The Gringa Speaks Spanish! Puchica!

I want to begin this post by apologizing to my loyal readers for being a complete slacker during the month of July. I know most of you were unable to enjoy your beach trips, boat rides on the lake and your pool parties because you were so preoccupied by my lack of literary genius. For this, I duly apologize and promise to never let it happen again.

So what has happened in the last 8 weeks that has kept me from quenching your thirst for my comedic wit you may ask? “Was she held captive by pirates?” “Did she fall into a pit of molten lava?” “Has she departed on a quest to stop the evil wizard from killing Harry Potter and taking over the world?” Yes. All of those happened. It has been a busy few weeks. Actually, to be honest…I have just been lazy. But I’m back! So prepare yourself for some fun reading!

Mainly my month of July was focused around my glorious 2 week trip to the grand ole U.S. of A. I literally did nothing as far as work goes because I was so preoccupied by the amount of Milo’s sweet tea I was going to consume (roughly 3 gallons). So the day finally came and I was on a flight to Texas. I sat next to a Guatemalan woman who kept looking at me and smiling politely with a look that said “There’s no way this blue-eyed gringa speaks Spanish.” So after a few awkward glances, I broke the ice and asked her where she was headed. We spent the next couple of hours talking about our families and when our flight finally landed I felt like I had accomplished on of my Peace Corps goals of sharing my culture with someone of another culture. People are so cool.

I was back in the States! Well actually, I was in Texas which I just consider a country of its own, but at least I felt like I was getting a little closer to normalcy. As I was standing in the customs line, minding my own business, a little boy and a young guy started to talk about me in Spanish. The boy looked at the guy and said “She’s pretty. You should marry her.” The guy returned by saying, “Yeah. Maybe I should.” He then turns to me and explains the conversation to me in English. I responded in Spanish by politely saying “Sorry. I have a boyfriend.” Their mouths dropped. Knowing another language can be beneficial in a plethora of situations.

Once I made it through customs and my first marriage proposal, I found my way to the gate with a big flashing sign that read “Birmingham”. Now when a person is away from Alabama for a while and then put on a plane stuffed full of Southerners, it sort of becomes an experiment in reverse culture shock. The college football paraphernalia, the Southern accents, the Southern hospitality and the innate need to talk to every stranger on the flight. I felt like I was already home. We boarded the plane and a short two hours later, I was back in the heart of Dixie.

Now I could go into every detail of my two week American adventure, but I don’t want to bore you. So I will hit the highlights: SWEET TEA. Visit to Mom’s work. Lunch with friend. Dinner with Mom’s parents. Dinner with Dad and the neighbors. College friends. Dinner with Dad’s family. Cracker Barrel. North Carolina with sister. University of North Carolina. Flight back to Bama. Beach with mom, brother and college friends. Dinner with Mom’s family. Lunch with Dad. Dinner with brother. Lots of random things and shopping in between…but you get the jest of it.

By the end of two weeks, I needed to get back to Guatemala so I could get a vacation! It was exhausting. But it was just what I needed to get back to work and feel prepared to make it through the last few months of my Peace Corps service. And now that I’m back, I feel ready to finish what I started. So thanks to everyone who made my two weeks great! If I didn’t get to see you, I’m sorry. Only seven more months to go!