Feria de San Juan

After two hours driving through the windy roads that weave through the mountains leading to Comalapa, we arrived and were instantaneously overwhelmed with all of the stimuli. We ate lots of fair food (although we paid for it later), rode the Rueda de Chicago, a ferris wheel that is take down and reassembled from one town to the next, and topped off the evening with a man dancing around in a deer outfit with hundreds of fireworks attached to his body. Quite entertaining, to say the least!

Van to Chiq'a'l (Comalapa)

For the Feria de San Juan on June 24, 2010, a bunch of people from the Oxlajuj Aj course took a van to Comalapa to take part in the festivities.

CIRMA (Centro de Investigaciones Regionales de Mesoamérica)

 

One of the highlights to my being in Antigua is that CIRMA (Centro de Investigaciones Regionales de Mesoamérica) is located just a five-minute walk from the main plaza. My first time there, I was completely mesmerized by all of its research glory!

Oxlajuj Aj 2010

After completing the Kab'lajuj Ey Kaqchikel Mayan field school, I started Oxlajuj Aj, a Kaqchikel summer language course organized by Tulane University. Here are some of the pictures from the first few weeks of class....

Xukulem Richin Graham (Graham's Ceremony)

 Graham, Claire, and I

Wo'o' Ajmike chuqa' Ixq'anil

(They were on the other side of the fire).

Just as we were arriving to Antigua, it was time for Graham, one of the year-long interns for Wuqu' Kawoq to depart for the States. To wish him a safe journey home, we held a day-keeper's ceremony for him at the altar located inside PLFM here in Antigua. Here are some pictures of us after it was over....

Nusamaj pa ri rute' q'aq' (My work in the kitchen)

One of the benefits of having a house was that we had a kitchen and could cook our meals, instead of having to eat out all of the time. I tried my hand at a few dishes, and here are some pictures of the results....

Taq Kotz'i'j pa xeruxikin qachoch (Flowers by our house)

One of my favorite things about our house is the fact that there were so many flowers nearby, which tend to attract the butterflies!

Qachoch pa Pan Q’än (Our House in Antigua)

The backyard

Rebecca picking limes off of our lime tree

Our pila

Rute' q'aq' (Kitchen)

Dining Room

Clarice and Claire sitting in our living room

Nuch'at (My bed)

Ruxikin Jay (Bathroom)

After the Kab'lajuj Ey course, we moved to Antigua to start Oxlajuj Aj, a Kaqchikel Mayan language and culture course organized by Tulane University. To get settled in, we first found a place to live in, and we found a house just on the north end of town. Here are some of the pictures of tiqachoch (our little house)....

Kab'lajuj Ey Kaqchikel Maya Language School Clausura

 

After the two weeks of classes, we had our clausura to conclude the course and celebrate the success of Kab'lajuj Ey. It is always an emotional time because you form really strong bonds with everyone, so it is difficult to say good-bye to people who have managed to profoundly touch your heart in such a short amount of time.

For the clausura, the students get to make mini-presentations, so I sang "Jun ti sanik" (There is one ant), which is a children's song in Kaqchikel. I also sang "Velha infancia" with Clarice in Portuguese. Some of the other talents were singing the Kansas alma mater, polka dancing, and having an English lesson for the teachers. It was hilarious teaching the teachers about vocabulary in English related to exercising (lifting weights, jumping jacks, etc.). It is always fun to turn the tables on the teachers and let them be students for a little bit. hehe

Finally, we all wrote a Matyoxinïk (a thank-you) for all of the teachers to thank them for all that they did for us. I am a schmuck for that sort of thing, so I was in tears the whole time I was trying to give mine. It was such a beautiful experience, so I really wanted my Matyoxinïk to communicate my gratitude and let the teachers know how much they each had touched my heart.

Since it was such a special occasion, I asked one of the teachers if she would mind lending me one of her trajes, so I felt so special walking around for the day in my po't and skirt!