am finishing up Avanzado II, and we are working on imperfect subjunctive (things like ‘I would have bought the house if I had had the money.’). My teacher is Claudia, a hilarious, middle-aged woman that somehow manages to work gossip and chistes (or jokes, usually about me) into every example.

The last week has been a week of fiestas y despedidas. Late last week, my host family and I said goodbye to Lisette, the niece who came from Houston to visit for a couple of weeks. It was probably the best party I have been to in Guatemala, filled with plenty of food, drinks and dancing. I realized that night just how comfortable I have become here with my new family. You really can make a home wherever you’re at in the world.

Lisette's despedida, with all of the cousins!

Last night, my friend Vanessa and I were invited to Doctora Mery’s house for a Christmas party. We worked with the doctora during our volunteer time at Puesto de Salud (a rural clinic), and we were thrilled to have worked our way up enough to be invited to her family’s party where they turn on the Christmas tree lights for the first time. We ended up staying for hours, eating dinner, and having some great conversations about everything from traditional medicine and cultural differences to our families back in the States. I also met what may be one of the most adorable girls in Guatemala (or the world)…there’s a picture below J.

Dra. Mery's Christmas party.

This weekend was our last free weekend in Xela – when did that happen?!? It could not have been a better weekend, though. On Saturday, we ended up at La Pradera, where we found Santa (!) and watched a concert for the ‘Luces de Campero’. Sunday was pretty relaxed, with brunch and a Xelaju game. All in all, it was a great, relaxing last weekend here in Xela.

We found Santa!

The biggest part of the last week was definitely the whole Spanish thesis thing. Although the days leading up to my presentation on Thursday were a little stressful – including a 9-hour café day to finish it on Wednesday – the presentation went really well! I presented for nearly an hour about health care systems and answered questions from the people in my group, all without any major problems (although I may have used a couple words of Spanglish --- oops!).

This week, between talking with people casually at the parties and my thesis presentation, I was really struck by how much I have learned in the past six months. Sure, I still have days where my brain hurts and the Spanish doesn’t come out like it should. However, never in my wildest dreams would I have been able to give an hour-long presentation – in Spanish, over a topic that is hard to explain in English – before starting this program. I don’t know exactly when it happened, but sometime in the last few months things ‘clicked,’ and I have been able to achieve a dream: talk, listen, laugh, cry…communicate…in Spanish. A door that I never thought would crack is now open, and I now have the base I need to continue learning and working on Spanish fluency. There have been a lot of long, difficult days. And every one of them was absolutely worth it. I could not be more thankful.

One of the concerts at Luces de Campero on Saturday night. Impressive, Xela!
('Campero' is short for 'Pollo Campero', a fast-food place here with a chicken mascot -- hence the huge chicken in the picture, haha) 

I have ten more full days in Guatemala. With a group retreat, salsa performance, several goodbye dinners, and my host dad’s birthday to go, the rest of my time here definitely won’t be slow. Here’s to living each day to the fullest, and to appreciating the little things that make life great. ¡Hasta pronto!

Paz,

Nico