This is our website which has our updates and pictures of our trip abroad during 2004-2005.
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- Ricoy Update No. 1
- Ronit in Tarifa, Spain
- Ronit's Car Bumper
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- Carolyn at Christmas 2004
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- Tom's Family, Thanksgiving 2004
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Tom and Ronit Ricoy
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Ricoy Update No. 2
Greetings from Guatemala!
We arrived in Antigua on Thanksgiving Day, giving thanks for this incredible opportunity. I´ve been to Antigua numerous times (between San Marcos and the city), but I´ve never had the chance to stay more than a few days or to study here -- something I've always wanted to do -- so this has been a great week. Antigua itself is a beautiful colonial city with colorful buildings and cobblestone streets. It was the original capital, back in the 1500's.
We stayed our first night in my regular Antigua lodging -- a room in the back of the store that rents for Q25 per person (Q = quetzales and $1 = Q7.8, so that's about $3 per person) -- I think it´s the cheapest place in Antigua and it comes complete with a barking dog, several varieties of pet birds, and the steady presence of a number of drunks who buy liquor at the store. The owner is usually the first person I see each time I arrive in Antigua!
Antigua is famous for its proliferation of Spanish language schools. As I said, I have always wanted to study here but never had the chance, so this is the time! Guatemala is a great place to go for language school because you can get ONE-ON-ONE tutoring for anywhere from $45 to $100/week (that's 4 hours/day, 20 hours/week, although you can arrange to study as many hours as you'd like). We are studying at Ixchel Spanish School for one week. I have a very good teacher and I have FINALLY learned the subjunctive! (Oh how I wish I´d had time to study in 2001 when I was volunteering in San Marcos... it was very difficult to find ways to say certain things without knowing the subjunctive!)
Tom is studying double-time as he is also taking on-line university classes to get his degree. He studies a few hours/day and then must go to an internet cafe before the end of the week in order to turn in his homework on-line.
We feel really blessed to have found this particular school -- it is close to the Parque Central and has limited on-site housing around a lush courtyard where the lessons take place. We have a huge room and access to a communal bathroom and a communal kitchen. The location and on-site room are real blessings because of my health. Since high school I´ve dealt with serious knee problems and pain (constant pain but differing in degree depending on activity, have to ice the knees daily, can't climb stairs, can't walk too far, etc), so the close-in location is really helpful for my knees. It is also great for my ribs, back, and neck, because since last June´s accident, I have to lie down frequently and have my back supported, and there is no way I would be able to study 4 hours/day without these breaks. I am able to take frequent breaks throughout the day and lie down because of the on-site room. I´ve gotten used to the knee issues and have always been headstrong and determined enough to find ways around the limitations -- everything from installing ramps in San Marcos to asking strangers for piggy-back rides when I got stuck on the wrong end of a staircase in Mexico, Ecuador, etc. And "Hielo" (ice) is a very important word for me! However, I am having a harder time dealing with the rib, back, and neck problems from last June's accident. I have days when no one would know I am hurting, but other days when I am pretty much stuck in bed. Sadly, for someone who wanted to backpack around the globe, travel really seems to exacerbate the accident injuries. I would really appreciate prayer on this... It just seems to be taking forever to heal and the smallest thing (like a cobblestone street) sets me back. Anyway, we are also very thankful for the on-site kitchen. Tom (my hero, the cook) makes most of our meals there, which really helps us to save money, and then we're able to fully enjoy (without stressing about money) some wonderful meals out (like tonight's treat -- fantastic food, but at $5 a plate, a lot of money in Guatemala).
I am fortunate to have married not only a chef but a model! Tom had his modeling debut this morning. We went in search of massages for our aching backs. Sadly, they were booked -- no massages. However, the spa happened to be taking photos for their brochure and they asked Tom to be their male model. He got about a 5-minute massage while they snapped photos. (It reminded my of Doug, Yvonne and our group at Roatan in the cruise ship promotion filming!) We also used the "instalaciones" -- the saunas and hot showers. I lived for a whole year (2001, San Marcos) with mostly cold showers and really learned to appreciate the gift of a hot shower. I LOVE hot water! (When you walk into your bathroom tonight, be thankful for hot water, flushing toilets, etc. Most people in Guatemala live without these, and many people still live without running water, electricity, etc. Even in San Marcos, my first visit there -- 1999 -- was before electricity. And my first home there in 2001 did not have a flush toilet.)
Tomorrow morning we are going on a school excursion to a nearby village and church, where we will learn more about Mayan religious beliefs and rituals.
We had planned to go to the lake on Saturday, but I have been communicating with Madeleine about the volunteer search, and I may stay in Antigua a few days to try to make some helpful connections here and to post the position advertisement in more places, so we may not go until Tuesday. Please really pray about a new volunteer for San Marcos. We need an English teacher volunteer (with various other duties) to commit to one-year, starting in Janaury. There is a stipend but it is a volunteer position. Madeleine has worked really hard this year to put together the English program and will train this person (she'll be there through March) to keep it up, as well as to handle scholarships, etc. If you know of anyone who might be interested or know of a place you could post the job description (churches, colleges, etc), please e-mail me or Madeleine and we will send you the complete job description. (Madeleine = madeleine@schamehorn.com)
So we will be traveling to the lake sometime between Saturday and Tuesday. This is the same route we were taking last June, when we had the accident. I have taken that route maybe 20 times over the past 5 years. The first few times I was sure we were going to die -- dangerous drivers on dangerous roads in dangerous vehicles with no seatbelts. However, after seeing your life flash before your eyes a dozen times (the first dozen curves), you get immune, it becomes old hat and you never think anything bad will happen. It's actually fun. I guess that after the accident, and knowing how fragile I still am, we are a little stressed about the ride, although, as I said, I´ve done it probably 20 times and it was fine 19 of those times. But we'd appreciate your prayers for safety on that trip and in all of our travels!
When I say, we'll go to the lake, I mean Lago de Atitlan in the Western Highlands. Only the most BEAUTIFUL lake in the world, a magical place. I´ll tell you more about it in my next update as this is already quite long. While in San Marcos (the place I volunteered at a school all of 2001 and have worked with ever since), Tom will work on the school's computer lab -- fixing problems, installing new computers, installing DeepFreeze, etc. I'm really looking forward to meeting with Madeleine and going over the new curriculum, as well as meeting with others regarding the school's progress and problems, seeing friends, etc. I'm not looking forward to everything -- like if the projector is still missing, I am going to track down those responsible! -- but that comes with the territory. There is also a holistic center there and I'm going to get some treatments that I hope will help me physically. It is just always amazing to see San Marcos and the school and to see the amazing changes. From January 2001 with no desks, no books, almost nothing TO today's growing school, complete with books, computer lab, etc. Wow! Thank you, Lord!
Thank you friends for keeping in touch as we travel. We would love to hear from you!
Ronit (and Tom) Ricoy
We arrived in Antigua on Thanksgiving Day, giving thanks for this incredible opportunity. I´ve been to Antigua numerous times (between San Marcos and the city), but I´ve never had the chance to stay more than a few days or to study here -- something I've always wanted to do -- so this has been a great week. Antigua itself is a beautiful colonial city with colorful buildings and cobblestone streets. It was the original capital, back in the 1500's.
We stayed our first night in my regular Antigua lodging -- a room in the back of the store that rents for Q25 per person (Q = quetzales and $1 = Q7.8, so that's about $3 per person) -- I think it´s the cheapest place in Antigua and it comes complete with a barking dog, several varieties of pet birds, and the steady presence of a number of drunks who buy liquor at the store. The owner is usually the first person I see each time I arrive in Antigua!
Antigua is famous for its proliferation of Spanish language schools. As I said, I have always wanted to study here but never had the chance, so this is the time! Guatemala is a great place to go for language school because you can get ONE-ON-ONE tutoring for anywhere from $45 to $100/week (that's 4 hours/day, 20 hours/week, although you can arrange to study as many hours as you'd like). We are studying at Ixchel Spanish School for one week. I have a very good teacher and I have FINALLY learned the subjunctive! (Oh how I wish I´d had time to study in 2001 when I was volunteering in San Marcos... it was very difficult to find ways to say certain things without knowing the subjunctive!)
Tom is studying double-time as he is also taking on-line university classes to get his degree. He studies a few hours/day and then must go to an internet cafe before the end of the week in order to turn in his homework on-line.
We feel really blessed to have found this particular school -- it is close to the Parque Central and has limited on-site housing around a lush courtyard where the lessons take place. We have a huge room and access to a communal bathroom and a communal kitchen. The location and on-site room are real blessings because of my health. Since high school I´ve dealt with serious knee problems and pain (constant pain but differing in degree depending on activity, have to ice the knees daily, can't climb stairs, can't walk too far, etc), so the close-in location is really helpful for my knees. It is also great for my ribs, back, and neck, because since last June´s accident, I have to lie down frequently and have my back supported, and there is no way I would be able to study 4 hours/day without these breaks. I am able to take frequent breaks throughout the day and lie down because of the on-site room. I´ve gotten used to the knee issues and have always been headstrong and determined enough to find ways around the limitations -- everything from installing ramps in San Marcos to asking strangers for piggy-back rides when I got stuck on the wrong end of a staircase in Mexico, Ecuador, etc. And "Hielo" (ice) is a very important word for me! However, I am having a harder time dealing with the rib, back, and neck problems from last June's accident. I have days when no one would know I am hurting, but other days when I am pretty much stuck in bed. Sadly, for someone who wanted to backpack around the globe, travel really seems to exacerbate the accident injuries. I would really appreciate prayer on this... It just seems to be taking forever to heal and the smallest thing (like a cobblestone street) sets me back. Anyway, we are also very thankful for the on-site kitchen. Tom (my hero, the cook) makes most of our meals there, which really helps us to save money, and then we're able to fully enjoy (without stressing about money) some wonderful meals out (like tonight's treat -- fantastic food, but at $5 a plate, a lot of money in Guatemala).
I am fortunate to have married not only a chef but a model! Tom had his modeling debut this morning. We went in search of massages for our aching backs. Sadly, they were booked -- no massages. However, the spa happened to be taking photos for their brochure and they asked Tom to be their male model. He got about a 5-minute massage while they snapped photos. (It reminded my of Doug, Yvonne and our group at Roatan in the cruise ship promotion filming!) We also used the "instalaciones" -- the saunas and hot showers. I lived for a whole year (2001, San Marcos) with mostly cold showers and really learned to appreciate the gift of a hot shower. I LOVE hot water! (When you walk into your bathroom tonight, be thankful for hot water, flushing toilets, etc. Most people in Guatemala live without these, and many people still live without running water, electricity, etc. Even in San Marcos, my first visit there -- 1999 -- was before electricity. And my first home there in 2001 did not have a flush toilet.)
Tomorrow morning we are going on a school excursion to a nearby village and church, where we will learn more about Mayan religious beliefs and rituals.
We had planned to go to the lake on Saturday, but I have been communicating with Madeleine about the volunteer search, and I may stay in Antigua a few days to try to make some helpful connections here and to post the position advertisement in more places, so we may not go until Tuesday. Please really pray about a new volunteer for San Marcos. We need an English teacher volunteer (with various other duties) to commit to one-year, starting in Janaury. There is a stipend but it is a volunteer position. Madeleine has worked really hard this year to put together the English program and will train this person (she'll be there through March) to keep it up, as well as to handle scholarships, etc. If you know of anyone who might be interested or know of a place you could post the job description (churches, colleges, etc), please e-mail me or Madeleine and we will send you the complete job description. (Madeleine = madeleine@schamehorn.com)
So we will be traveling to the lake sometime between Saturday and Tuesday. This is the same route we were taking last June, when we had the accident. I have taken that route maybe 20 times over the past 5 years. The first few times I was sure we were going to die -- dangerous drivers on dangerous roads in dangerous vehicles with no seatbelts. However, after seeing your life flash before your eyes a dozen times (the first dozen curves), you get immune, it becomes old hat and you never think anything bad will happen. It's actually fun. I guess that after the accident, and knowing how fragile I still am, we are a little stressed about the ride, although, as I said, I´ve done it probably 20 times and it was fine 19 of those times. But we'd appreciate your prayers for safety on that trip and in all of our travels!
When I say, we'll go to the lake, I mean Lago de Atitlan in the Western Highlands. Only the most BEAUTIFUL lake in the world, a magical place. I´ll tell you more about it in my next update as this is already quite long. While in San Marcos (the place I volunteered at a school all of 2001 and have worked with ever since), Tom will work on the school's computer lab -- fixing problems, installing new computers, installing DeepFreeze, etc. I'm really looking forward to meeting with Madeleine and going over the new curriculum, as well as meeting with others regarding the school's progress and problems, seeing friends, etc. I'm not looking forward to everything -- like if the projector is still missing, I am going to track down those responsible! -- but that comes with the territory. There is also a holistic center there and I'm going to get some treatments that I hope will help me physically. It is just always amazing to see San Marcos and the school and to see the amazing changes. From January 2001 with no desks, no books, almost nothing TO today's growing school, complete with books, computer lab, etc. Wow! Thank you, Lord!
Thank you friends for keeping in touch as we travel. We would love to hear from you!
Ronit (and Tom) Ricoy
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10:26 PM
