Hotel Puente Viejo Jalapa

Very nice hotel in Jalapa. Has a nice conference room were we shared a workshop with teachers and principals from the area. Clean, spacious areas, nice restaurant and friendly people!

Jumay Volcano

Volcan Jumay is in Jalapa. Jalapa is called The Oriental Climatological city by its locals. The weather today in fact was perfect about 75 degrees with some breeze.

Ana Sofia Gomez

Fabuolous image in El PERIODICO. Ana Sofia Gomez Guatemalan gymast qualified today for the next round.

ARTURITO

Arturito is the classical name for a parrot. Sure enough this one is called Arturito. He waves hello with his foot and also says HOLA except that I missed the shot.

This parrot reminded me of the story my mom always told about a parrot, names Arturito, of course, that they had growing up. Arturito used to wake them up. HUGO! JULIO! JUANITA! LEVANTENSE! ( Hugo, Julio, Juanita wake up!) . He also new a couple of obscene words which of course he called out whenever there was company. My uncles always claimed the parrot learned those awful words in the previous home he lived in.

Four in a motorcycle

On a Sunday the whole family jumps on the motorcycle to make a MacDonald's run. This is a clear example of what many Guatemalan choose to do everyday to to a lack of a safe and functional public tranportation system.

I believe in Guatemalans!

This is a photo and a moment worth sharing. A view of Zone 10, Guatemala City. On the front of Oakland Mall a sticker that says "I believe" and a rainbow over the city, which to me it is a reminder of the many colors of Guatemalans which TOGETHER can shine splendidly!!
I believe in Guatemalans... :)

JOSE BARNOYA GARCIA

Dr. Barnoya was born in Guatemala city, January 23rd 1931. Medical Doctor from the University of San Carlos and postgraduate studies in Boston and New York in Urology. He performed the first kidney transplant in Guatemala.

He is know for being one of the main promoter of the "Huelga de Dolores" a parody put together by University students of San Carlos de Guatemala that comes out as a parade on the last friday of lent.

He is an absolutely charming man involved fully in life! We met him and took this picture at Sophos when he was presenting his book "Last Words". It also so happens that my daughter Megan goes to school with one of his grandsons!

Below the cover of the  wonderful collection of short stories in his book "Ultimas Palabras"  by José Barnoya García.

Page 92: The Irony

You can be proud, the inform revealed it is man, he has a cromosome X and a cromosome Y . Thirty three years later he was buried as XX.



QUINCHO BARRILETE

This little barrio store called my attention for the name: Quincho Barrilete. Quincho Barrilete was the protagonist of the winning song of the Song Festival OTI 1977. Quincho was  a poor but happy and free boy.






De la marimba de chavalos de la Tirsa 
From the many children of Tirsa
este tal Quincho se las gana a los demás 
This so called Quincho beat everyone else
con sus diez años no cumplidos todavía 
Almost 10 years old
es hombre serio, como pocos en su edad. 
he is a serious man, like few of his age

Mientras su mama se penquea en la rebusca 
While his mom beat herself up to find a job
Quincho se faja como todo un tayacán 
Quincho works hard like a mule
mañana y tarde vende bolis en los buses 
morning and afternoon sell candies in the buses
para que puedan sus hermanos estudiar. 
So that his brothers and sisters can go to school.


Que viva Quincho, Quincho Barrilete, 
Hail to Quincho, Quincho Barrilete,
héroe infantil de mi ciudad, 
Child hero of my city
que vivan todos los chavalos de mi tierra, 
Hail to all the children of my country
ejemplo vivo de pobreza y dignidad. 
a vivid example of poverty and dignity

Que viva Quincho, Quincho Barrilete 
Hail to Quincho, Quincho Barrilete
su nombre, no se olvidará, 
his name will never be forgotten
porque en las calles, plazas, parques y barriadas 
because through street, plazas, parks and barrios
el pueblo lo repetirá. 
the people will repeat it.

Joaquín Carmelo viene a ser solo un membrete 
Joaquín Carmelo comes to be only a badgeque
 le pusieron en la pila bautismal, 
The gave it to him on baptismpero su nombre de combate es Barrilete 
but his combat name is Barrilete (kite)le cae al pelo, con su personalidad. 
his hair goes with his personality
Allá en el Open, vive desde el terremoto, 
Over there in the Open lives since the earthquakea 
hacer lechuzas este Quincho es un campeón, 

por un chelín, te hace un cometa prodigioso 

para ponerle un telegrama al colochón. 


El tiempo sigue, incontenible, su camino 
Time goes on cannot stop its kathy 
el chavalito que vivió en el Open tres 
and the kid that lived in the Open number 3
no volvera a ponerse más pantalon chingo 
won`t wear short pants anymore
ni la gorrita con la visera al revés. 
nor his cap backwards

Un dia va a enrrollar la cuerda del cometa 
One day he will roll up the string of his comet
y muy feliz mirando al sol se marchará 
and happy looking at the sun he will walk away
enfrentará las realidades de su pueblo 
he will face the reality of his people
y con los pobres de su patria luchará.
and with the poor of his country he will fight

TENGO COLCHON

A typical mattress store in Avenida Bolivar Guatemala City

While doing some planning today I said the extra five days before the actual delivery will be our "colchón". Colchón  literally mattress and in this context is used like "time buffer".

The same would go for having money buffer. I am maybe guessing it comes from the tradition of keeping the money saved in your colchón.

GUASTATOYA CENTRAL PARK, DEPARTMENT OF EL PROGRESO

This is the central park of the city of Guastatoya which is the "cabecera", capital, of the department of El Progreso. El Progreso is in east of the country and is  one of the least populated department with less than 200,000 people.

Church of San Felipe

This is the church if San Felipe 2 km north of Antigua Guatemala completed by 1930. My memory of it is going (by car) up a steep hill for 2 long kilometers to a big church with a permanent fair infront. The hill is not as steep anymore the two kilometers ante shorter and the church smaller, yet the excitement of getting there remains. Two reasons to go there or through there (besides the obvious one of visiting the church which by the way is the home of the famous XXVII century image of "Senor Sepultado de San Felipe):

1 To buy hand made clay coin banks shaped as fruits or secret wood boxes.

2 Go through there on the way to Finca Filadelfia

J

Symphonic Orchestra of the Guatemalan Conservatory

Delighted by the music sorrounded by mayan stelles at the Museum of Archeology. An awareness and fundraising event of the Guatemalan Association for Autism.