I slept until 10 today... There was music playing and people talking on speakers which woke me up. It was kind of cold last night but not too bad. I went to the internet cafe with Kristina... I miss home, even though it is nice here. I wish circumstances were different. After I left the cafe I called my parents and then Kristina and I went to eat. I had rice an beans (really good, but not like in Haiti) with beef ( kinda tasted like beef jerky.) Afterwards we had a meeting with Dr. Cook about our projects. So Kristina and I went back to the lady who served us food. Her name is Rosa. We talked with her about the food her daughter cooks and food that she and her mother cook. As she talked we wrote down some quick ingredients and the words she taught us in K'iche'.
Traditional
Caldillo/broth Carne Asada/roast beef pollo rotisado/roast chicken
1. clavo/clove 1. salsa de tomate/tomato sauce 1. harina/flour
2. pimiento/pepper 2. cebolla/ onion 2. sal de ajo/garlic salt
3. cominos/cumin 3. Carne/beef 4. pollo/chicken
4. achiote 4. arroz/rice
5. cilantro/coriander 5. frijoles/beans
6. cebolla/onion
Tamales carne de cerdo/pork Spanish --- K'iche'
1. miltomate/green tomato 1. tomate/tomato tamale------ lik tamal
2. puches de arroz/rice pudding 2. cebolla/onion frijoles------ kinäq’
3. chile pimiento/chili pepper 3. chile picante/hot chile pan--------- semet
4. hojasleaves 4. carne de cerdo/pork pollo--------- ek'
5. canela/cinnamon senora------- nan
senor--------- tata'
The foods that she and her mother cooked were simpler than the ones her daughter cooks. There are different meats and vegetables used now and their ways of cooking require more work, more seasoning, and more complexity. While they are still using traditional foods and recipes as a basis or their meals, Rosa believes these new dishes will become now become the tradition.
At 3 p.m. we had a meeting with Marc and Celeste. Marvin is a teacher and Celeste sells clothing in the market on Sunday and Wednesday. They told us that sometimes, teachers don't get paid. The money is used for campaigns and the ministry of education does not give the teachers their full salary. Teachers have led protests in the capitol in which Celeste has been a part of. But they only pay them enough money to pacify them, not all of it. They get paid maybe every few months even though they are supposed to get paid every month. There are about 40 students per teacher. Celeste teaches little children, two classes in one room. She is patient with her students and doesn't like to pull them by their ears. Sometimes it is hard for the little children to go to school so their parents hold their hands while they cry, but she likes to make it fun for them. She has songs and games so they can learn by not just writing in a book, because students don't learn that way. Marc showed us how they use teaching implements. He has a dog puzzle that has vowel pieces where the students can put in the right place.
He also tells his students the letter and has them draw the letter and a picture of something that starts with that letter, like "A" for "arbol." In order to graduate, the students are given individuals, and if they don't pass them, they receive tutoring. Marc says there are some really good teachers, but schools are closing because they are not paying them and the teachers have a hard time handling large classes. While we talked with them, they served us pandulce and coffee. The bread was so good! And it had sugar on top! Kristina and I asked about how they make the bread and if we could come back later and watch them make it. Marc and Celeste taught us some more words in K'iche' as the others chatted. Marc has a journal of words he has translated from Spanish to English. He has it broken down into three columns:
Spanish English Pronunciation
It was really interesting I went through it and corrected some of it. Marc also showed us around. They have rabbits outside ("inul" in K'iche') and an oven which is just amazing, It fills up the entire room, but they noted it is hard to clean because it is so deep. They clean it by wetting a cloth and wrapping in around a large stick. The oven was made by their uncle out of sand and limestone.
Marc showed us some of the bread he was making for the fiesta in July. We have an appointment to go cook with them Sunday. After we left their house, we went to buy blankets. Guatemala is known for their large, wool, hand dyed blankets. I am getting a blanket that is white, blue, and gray. We are picking them up next week. They are 150 quetzales, which is like $20.
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