Photo above taken from rooftop of my Spanish School on the first day of class

I have completed my second day of class. It has been exhausting and difficult yet on the bright side of things I must admit that I’ve already come a long with with my Spanish. I by no means can speak well but at least I can somewhat formulate some sentences and understand more.

It has already been quite an adventure and indeed a huge cultural experience. I have never done something like this before. It is my first time traveling completely solo and living with a host family. The family has eight residents plus myself and a yellow lab (who is adorable but loves to bark incessantly in the middle of the night). The family is wonderful, gracious and very fun-loving yet the language barrier has been hard, especially during mealtime when everyone is eating together and talking extremely fast. It is a unique experience to be an outsider who doesn’t understand the language or culture. Definitely a “third-eye” experience in which I am certain I will learn a lot and grow from it.

I have already taken lots of photos and when I return home will do more detailed posts of my stay here in Guatemala as well as my impressions of the experience. In the meantime I will post a photo a day similar to my thirdeyeworld site (which is short posts containing postcards from my travels). I am sure you understand that it is more important to be exploring my surrounding than spending time writing my stories.

Tomorrow I am rising at 4:30 am to do the sunrise trek to Santa Maria Volcano! I decided to skip a day at class so I could experience the trek. I have hired a Spanish speaking guide so I guess I’ll be practicing on the hike. Wish me luck! I can hardly wait to share the photos with you!!!!

Stay Tuned…..