Israel Going to Guatemala

Last day of School/Monterico/Going home

2008-07-20T16:27:00.000-07:00

Last Day of School
On Friday 18 we all took our final exams to determine our grades for that course. Most of were proud because we were giving good grades. I received a 71, I was a bit disappointed with my grade but I still obtain a Diploma certifying that I met the requirements of course.

Day at a Beach (Monterico)
July 19, 2008. Some of the students and I went to Monterico, which is a beach with black sand. Being there was a nice experience because I have never seen black sand and I have never been to a beach with anyone from my school. Monterico is a place that I would never visit again! The restaurants are a mess! They look dirty and they a desperate to have people come in there restaurant. The beach was nice and the waves were big. The waves were so big that I ran out of the beach when I saw a wave coming towards me.

In the beach two drunken guys approached Tiara and Mr. Levy. They started to talk to Tiara so I get out of the beach and approach Tiara. When I stand next to them they start talking to me like they know me. So I talk to them and think to myself, ok??? So I look at Tiara and I tell her that I am going to get some officials. I go to the nearest restaurant and ask for some policemen and they told me they were down the block. So I run to them and tell that we are from the Untied States and we are being harassed by two drunks that we don’t know. I walk with the officers to the beach and the officers told them to leave so they left. The policemen stood there till they walked away. After that, we packet the clothes and left and waited for the tour bus.

Going Home
One more day!!!!!!! I can’t wait to get home! I miss my mom’s food. I miss Camden. (Sike) I am so glad that I am returning to Camden. I enjoyed being in Guatemala but it is time to go! Thank you Lucky and Jose (Homestay family) for everything!

The days are almost over

2008-07-17T17:47:00.000-07:00

Wow...I can’t believe that the 21st of July is coming up. That is the day that we embark back to the United States. Being in Guatemala has changed my life in many ways. I have experienced many things while being here and have been exposed to all types of things. Nevertheless, I had a great experience here and would love to do this again.

Last day of school
Tomorrow is the last day of school. We will be taking final exams in order to obtain our diplomas. I hope that I score a decent passing grade in order to pass. I thank my original teacher Sr. Ponce for teaching me new things and correcting me when I did something wrong. But, we no longer have him as our instructor. Some family problems happened and he had to leave for a few days. I strongly recommend that all of you guys study for your exam.

Plans for the weekend
This weekend I might be going to the beach with my classmates.

To be continued….Cant wait for the 21th of July..

Thank you Luky and Jose for everything.

Days after

2008-07-14T21:27:00.000-07:00

Volcano Experience
After being here things get different and you can adapt to the culture and life style. I think that its going to be hard to leave Guatemala because I enjoy being here. Sometime last week we went to a volcano. The volcano was called Pacaya Volcano. Walking towards the top of the volcano was a big challenge because I’m not use those type of things. I paid $50 Getsalse to have someone in a horse take me up there. I was trying to walk up the mountains and hills just to get to the volcano but at one point in time I couldn’t take it anymore so I asked for a horse. When I arrived to the volcano I took a lot of pictures and walked around looking for lava. Walking down the volcano was a bigger challenged. People were injured and I feel three times. But the important thing was that everyone had a good time and experience something new.

Hotel the Las Islas
This past weekend we were in a hotel because we were going to visit Tikal that is were the Maya ruins are at. Staying the hotel was good and bad. It was good because we had a lot of fun and experience a lot of new things. But it was also bad because there was a lot of tension going on. Everyone had problems and the hotel was full of drama between everyone. (I am happy that I am now in my home stay)

Tikal….
The ride to Tikal was fast and entertaining because we had a good tour guide and his name was Julio. He was very honest and interactive. When we arrive to Tikal I was a bit scared because I was afraid of getting malaria and being bit by an insect. Being in Tikal was fun because I was able to take a lot of pictures and see the Maya ruins and see how they were. I was afraid to reach the top of the ruins but I was able to climb them. Traveling to that jungle was interesting because I saw a spider money and Tukan and this turkey looking animal that I have never seen in my life. So I am grateful to be here in Guatemala and experience different things. Thank you MetEast and the people who helped us!!!

To be continued…..

First Day

2008-07-08T15:55:00.000-07:00

Getting to Antigua
When I got out of the plane in Guatemala city I was scared to death. I’m like ok, were do we go. We also had to go customs thats were you show your passport to the guards and they asked you questions about your visit to Guatemala.

First Day
The first day in Guatemala was the worst!!! I did not eat diner due to a stomachache. I went to a restaurant with Mr. Levy and Ms. G and two of my peers. At the restaurant I just sat down with my head down while everyone eat pasta. On the way home from the restaurant I slipped more than five times. That day was the worst day in my life. I wanted to go home! When I arrived home I drank some petpotl bismol and some Advil pm. That made my stomach feel better and put me to sleep.

The following day we had school. My Spanish teacher is so funny and he likes to teach. He always corrects me when I say something in-proper or when I use slang.

The food in Guatemala is delicious I just think that they should make more food. My homestay family are very friendly and caring. There is a girl from Holland who is also taking classes in Guatemala so I interviewed her with Nafi and Tyquan. She was impressed about the questions and concerns that we had about Guatemala and her home town. (Be on the look out for the video)

Shopping in Guatemala was fun. You get to talk to the store owners and try to lower the cost of an item. (That is fun, wish it was possible in New Jersey)

To be continued………

Preparing to go to Guatemala

2008-06-17T13:57:00.000-07:00

My name is Israel Lopez and I am from Camden, N.J. My school, MetEast high School, will be taking 15 students to Guatemala to take a spanish course and I am one of those 15 students. I have never left the United States so this is going to be a new experience for me. I only get on planes to go to Puerto Rico but the flight is about 3 hours long. Going to Guatemala is going to be a long flight. We leave Philadelphia in the morning and then go to South Carolina after that we take our flight to Antigua, Guatemala. I am a bit scared of planes and this is the second time that I will riding without one of my relatives on board. I am very happy to know that I will be leaving the country with my school to learn more Spanish. My spanish might be more fluently then others because I speak spanish on a daily basis, it may not be good but it is good enough. Some of my hobbies will consist of the following:

o Going out

o Spending time with my family

o Talking on the phone

o Passionate about technology and law

I am looking forward to a lot of things in this trip. I will like to visit historical sites and locations. Also, I want to learn more about Guatemala and how it is different from the United States. I want to compare and contrast the alike and unalike things from Guatemala and the United States. I am wondering about a lot of things. I wonder how the temperature in Guatemala is going to be. I wonder how the host families are going to treat us. I am also wondering how the people in the streets are going to look at us. It is a privilege to go on this school trip so I am going to take that advantage and Spanish in a different country. Some of my concerns will be being stopped by the immigration people. Will they stop us because we may act and look differently? How is the police over there? What does the police have over there that we don’t have here? Who makes all of the decisions for the people in Guatemala? President? Prime minister?

To be continued....