Three month mark...

Hard to believe the first trimester at CAG is almost over! We have been working hard since August 1st.  We are now ending our fall break.  Next week we'll have a long weekend for the Day of the Dead Celebration November 1st-November 4th.  

Our Reading Unit End Celebration.  We perform Three Billy Goats Gruff in our outdoor theater

Kinder Team Theater

My teammate and fellow yogi

Off to Quetzaltenango 4 hours west and up the mountains.

Utatlan Spanish School

Outdoor classroom

view from our rooftop

In Quetzaltenango (Xela), we spent our Fall Break mornings taking an intensive Spanish language course with private tutors.  Our afternoons were spent exploring.  Kat and I were able to visit surrounding villages via Chicken Bus.  It's quite the adventure and incredibly economical.  We shopped at the  

Walking up to Chicabal Laguna

Parque Central in Xela

local markets and stayed in an Airbnb apartment centrally located in the historic district.  We met many interesting people from all over the world.  Xela definitely appeals to the Bohemian lifestyle.  I can see how people visit and never leave.  If you want to learn Spanish, it is the place to be.  There are a variety of options.

We ascended to approximately 8000ft.  While standing at the top of Chicibal Laguna, you can see the Pacific Ocean.  We hiked all the way up to this crater lake and felt like we were above the clouds!  

funeral procession through the Sunday Market in Xela

St Jacinto built in 1524

Our ride in a chicken bus to Salcaja

Pig lounging after the rain

 

St Jacinto Church, Salcaja. The interior roof is said to be the hull of the Santa Maria, Nina or the Pinta.

St Jacinto Church, Salcaja

What comes down must go back up!

Hiking up to the Laguna Chicobal 

Laguna Chicobal

descent to Laguna Chicobal

Laguna Chicobal

Welcome warmth on a dreary chilly day

Fuentes Georgina, Hot Springs

On our way up to Hot Springs - Fuentes Georgina

Our neighborhood in Xela

Parque Central Xela

Chicken Bus Rap Performance

Amazing Ride!

Exploring San Juan Sacatepequez

San Juan Sacatepequez Market

Since 1550, every August 15th, the religious festival of the Virgin of the Assumption is celebrated in Guatemala City. In 1776, the capital of Guatemala was moved from Antigua to the valley where it is currently located, it adopted the name of the "Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción", in honor of the Virgin Mary, Patroness of the city. The celebration of the Virgin Mary takes place in different places around the city and mixes the religious fervor with fun and the Guatemalan gastronomy.  So, what better time than to have the day off!  Let's drive an hour north to San Juan Sacatepequez!  Wonderful drive up, up, steep at times, but we made it....

We had a wonderful time exploring and negotiating with vendors at the market.  We spoke broken Spanish and the women would try on their English, giggling and smiling all the while.

My balcony views with dramatic volcanic landscape

Approaching San Juan 

San Juan Sacatepequez Chapel

Vista Hermosa Blvd sunset

You can find anything at the market!

Market in San Juan

Tower of fresh seafood, cucumber, avocado resting on a balsamic glaze.

Exploring Guatemala with Katy

More textiles

My new tables and textiles

My new tapestry.  Lot's of white space to cover!

 My apartment is shaping up with handmade tables and textiles from the markets.  I spend most of my time on the balcony, facing west.  I like the simplicity.  I come and go.  My maid comes weekly to clean.  I have a long list of new places to explore.  Spanish classes start soon.  Salsa and yoga classes too! 

Livingroom, diningroom, kitchen and balcony

May I bring them home with me?

The green beans are amazing!

Mixco ruins

Crack open this fruit resembling a sea urchin and behold a litchi nut lies within!

We're climbing!

Waiting for the chicken bus?

Heading into week #4

It's been a whirlwind, to say the least.  New digs, new country, new job, new language, new students and staff, new friends. 

We had our first assembly for Early childhood (preK-1st) on Friday and our parents meet on campus for Back to School Night tomorrow. 

EC Back to School Assembly "Kinder 3, Anaconda we will be"!

Our students are being immersed in the First Six weeks of school Responsive Classroom philosophies and protocols.  Our assembly outlined our school's Character Counts mission and classrooms chose their mascots for the year.  We're the Anaconda. 








It's a very busy time of year setting up the class climate and ambiance for the remainder of the year.  Build a strong foundation now and we will survive anything life tosses our way.  We're also launching Reader's and Writer's workshops (Lucy Caulkins) and Math pre assessments and Zoophonics.  We are dual immersion, so this is all being done in Spanish and English.  I'm impressed by the level of cooperation and collaboration on our EC team.

Learning about our character values

Beautiful campus

I'm stretching and growing as I try on a new approach to literacy, language and math. 

Our hallway 

 Our Kinder 3 classroom

Art class outdoors

I found a yoga studio in my neighborhood

Flowers from the outdoor market.  Rutger gave me the vase :-)