School Bus Heaven

(Note: excuse the tardiness of this post, but computer problems have plagued both my houses... Can't post pictures yet, but they will be added soon)

Ever wonder where those hideous yellow school buses go when they die? Well I recently found out: they go to a little slice of heaven otherwise known as Guatemala. Before they get there, however, they undergo a spectacular rebirth: their fronts are often replaced with those of Mac-type trucks, their bodies are painted spectacular colours and patterns, they are given names, and finally they hit the road where they are crammed full of Guatemalans on a regular basis. These buses, which are everywhere, are just on of the many little things that made travelling in Guatemala a delightful adventure.

I was only four days in Guatemala, as it was all the time that Xavi could get off work. We logged a lot of hours both on various buses and organizing travel on various buses, but the time we were able to spend in Antigua and the Lago Atitlan was well worth it. Antigua is a peacful colonial town where we caught the celebration of Guatemalan independence. We spent one night there and then made our way on a chaotic trip up to Panajachel, a town on the edge of Atitlan Lake, which is enclosed by three stunning volcanoes and about ten little pueblos that can be reached by boat.

Both Antigua and the villages of Atitlan Lake were teaming with tourists, a fate that seems impossible to escape in this age of travel. And yes, call me a travel snob, but I would prefer to visit new places in solitude, I can't help it. But then tourists can also be entertaining, I learned: upon arriving in San Marcos, a peaceful village on the Lake (complete with meditation centre), Xavi and I wandered up to the village square where I overheard a father saying to his blonde-haired son, "Yes, that's how you say 'goodbye' in Spanish." Suddenly the boy turns around and shouts "ASKA WAYGO!" and waves vigourously to two little Guatemalan girls sitting on the step of the village Church. A fine first attempt at "Hasta luego!"

There are countless stories to tell about my short experience in Guatemala, but I'm sure it would bore any of you who are actually reading this to death. Some tidbits:
- Church services being broadcast over loudspeakers heard for miles
- Admiring the colourful indigenous dress of the locals
- Puzzling over just how people can manage to carry so much on their HEADS, from bundles of calalillies to buckets of water
- The breathtaking views of roadside life and natural scenery taken in from the window of a bus travelling at breakneck speed
- The giggles of young Guatemalan boys and girls as they race past
- And much more...

Apart from our travels in Guatemala, I spent the rest of my two weeks in Central America in San Salvador, where Xavi is living. It was quite daunting being in a city famous for being incredibly dangerous, and I adjusted at a very slow pace. But, on my last day I was taking the bus by myself. Getting lost, but still, taking the bus by myself! I felt that each time I ventured outside I was faced with the paranoia of looking at each passing person and wondering if they would be the one to rob me, attack me, kill me... A horrible feeling, but those who live there say it passes, eventually. It was also the first time I had visited a country recovering from such a brutal history of civil war, and although developmentally El Salvador shows signs of improvement (especially in comparison to my other Latin reference, the Dominican Republic), the history of violence lingers... I don't think I can really comment on it, having been there for such a short time, other than to say that it was certainly present.

I regret not seeing much of the city, but then I have to remind myself that that was not the purpose of my trip. I was there to see Xavi, and that part of my visit was just wonderful:)

Flexibility? Check.

For VSO, flexibility is one of the most essential characteristics of a volunteer because apparently things don't always go as planned. So when I was told that my arrival date had been pushed back 2 weeks, I can't say I was surprised. I'm sure it will be the first of many bumps over the coming months that will demand flexibility, and then some.

I now leave Canada around October 11th, which is pretty awesome because it means I will get to visit with my brother, Fraser, who arrives home from Japan on October 7th. I still hope to spend a couple of days in the UK before leaving London for Zambia on October 14th, so those of you in Norwich, prepare yourselves!!

Where have all the good people gone?

Sam Roberts, you really do say it best. Where have all the good people gone? I am certainly not meeting many recently. In fact, I am specifically meeting bad people. Okay, I’m exaggerating – I met one bad person and I’m being dramatic about it. But still, it was pretty bad. I’m actually embarrassed to tell the story, because it’s just as much about how naïve I am as it is about how bad people can be. Anyway, here it goes:

So I’m sitting in the Vancouver bus station, minding my own business, wrapped up in my book, and this young British guy comes over talking on his phone to his ‘Nana’ and sounding very upset. When he gets off the phone he asks me to watch his stuff for a minute, and I oblige. He then comes back and obviously wants to talk, so I let him, and he tells me his sob story. It was very long and complicated, but the basic jist is that he was supposed to fly back to the UK that afternoon but he needed to pay some airport taxes that he didn’t have money for. Starting to get the picture of what went down? Anyway, I talked to him a bit about his dilemma, as well as chatting about his travels in Canada and my year in the UK. Finally he went for it. His proposal was that I keep his digital video camera as a deposit and he would send for it when he got back to the UK. He also offered to phone his Nana and let me speak to her and do about everything else under the sun that a desperate guy could do. Anyway, I explained to him that I was on my way to El Salvador and I really didn’t have room to haul a video camera around with me. Then Stupid Bleeding Heart Ashley kicked in and told him that I had a bank account in the UK and I could lend him the money and he could just deposit it in my account when he got home. So that’s what I did. Go ahead, roll your eyes. Get it over with.

Needless to say, when I arrived in El Salvador and attempted to email him, it failed to send. Bogus email address, or very coincidental mistake. I still have a phone number and address to go, but my hopes have been all but dashed. In retrospect, I really should have drilled him more, perhaps taken him up on phoning Nana, or, even better, flat out refused, but at the time that wasn’t what I wanted to do. I had decided to help the guy, and I didn’t want to have to have to second-guess myself, or him. When you decide to help someone, shouldn’t you just do it and not worry about the consequences? Well, that worked until the moment of truth arrived and I realized I wasn’t going to see my 50 bucks ever again (most of you probably know how tight-ass I am with my money and how much it hurts to have shelled out $50 to a lying, cheating, Limey, b%#&ard).

Anyway, in the grand scheme of things I guess $50 isn’t such a big deal, no matter how poor I feel at the moment. My conscience is still in tact, and who knows, maybe some good karma might come back to me, someday. It will be hard, however, not to be condemned to a life of hating English people and refusing to do good deeds for people in need…

My first 48 hours in San Salvador have been very nice. Xavi and his roommate, Miguel, cooked up a scheme for a driver from Miguel’s office to pick me up at the airport. It required me to pose as a Telecom consultant, but it was worth it to walk out of the airport and be able to cut right through the mob of shouting taxi drivers to a man holding up a piece of paper with my name on it. I didn’t say much to the poor driver on the way in, for fear he would ask me unanswerable questions about ‘work’, but the silence was a great way to take in the incredible views. So far, El Salvador strikes me as the greenest place I have ever been. The lush trees and jagged, emerald hills are stunning. Being back in a developing country is also amazing because there is so much… real life happening everywhere. That sound silly, but it feels true. Life is so public here, so tangible. Anyway, I won’t begin to wax poetic; I’m too tired for that.

I’m housebound at the moment, and probably will be for much of the time I am here unless, as one of the girls on my CIL training course suggested, I hire armed guards to escort me places. I don’t think I’m up for that, however, and am happily looking forward to days of reading books, lying by the pool, listening to music, and soaking up the breathtaking views from Xavi and Miguel’s balcony.

Another gold star for...

... my Granny. Thanks Granny for your donation!

A Gold Star for...

... Karen Lindsay! Karen, you are a star - thanks for being the very first person to support my work in Zambia by donating to VSO.

Anyone else who is interested in donating, I would encourage you to do so sooner than later. In the mean time I will think of some great rewards for all those who make a donation:)

Zambians Beware!

Look out Zambia, Ashley’s on her way! That’s right, as you may have caught on from the terribly crass title of my blog I am headed to Africa. To Zambia to be precise, the heart of the Sub-Saharan. Yes, as of October one more wild animal will be wandering the plains of the Zambezi…. Here’s the story:

I was selected for a 6-month, CIDA-funded internship with VSO Canada. VSO is an organization that "promotes volunteering to fight global poverty, by supporting people to share skills, creativity and learning with communities around the world. " Volunteers work together with some of the world's most disadvantaged people to help them fulfil their potential and end poverty.

I will be working in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, with The Network of Zambian People Living Positively with HIV/AIDS (NZP+). The mission of NZP+ is to provide support to Zambians living with HIV/AIDS and to help give the pandemic a 'human face'. They are engaged in a variety of activities, including awareness raising, lobbying government for the procurement of HIV-related drugs, protecting human rights, developing opportunities for income generation, and advocating for greater participation of people with HIV/AIDS in decision-making. My position is as a Fundraiser, which will involve a wide range of activities, such as the development budget monitoring tools, training staff on raising support for their organization, writing proposals for funding from international donors, etc. I don't imagine it will be easy, but I'm certainly excited about it.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST, I should mention that as a VSO volunteer I am committed to fundraising in order to support VSO’s efforts to send volunteers all over the world to share their skills. My fundraising target is a modest $500, but I will need lots of support to get there. If anyone is interested in contributing, your support would mean a lot to me and would be very appreciated by VSO. You can contact me or make a donation directly to VSO by post, over the phone or online. Donations of any amount are welcome, and any donation of $10 or more is eligible for a tax receipt. Just make sure you remember to put my name as the volunteer you are supporting!

That’s all for now. Check back regularly for more updates….