Nebaj

I am in Nebaj, a small mountain town in Western Guatemala, and I´m slowly settling into a comfortable and busy routine. I´m living with Maria and Pedro and their three sons, and the house is possibly my favorite of all of my spots so far in Guate. Although the city is very dusty (I cannot even attempt to wear contacts) and the roosters still crow throughout the night, I enjoy having my own little room on the roof, with a table in the sun to work on my Spanish, and a Mayan "chuu" or sauna made of clay bricks that makes for a nice bath when i can manage a decent wood fire and hot water bucket. Nebaj isn´t nearly as impoverished as Pinalito, (how strange that I compare wealth in terms of clean clothes, tennis shoes, and the size of bamboo huts) and it is famous for its very traditional indigenous culture. All of the women still wear woven skirts and shirts, and cook tortillas on a wood stove. The official language here is Ixil, which literally sounds like an African tribal clik-clik language!

As of now, the development work that I was hoping for isn´t panning out very well... the program that I am interested in isn´t organized quiet yet, and although it is discouraging, I am learning to get out on my own to stay busy. I´m taking Spanish classes for four hours in the morning, and gradually finding all kinds of opportunities to meet people. Tomorrow I´ll teach a local old man an hour english class, Saturday I´m off on a long hike to a nearby villiage, and Sunday I´m hoping to meet some missionaries at one of the Evangelical churches in town. I waited tables last Wednesday night for a chain-smoking Indiana man who supports a Non-Profit organization with a small restaurant... I´ve found that many of these volunteer programs attract the most hippie and wayward travelers... and at times I am completely overwhelmed with it all... life seems so empty when I get sucked into their mindset... come to a new place, eat, drink, sleep, take pictures, find another interesting destination in the Lonely Planet Guide... whew... life seems so pointless in this routine!

With that thought, I´ll admit that I´ve had my fair share of panic attacks this week... mostly because this is my first week as a solo traveler in Guatemala... there are no Beene teens or American missionaries to chat with. When I have time to think, my mood shifts to What AM I doing here in the middle of nowhere? What AM I going to do when I go home in May? Shouldn´t I be thinking about a real job by now, with clean-cut Ann Taylor suits and an office?"