This week in Guatemala

We continued new teacher orientation for most of the week. Returning teachers came back little by little to be introduced before the whole staff returned on Friday. I had forgotten how much longer staff meetings are at a bilingual school because everything has to be done in both languages. 

Our orientation was incredibly, perhaps unnecessarily, thorough. As someone who likes having all the information, I didn’t mind most of the time but it was frustrating when the same information was presented multiple times. My grade four team is great; I think we will get along well. It’s cool, not being the “baby” teacher in the team. I’m firmly in the middle in terms of experience and on the stronger side if considering international experience. This should help with one of my goals this year which is to be more decisive in my classroom.

I’m excited with how much of the Spanish I understand. Granted I can’t produce much but receptive language is always stronger than productive. Settling in is still progressing slowly but surely.

Here are some pictures of the beauty that I’m surrounded by here! Visitors are very welcome!

Guatemala!

So, I moved to Guatemala City last week.

In the two years since I’ve blogged, I finished my contract in Beijing and then was in Lahore, Pakistan for one year. Lahore was great... the country is beautiful, the people are friendly, and the pollution made me nostalgic for Beijing. Unfortunately, that last item led to a contract amendment so that I could live in a place where I could breathe. Hence, Guatemala!

The strangest thing about moving here was how easy it was. I left Pittsburgh at 7am and arrived in Guatemala before noon! For someone who has moved to Europe or Asia six times, arriving to my new home in less than ten hours door-to-door with no jet lag was surreal.

We started orientation for new teachers on Friday and then went to Antigua on Saturday. This morning, the English Mass was canceled at the nearest church to me. However, it was canceled because they were having a special celebration for the 12th anniversary of beginning Perpetual Adoration. Can’t complain about that!!! Plus, the church is safe walking distance from my apartment and they have an evening Mass most days of the week. I was praying for something like this. In China, it was impossible to go to daily Mass or adoration, in Pakistan, daily Mass was accessible but there wasn’t adoration. Now, in Guatemala, I’ve got both!

I’m hoping to get back into a habit of blogging weekly, so expect to see updates on weekends.

Russian Composers

When I was in college, I was very excited to take a course on Russian and Soviet history. Unfortunately, the teacher left MUCH to be desired in her "teaching" of the class. As our final project, we had to write a research paper. I gambled that she wouldn't read it and wrote completely bogus information about Russian composers and music.

Fast forward to Summer 2016. I took the Trans-Mongolian Railway from Beijing to Moscow and then continued to St. Petersburg. There is a famous cemetery in St. Petersburg which happens to contain the graves of all the composers I wrote about. Here is the footage from my trip as tribute to them and their work.

Introductory video

Glinka

Balikirev

Cui

Borodin

Unfortunately, the final two videos are two large for Blogger... I will try to post them on FB

Russian Composers

When I was in college, I was very excited to take a course on Russian and Soviet history. Unfortunately, the teacher left MUCH to be desired in her "teaching" of the class. As our final project, we had to write a research paper. I gambled that she wouldn't read it and wrote completely bogus information about Russian composers and music.

Fast forward to Summer 2016. I took the Trans-Mongolian Railway from Beijing to Moscow and then continued to St. Petersburg. There is a famous cemetery in St. Petersburg which happens to contain the graves of all the composers I wrote about. Here is the footage from my trip as tribute to them and their work.

Introductory video

Glinka

Balikirev

Cui

Borodin

Unfortunately, the final two videos are two large for Blogger... I will try to post them on FB

Open Letter to Myself of 5 Years Ago

7-1-16

Dear Rose,

                I won’t lie, the next few weeks will suck. You don’t know this yet, but you won’t sleep for the next two days and you will feel terrible. This is your gut telling you to get out of the situation. You won’t do it at first, but after stewing for a few weeks and talking to your “twin” Jen, you will break free. It will take time to recover. While you will get heartbroken in the future, I hope and pray this is the only time you will ever get your mind broken. You will get through it! Don’t beat yourself up when it takes time to heal! You’ve given six months of your life to someone who has sucked you into his warped way of thinking. It will be years before you go to Mass without either feeling guilty because your shirt is “too low cut” or doing it on purpose out of defiance. But these years will pass.

                This isn’t the only challenge you will go through in the coming years. You will meet more Mr. Collinses. Someone you hoped would be a Darcy will turn out to be a Wickam of the vilest sort. And it’s not only in romantic relationships that you will struggle.

                In less than two months, you will be forced to make an excruciating decision. You will know what you have to do, and will do it, but it will rip your heart out. The months after that will be miserable. You will feel close to ok, only to have a friend betray you, or a carpet ripped out from under your feet. You will spend countless hours trapped in your parents’ house wanting to die. It won’t be all bad, however! You will be come much closer to Helen and John. Helen will become one of your best friends. She was a little kid when you left for college and now you’ll get to know her as a young adult. Eventually, you will get a job. Not a good one – but you will enjoy it. And, in the end, this experience will lead you to a career that you love.

                Let me tell you a little more about the next few years. After ten months in the US, you will move back to Hungary. While teaching on the eastern side of the country, you will fall in love – with teaching. The next summer, you will, willingly, move back to the US for grad school. Two years later, you will end up in CHINA. The next summer, you will take the Trans-Mongolian Railway from Beijing to Russia. After that, I can’t tell you; I haven’t lived it yet!

                These years won’t be easy either. You will make and lose friends. You will be betrayed and maligned by someone you trusted. But you will make it!

                Five years to the day after that airport meeting, you will walk down the street in Ulan Bator, Mongolia, almost crying as you mentally compose this letter. None of this would have happened if you had tried to make that relationship work. In the end, you probably would have gotten your heart broken along with your mind. (For future reference, if the idea of kissing someone makes you feel ill, you probably should date them!)

                Today, you are adventurous, happy, living a full life, and FREE. There might be a relationship in your future, but, for now, you are too busy living your life to mind being single.

                I’m going to close now before the tears escape the corners of my eyes and the Mongolian family in my cabin on the train think I’m nuts. I am so proud of all you/I have accomplished and I can’t wait to see what’s next!

                I’m rooting for you!

                                                Rose

PSA

No, I'm not starting up my blog again. At least not right now. I just had to post this here because it is the only place that a certain person from my past might come in contact with me. This person refused to accept that I could not explain what a panic attack feels like. He may never see this and I'm fine with that.

If you ever see this (you know who you are), please know that, while I am eternally thankful that you are not part of my life anymore, I hope that you find the very specific person you are looking for.


What anxiety and panic attacks really feel like:


http://blog.relationshipsurgery.com/after-seeing-these-9-images-anxiety-and-panic-attacks-all-make-sense/

Ride of the Valkyries -- as interpreted by middle school students

Over the past few months, I've done a lesson with all of my upper school students (grades 5-8) on music interpretation. I played "Ride of the Valkyries" and they had to answer questions about what the story was, who was in it, where it was, when, how it felt, etc.  In every single class, at least some of them were convinced it was from Star Wars. These are some of the responses. Most of the names are kids from the classes.

"School explodes, Csabi and Zalan survive. Zsolti is a zombi and Csabi kills him"

"C3po is dead in a World War in Budapest at Heroes' Square.

I also started taking pictures of the stories after the kids wrote them on the board... here are some of my favorites:

One day, the coconut go to school and meet the banana. The coconut hate the banana. So they fight. The coconut won.

One day the banana go to the chocolate planet and he meet the pineapple. They fight but the clown stoped they, because he love olives.

 One day Luke is go to Darth Vader with Chuck Norris. Chuck Norris is stuck Darth Vader's hair the chewing gum. And Darth Vader is don't put out his hair.

One day, Chuck Norris is go to Yoda. They are speak a long hours when come on Luke and die Chuck Norris. Yoda is go to Sweets Planet and eat lots of sweets.

 One of my 5th grade classes with their stories

Miklos is extra crazy mummy and kill Panna with a Miss Rose's music book.

Miklos dancing (the kan-kan) and singing the star wars music. He's wear the red skirt. The red flower in Miklos hair.

I can see Dori and kill them with a sword. After eat the heart.

Szabi and Niki go to the cinema. They see a horror film in 3D. An the monster kill Szabi.

Miss Rose singing in the school at night.

Bence is talking in Miss Rose's lesson in the evening.

Frankie left her leg at the disco and it go to dancing when she sleep.

Viktor Orban (Hungarian prime minister) goes to Bikini Bottom in the 1550's because Spongebob needs a new best friend. They have a great time, and they make Krabby Patties.

 Gyulabaci (principal of our school) and Hitman kills Pinocchio in Gyulabacsi's office. After they eat Pinocchio's bottom in a hospital.

In the 21st century Sponge Bob is going to catch a shark but the shark is not very happy and the shark eat Sponge Bob. He didn't die, he is going back in the time. He is very scared and he is woke up. This is a bad dream. (one of the students who often struggles -- I was very proud of her)

Obi Wan: An UFO killed Anakin.

Anakin: An UFO killed me.

In this time, Darth Vader started dancing for this music: Gangnam Style, and the Dark Emperor, Dora, Diego, and Jack Sparrow ... sorry ... Captain Jack Sparrow did the same.

In 300BC, Dora the explorer is singing gypsy music. After she meets with PSY at the Krusty Krab. Spongebob serves them hamburger. :) At the end, they make a Harlem Shake video.

At the 19th century Obi Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader fought at the White House. The President killed himself, because he heard the music which was boring. Then Dora the explorer went to the White House and she saw when they were fighting. Then she picked up a sword and killed Darth Vader. After it she went back to the TV and sang a song called Gangnam style and started dancing.

In 3200 BC yoda singing in the white house with the beautiful spiderman.

Dora THE EXPLORER

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away ... When Dora was playing computer games, she was attacked by Darth Vader. Dora dueled him for 5k$. Dora won and she killed her pet monkeys 'cos she won. After one week Dora died in a heart-attack.

HOPE YOU WILL ENJOY

"The force may be with you"

While I am very much looking forward to not teaching middle school after this year there are fun bits sometimes.