Sunday morning the family consensus was to leave our homestay. The house is far too crowded (at almuerzo Saturday, Silvia's sons had to wait for us to finish before they could sit down for their lunch shift); the shower is a cold dribble, when the water line's working; and if anybody is watching tv or chatting downstairs it resonates up as though we were all in the same room.
So it's Wednesday now, and we're still here. Silvia's sons--Marvin (17) and the twins Diego and Carlos (15)--are in school through the summer (they take a winter hiatus in Nov and Dec), so everybody turns in before 10:00 on weeknights. They leave early in the AM, so there are no more crowds during the 7:00 and 1:00 meals.
More than anything, though, living with the family is growing on us. Taking boarders is their livelihood, but I get the impression that they've never had another family here before. The boys genuinely enjoy trying to wring some Spanish from Erik and Paul, and they always include them in the soccer games on the esquina. At times there will be 3-4 visitors in the house, which felt intrusive our first two days here; but after a few days it feels cozily social.
Paul is still sleeping with me, but not to assuage his depression as much as avoiding conflict with Erik. Tonight I'm cutting the chord...
Another asset of the family homestay is becoming part of the neighborhood. One of the local characters is Arturo, a shoe shine who enjoys following Erik and Paul making animal noises (see video). He's harmless, if a bit off, and ever since Erik bought him a Pepsi he's been our shadow.
The volcanos overlooking Antigua, Agua and Acatenango, are out of the question for potential weekend hikes. A guide at Old Town Outfitters told me I'd be robbed the minute I stepped out of the shuttle.
Esta B.M.
