Starting Spanish School.

On monday Stacy and I started language school, beginning with 4 hours a day monday through friday. The picture is from the garden where we study one on one with our instructors every morning. My first day was a bit frustrating primarily because my skills were so rusty and pronunciation was so aweful. I tried explaining the mortgage lending industry to my instructor right off instead of focusing on simple things like being tall or hungry or tired etc--you can probably imagine how well that went. Stacy politely reminded me that most people don't understand what I do when I describe it in english let alone on my first day of spanish (stacy's first day was quite a bit better as she focused on the basics). After class stacy, amy and I moved in with our host family. They are quite nice and accommodating with Stacy and I even getting our own room--a nice change from the hostel which we were sharing a room with 4 other people and sleeping on concave bunkbeds that smelled a bit different to say the least. We get 3 meals a day, with black beans at virtually ever meal to accommodate the vegetarians, our own bedroom, and 20 hours of lessons one on one each week for only 145.00 dollars. The vegetarian meals were obviously a welcomed surprise for me even if it means excessive amounts of black beans. Stacy gets all the carne and pollo she wants. We plan on spending Christmas and my birthday back at the hostel for a welcomed break and some time with friends and then will most likely return for at least another week with the host family before some new year's festivities. Christmas should be an interesting one this year--the Guatemalans are quite festive and have been celebrating the holiday ever since we got here. We'll keep you posted.