Day 6

For breakfast this morning french toast and some very awesome pineapple.

For class my teacher and I sat on the roof of the building so it wasn't so cold as we were sitting directly in the sun.  After the break we walked through the city which seemed again to be an opportunity for her not to work so hard at teaching me.  There was some conversation of me struggling to find words and her correcting my grammar.  We also went along with another teacher and a student from Canada whose Spanish was as bad as mine.  I'm sure we sounded great as we struggled to communicate with one another in Spanish.

We went to the church to see the festivities for the Feast of Our Lady Guadalupe.  As Antigua is primarily Catholic this holiday is quite the production!  Little kids dressed up as different versions of Our Lady of Guadalupe and her indigenous husband, Juan Diego, wearing a mustache, almost like Halloween!  My teacher told me that there would be 4 different parades of children through the city throughout the afternoon.  In the open space in front of the church, stands set up for children to get their pictures taken such as the one pictured right!

The night before had been the beginning of the festivities.  A fellow student had a video of what looked like a night club scene taken from the streets.  From my room I heard fireworks starting to go off around 11pm and continuing throughout the day today.  I was starting to think that if I hear it enough I'll grow accustomed to the sound, to not get so triggered by it.  But there is still this fear that builds up in my stomach, some nerve that gets hit with each one sounding as if a gun has been fired.  Many of my fellow students out enjoying the festivities tonight as well, but instead I sit hearing the crackling of the firecrackers in my safe little room writing this instead.

After being dismissed from "class," I returned home for a lunch of carbohydrates; rice, potatoes, and a tortilla with a piece of pork on the side.  After awhile I went back out to find the cafe that one of the other students raved about, Fernando's Kaffe.  I found her and two other students there and ordered a salad to supplement my carb filled lunch.  A good place for studying and hanging out but filled primarily with Europeans.  Planned on going to hike up near an active volcano with 2 of them the next day.

Back at home, some authentic spinach/tomato concoction and squash for dinner!