A few things I have learned from visiting rural Guatemala a few times:
Learn to use the side of the road for your bathroom duties. It's a skill and a necessity to be able to stop and go anywhere. I'm proud to say Ellie is already mastering this skill. She often prefers grass to a gas station.
Learn to eat comida tipica because you might have it for every meal, for several days in a row. Vegetarians are a rare and confusing group. Usually if we specify we're vegetarian we get a lot of vegetables. Even if the other option is beans and rice, they might substitute those and serve vegetables. For this and other reasons, we've ceased to be vegetarians here. I still don't cook with meat at home, but when we are out at restaurants or traveling, we've accepted meat as part of our lifestyle.
Learn to ask for directions. There are almost no maps, and very few road signs. One caveat to this is to be sure to ask several people for directions because you will get several different opinions about where the main road is, or where the bus station is. After polling several people you can most likely figure it out by taking the most commonly given directions.
Always carry a tarp. All the people who end up riding in the back of the pick-up will be grateful when it rains.
1 comment:
Too funny! Could you just say that you don't eat meat? Or would that be confusing too and you'd be fed a lot of fish and chicken? ;)
I love all your little insights into daily life there.
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