When we visited Guatemala, they were in the midst of elections. The degree of security risk and instability in Guatemala wasn't particularly apparent to us while staying in our lush hotel in Guatemala City. This story on CNN gives you some interesting perspective on life in Guatemala.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2007/09/09/vassileva.guatemala.elections.ap?iref=videosearch
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Friday, September 7, 2007
Second Trip to Guatemala - Part 5
In the days that followed, we had several other adventures. We slowly began expanding beyond the borders of our room and basically treated the hallway as our front porch. The hallway was perfect for zooming around on the tricycle, periodic games of hide and seek where we would run down the hall, hide in the little alcoves that sheltered the doors to each of the guest rooms, and then dissolve into giggles as we played “Donde es Carolina? Donde es Nelson?” as they would run in anticipation of being caught and thrown up in the air, sometimes collapsing on the ground just to tempt us in to picking them up. Inevitably, they discovered the elevator which became a great source of entertainment. Pushing the button and waiting with bated breath – which door would open? And then – magically – the walls would part and reveal this little room with mirrors – the elevator! The elevator itself had become a source of pleasure over the course of our trip by looking into different mirrors, finding each other’s reflections and waving and saying “Hola!” As the doors opened, both Nelson and Carolina would rush forward and I would have to hold them back. Carolina quickly figured out that if she held her hand in the doorway, against the elevator she could control the magical room from disappearing behind the moving wall. It would take a strong source of distraction to peel them away from the elevator.
For the first time, we ventured beyond the walls of the hotel with the kids. Because the tricycle had proven to be far to big, we felt it would be best to give it to Velvet and find another one for Carolina and one for Nelson. We packed the kids and their stroller into the taxi and headed out to the nearby mall. No seatbelts and no car seats mind you… Fortunately, it was only a short trip. We wondered how they would react to this experience. Did they see us as the “hotel people” – somehow integrally connected to the hotel – or did they see us as “mommy and poppy, people I can trust no matter where we are.” All in all, they did really well. When we arrived at the mall, we loaded them into the stroller and began looking around. It turned out that being in the mall was a little more stressful for us then for them. It’s hard to guess what people are thinking when they see two Caucasian adults with two small Guatemalan children. I wanted my countenance to somehow convey my gratitude to the people of Guatemala for sharing with us their precious children, for entrusting us to take care of them.
We managed to find a department store with a sizeable toy department. To Nelson and Carolina’s delight, it was also filled with small playground sets and little cars. Nelson couldn’t resist stepping into a car and zooming across the aisle. Caroline immediately headed over to the jungle gym and slide. Jim was off paying for their new toys while I was torn between trying to keep Nelson on a clear course, free of pedestrians or any other obstacles, and assisting Carolina as she boldly climbed ladders and zoomed down the slide. Finally, Jim reappeared with two large bags which included a new bicycle for each and few other toys. It was with some relief that we bundled the kids back into the stroller and headed out of the store. All in all, a successful trip and one we may have to repeat on our next trip to build their sense of confidence (and ours) beyond the borders of the hotel.
On our last day, we debated whether to take on the challenge of another excursion – Chucky Cheese… It seemed somewhat daunting. After some debate, we mustered up the nerve to take them only to find out that the Chucky Cheese we had read about had closed. The concierge recommended that we take them to McDonald’s, saying that the play area was really quite impressive. This seemed to be happy medium – walking distance, more familiar, we could eat a little early and have a new adventure all at the same time. As we strolled towards the McDonald’s, Carolina expressed some concerns and we kept having to reassure her that we were going somewhere fun to play. Once we arrived, it didn’t take her any time at all to seize the opportunity to explore. The play area consisted of two long tubular slides supported by a tower of cubes which children can tunnel up through by climbing onto alternating platforms. The children couldn’t quite reach the next platform in each cube, so I climbed in with them and lifted them to each successive platform, after raising myself. About halfway up the tower, you are greeted by the entrance of the first slide – a big opening to a yellow tunnel. With Jim calling for Carolina from the other end, she mustered up the courage to go in and slide down. After the first successful attempt, she was eager to repeat the experience. Nelson was right behind her. I was so proud of them! Each of them eagerly clambered up the cube tower again and again, giving Jim and me a workout. After a few successful slides through the yellow tube, Carolina was eager to continue climbing up to the red tube. I must say, I thought the gaping mouth of the red tube might be a little intimidating and surely, she would not have visibility to Jim or I at some point on that slide. But with Jim’s encouraging voice from the other end, she folded her legs beneath her and headed down the slide only to return again a little later, this time to scramble across the catwalk. We were impressed. Our two kiddos have plenty of gumption!
For the first time, we ventured beyond the walls of the hotel with the kids. Because the tricycle had proven to be far to big, we felt it would be best to give it to Velvet and find another one for Carolina and one for Nelson. We packed the kids and their stroller into the taxi and headed out to the nearby mall. No seatbelts and no car seats mind you… Fortunately, it was only a short trip. We wondered how they would react to this experience. Did they see us as the “hotel people” – somehow integrally connected to the hotel – or did they see us as “mommy and poppy, people I can trust no matter where we are.” All in all, they did really well. When we arrived at the mall, we loaded them into the stroller and began looking around. It turned out that being in the mall was a little more stressful for us then for them. It’s hard to guess what people are thinking when they see two Caucasian adults with two small Guatemalan children. I wanted my countenance to somehow convey my gratitude to the people of Guatemala for sharing with us their precious children, for entrusting us to take care of them.
We managed to find a department store with a sizeable toy department. To Nelson and Carolina’s delight, it was also filled with small playground sets and little cars. Nelson couldn’t resist stepping into a car and zooming across the aisle. Caroline immediately headed over to the jungle gym and slide. Jim was off paying for their new toys while I was torn between trying to keep Nelson on a clear course, free of pedestrians or any other obstacles, and assisting Carolina as she boldly climbed ladders and zoomed down the slide. Finally, Jim reappeared with two large bags which included a new bicycle for each and few other toys. It was with some relief that we bundled the kids back into the stroller and headed out of the store. All in all, a successful trip and one we may have to repeat on our next trip to build their sense of confidence (and ours) beyond the borders of the hotel.
On our last day, we debated whether to take on the challenge of another excursion – Chucky Cheese… It seemed somewhat daunting. After some debate, we mustered up the nerve to take them only to find out that the Chucky Cheese we had read about had closed. The concierge recommended that we take them to McDonald’s, saying that the play area was really quite impressive. This seemed to be happy medium – walking distance, more familiar, we could eat a little early and have a new adventure all at the same time. As we strolled towards the McDonald’s, Carolina expressed some concerns and we kept having to reassure her that we were going somewhere fun to play. Once we arrived, it didn’t take her any time at all to seize the opportunity to explore. The play area consisted of two long tubular slides supported by a tower of cubes which children can tunnel up through by climbing onto alternating platforms. The children couldn’t quite reach the next platform in each cube, so I climbed in with them and lifted them to each successive platform, after raising myself. About halfway up the tower, you are greeted by the entrance of the first slide – a big opening to a yellow tunnel. With Jim calling for Carolina from the other end, she mustered up the courage to go in and slide down. After the first successful attempt, she was eager to repeat the experience. Nelson was right behind her. I was so proud of them! Each of them eagerly clambered up the cube tower again and again, giving Jim and me a workout. After a few successful slides through the yellow tube, Carolina was eager to continue climbing up to the red tube. I must say, I thought the gaping mouth of the red tube might be a little intimidating and surely, she would not have visibility to Jim or I at some point on that slide. But with Jim’s encouraging voice from the other end, she folded her legs beneath her and headed down the slide only to return again a little later, this time to scramble across the catwalk. We were impressed. Our two kiddos have plenty of gumption!
Second Trip to Guatemala - Part 4
That night, I wanted to avoid the tearful good night we experienced on the last night of our last trip. The stroller seemed to work magic at naptime, why not use it at bedtime? I know… bad habits. But with so little time to spend with them, I just want every minute to be positive. We tucked them into the stroller in their jammies with their blankets and within maybe fifteen minutes of strolling, they were sound asleep. Bliss! So began our nightly routine of strolling the children to sleep. Our favorite approach was to take them back out to the swimming pool, which was generally deserted in the evenings, but provided a perfectly serene environment to lull them to sleep. With the pool lights turning the swimming pool to a soothing blue, the reflection of the lights off the surface of the water and the sound of the rippling waves as maybe one guest of the hotel moved in the pool, it was the perfect setting. I would stroll them back and forth, back and forth and sing through my repertoire of lullabies – “It’s a Small World After All,” “Kumbaya My Lord,” “Jesus Loves Me,” “This Little Light of Mine,” “Que Sera, Sera,” “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”
It became a source of great humor for Jim and I each evening to predict who would fall asleep first, watch with anticipation, celebrate as one started rubbing their eyes and hands started to fall limply to their sides, still clutching their cereal box, toy or bottle, or whatever else they had talked us into to bringing with them. Nelson in particular fought sleep the hardest – little wiggle worm. Each time we thought he was getting close, he’d launch his body over the edge of the stroller – safely secured by his seatbelt – he would be half in, half out. Or, he would double over face forward. Then, he would sit back… and with our hopes rising… suddenly launch forward or sideways or reach out a hand to touch Carolina’s face. We were trying so hard not to laugh and disrupt the soothing atmosphere, but it was impossible. I tried to steady my voice and resume singing. With each zig and zag, we would catch a glimpse and reset our predictions until finally, we were assured that they were both asleep and ready to go back to the room and be tucked-in.
On our first night, Nelson woke up whimpering. I didn’t want him to wake up Carolina, so I crept into bed with him to help him go back to sleep. He truly is a squirmy little guy. He would curl up next to me one moment, hand randomly exploring his ear or my face – and yes, to my chagrin, my moles seemed to be a source of fascination. I could hear his little brain clicking.. “What’s this? A button!! What happens when I push it? Do it again!” Ugh… Need to see a doctor about getting those removed. But anyway, he just couldn’t help himself from flopping between different positions – lying down, curling up, laying across my stomach, laying on my chest, laying on the bed, curling up…. Finally, sleep overcame him and I gratefully returned to my bed.
It became a source of great humor for Jim and I each evening to predict who would fall asleep first, watch with anticipation, celebrate as one started rubbing their eyes and hands started to fall limply to their sides, still clutching their cereal box, toy or bottle, or whatever else they had talked us into to bringing with them. Nelson in particular fought sleep the hardest – little wiggle worm. Each time we thought he was getting close, he’d launch his body over the edge of the stroller – safely secured by his seatbelt – he would be half in, half out. Or, he would double over face forward. Then, he would sit back… and with our hopes rising… suddenly launch forward or sideways or reach out a hand to touch Carolina’s face. We were trying so hard not to laugh and disrupt the soothing atmosphere, but it was impossible. I tried to steady my voice and resume singing. With each zig and zag, we would catch a glimpse and reset our predictions until finally, we were assured that they were both asleep and ready to go back to the room and be tucked-in.
On our first night, Nelson woke up whimpering. I didn’t want him to wake up Carolina, so I crept into bed with him to help him go back to sleep. He truly is a squirmy little guy. He would curl up next to me one moment, hand randomly exploring his ear or my face – and yes, to my chagrin, my moles seemed to be a source of fascination. I could hear his little brain clicking.. “What’s this? A button!! What happens when I push it? Do it again!” Ugh… Need to see a doctor about getting those removed. But anyway, he just couldn’t help himself from flopping between different positions – lying down, curling up, laying across my stomach, laying on my chest, laying on the bed, curling up…. Finally, sleep overcame him and I gratefully returned to my bed.
Second Trip to Guatemala - Part 3
The pool definitely became the central source of entertainment for our second trip to Guatemala. They both loved the pool. Nelson enjoyed walking off the underwater ledge of the baby pool into the big pool and feeling himself bob up and down like a cork in the safety of his swimming jacket with me or Jim close by to steady him. His little legs began cycling the instant his feet lost contact with the floor of the baby pool. There was no doubt in my mind that he was steadily learning how to swim. By the last day of our trip, Nelson had definitely mastered the modified version of the doggie paddle, peddling exclusively with his legs. With Jim’s careful supervision to steady him if he began to tip, Nelson made it all the way across the pool. He enjoyed “uno, dos, tres – ariba!” but enjoyed flying through the water like Superman just as much. And if I spun in the water while holding him, he inevitably arched his back only to smile as the back of his head skimmed the surface of the water.
Carolina on the other hand preferred to maneuver without the swimming jacket and instead delighted in being thrown in the air and splashing back down in the water. Carolina captured the attention of all the other hotel guests by insisting on a hands-free swim across the pool with mom – basically, with her holding on to me while I swam the breast-stroke across the pool. Everyone was mightily impressed. She learned to jump into my arms from the side of the baby pool and even to be dropped into Jim’s arms from the side of the adult pool. She could also entertain herself for long periods of time by emptying one cup full of water after another onto the surface of edge of the pool or hot tub. It seemed to me she was trying to get a solid, uninterrupted, smooth, reflective surface area, but inevitably, water would pool into some areas and leave others dry, warranting a fresh application of water to smooth out the surface again.
Mealtimes were also different from our first trip. They seemed much less interested in the food and much more interested in getting in and out their seats for a periodic game of chase and hide-and-go-seek or to take in a quick glimpse of the pool or fountain. Not exactly good table manners, but we figured there would time enough for that later. We relished the sound of their giggles and exclamations or surprise when we would catch them. I think we were generally a great source of entertainment to the other guests, either that or a great source of irritation. Ahh.. I’m going with the former.
In order to avoid the late nights we experienced on our first trip, we intentionally allowed the children to skip their nap. After a full day of playing in the pool and in the room, they were hungry and they were tired. We soon realized that while the one extreme of long naps and late nights were not good, the other extreme of no naps was also not the right approach. Poor Nelson was chewing his food one minute and the next, his sweet little head was slowly descending towards his plate – Jim caught him just in time! When we got them back upstairs, I began drawing them a bath so we could get them cleaned up and tucked in. Carolina still had her swimming suit on as she and I had made repeated trips to the swimming pool that day. After the somewhat tumultuous experiences with bath time on our last trip – particularly getting undressed to get into the bath – I conceded to her desire to keep her swimming suit on in the bath tub. For some reason, having her swimming suit on made her feel that like she was in the pool again. No sooner had she gotten into the tub then she laid down length-wise, began blowing bubbles, giggling as the water leaped out to tickle her nose and rolled over on her back to show us she could do that too! Nelson wasn’t far behind. We stripped him down and after some initial hesitation and calming reassurance from his sister and I, he let his inhibitions go and joined in the fun.
Carolina on the other hand preferred to maneuver without the swimming jacket and instead delighted in being thrown in the air and splashing back down in the water. Carolina captured the attention of all the other hotel guests by insisting on a hands-free swim across the pool with mom – basically, with her holding on to me while I swam the breast-stroke across the pool. Everyone was mightily impressed. She learned to jump into my arms from the side of the baby pool and even to be dropped into Jim’s arms from the side of the adult pool. She could also entertain herself for long periods of time by emptying one cup full of water after another onto the surface of edge of the pool or hot tub. It seemed to me she was trying to get a solid, uninterrupted, smooth, reflective surface area, but inevitably, water would pool into some areas and leave others dry, warranting a fresh application of water to smooth out the surface again.
Mealtimes were also different from our first trip. They seemed much less interested in the food and much more interested in getting in and out their seats for a periodic game of chase and hide-and-go-seek or to take in a quick glimpse of the pool or fountain. Not exactly good table manners, but we figured there would time enough for that later. We relished the sound of their giggles and exclamations or surprise when we would catch them. I think we were generally a great source of entertainment to the other guests, either that or a great source of irritation. Ahh.. I’m going with the former.
In order to avoid the late nights we experienced on our first trip, we intentionally allowed the children to skip their nap. After a full day of playing in the pool and in the room, they were hungry and they were tired. We soon realized that while the one extreme of long naps and late nights were not good, the other extreme of no naps was also not the right approach. Poor Nelson was chewing his food one minute and the next, his sweet little head was slowly descending towards his plate – Jim caught him just in time! When we got them back upstairs, I began drawing them a bath so we could get them cleaned up and tucked in. Carolina still had her swimming suit on as she and I had made repeated trips to the swimming pool that day. After the somewhat tumultuous experiences with bath time on our last trip – particularly getting undressed to get into the bath – I conceded to her desire to keep her swimming suit on in the bath tub. For some reason, having her swimming suit on made her feel that like she was in the pool again. No sooner had she gotten into the tub then she laid down length-wise, began blowing bubbles, giggling as the water leaped out to tickle her nose and rolled over on her back to show us she could do that too! Nelson wasn’t far behind. We stripped him down and after some initial hesitation and calming reassurance from his sister and I, he let his inhibitions go and joined in the fun.
Second Trip to Guatemala - Part 2
The following morning, we hurried to get ready to see our kids. As you can see in the video, I was keen to look nice… what can I say; I want my kids to think their mommy is pretty… I want them to be as proud of me as I am of them. We had planned to meet Jessica early that morning. We wanted to give her some gifts for her and her family and have breakfast together. They were a bit late arriving, but all our concerns washed away as we saw the smiles on Carolina’s and Nelson’s faces – they seemed so happy to see us! I wasn’t sure how they would react when they saw us… but as I swept them off their feet and up in the air and heard them laugh in delight I knew we would pick up right where we had left off. And low and behold, Jessica had brought her daughter Velvet who seemed eager to meet us and join in the fun. Oh, my little girl and my sweet little boy – together again at last!!!
Breakfast ended up being somewhat crazy… Jim and I had developed a pattern of eating with the kids at the hotel. Now that we had guests who we were struggling to communicate with, it was challenging. And – it was a little confusing – it was a little unclear who was supposed to be taking the lead with the kids. Apparently, I must have over-fed Nelson, it seemed we had finally all settled down when everything Nelson had swallowed so far started coming right back out! As Jim described it – a steady, slow-moving river of eggs… Maybe he sensed some of the uneasiness at the table. Not a bad uneasiness mind you, just not quite “at ease.” Poor kiddo… had to change his clothes right off the bat that morning. It was somewhat of a relief when breakfast concluded and we headed to the quiet of our room.
Did I say quiet? What was I thinking? We entered the room and Carolina and Nelson immediately looked around for their familiar haunts – the bathroom – yup, there it was! The toy drawer – yup, there it was! And packed full of new toys!!! We changed Nelson into some clean clothes and played with the kids. Velvet was anxious to participate in everything, and I wanted her to feel included. When I lifted Carolina or Nelson in the air, I made sure to lift Velvet also. Carolina and Velvet started jumping on the bed and each of them seemed to be vying for my attention. I felt a little badly for Jessica, but I know this wasn’t a reflection of anything more than just curiosity and a desire to be part of the new source of fun and excitement.
Our lawyer Osskar arrived after a while and Jim talked briefly with him. We were apparently still on target to bring the kids home in January or February. As I write all of this down now, I think to myself that it just can’t happen soon enough. I miss them so much!!
Velvet cried when she and Jessica left, but Carolina and Nelson seemed to have settled back in to life at the hotel with Mommy and Poppy. I didn’t take long before Carolina spotted the unusual shape in the corner of the room and moved in to investigate. Oh my goodness! A tricycle! And for us, a similar source of surprise, it was way too big for her. She couldn’t reach the petals! We took it out into the hallway and pushed her around. Then it was Nelson’s turn and he was equally delighted to zoom around in the hallway. We explored the new toys in the toy drawer and after a while, started talking about “la piscina” the pool… I had been anxious to spend time at the pool each day we were in Guatemala to get them more used to the water. On our last trip, the pool was an obvious source of fascination, but they were clearly hesitant. I explained to Carolina that she would need to wear her swimming suit. I showed her the new swimming suit I had brought and exclaimed at how beautiful it was and she happily agreed to wear it. If you recall from our first trip, changing Carolina’s clothes so she could wear her swimming suit had been challenging. Not so this time… I changed Nelson into his swim diapers and swimming suit without any issue – such a cooperative kiddo – he’s always game for anything we set out to do. We had sent pictures of our first trip to Jessica, so perhaps anticipation had been building to return to the pool. Anyway, it was a vast improvement. With water toys in hand, we headed down to the pool.
Carolina showed no hesitation about getting into the pool. Nelson too was ready to get clamber into the pool and followed his sister’s lead. The look of pleasure on Carolina’s face as she lowered herself into the water was priceless – this look of wonder and surprise! So cute… There was another family at the pool with a son who was about the same age as Carolina. Sam raised the bar. He put his head under water and splashed around and was generally an all around show off – “Watch me do this! Watch me do that! Look at me now!” Well look and exclaim in wonder at each of his miraculous feats we did and this seemed to be a source of inspiration for Carolina. She was very pleased with herself for lying down in the water and dunking her face quickly in and out of the water. I showed them both how to blow bubbles in the water and amazingly, both Carolina and Nelson began to show an amazing affinity for the water. They had turned into little waterbugs overnight – how had that happened?!! It wasn’t long before I lifted first Carolina and later Nelson into the deeper water and we played “uno, dos, tres – ariba!!” Little by little, I allowed their faces to get a little wet until eventually, we plunged our heads underwater together. We were having a blast!!
Breakfast ended up being somewhat crazy… Jim and I had developed a pattern of eating with the kids at the hotel. Now that we had guests who we were struggling to communicate with, it was challenging. And – it was a little confusing – it was a little unclear who was supposed to be taking the lead with the kids. Apparently, I must have over-fed Nelson, it seemed we had finally all settled down when everything Nelson had swallowed so far started coming right back out! As Jim described it – a steady, slow-moving river of eggs… Maybe he sensed some of the uneasiness at the table. Not a bad uneasiness mind you, just not quite “at ease.” Poor kiddo… had to change his clothes right off the bat that morning. It was somewhat of a relief when breakfast concluded and we headed to the quiet of our room.
Did I say quiet? What was I thinking? We entered the room and Carolina and Nelson immediately looked around for their familiar haunts – the bathroom – yup, there it was! The toy drawer – yup, there it was! And packed full of new toys!!! We changed Nelson into some clean clothes and played with the kids. Velvet was anxious to participate in everything, and I wanted her to feel included. When I lifted Carolina or Nelson in the air, I made sure to lift Velvet also. Carolina and Velvet started jumping on the bed and each of them seemed to be vying for my attention. I felt a little badly for Jessica, but I know this wasn’t a reflection of anything more than just curiosity and a desire to be part of the new source of fun and excitement.
Our lawyer Osskar arrived after a while and Jim talked briefly with him. We were apparently still on target to bring the kids home in January or February. As I write all of this down now, I think to myself that it just can’t happen soon enough. I miss them so much!!
Velvet cried when she and Jessica left, but Carolina and Nelson seemed to have settled back in to life at the hotel with Mommy and Poppy. I didn’t take long before Carolina spotted the unusual shape in the corner of the room and moved in to investigate. Oh my goodness! A tricycle! And for us, a similar source of surprise, it was way too big for her. She couldn’t reach the petals! We took it out into the hallway and pushed her around. Then it was Nelson’s turn and he was equally delighted to zoom around in the hallway. We explored the new toys in the toy drawer and after a while, started talking about “la piscina” the pool… I had been anxious to spend time at the pool each day we were in Guatemala to get them more used to the water. On our last trip, the pool was an obvious source of fascination, but they were clearly hesitant. I explained to Carolina that she would need to wear her swimming suit. I showed her the new swimming suit I had brought and exclaimed at how beautiful it was and she happily agreed to wear it. If you recall from our first trip, changing Carolina’s clothes so she could wear her swimming suit had been challenging. Not so this time… I changed Nelson into his swim diapers and swimming suit without any issue – such a cooperative kiddo – he’s always game for anything we set out to do. We had sent pictures of our first trip to Jessica, so perhaps anticipation had been building to return to the pool. Anyway, it was a vast improvement. With water toys in hand, we headed down to the pool.
Carolina showed no hesitation about getting into the pool. Nelson too was ready to get clamber into the pool and followed his sister’s lead. The look of pleasure on Carolina’s face as she lowered herself into the water was priceless – this look of wonder and surprise! So cute… There was another family at the pool with a son who was about the same age as Carolina. Sam raised the bar. He put his head under water and splashed around and was generally an all around show off – “Watch me do this! Watch me do that! Look at me now!” Well look and exclaim in wonder at each of his miraculous feats we did and this seemed to be a source of inspiration for Carolina. She was very pleased with herself for lying down in the water and dunking her face quickly in and out of the water. I showed them both how to blow bubbles in the water and amazingly, both Carolina and Nelson began to show an amazing affinity for the water. They had turned into little waterbugs overnight – how had that happened?!! It wasn’t long before I lifted first Carolina and later Nelson into the deeper water and we played “uno, dos, tres – ariba!!” Little by little, I allowed their faces to get a little wet until eventually, we plunged our heads underwater together. We were having a blast!!
Second Trip to Guatemala - Part 1
For our second trip to Guatemala, we decided to leave Houston in the evening so that we would be able to meet Carolina and Nelson early the following morning and spend our first day in the country together. Plans are always better in theory…
Unlike the first trip, we managed to leave the house with everything packed – no quick return to the house to grab something we had forgotten. This time, we left the house with four suitcases and a big box containing a tricycle for Carolina. Nelson’s had to stay behind… just didn’t have enough room… hopefully they would be able to share.
We got onto the plane on time, but it quickly became apparent that things were not completely “in order.” The air conditioning was not working. In Houston, in the summer, on a plane, jam-packed with passengers… not a good thing. After some initial delays addressing the air conditioning problem and waiting on our crew, things finally seemed to be looking up. We taxied out to the runway when suddenly the gentleman sitting across the aisle from us stood up and walked toward the cockpit. The flight attendants were all strapped in for take-off – definitely unusual for someone to stand up at that point. The gentleman returned to his seat and a few moments later the flight attendants informed the passengers that the plane was going to have to turn around to allow a passenger and his bags to be removed from the plan.
After sweltering for about an hour, Jim was not happy. The man sitting across the aisle from us exited the plane and Jim just couldn’t stop talking about how this should be against protocol. The more Jim expressed his exasperation, the more frustrated I was becoming… my brain was screaming, “Just get us to Guatemala!” Between Jim and the woman sitting next to the gentleman who exited the plane, a sense of panic about security grew among the passengers to my growing frustration. Of course the crew could not ignore the concerns being raised about the safety of the plane. Security personnel entered the plane, a search of the seat of the passenger who left the plane was performed and all passengers were asked to identify their carry-on bags and insure that no unidentified items were left on the plane. Needless to say, this caused our already delayed flight to be further delayed. Eventually, after reassurances from security about the controls around the tagging of every bag checked, the removal of all bags brought on board by the passenger, we got underway. Finally! We were on our way to see our kids!!
The rest of the flight was perfect. We sat next to a wonderful young woman who had moved to Denver from Guatemala. In Guatemala, she had had a promising career developing websites. In Denver, she was responsible for caring for the home of a family who lives in Cherry Creek, a beautiful neighborhood of Denver. She seemed very attached to the family she works for, but missed the professional challenge of her former job, but as she stated, the rewards of living in the United States more than compensated for her sacrifice. In the U.S., she earns 4 times as much working as a maid as she made in Guatemala as a website developer. She lives together with her mother, brother and daughter and together, with her daughter attending college and hopes of finishing the remaining requirements to earn her own degree, they are making better lives for themselves. A lovely person and a delight to talk to… Lillian gave us some interesting insight into life in Guatemala – the difficulties people there face, women in particular. I asked her what she thought about us adopting a child from Guatemala – which was followed by an unequivocal response of approval. I found this reassuring.
That night, readied the room for the next day. While Jim assembled the tricycle we had brought, I replenished our “toy drawer” and squared away all of the kids clothes and our clothes. Jim just couldn’t get over how girly the bike was. As more and more pink shiny parts began to take shape, he just shook his head in bewilderment. He was completely pushed over the edge by the shiny streamers and heart shaped bag – “surely she doesn’t want this on her bike?” I told him, “Are you kidding? The shinier, the more sparkly, the better! There will come a time when you will look back longingly to the days your daughter loved pink and sparkles!” As the final assembly took place, I took a picture of Jim’s fine accomplishment and what was sure to be a delicious gift.
Unlike the first trip, we managed to leave the house with everything packed – no quick return to the house to grab something we had forgotten. This time, we left the house with four suitcases and a big box containing a tricycle for Carolina. Nelson’s had to stay behind… just didn’t have enough room… hopefully they would be able to share.
We got onto the plane on time, but it quickly became apparent that things were not completely “in order.” The air conditioning was not working. In Houston, in the summer, on a plane, jam-packed with passengers… not a good thing. After some initial delays addressing the air conditioning problem and waiting on our crew, things finally seemed to be looking up. We taxied out to the runway when suddenly the gentleman sitting across the aisle from us stood up and walked toward the cockpit. The flight attendants were all strapped in for take-off – definitely unusual for someone to stand up at that point. The gentleman returned to his seat and a few moments later the flight attendants informed the passengers that the plane was going to have to turn around to allow a passenger and his bags to be removed from the plan.
After sweltering for about an hour, Jim was not happy. The man sitting across the aisle from us exited the plane and Jim just couldn’t stop talking about how this should be against protocol. The more Jim expressed his exasperation, the more frustrated I was becoming… my brain was screaming, “Just get us to Guatemala!” Between Jim and the woman sitting next to the gentleman who exited the plane, a sense of panic about security grew among the passengers to my growing frustration. Of course the crew could not ignore the concerns being raised about the safety of the plane. Security personnel entered the plane, a search of the seat of the passenger who left the plane was performed and all passengers were asked to identify their carry-on bags and insure that no unidentified items were left on the plane. Needless to say, this caused our already delayed flight to be further delayed. Eventually, after reassurances from security about the controls around the tagging of every bag checked, the removal of all bags brought on board by the passenger, we got underway. Finally! We were on our way to see our kids!!
The rest of the flight was perfect. We sat next to a wonderful young woman who had moved to Denver from Guatemala. In Guatemala, she had had a promising career developing websites. In Denver, she was responsible for caring for the home of a family who lives in Cherry Creek, a beautiful neighborhood of Denver. She seemed very attached to the family she works for, but missed the professional challenge of her former job, but as she stated, the rewards of living in the United States more than compensated for her sacrifice. In the U.S., she earns 4 times as much working as a maid as she made in Guatemala as a website developer. She lives together with her mother, brother and daughter and together, with her daughter attending college and hopes of finishing the remaining requirements to earn her own degree, they are making better lives for themselves. A lovely person and a delight to talk to… Lillian gave us some interesting insight into life in Guatemala – the difficulties people there face, women in particular. I asked her what she thought about us adopting a child from Guatemala – which was followed by an unequivocal response of approval. I found this reassuring.
That night, readied the room for the next day. While Jim assembled the tricycle we had brought, I replenished our “toy drawer” and squared away all of the kids clothes and our clothes. Jim just couldn’t get over how girly the bike was. As more and more pink shiny parts began to take shape, he just shook his head in bewilderment. He was completely pushed over the edge by the shiny streamers and heart shaped bag – “surely she doesn’t want this on her bike?” I told him, “Are you kidding? The shinier, the more sparkly, the better! There will come a time when you will look back longingly to the days your daughter loved pink and sparkles!” As the final assembly took place, I took a picture of Jim’s fine accomplishment and what was sure to be a delicious gift.
