A Few Things You May Not Know About Guatemala....

• It's common to drink pop (soda for all you non-Pittsburgh folks) from glass bottles. And almost everyone uses a straw when doing so. Also, the Coca-Cola here is made with sugar cane instead of high fructose corn syrup and I swear it really does taste better.

• Most of the major grocery stores are owned by Wal-Mart. Sad, but true. Our local grocery store (La Dispensa Familiar) is one of them. 
• Most homes and apartments do not have hot water except for what a friend described as "electric suicidal death showers" a.k.a. widow makers. These little contraptions warm the water as it passes through the device providing steamy showers. It takes a little tweaking to get the temperature and pressure just right, but once you do it's great. Just remember not to touch the widow maker while it's on and your hands are wet or you will get shocked! For all other things (washing dishes, washing your hands, face, etc.) it's all cold water.

What a widow-maker looks like

• Speaking of water, never EVER drink the tap water. We use filtered water for everything- cooking, drinking, even brushing our teeth. We also sanitize all of our fruits and veggies with a special solution. It took some getting used to, but it's not as bad as it sounds. 
• For most Guatemalans, their first language is an indigenous language. Here in Panajachel, most of the people speak Kaqchikel. There are over 20 different indigenous languages. You can see a map of the country and the different languages here. 
• A huge part of Guatemalan culture is wearing traditional clothing. Each region has a distinct style of dress that the women utlize. Although the colors and designs vary, all women wear a traje (skirt), huipile (blouse), and faja (belt). Often, the women make the clothes themselves and spend hours embroidering their blouses. The designs are truly beautiful. 

Naidelyn & Jocelyn two of students sponsored through
Mayan Families. Her blouse is hand embroidered!

• The land of volcanoes, Guatemala has 37! You can even climb some of them, which Dan and I did the last time we were here. 
• There are dogs everywhere. Street dogs are really common and sometimes it's very sad to see. Many of them are skin and bones and usually carry diseases. This is one reason we decided to adopt a puppy here- to save her from a horrible life on the street. I probably see 30 or more dogs a day just going to and from work. 
• Guatemala women are insanely strong. In fact, it seems like all Guatemalans have super human strength! Just today I watched little boys no older than 8 or 9 years old carry heavy bags of cement on their heads. Women commonly carry jugs of water, baskets, and even 100 pound bags of corn on their heads!

Anakleta carrying a bag of corn. She carried it
all the way up the mountain like it was no big deal!

• Guatemala has the lowest literacy rate in all of Central America. I have seen figures as low as 75% and as high as 88%. So far in my work with Mayan Families I have met many people (women especially) who are not able to read or write at all. 

A student at Mayan Families' San Jorge
Pre-school coloring & learning the alphabet.

Hope you enjoyed this {partial} list about the little things in life here in Guatemala! :)