We may have a new garbage collector. The other one used to yell, “Basura” as he walked with his wheelbarrow down our little path. The last couple of times, he hasn’t. Perhaps he has laryngitis. He has stealthily passed by many doors without his usual friendly “calling all garbage” notification. At least two households last week missed out, and put their garbage out after he was gone. That made the dogs happy, party in the callejon. I haven’t missed him yet, but it means I have to stand there waiting with my garbage in hand until he comes for it. Yes, it’s either that or put it out 2 minutes early and have the garbage-pooches scatter it from here to the lake. That’s not fun either. Don’t get me wrong, waiting for the quiet collector is preferable to me having to bury or burn my own garbage.
Madi and I went for breakfast and she did her math. After that she went up to the school for a few hours. Meanwhile, I went to a cafe here well known for coffee and conversation. The owner and his family had just returned from a few months in South Africa. There is always an eclectic mix of people interacting there. Today there was a man from France, a few gringos, a few Guatemaltecos all talking about South Africa, then about Argentina. Having been to neither country, I was intrigued. He also had a couple of newspapers from the U.S. available. Paul will be the first person to tell you I’m not a regular reader of the paper. But there is something about having a coffee and a paper that even I can’t ignore its occasional allure.
I went home and girls returned from school. We walked to Solomon’s Porch to rent a movie, it looked like rain. We haven’t had rain since we’ve been here, so I suppose it’s high time.
Many of the people here still cook their food over an open fire. A couple of times a week you will see pick-up trucks dropping off firewood at the side of the road (see pic). People come with wheelbarrows or the women carry the wood on their heads, men on their backs. They carefully pick out the pieces of wood, as if they are vegetables at the market. They must be able to tell from looking at pieces how they will burn. You can smell the fires burning at night, especially when you walk on the smaller paths through the poorer neighborhoods at night. Cali always wants marshmallows and says it smells like being at the cottage.
Fires are more a way of life here. People cook over them, set small fires to burn their garbage and walk away, tiny kids (age 4) are lighting firecrackers in the street. Last time we were here we witnessed two large trees being on fire, that didn’t even merit a visit from the fire department. So I suppose it shouldn’t have surprised me when Cali came home from school and said their science lesson was on trying to start a fire. Perhaps it’s seen as more of a life skill here. The starting fire lesson was part of a science unit they are doing on cavemen. No, I’m serious. So far she has learned that cavemen rode elephants, ate fish and lion, and invented fire. Cali says science was never this interesting at home. Perhaps it’s because learning how to make caveman fire isn’t part of the current second-grade Canadian curriculum. I hope none of her teachers ask her what she learned in school while she was away. “Well, we practiced starting fires like the cavemen.” I’m just grateful the kids haven’t had the lesson on fire accelerants….yet.
Every walk down the streets delights the girls with animals of one kind or another.
We also saw some bananas, which oddly, never stops amusing us.
We met Madi’s teacher while we were walking down the street. She was taking pictures of Flat Stanley in Panajachel before she mailed him off to a different school. In this way kids connect with and learn about other parts of the world. We took a picture of him at PanaRock, because what is more Pana than that?
We didn’t make it to the Save the Lake event because Madi’s stomach started bothering her. Instead we went home and had a low key movie night. Every day she says something that makes me laugh, but I often don’t remember it later. Today I wrote it down, “Important safely tip mom, never come between a man with a huge gun and his armored car full of money.”
Cali’s blog: Today I had lots and lots of fun. We had science first thing when we got to school. We finished our skeletons. Then we had lunch. At recess we went outside and played our usual game. When we came in we went right back outside again to take a test about how the caveman used to start their fires. The test was one quesetion, how did the cavemen start their fires? Everyone said they started their fires with two sticks, but I said two sparking rocks. I was the only one who got that right. So next we were all told to try to start a fire with that method, but none of us could get one started. I didn’t have the right rocks. After no one could get a fire started, we all went back inside. Then we had English. We learned a new song. It was called Back to School Rap. When the bell rang I went home in the tuk tuk. Since it was Friday I paid the tuk tuk guy Jonathan. I had three scrambled eggs when I got home. Then we went to rent School of Rock from Solomon’s Porch. We had popcorn and then I went to bed. P.S. I love you all very much. I hope Madi isn’t sick like I was because my stomach really hurt.
Madi’s blog: Today I went with mommy for breakfast at her breakfast place. I had rice. We asked if they made it without all the veggies in it, but they said they didn’t have that kind. Then I had a topolino from Saritas and went to school. At school I did three math lessons and got 100% on each of them. Then I went home. Then I paid Cali’s tuk tuk’s driver. Then we watched a bit of Batman and walked to Solomon’s Porch to rented School of Rock. My tummy started hurting a bit on the walk home, but I hope it’s only something little and not what Cali had. I don’t want to be sick when Kier comes.
