Quetzaltenango is the second largest city in Guatemala, and I've called it home for the past three weeks. With an estimated population of 300,000, it's popularly known as Xela, short for the pre-Columbian name of the city, Xelajú Noj, meaning Under the Ten Mountains. I've been studying Spanish and volunteer teaching art and English with El Nahual and have had nothing but positive experiences while here (save for that nasty stomach bug I'm just getting over.) I have a lot more pictures to post of my family, the city, and my school, but I'll have this post serve as a simple introduction for now.
This is the "buena vista" as my host mother introduced it, the view from the window that takes up the whole back wall of my room. In the center of the top-right portion of the window is Volcan Santa Maria, standing at 12,372 ft. Its 1902 explosion registered as the third largest of the 20th century.
While this rabbit may look sweet, he gave me and my bed fleas. After my first few days of sleeping here, I noticed that I would wake up with strange little bites. I didn´t think much of it until a few more days passed and I realized that this little guy liked to hang out under my bed when I wasn´t home. I finally made the connection that he had brought a scourge of fleas upon me. My family laughed about it and changed the sheets, giving me an even greater abundance of blankets (seven!) to keep me warm through the night. I didn´t have any problems after that, and I actually haven´t seen el conejo since then. I´m pretty sure he lives on the roof full-time now.
That's a gorgeous view, the sky is so blue!