Telenovelas!

This afternoon we took a micro bus to a small town called Chajul to organize and promote the upcoming campaign. The micro consignment model is structured so that the local Guatemala entrepreneurs generate income from their sales and the products provide a positive social impact on the community.  Chujul is a very poor town and a large portion of the family income comes from the womens’ work making hupiles (the women’s tops) and other textiles. One hupile can take up to three months to make since they are so detailed. Because the women need to have very keen eyesight in order to sow the intricate textiles, the eye glasses are a very popular micro consignment product in the Chajul community.

Our job was to just visit the town, hang up posters and meet with the radio stations to make sure they are promoting the campaign for this coming Friday. The Entrepreneurship Corps partners with other local organizations to create micro franchises and they also partner with youth organizations that provide scholarships to the students who promote and work the campaigns. Creating partnerships within each community is vital because most people do not speak Spanish and are very shy when it comes to foreigners. Plus, it provides jobs and scholarships to the Guatemalans rather than foreigners.

Today as we walked through Chajul, I realized that although I am pretty familiar with most of central and South America, the Maya culture is still so intriguing and mysterious to me. I guess it is partly because most Latin American cultures are strongly represented in the United States but the Maya are misunderstood and often an unheard of minority. The Maya culture however is so uniquely different from Mexican or even other Guatemalan Ladino cultures. For example, the Maya speak 21 different languages, dress in traditional trajes and have a very spiritual way of living. I noticed that for the first time in my life, I was probably as curious and as tempted to stare at the people as the little kids were tempted to stare at me. On the bus I frequently caught myself gazing at the beautiful Cintas the women wore in their hair, their trajes (clothes) and beautiful features that are so distinct to the Maya. I also enjoyed listening to the Maya languages even though I can’t understand anything!

After our campaign, I returned to my host family for a dinner of beans, platanos, tortillas and cheese. And of course after dinner we watched El Triumfo Amor telnovela on TV and discussed how we couldn’t believe the mom was dating such a young boy who then kissed the daughter! I am actually really getting into the family tv time and it was even better when the aunt and grandma came over to join us!

Well bedtime since tomorrow we are going to hike an hour to La Pista in the mountains. Oh, and we also discussed the massacre that happened in Peten Guatemala and yes, the people are mortified and everyone says we should stay away from the department because of the increased violence and military presence.