Toronto, Parkdale and the underground scène

Once we went with two other friends out in Toronto and had the most crazy night all underground and impulsive…for me the best way to have just the best fun ever.

Anyway, we first went eating nice Mexican food drinking mango daiquiris in a tiny Mexican close to Kensington Market. We then ended up walking and “bussing” towards Parkdale as one of us knew a little bar with a jamming session that night….in which my other friend could join being such a great musician. The place is called Open Kitchen and you wouldn’t go expect if you were a local.

On our way we found an open customised/funky T-shirt shop open during night with folks drinking beers and having fun…They had T-shirts such as I love Parkdale…so we hung around a bit and just chit chat with them before walking our way towards Open Kitchen…It is really a hole in the wall but with that night the best vibes. We just had the best time chatting, drinking a bit, jamming for those who could and also for those who aspire to…I even ended up ‘on stage’ being a kind of Caracas drummer! Short: we were just having a blast!

When the bar closed we just walked up the street a bit and sure the T-Shirt shop being still open we bought a ‘I Love Parkdale’ one! Then with the nice people we met, we all just went to this really underground arty/musician flat which is really underground as in basement on top of being an really alternative 60’s – 70’s place with even a recording little studio. We just stayed there drinking Tequilas and listening to vintage vinyl’s disks of The Beatles, The Doors and so on….

On our way back, we walked up the street and had a funny encounter with a gay hairdresser who “by the way I love your hair” was asking for “money to catch a bus to pick up his little niece (at 5 AM ??!!!) because some people stole his car’s wheels and the police refused to give him a lift to pick up his little niece after they wrote the report of the incident”…well we lost some pennies and had a big laugh about the elaborated street begging…We finally decided best to catch a cab who actually ended up taking a ‘detour’ to the highway trespassing closed streets (not once nor two but three times!) on the fair ground just to be quicker…we ended up safely and sound to our sleep over place and just had the great time unexpected and impulsive!

The next day, we went to the AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario) which was actually very very good and I highly recommend it. They have redone the building and both the building and all the exhibits were wonderful and I wish to have had more time but after 4 hours there I just couldn’t.

For great coffee and brunch and just day hang out: MoonBean in Kensington Market and the whole area is just great with amazing coffee & tea places…and even a CHEESE shop and great bakeries!! All to make a French girl upper happy :-)

 

Learning Lok Up Ba Fa & deepening my Tai Chi by volunteering

OK…after a little while out computer reach more by choice than anything else…I AM BACK online…until my next computer sabbatical :-)

So since last post just a lot of stuff had happen…and really I will go with the quick highlights in the next few posts.

Mainly at the International Tai Chi Centre I just had a very interesting and deep experience…of course leaving in close community means that sometimes you lack perspective and you have to get along with everyone no matter what…and of course I was volunteering, so busy busy like a busy bee…Therefore inevitably some days were just a bit lower than others…but the good days just made up a million times for all the little and few bad ones. I mainly met just wonderful pure souls in the most unexpected ways. So I loved it and it made me work so much on myself that it was soooo worth it.

I really really deepened my Tai Chi in so many ways. Of course workshops and wonderful classes with great instructors and steady and regular practice helped a lot. I also finally learned Lok Up Ba Fa and did lots of chanting…and loved all of it But mainly I really think and feel that the volunteering is a big part of the opening and deepening of my Tai Chi….well we try to tame the mind (same word in Chinese for heart and mind) and do dual cultivation…so all is linked and work as a whole all together and surely made a big part of the experience for me.

On the side I also learned to play pool (sorry they call it snooker…or it is the other way around??? I am French how should I know!!); on top of being a dragon leg (more than once…you know I’m becoming a bit of a professional really :-) as the last one was a ‘running’ dragon parade with loops and bretzel!!!), I also was a shiny Lion Dance Butt…I know how to shake my bum!!!; I lawn grass and used grass killer machines, painted doors and frames, served JAI to several Chinese tour buses, put up millions of flags for a Grand Opening and so much more things that I would never have thought doing in my life!!!

Sometimes life works in very funny ways, but when you let go and just go with the flow, some great unexpected happen and just fill your soul and the little light that makes you shine.

 

Being a Dragon leg, a Barista, a Weeds Gardener and doing Taoist Tai Chi

I have been in Canada and exactly in Orangeville (approx. 1 hour of Toronto) for 2 weeks now. I am a volunteer (resident in training) for 3 months at the International Taoist Tai Chi Centre. People have been wondering as I have been a little out of computer and email touch…but I just have been really really busy. It is only 2 weeks, but it seems so much longer already as so much has been going on.

When I first arrived, I was a gardener, getting weeds out and doing some house cleaning. It is really busy time of the year here as we have lots of important workshops going on. This week we are over 550!! So we have been preparing for this the last 2 weeks.

Then last weekend I went to Montreal for a Grand Opening of one of our building in Quebec (Canada Eastern Region Centre). It has been just an amazing weekend with lots of people coming just for sharing a great moment together. I helped out in the kitchen chopping lots of vegetables and the best of all has been being a Dragon leg !! in the parade we did in the streets around the location. It was just so much fun. Our Dragon is 50 legs long…it is the longest in North America….it is pretty fun loading him in and out of the truck I can assure you…especially if you are only 20 people!! He is resident in Orangeville at the Centre but he loves to travel around and show of his beautiful smile!! We also had a Lion Dance in front of the building…and of course Taoist Tai Chi demonstrations and a great Jai for lunch and amazing Lobster Banquet at the end of the day. We also danced folkloric old Québec dance…so looooads of fun!! I was totally tired at the end of the weekend as we run around a lot, did a lot and had little sleep, but it was so much worth it as we had a lot of great times and laughs….how many times in your life can you say: “I was a Dragon Leg!!!”???

Then since Saturday and the CIT week (workshop for Taoist Tai Chi instructors in training) I have been amongst other thing a Barista at the coffee corner we have to do some fundraising….So little by little I am learning to make Espresso, Espresso Doble, Cappuccino, Mochaccino, Caffé Latte, Macchiato…and so much more…my Italian friends: you can be proud of me for sure!!!…at least I hope 

Of course between all of this I am doing Tai Chi, Chanting, Meditation. I also went for a walk the other day in the little nearby forest…and it was so quiet and so nice. It always amazes me here as it could be super busy and have lots of people around…but you always manage to find peace and quietness whenever you need it…and I love the energy here. It is just so great so far to be here and sure we work hard but in a so much different way than I am used to do…sure it gets pretty speedy around eating time especially when we have 550 or 800 mouths to feed….but it is always with big smiles on everyone faces and you always have people willing to help out whenever needed with an open heart, mind and open arms.

 

The favorite and the little annoying of Big Apple

Even if I was there now 3 weeks ago..it is better late than never, so…What I like about New York. Of course I didn’t record all the places but the main ones are for me:

Lovely yoga class on South Park Avenue just after 7th Avenue almost on corner West (BTW they like to ‘JFK’ everything here, so SPA for South Park Avenue or FDR or CQFD…): in Exalte. I didn’t like the Core Fusion thing (fusion yoga pilates with some bits or aerobics/gym…with really loud music…so not my thing but some love it). The Yoga teacher were very good and while we were there if it is your first first time you get a deal of 40$ for a week for as many classes you want…so as I was staying a week I did one a day.

Delicatessen (54 Prince Street): best cocktail is Capairihna with real fresh Blackberry…just a delight + really excellent normal size food. The ambiance, terrace, deco and services are just great and tasty trendy (they have a lovely room downstairs with lots of green sofas).

La Esquina (114 Kenmare): it is a really good Mexican place. The price are super correct and the food is simple but deliciously spicy and from this lovely part of the world. You can eat outside and literally on the corner (translation of the restaurant’s name), but I prefer inside…nice ambiance and people.

Yuri on Madison + a Gelati place on opposite corner on 92nd / Madison: only if you stay in the area. It is good for breakfast and for snack as they are ‘traiteur’. The Gelati on the other side of the 92nd is just like bak in Italia!!

Soho and Greenwich Village area and surroundings areas are my favourite place. I just love them. Wish I had more time to explore more. As well nice European feel in Stone Street (one of the street off Wall Street): it is a real narrow stones’ street with tables outside and pubs. On a warm night it is really nice.

Brooklin Bridge: walk on it and its view on the Liberty Statute and on Manhattan.

Lexington & Columbus avenues (from 86th Street down): nice walking and shopping and coffees.

Of course the great museums.
The Metropolitan: great impressionist area and modern with all the Americans Pop Art and the surealist and so on: really interesting. I regret not having time for much as there is a great Asia/Africa/Latin America section that I couldn’t do…sure next time in New York I go to the Met again!
Moma: best on the 4th and 5th floor (Picasso, Chagal, Miro and great painters)…so go up first on the last floors and then go down and if you still have legs for it you can do the 3rd and 2nd floors.
Moma has a great Bar/restaurant. It is lovely (a bit pricey but really good standard) and great coffee (quite difficult to find in NY…you have  a Nespresso coffee bar on Madison if you need a real fix!!)
Guggenheim. The exhibition was not that great but the building itself is so much worth it…walking up the ramp looking down is just incredible to me…literally love it.

Little annoying about NY
The so called “gratuity” business…which is supposed to be tip for good service. OK I worked in London as a waitress for a little while a long while a go so I am all about tips when your pay is sooo low as it is the only way you can pay your rent…but you fuc**** have to deserve it and serve your customer right…otherwise bye-bye Miss Tip. In London, they overdo themselves to bring you good service and you really tip them for it. Here it is not AT ALL link to service as they are as ‘nice’ and ‘service oriented’ than in Paris (and for anyone who experience the ‘kindness’ of Parisian will see what I mean…and I am French!!)….so most of the time you just DO NOT WANT to tip them for something that it is not here. On top, you have to do the stupid calculation yourself. So please stop calling this gratuity and just ad ot to the bill and for the tax just put it right on the price from the start!! Just make no sense at all at least to me.
 
The over everything and lack of balance, harmony: building, food, Time Square. All is not in big but in HUGE …personally the oversize food just made me not wanting to eat at one point. I wonder how it is possible to eat so huge portion or liquids…it is just so not healthy and kind to your body.  And Time Square: it is a weird place trying to glorify advertisement and TV I suppose. There is so much that you do not really know what you are looking at or what anything means…it is the over-information that kills information … In Moma, you have a drawing by a famous artist (I forgot his name) picturing Mickey Mouse kind of vomiting with writing ‘Say No’ on its ear. It is a critic of the Disneyfication of NY, of Time Square and of the more and more touristy aspect of NY. OK I was a tourist and I pass by Time Square and I even stayed a little. I was a little mesmerised by how it came to the thinking of human beings to create such a place. Certain people thought about this and agreed to just add and add and add and add and add and add and add…it is like the food: more and more and more and more and more and more. It feels a little like you take nourishment (food or TV or add) until you explode… I think I couldn’t believe it. I assume the whole purpose to place your ads on this square might be to be on picture, footage of people and maybe TV that will record this famous place. For me it is a temple to nothingness that over marketing and pure advertising is bringing us to. You have so much information, so much sounds and blinking colours everywhere that quickly you feel absorb, alone and hypnotised by them…but what do you get out of the experience apart from confusion and nothingness???

 

New York is shining again…

So I just passed by in this ‘city that never sleeps’. It was my first time in NY and in the States. I only stayed a week, so obviously  I can’t have a true and complete feeling about this town. But here are my impressions.

For me New York brings the best and the worst in each of us. In US, it is quite black and white and you do not have a lot of grey….either you are a Loser or a Winner…no space for in between…and you so feel it in everything and everyone here.

We landed on a bright hot sunny day and the first day was shinny, huge, exciting, intriguing and full of promises…but as the days passed, the make up and the glamour started to fell away and as the weather became more and more gloomy, the mood and the days followed suits and the shine went away. And I didn’t like the person I was becoming in just few days here…as if it is in the air and it is creeping slowly into you…there are weird vibes in this city…or maybe I am just not use to big cities anymore…or I never was and being away is making me realise that.

Maybe it is due to the recession which is hitting hard here and the people and the ambiance are just not there at the moment…or it is just what it is. Anyhow, I like New York but missed out all the excitement and wonders of the city very quickly. You quickly feel dominated by the oppressing architecture, by the sadness, rudeness and tiredness of everyone here. Nobody apart a very few hardly smile or look at you. Individualism at the extreme is personalised by this city. People looks broken…surely money wise, but kind of soul wise too. They look at the end of their strength for most of them…maybe it is due to the lack of Social Insurance and good Health Care. But lots of them just look worn off…or on the contrary business card on legs counting dollars…which is not better to be honest. Again no in between here.

I have been and lived in lots of big cities before. For example, London is a big city in which finance and business are first to come too…BUT people are kind and civilised, service is there, the city is pretty and you have wonderful little corner shops and coffees even if Starbucks and the big chains are taking over. You have lovely bookstore and you feel culture everywhere. In New York you feel that it is really the jungle, even outside the office…but I was in a real natural jungle less than 2 weeks ago and I can assure you that it was far more civilised than here sometimes….and I thought Parisiens were the worse…well they come close with New Yorkers…

But then the end of the week and the weekend kicked in. With Friday the rain stopped and the sun started to shine a bit and blue sky stopped being shy and showed us its beautiful smile…and New Yorkers going to the beach made the city less crowded and people start smiling a bit more…New York put back is eyeliner and was shining again!!

Then we started finding those lovely places, bookstores, pretty areas…people talking to you in the shop with smile on their faces!! And places that were selling small normal size drinks and food in a refine and pretty way…It was like a breath in a suffocated air.
 
I came here without knowing what to expect but surely it wasn’t what I found. Surely it was just the bad week to come and the time wasn’t the best (recession and weather like)…and on top maybe we didn’t had totally our heart into it at times….and surely being on sabbatical put you in another place and big cities and stressed people and speedy life looks a bit from another world. And first times in big cities could be so overwhelming and quickly tiring as you tend to overdo yourself a lot trying to do everything (we walked from 93rd to Little Italy on the first day…that quite a big stroll if you know the city a bit)

But the last 2 days surely made me crave to know more about the city and to give it another try another time. Now I will know where to go more and what to expect and what not to. And surely this time She will reveal herself to me, reveal more of its wonders, shines and promises coming true.

 

My favourite places in Antigua, Guatemala

It is totally objective, but for me the following are the best places in Antigua…sure I must have missed quite a few…but did have a great time with the ones I love while I was there…

Sabe Rico (6a. Av. Sur…one of the last blocks on the left when looking at Volcano Agua):
When you enter it looks like a simple delicatessen little tiny shop….but do not stop and continue walking in and along the corridor…until you reach the little paradise of a Provencal like garden. It is just plainly lovely and you are amongst flowers, herbs plants, fruits trees, butterflies, gentle bees, little patches of grass, hamacs and colourful little chairs and tables…and to top it of, you have a subtle lounge music in the background accompanying the birds’ songs…Best for brunches with excellent natural fruit juice or for just a coffee/tea break: it is a place in heaven. And the people and service are impeccable.

Rainbow Café (7a. Av. Sur…the before last block on the right corner if looking at Volcano Agua):
It is the hippie place of Antigua. Great crowd, great ambiance, great live music, great food if you like vegetarian and snack food such as humous, pita, superb salad, tacos. It is more for drinks with friends while listening to good live music from 8 PM. You can also find loads of info on voluntary work if you want. They also have a little second hand bookstore…but not a great choice of books. I was there on Wednesdays as it is open mic and one of my friends sang beautifully…but what is nice is that all people who want to sing along do it and then it can make really great nights. So really a must go!!

La Fuente (1st street East going from Parque Central when looking at Volcano Agua on the left):
They have sofas and tables around a lovely patio where stands “majestously” an antigueña fountain. They have good snack food and great tacos and burritos…but the must is their fruit juice cocktails: just delicious. It is a great place for a Sunday reading lying on their sofas or comfortably tucked in their armchair.

Reilly’s (Arch street):
It is the Irish Pub of Antigua….became kind of a head quarter for starts of the evenings. It is in fact a really nice place, great music, great bar tenders, great fun and great crowd. So all good. I tried the food too…not bad while sipping Corona or gulping Tequilas’ shots…could help absorbing the alcohol 

Fernando’s café (7a. Av. Norte):
The best coffee in town…you can take it in their beautiful courtyard or on the go. They also do good chocolate… well ok compared to Belgian’s or French’s it is not as strong and beautiful, but it is quite good especially the ones with spices. Their natural fruits juices are also excellent and without water nor sugar…so puuuuure fruits and vitamins and all the good and healthy things that you can find in a fruit!! And the service and people are really really nice and smiley.

Café Condesa (on Parque Central):
It is the typical spaniard/colonial building and atmosphere. Their coffee, tea and Chai are excellent and the ‘cadre’ is lovely with a lovely little patio and old stuff…be careful not to stop at the Condessa Express which is just their take away spot on the street. You have to go through the library and at the back follow the corridor almost to the end and then you will reach the real thing.

Concerning restaurants, as I was for a month staying with a family I didn’t try a lot of restaurant and did mostly snaks or little places, but two restaurants grabbed my attention:

Escobar Steak House (6a. Av. ‘medio’ Sur):
If you have a craving for real judicious steaks…then it is your place. It is also a Spaniard/colonial atmosphere.

Tartine (1st street East going from Parque Central when looking at Volcano Agua on the left: the square of the cathedral):
It is supposedly a French restaurant…to me it is a mix French/Italian. The food was very good, but the view and atmosphere is what makes it really special. It was my last night in Antigua and with the best company it was really really special. It is on the roof and you see the illuminated top of Parque Central’s monuments. The only down is that they actually kind of rush us out…and for a French restaurant and being a French woman, I found that a bit rude…but it was a little late so couldn’t blame them totally.

For the Hotels, the best of the best quality/price wise….again to me only: Possada San Pedro (7a. Av. Norte #29)
Be careful of the address as they have another one in town, but that one was the best. It is a small hotel as they have no more than 8 rooms, superb pretty little flowery and birdy patios with an old ‘lavoir’ in the second patio. The decoration is truly well done: no tacky, no over the top…just done with style and good taste. You can also use the furnished kitchen and TV/Audio salon. There is a lovely roof terrace where you can enjoy a magnificent view on Antigua’s volcanoes…there you can just read, enjoy the stars and moon at night or early morning…or just sun bath a little. The people are also lovely, friendly and smiley.
Oh, I shouldn’t forget to say that it is really not expensive for this range of hotel and totally worth the extra. I recommend the Room 6.

Of course the lovely and kind family I stayed with: Sylvia Gonzalez. They were truly nice and I felt part of the family. As 2 other English speaker persons were staying in the same home, Sylvia made sure to sit with us so we will practice our Spanish and forget about talking in English.

It is now only a week that I left Antigua and Guatemala…and I really really really miss it. It is a wonderful and beautiful country full of soul, pride and beautiful smiling people. People might not have much, but they are true and what they have is who they are and not what they are or possess…what we seem to forget in our so called ‘developed countries’.

 

Tikal: land of the Jaguar

It was truly amazing. I first arrived in Flores, a little city on the lake, and spend the night there….couldn’t go visiting the ruins on Saturday as the President was on the site and they just closed the whole thing for the day. But I met a lovely woman from Columbia with whom I spent a nice day as we went visiting some cave and went swimming in the lake. She also told me all about the wonders of her fabulous country…it was already but now more than ever on my next country to visit list…but not for this year.

Flores has not much to offer to be honest especially because while we were there they were redoing all the streets network…so it was quite a little mess. But there is a beautiful church and it is pretty from the lake. We sailed on a little wood boat to the “beach”…which is not really a beach but more a shore where you can get out of the water. But the water is crystal clear and is warm and delicious and the sail was wonderful.

Then in the morning I went to Tikal…it was so so hot: at least 40 °C and over 85% humidity. I like it hot…but even for me that was a bit over the top.

After a 2 hours drive from Flores, we arrived in Tikal early morning and went walking in the jungle amongst the ruins for over 4 hours. It is huge and just plain splendid…and to top it of there were hardly any tourist on the site. It is the low season for them and with the swine flu some people just wouldn’t come…well their loss because it is so worth it. There were apparently around 30 000 people living in the ruins of Tikal. The ruins and the city were only for nobility and their crowd…kind of their Versailles but much, much way bigger…and in the middle of the jungle. Of course at the Mayas’time they had deforested much of the trees, so it was not right in the middle of the jungle as today.

It is really impressive especially when you see that most of it is still cover by the jungle. As I was staying in the Park for the night I went back at dawn and woke up to be in the park at 6 AM…at that time I was alone on the path ways…and it was just grandiose to be in the middle of the jungle amongst Zapotes, Quetzales (saw a couple less than 2 meters away but the ones without the long tail), Toucans, Monkeys and millions of others that you just don’t see but hear and know that they surely see you. And then at a turn of a huge Ceiba (the national tree) you just see this huge pyramid Maya’s style surrounded by trees and vegetation! Quite a sight for sure.

I saw the Mel Gibson film “Apocalipto” the other day. People here question it a bit. They told me that it wasn’t like this at that period. The movie is super, super brutal and show the Mayas like a very ferocious people who were afraid of Eclipse and who after cutting the heart of a living soul were cutting his head and making it rolled at the bottom of the pyramid….but well if you really want to depict the French Revolution during the Terror period…we were really brutal too…for god sake we invented the Guillotine to make sure we could cut heads on an industrial level!! And the Romans were having games with human being cutting apart by lions…

So I think nobody knows really how it was back then. Sure they were cutting the heart of a living man and they surely were eating it…so they were cannibal. But on the other end, they build a truly amazing city and fantastic civilisation. They knew as the Incas a lot about nature, about the wonders of plants and the stars and solar system way before we did it in Europe. They even had numbers before the Arabs. It is just a shame that we do not know more about them, but just the ruins gives you a little glimpse of their splendours.

 

Active Voclanoes and temblores

Yesterday I literally saw Earth’s blood.

I went climbing Volcano Pacaya to see lava from less than 1 meter away…dam it is really really hot and it is really as if you look through a blood vein going to the heart of our dear Earth. Of course, nowhere else in the world would they allow you to get so close…you have to walk on lava rocks to get close…and your feet are getting pretty hot …you just hope that the rocks will just not collapse while you are passing by. It is pretty dangerous, but the percentage of accident is minimal compare to the amount of people visiting the volcano…It is almost quasi nul. The guides know what they are doing…at least you hope. This country is all about faith anyway! Apparently, due to the lava getting out at the base of the volcano, they predict that the volcano might collapse one day or another as the top only release fumes and gas…if it happens, well just pray that nobody will be visiting such a day…and that nothing will happen to the villages and people in the valley…

But it is a tremendous experience and it is just incredible to see it once in a lifetime…seeing this moving red/gold mater in fusion is just…no word to describe…for the fun we cooked Marshmallows. Boy it takes fire super quick and no need to touch the lava! Concerning temblores here. Since I arrive (over 5 weeks ago) we have encountered 3 “temblores”…which might be earthquakes for the rest of the world, but here it is just kind of Earth having a little laugh…Chapines are used to it…but it doesn’t make them laugh especially when you have casualties….but what can you do when you live in country with so many active volcanoes…you just have to go with it and be quite fatalist about it or having faith.

The first one, we felt it while we were seating for coffee in Chichicastenango. We just looked at each other a little puzzled…not really realizing what was happening…but as it was lasting we figured out it wasn’t a truck passing by in the next street.
The second, I just didn’t felt it…I was walking in the street and just learn about it as I entered a “tienda” in which people were talking about it.
The third one, woke me up. It is the one that was bad in Honduras…but we felt it far less than over there…but still, it last quite a bit and it is a weird feeling to feel the ground moving and your bed too…and you have nothing to do for making it move! The thing is I wasn’t sure what to do…are we suppose to go outside…but then a big disastrous one can take less than a minute to kill millions…so I just waited for it to pass…was starting to feel a little sea sick at one point but then went straight back to sleep once over.

 

Voluntary work in Guatemala

So the project I was working on for the past month was Nuestros Ahijados and I work in their new project called La Casa Jackson.
 
Nuestros Ahijados is a project of free education of the poor of the poor while trying of taking care of the kids’ families as well in what is possible like building houses in solid walls (instead of the billboard – or close – ones they have) which helps tremendously decreasing respiratory illness; or giving once a week fruits and vegetables for the whole family; doing recycling of garbage via the kids at the School; giving water purifier machine to the families; having a free clinic at disposal for the kids of the School and their families too.
 
The Casa Jackson is the latest new born project of Nuestros Ahijados Association and is around 10 months old. It takes care of mal-nourished babies from few months up to 11 years. Last week we had new babies coming with one little one of 11 months who is tinier than a premature baby with hardly any strength to even eat. But, once they are in the Casa Jackson they are well taken care of and given lots of love, attention and caring…and of course well balanced food.
 
The babies are just adorable and it is such a joy to see them smile and getting stronger and better days after days. For me it was a once in a life time experience. I really admire the nurses, doctors and all the people who work in such organisation every single day, weekends and nights included. It requires a lot of energy and attention and of course dedication….but it is so rewarding. And all what those little ones ask for is just lots of love and attention…and they give you back a million more. You just cannot avoid to love them and to do your best to help. And I truly believe that education is the only path for a nation to grow and live better…and every soul should have the access to better education and good caring.

The Casa Jackson also give advices to the parents on how to better nourish their child. They also help with the rest of the program as described above and they also teach them how to grow vegetables in a very small space.
 
It is a heartbreak for the mother and the parents to leave their child…sometimes they just do not have any other choice. It happens that some mother give maternal milk to their kids for over a year or two because it is easier and they cannot afford to feed them with other means…but for the kid health it is not good to only eat maternal milk over a certain age. But when you do not have the money, how can you do ?
Of course, some say that part of the problem comes from the families having 6 or over children while absolutely no money to even nourish one. During the week I met an odd British couple living in Guatemala for over 30 years. They are from the old school and just love the Thatcher ages thinking it was the best years…they do not dislike Pinochet neither…They are harmless in a way but for them doing voluntary work and helping out here just does not make sense. The weak should be left alone (of course to die) as it is the case in nature: the weakest ones just do not leave by nature’s law. And if you do not have the means to raise a child, just do not have one…well what are we suppose to do? Of course, there is a point in there that with science and medicine we are actually living longer therefore more people are living on our same old planet with the same amount of resources available…But what would mean so many centuries of human kind suffering for what?…just becoming animals again?? I am so happy that this kind of thinking is not for everyone and that some people still believe that we can make a better world and just help each other with all our heart, energy and love.

Sure the problem in Guatemala is far bigger and complicated than just a question of helping malnourish children to get better…but at least you need to start somewhere with what you can and have…the rest is unfortunately not in our hands and I am not sure if it is even in the hands of the Chapines (the people of Guatemala as they call themselves).

If you want to help here there are plenty of possibilities for voluntary work in every part of Guatemala and you will really be a big help to the people here.

 

Español, Español y mas Español…el final…o no

Bueno…

Friday I finally finished my Spanish classes and my voluntary work too. I also moved yesterday away from my lovely host family to a cute little hotel more in the centre of the city….it feels a bit like vacation is starting: no schedule, no alarm clock anymore :-) And the hotel has a top roof wide enough for me to practice my Tai Chi and meditate too…with great view on the volcanoes!!! It is hard to ask for more :-)

 I loved the study of Spanish and I really had a great teacher…a very very very patient teacher (Maria Josefa). I can now speak and understand a little bit more …but I realise that to be totally fluent I would need to spend at least 2 other months studying in one to one classes like the one I had. But now I can talk to people in the street, restaurants and hotel or travel agent…and most important I can understand them…and they do as well!! So I assume it is enough at the moment…and I promise I will keep practicing and studying on my own during the rest of my travel…I mean I’ll try anyway

Friday, I did my last class of Spanish with an excursion in San Antonio Agua Calientes, a village 20 minutes away by bus from Antigua. It is a pretty indigenous pueblo and they have lots of local art especially textile. They are trying to get organised in cooperative to sell their arts in direct (cutting off the middle man) and to make their families live better with the help of tourism while keeping strong their culture and tradition.
It is always a wonder to me how one can manage in our hyper speedy world to enter in the capitalism world and system without losing tradition and culture and maybe a little part of their soul. I really do hope they will manage it. From little I have seen and heard, it is a people really strong who has suffered tremendously over the ages, but still keep a straight head and their pride intact therefore their traditions too. At the moment, most of the time it is the women of the family with their textile who are the ones making the family lives if they can sell their products to the tourist. So they need the tourism to keep going…and they do really wonderful and unique work…and I just love the way they smile.
But it is also true that the number of indigenious’ girls growing without the knowledge of their mothers is increasing. Therefore, villages and initiatives like the one in San Antonio are really important for keeping their traditions.

As for the rest of my time during those weeks…well just wandering around in the still lovely and gorgeous streets of Antigua; going to lovely cafés with great company; eating great food…and still my morning wake up coffee at Fernando’s and lovely brunch and juices at the gorgeous Sabe Rico (the little jewel of Antigua)…and so much more…

As for tomorrow I am going horse ridding on the Volcano Agua…so let’s see what an experience it is going to be.