So I found it no surprise, dismounting from my bus in Antigua today, that a group of ten or so boys were grouped around the flaming legs of a piñata, stuffed to the brim with rockets (their obsession with pyrotechnics also tends to yield ideas for using explosives really creatively!). But I was a little startled when I glanced down the main road and saw dozens of groups congregated around their own scorched, sparking mounds — especially when I noticed that the women had been taken in, too. This, I decided, was not just any laser show. This was something more.

Photo by Flickr user Miggslives (Creative Commons)

La Quema del Diablo, or ¨the Burning of the Devil,¨ takes place every December 6th at six o’clock sharp. Having arrived in Antigua at 6:08, I was privy to navigating the smoking, stinking piles with my full pack and was definitely cursing the devil by the time I found my hostel. La Quema del Diablo is an exercise not only in pyrotechnic mastery, but also in cleansing the home and self before the feast of Our Lady of the Conception (celebrated December 8th) as well as the oncoming Christmas holidays.

In addition to piñatas and firecrackers, trash and rubbish from inside the home is brought out onto the streets to be set ablaze. It’s a tradition whose Mayan roots stretch back centuries — though I cannot ascertain what they were using before Roman candles — and which, by burning the impurities of the home, gives spiritual cleansing and renewal for the new year.

The spirit behind La Quema del Diablo is actually a beautiful and universal tradition in bringing in a new year. But only Guatemala could pull it off with such a bang!

Kate Bennett is currently researching nonprofit effectiveness in Guatemala. For more about her experiences, check out her blog.

Everywhere you look, every product you pick up, whether it be an agricultural good, a piece of clothing, or a new bit of technology, it is stained with the sweat of exploitation and big business. The ignorant proletariat masses spend their minimum wages on cigarettes and Victory gin, supporting the institutions that keep them suppressed. In this chaotic backwards global environment, the people who produce the food for the rest of us are starving. The irony tastes like rice and beans.

Pedro is a farmer who speaks plainly and directly about the progressive impoverishment of the community in which he lives, Los Chiles, located in the heart of Central America in Northern Costa Rica. Pedro and his fellow farmers earn a living by producing the foods for consumption by families in Europe and North America.

At the moment, farmers in Los Chiles are struggling to produce hot peppers which they sell to a Spanish exporting company at 177 colones (35 cents) per kilogram. After all the costs are accounted for (transportation=100, labor= 40), this price leaves 37 colones (7.5 cents) per kilo for the farmer.  My visit to Los Chiles made me realize how dependent the livelihood of farmers is on the weather. Speaking about a bacteria which killed a portion of his crops he said, ¨Against nature there’s not a lot you can do.¨

In my interview with Pedro, he scolded me.

¨For you people who come from the outside, you should know that companies like Tico Fruit, Dole and Del Monte are not creating jobs; they are impoverishing the area further. The jobs created are short term contracts which pay low wages (less than two dollars per day) and some days for example, orange pickers get no pay because the collection trucks have already been filled. The companies come in, buy the land from the local farmers at prices above the market value, and poor farmers accept because they’ve never seen that kind of money. The companies don’t care about people, all they care about is making a profit. We are the losers,¨ he said.

Pedro is obviously deeply troubled by the situation in Los Chiles. He is a proud farmer who has held out, refusing offers to sell his land (Tico Fruit owns a large orange plantation on the neighboring property) while watching his neighbors sell and move to the cities.

Pedro has stood his ground and continued to produce on his own. He is a member of a group of producers who have banded together to share methods and ideas in order to be more productive. I asked him what outside help the producers had received.

¨The main obstacle is money. Organizations that give loans or grants help a lot,¨ he said.

Sebastian Kindsvater is currently living in San Jose, Costa and is the Kiva Coordinator/Loan Officer for Fundacíon Mujer. To contribute to the livelihood of Costa Rican farmers, check out Pedro’s loan on Kiva.

Whether it is the self-growth that has occurred or simply the intensity of being in a foreign country, it can be hard to return to normal relationships and daily life at home. The two Peace Corps volunteers I spoke with (both here for at least one year) expressed the importance of having a support base, and/or a friend or family member who has had a similar experience or who has come to visit and seen firsthand the lives they live in Guatemala.

For example, everyone has heard of a chicken bus. But no one can truly understand the chicken bus experience until they have spent at least one hour jammed into a row of three on each side, halfway to the back on the bus. It is this kind of experience that defines a journey to Central America. It is a dividing line between those who know and those who do not.

One of the Peace Corps volunteers has asked for a year extension for her work, not ready to go home, and the other has come to terms with the idea that this is her life. Her life is one in which the expectations she had for herself and where she thought she should be after graduating college have changed. She is not heading toward a traditional life of post-graduation house-buying and baby-having and has, slightly reluctantly, given in to her internal desires to pursue an international experience.

Regardless of paths people take, the word “should” came up in every conversation. What they thought they should be doing after college, who they thought they should be, where they thought they should be. Dan, the hostel worker from my previous post, offers an interesting point: your social environment defines and reminds you of the “should” you created for yourself. Once confronted with life outside of the “should,” an individual is able to come closer to realizing their true desires — or at least their “should nots.”

So, for now, I would like to note that those who are here living and/or traveling in Central America quickly realize the value of their time here for their personal and professional futures. They recognize that “should” is relative and life is not linear. But how do they feel about the “should” and other challenges to their self-understanding? And what do their friends at home think? More on that in a future post.

Texan Whitney Devin is currently traveling around Central America, seeking volunteer opportunities.

Let me explain. Cheese man  — from here on out referred to as, we’ll say, Hurley — runs a successful farm and tourist attraction in Acul, El Quiche, Guatemala. Often referred to as the Swiss Alps of Guatemala, Hurley greets dozens of hiker-happy tourists each week in his humble abode with tortillas con queso and tasty lunches (I don’t work for the Quiche Tourism Board, I swear). As a result, Hurley comes to know many of the long-term gringa development workers, and is able to sit back as they literally hike hours to see him. A stereotypical Latino man in his desires, he was nearly groveling at my feet due to my blatant disinterest and general disregard for his come-ons (though I was thrilled when the courting process progressed to free wheels of cheese and gallons of milk. Hey, I’m a Midwest girl after all). Like I said, the lack of romantic options can grate on you, and in the end my Spanish has never been better.

Fresh cheese in Acul, Guatemala. Photo from Flickr user Larry Bird's Mustache.

So back to my hypocrisy. Hurley invited me to his cousin’s farm with him one Sunday after he finished playing a soccer game. I had a vague idea of where the farm might be located, but otherwise was completely in the dark. He only told me to bring a bathing suit because of an alleged pool and hot tub, but being skeptical, I didn’t expect much. This is Guatemala after all.

I started getting suspicious when we passed a hydroelectric dam. Having studied Environmental Science, I immediately asked if we could get out and look. “Oh don’t worry, it’s on my cousin’s land. We’ll look at it once we get there.” I’m sorry, what Hurley? Your cousin owns a dam? A dam that ruins ecosystems, creates lakes where rivers should be, and sells electricity to the cities while the community members alongside suffer in adobe homes? “Please don’t ask him any questions. My cousin and his wife are good people, and I am certain you will like them. But don’t ask questions.”

First of all, this is always a bad sign. Second of all, please never tell an outspoken, precocious, little redhead to not ask questions. It’s generally not good for anyone involved.

It turns out, dude’s cousin is a Brol, an extremely powerful, wealthy, and infamous family in Guatemala. Their participation in the 36-year armed conflict made them many enemies, and they lost three family members to guerrilla attacks. (On this particular farm to which we were going, Finca San Francisco, the Brols allegedly sought revenge on a guerrilla and put him through the coffee drying machine alive. This wasn’t a part of the tour.) We roll up to San Francisco, and pass into a mini-village. Enrique Brol provides houses, an industrial kitchen, public pilas, schools, two churches, shops… basically an entire village for the 100 families that live and work on the plantation. Over 700 people.

Having spent the past seven months enjoying tortillas and tamales in one-room adobe homes, a two-story Spanish colonial style home surrounding a 20′ x 20′ inner courtyard with pool and hot tub was a bit much for me to handle. After being served fruit and fresh coffee, we toured the caged animals, including deer, hedgehogs, some mysterious Central American carnivorous rodent, and a a spider monkey. Environmentally destructive engineered construction? Check. Domesticated wild animals? Check.

After visiting the animals, we went on four-wheelers, dirt bikes, and an off-road 6-person golf cart to one of the waterfalls on the grounds (Gas-guzzling recreational vehicles? Check). I took this opportunity to ask Quique the questions Hurley said I wasn’t allowed to ask. Who cares for the dam? Who is the contract between? How are you making up for the environmental damages? Is your coffee organic? Do you steep slope farm? Who do you sell it to? Who is that lady? The answers were brief, but seemed to be genuine. I imagine he wasn’t so accustomed to Hurley’s guests interrogating him. Following our gourmet dinner at the 20-person dining room table, we warmed up in the hot tub, played pool, and slept in our overstuffed, down comforter beds.

I knew that as I was being served lemonade in the hot tub, people just outside these fenced-in walls were bucket bathing with cold water. We all miss the comforts that we have at home: we might not all have hot tubs, but we don’t refuse to enjoy them. I spend weeks trying to find sponsors to provide our students with Q75 a month to pay for their schooling, but I don’t shy from buying a Q60 bottle of wine. Clearly my experience with the Brols is a bit dramatic, but how far is too far in terms of hypocrisy? As we all try to integrate ourselves into the cultures and communities of the developing world, do we leave behind the luxuries of our own culture? Is it wrong for me to be upset over having spilled water on my Macbook?

Bridget Barry is currently a Program Associate with Limitless Horizons Ixil in Chajul, Guatemala. To read more about Bridget’s time abroad with limited economic means, check out her past entries.  Or peruse posts by other La Vida Idealist bloggers to learn more about Guatemala.

6th grade students at a graduation ceremony in Proyecto Semilla, a school for child workers in Panajachel, Guatemala

At least, that’s the idea driving Mil Milagros, a Boston-based non-governmental organization operating in four schools around the tourist town of Panajachel in Guatemala.  Mil Milagros feeds around 600 students every day for the cost of about $1.20 per child; by feeding children a hot lunch in school, they ensure that children will finish primary school.

According to Guatemalan government statistics, 56% of the population lives in poverty and only 30% of the children in Guatemala complete sixth grade. Among Mayan girls, 79% do not finish primary school.  A recent article in The Economist put child malnutrition statistics around 80% in parts of rural Guatemala where the population is predominantly indigenous. Mil Milagros, however, believes the percentage to be much higher.

Mil Milagro’s mission is  to improve the health, well-being, and educational outcomes of children in Guatemala. High aspirations, but they fall in line with the United Nations’ equally ambitious UN Development Goals to achieve universal primary education and end poverty and childhood hunger by 2015. Mil Milagros is working to make these ideals a reality.  With day-to-day operations run almost entirely by their Guatemalan staff, Mil Milagros currently provides hot lunches to each school, nutrition classes to mothers, teaching seminars to teachers, and school supplies as well as dental and hygiene products to the students of four schools in the municipality of Sololá.

The success of Mil Milagros’ programs comes from their emphasis on strong partnerships and active participation of the teachers, parents, and students. The school of Chichimuch in Santa Lucia Utatlan serves as a glowing example: hot lunches are prepared everyday by a team of five mothers, each serving a voluntary shift every 20 or so days. While currently the hot lunches are dependent on funding provided by Mil Milagros, the community is already launching innovative fundraising programs. Last year the school purchased 140 chicks, one for every student. The children raised the chicks and after only a month the school was able to resell them, doubling their financial capital and fostering horticultural skills in the students. The schools seek to expand such programs to include school gardens and similar livestock projects.

Not only do these homegrown initiatives raise additional funds for the schools, they serve as incredible examples of capacity-building and sustainability through nonprofit work.

Kate Bennett is currently researching nonprofit effectiveness in Guatemala. For more about her experiences, check out her blog.

The concept of having the time to slow down and look inward while in unfamiliar and often challenging surroundings in another country is one that Dan, who works at a hostel, finds the most valuable. Dan is a recent college graduate with a degree in Philosophy (among other concentrations) and is about one month into his travels but is already noticing the self-growth he has experienced. He notes that while at home in one’s social comfort zone, it is easy to allow others to shape your identity.

Social environments can create a system of continuity in which a person rarely challenges or reassesses the decisions they make in life. At home, it is easy to become overwhelmed with the number of possibilities and without realizing it; a person can choose a path that may seem right but it is often realized later that it is not the best path for the individual’s development or happiness. Dan points out that for now, the path he has chosen is to experience another culture and take the time for personal and spiritual development. He views this as a preparation for a more successful future, a view also expressed by many others I have met.

How much does self-awareness and getting out of one’s comfort zone help or hinder professional success?

Texan Whitney Devin is currently traveling around Central America, seeking volunteer opportunities. Part II of this blog post will explore balancing relationships at home with life abroad.

But everyone has a different threshold when it comes to the level of cleanliness in which they feel comfortable. I have experienced a range of levels of acceptance for things like dirty dishes, dirty bathrooms and growing cockroach populations. These are the inevitable problems roommates must cooperatively manage.  Living with strangers is always a bit risky; it’s like an intense speed dating session with no escape. In general, people try to get along but I’ve come to realize that it is unrealistic to expect everyone to get along. Interpersonal friction is inevitable.

In Costa Rica — and I imagine in any country that is foreign to a person — I feel like there is an added incentive to get along with your roommates. For one, I have no idea what my legal rights are as a tenant. It would be very difficult (not to mention costly) to enforce those rights, so it’s better to avoid having to pull the legal card.

Likewise, roommates are a source of support. It can be alienating sometimes living in a foreign country. Having someone to talk to and share experiences with is therapeutic. Roommates can remind you of your friends and family back home in an otherwise strange world. You help each other navigate the intricacies of local problems like how to get a cell phone hooked up, which parts of town to steer clear of, and which fruit vendor sells the best avocados. You help each other work through similar problems and situations in a new country. In general, it’s just better to try and get along, for so many reasons.

The following are a set of rules which should be agreed upon before allowing a new roommate to move in, or a guest to stay on your couch. Although they may seem simple and might sometimes be regarded as  “unwritten”  rules (ie. common sense), I can tell you from personal experience that some people need these rules to be written down. Agreement on these principles will help you to avoid uncomfortable situations in the future — even evictions.

1. Don’t eat or drink other people’s food without permission. If you do so, replace it.
2. Don’t smoke inside without consulting those who will be affected by it.
3. Don’t bring an animal into the house without consulting the people who will have to live with it.
4. Clean up your own mess. Contribute to communal cleaning once in a while.

These rules came to me as I was sweeping and mopping the couch area where our latest guest mooched for the past five days. Of course, these types of freeloaders are always very social and generally upbeat, relaxed, without many worries or responsibilities. The trouble is they create a mess, eat your food, and do it all with a sense of self entitlement that almost makes you wonder if they do deserve to sleep on your couch in an endless hung-over state, watching your television and eating your grapes. I suppose I only have myself to blame for not laying down the law and kicking him to the curb; hopefully, someone out there can learn from my mistake.

Sebastian Kindsvater is currently living in San Jose, Costa and is the Kiva Coordinator/Loan Officer for Fundacíon Mujer. For more on living situations in Latin America, check out “Homestay in Rio: An Ode to Ica” by Mehr Amin, “Department of Homestay Security” by Kent Green and “For a House to Become a Home” by Flora Lindsey-Herrara.

Photo by Flickr user Swiatoslaw Wojtkowiak

What strikes me most about Central America are the dumps. Yes, the dumps, those places with the trash. Where I grew up in the United States, trash was out-of-sight, out-of-mind once the garbage truck came by. But here, dumps are rarely hidden and hardly contained, and for miles around you can see remnants of litter scattered throughout the campo by the wind. This sight really makes me consider the impact of my travel here and wonder if the way I travel could be any greener for the benefit of Guatemala and for our earth on a whole.

Luckily, there are a lot of handy tips for green travel. It goes without saying that before you leave home, turn out your lights, unplug your appliances and chargers, and don’t leave your coffee maker on. Don’t buy those travel size products, as cute as they are- smaller products mean more packaging, and more packaging means more waste. For example, I like to travel with as little weight (for as little cost) as possible, so instead of buying teeny-tiny shampoos I try to fill up reusable containers from home.

Another really important thing to keep in mind is the efficiency of your transportation. One good (and cheap) option is to travel by train or bus rather than flying- however, if a flight is essential you can by carbon offsets for your flight at sites like CarbonFund or TerraPass. Obviously this is slightly pricier- my flights from New York to Guatemala spit about 2,052 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere, and offsets cost about US$10-18. If you’re really gung-ho, you can look for flights from JetBlue or Continental, two of the greenest major airlines, according to GOOD Magazine, and opt for direct flights, because the majority of fuel is burned during take-offs and landings. Continental even gives you the option to buy your offset when you purchase your ticket!

Once you land, try to find hostels or hotels that are eco-friendly, like the Green Hotel Association or HOLA hostels (HOLA also gives discounts to its members!). Make an effort to eat locally — that is to say, eat food that hasn’t been imported, no matter how much you miss your peanut butter. The local fare tastes better and fresher, and will also give a helpful boost to the economy. On that note, try to limit your souvenir purchases to goods made by local artisans, rather than hats and shot glasses manufactured in China. Finally, don’t litter, and  carry your trash out on hikes! We travel to beautiful places to see beauty, so let’s keep them that way.

Kate Bennett is currently researching nonprofit effectiveness in Guatemala. For more about her experiences, check out her blog.

If you’re carrying a few pairs of jeans and T-shirts, maybe you’re traveling for a week or so, but not long enough to wear everything twice. But if you’re stuffing a tent, four soccer balls, school supplies for 40 children, dozens of English books and magazines, a stack of papers on payment for eco-system service schemes, and one heavy-duty pair of work boots into a 70 liter pack while wondering if you even have room for your digital camera,  that’s when you know you’ve got your work cut out for you.

Note: this is NOT a Gregory ad. But I do love my pack!

In my two months in Guatemala, I plan to volunteer with three incredible groups: Mil Milagros and Manna Project International, both based out of Panajachel, and the Chico Mendes Project outside of Quetzaltenango. I will also be conducting participatory and structured observational research on nonprofit effectiveness in Guatemala.

I recently graduated from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Economy, Post-Colonial History, and Development and finished over a year’s work with the Research Center for Leadership in Action, an incredible organization which gave me invaluable experience in nonprofit organizational effectiveness and management. After a year and a half of heavy club involvement at NYU, a full course load, and a 20+ hour a week job, I made the decision following my graduation in January 2010 that maybe I should take a break.

My break took me all over South America, and it reminded me of past experiences traveling and volunteering abroad, including two volunteer trips to Guatemala and Honduras. Without a doubt my greatest joys on this trip was the time I spent volunteering and the people I worked for. I knew I couldn’t have made a better decision for myself.

Upon my return to the States I started working nine to five, but after a few weeks I realized that Latin America had a hold on me — I starting yearning again for warmer, more Southern pastures. In a miraculous turn of events, I received the NYU Dean’s Award for Graduating Seniors which will fund my two months of travel, volunteer work, and research in Guatemala.

But as I’ve said, “volunteer” doesn’t seem to encapsulate how desperately I want to be doing this. Honestly, I’m overjoyed to be carrying this monster of a bag back to Central America. I couldn’t be happier. Though I’m sure I’ll be a lot happier when I finally get to Guatemala City, and I can lay down my pack for a few days.

This is Kate Bennett’s first post on La Vida Idealist. For more about her experiences, check out her blog.

Farmer explains a bad crop of maiz.

When in Central America, do as the Central Americans do: slow down, make it count, and when in doubt, wing it.

Things such as internet connections, water pressure, food service, bus travel, etc. run much more slowly here than in the U.S. In the communities I’ve visited, I’ve witnessed hard-working people — farmers and bus drivers, for example — who understand the importance of making their time count because their livelihood depends on it. I have also noticed that when you ask someone a question they will ponder for a moment, and then give you an answer. It may not be accurate but they will wing it – especially when giving directions.

After about a month in Nicaragua, I passed through Honduras and arrived in Guatemala. Since my original departure I have had two interviews for unpaid long-term positions with two organizations. They both asked for my assistance with their projects but when the time came to fully commit… I froze. Am I really ready to stop traveling and dedicate all of my time, energy, and remaining funds to this one cause? How can I balance doing good for others while getting the most value out of my trip?

Things were moving too quickly and I clearly wasn’t ready to settle down. I chose instead to make the most of my journey, to slow down, see as much as possible and to make it count. When I find myself doubting or wanting to do more for the people I encounter, I will wing it and use my experience to make a meaningful impact as an individual.

Cooking tortillas in the morning

For example, while staying on a finca in Northern Nicaragua, the woman of the house expressed to me that she was unhappy with the relationship her community had with its current tourism co-op. I offered her some advice on how to begin her own co-op or organization that would better serve her community and will maintain contact with her to help in any way I can, perhaps with the option of returning. She greatly appreciated the advice and I had an amazing experience learning about her life.

Also, while eating in a market in a small highlands city in Western Honduras I ended up giving two young men a three-hour impromptu English lesson with the printout worksheet they found online. They were desperate to learn the language but could not afford to take classes.

These simple examples of community interaction have the potential to make an impact. In addition, I am noting the level of need in the areas I visit. What resources are available, and how well are they functioning? Where are the gaps?

The door is always open for me to return. For now, I will seek out such opportunities before I settle in one spot: taking my time, making it count, and just simply winging it.

Whitney Devin is currently traveling around Central America, seeking volunteer opportunities.