Hola everyone,
Hayden here, writing about our time in Quetzaltenango! (If you can’t quite say that you can call it Xela instead) We’ve spent the last week there, in the second-largest city in Guatemala and the home of the biggest parades and parties in the whole country (according to the locals). The focus of the week was practicing Spanish one-on-one with the great teachers at PLQ, but we also had plenty of time to explore the city both inside and outside of classes. We ate burritos, street tacos, churros, ice cream, eggs, beans, and LOTS of bread all week long. My personal favorite is the fried Vietnamese empanadas that only cost 3 Quetzales (about 40 cents) each!
A few events from the week include:
– A long but very worthwhile walk to the MegaPaca, which is basically Goodwill but WAY better.
Many rides on the chicken buses, which are decommissioned American school buses that are decorated to look INCREDIBLE. (Seriously, google it, they are amazing)
– A trip to Xocomil, a huge waterpark an hour south of Xela with some very impressive waterslides. I managed to get a sunburn that had me whining for a solid 3 days.
– A visit to the public cemetery in Xela, where we saw hundred of colorful graves and the resting places of many intriguing people from the history of Guatemala.
– Thursday Night Fútbol, a weekly event with the Spanish school to play soccer on a nearby futsal field. Easily the most fun part of the school week, and I scored 3 goals!
Now we are in the midst of a week of service at the Chico Mendez Reforestation Project, which the next blogger will tell you about.
Adiós until next time!
