Prom '08 Under the Sea

Teacher's Prom! Apparently no one got enough of this in high school, or maybe no one got a prom they could enjoy, or maybe (as we suspect) people want an excuse to dress up (see past blogs on the Goth Party, 80's Party, Halloween, Party, just to name a few).

I SPY
Can you find the large sunflower boutonniere, Guate Guy, sweater vest, fake tux, and an ill-fitting double-breasted suit?

As you have probably noticed from our past posts, teachers at international schools like to have a good time--or rather, they like to dress up while having a good time! And most teachers follow the Mildren Commandment,

Thou shalt go all out for theme parties.

Another theme party was again in action on Saturday, Prom. We knew it was going to be a big deal for several reasons...

Exhibit A) We were notified of the prom party in early December...yes, nearly 3 months early. Why the early invite? So that when people were home over Christmas break, they could remember to bring a prom dress or formal wear back. From the original email:

I am giving you this advanced notice so you can "shop" for your dress or pull out an old one while at home or while here for the Holidays. Choose your style however you desire... some are bringing 80's back, others may go all out sequins... whatever floats your boat!

James and I didn't use our suitcase space for prom regalia, assuming we would just find our outfits here, which I did at a ropa store. He decided to do the 'classy and crafty' look and drew his tux on a tee. My look ended up a bit more townie than high school prom date. (For those readers, Canadians, or aliens out there, a townie refers to a person who sticks around their hometown when everyone else goes off to college. These individuals are highly prone to: dating people still in high school, working at dead-end jobs, and gossiping about, or to, people who have left town).

Finally! We get to go to Prom together.

Exhibit B) Certain teachers acted out elaborate ways of asking their date to the prom....bringing in their entire class to get down on one knee to ask another teacher, for example.

Exhibit C) Earlier in the day, a group of teachers went over to the prom place (by the pool) to put up themed "Under the Sea" decorations. These included but were not limited to a backdrop for pictures and tape for where to stand, a game site, (possibly spiked) punch, cupcakes, and large music stereos for the playlist.

Scott and Katie hold a classic Prom Pose

Exhibit D) No one referred to this as "a prom party." People referred to it as "Prom." So instead of hearing, "Hey, are you going to the prom party?" It was, "So, when can I pick you for Prom? Do you have a date to Prom?" With a capital P.

Exhibit E) People did, in fact, bring their prom dresses back...some as far back as their 9th grade prom, actually! It was great to see what girls were wearing in 1990...purple sequins, black silk, lace, bows, the whole works. It was even more great to see them still fit into their dresses (those who could were very proud of this fact and rightfully so!)

Kari and Amy ... stunning in sequins
(Kari's is an original $450 prom dress from the Good Old Days)

Exhibit F) There were nominations for Prom King and Prom Queen. People voted for the nominees at the party. An actual tallied vote! Subsequentially, our friend Kelly won Prom queen and our friend Julian won Prom king. Kelly for her awesome dress, which she found in the back of a Guatemalan dump truck, and Julian for his overall popularity. Hey, some things about prom never change! The girl with the best dress and Mr. Popular win!

Exhibit G) Girls went to our friend Kari's house to get ready early. Why? So we could updo our hair, spray it down, slather on the heavy makeup, and gossip about our boyfriends (husbands, too, but for the sake of Prom, he was just my "date"), and help each other squeeze into our bedazzled Best before the Big Night.

Prom itself was really great! There was good music and dancing (slow dances included), and every single person present was dressed up! It makes it more fun when 100% of people at a party play along, and not just 1/2 of people feeling weird and overdressed. This was in true teacher form! And, as always, the weather cooperated and we were outside by the pool in nothing but our formal wear...no jacket required. It's great to be with a community of such fun-loving teachers.

Zoo Blues

This week, I accompanied my alumnos (students) to the Aurora Zoo in Guatemala City. I was really excited about this field trip because I usually love zoos and seeing exotic animals, and we had heard that the zoo is one of the few places in the city that has open, safe green areas for picnics and walking around outdoors.

Mister Lion

The visit itself was just great! The kids were really excited to see the animals (hippos, albino peacocks, monkeys, a leopard, elephant, giraffes, and zebras, to name a few) and their enthusiasm was invigorating! The zoo had beautiful, open grounds to walk around on, and you felt really safe.

An albino peacock struts his stuff :

Sadly, I left the zoo feeling depressed and heartbroken for the animals. Human walking space was much greater than the paltry areas the animals had as their homes. A cheetah, one of the world's fastest animals, had less than 1/2 a football field to walk around on, let alone run. The porcupine had the size of two large dining tables, and his area was nothing but dirt and concrete with a little hut to sleep in. The elephant paced back and forth on his tiny strip of land, and the lions were literally pawing on the steel doors to be let back into their sleeping quarters. The owls and other birds might as well have had their wings clipped. While they were in cages, this was no aviary; they were resigned to 2-story caged bedrooms. As an added affliction, the zoo is a stone's throw away from the airport, and twice while we were there, we had to cover our ears because the noise was so loud when planes took off. You could read the plane airline logo with the naked eye. This has to stress the animals out! It's something I assume they never get used to.

Crocodile and his shrunken surroundings

There is only a dirt ground for their walking area :(
You do have to love zebras and giraffes, though!

It is hard to enjoy the beauty of animals when you feel like they are being trapped in unnatural and cramped settings. My mom was telling me that this is how all zoos used to be until people got more progressive and tried to model animals' captive cages after their natural habitats; larger areas, more hiding places, and keeping pack animals in packs, etc. Sure, the children got to see every animal....I know I have felt disappointed in the past when I looked into a cage and didn't see the animals front and center, but I would take that disappointment over forcing animals into small spaces just so they can be seen at all times.

What a beautiful leopard! Look at the size of those paws!

I suppose all zoos by definition keep animals in captivity, but when you can tell that animals are unhappy and their surroundings are ill-suited, the zeal for the zoo quickly loses its zest.

Re-Rocking the Roca

For my school's February 3-day weekend, James and I decided to go back to the beaches of El Salvador. In researching (a.k.a. 'googling images of') El Salvador beaches, I ran across the lovely and quaint Los Cobanos Village Lodge that advertised (key word there being "advertised") snorkeling, diving, deep sea fishing, and a village market. James' awesome discovery of Roca Sunzal was a wonderful beach and surf site, but no diving or market, which I thought could be fun. These rooms were pretty pricey for Central America ($56/night), but it seems like a really nice place, so I booked it for us and 4 other friends we were going with.

However, once we arrived at Los Cobanos, it was anything but the pricey paradise pictured on the web. The "fisherman's village" was a loosely strung together row of shacks with leering men inside and dead fish drying on rooftops. The beach was a block away from the "lodge" (2 buildings and a small pool), and was basically lots of large volcanic rocks doing their best of preventing any level of surf or water to find the shoreline. While Jen and were busy laying our towels on the beach, James walked out about 100 yards and the water was still only ankle deep with a rocky bottom at that, so no frolicking in the waves would be possible. In the lodge's defense, the rooms were quaint and clean, but certainly not worth $56 a night. We tried to make the best of it with some cold beers, looking out of our deck at the unimpressive view,

Our view from our beach cabana...note the volcanic rocks and no beach

but James couldn't shake the feeling that this place was going to be a waste of the 3-day beach weekend, when there was a perfectly beautiful beach only 45 minutes down the road, Roca Sunzal.

So after a very short discussion and 2 hours of knocking about the beach, we bailed. Since we had put no deposit and no credit card down, we just left, costing us nothing but a few hours' time. It didn't cost the lodge anything either, except for the use of a towel and the bathroom. Jen forgot her purse in her room in the rush, and when we drove back to grab it, they had already re-rented the rooms out, so we didn't feel bad at all after that knowing they didn't lose any money on us.

There was something fun and exhilarating about picking up and leaving a place because we just didn't like it and knew of something better nearby. It seemed to symbolize that we do in fact live here, and we aren't touristsy gringos (all the time, anyway). If we had seen this place online and were planning for a vacation, we would certainly have booked it. We would have anticipated it for months and months, and spent lots of money to fly there. Upon arrival, we would have perhaps been too paralyzed with the thought of changing plans or places in a foreign country to just pick up and leave like that. Ultimately, the trip would have been less than lovely at this lodge, and we would leave with no desire to return. But, we knew enough about the area to not be cheated out of a fun beach trip. We were flexible enough to say, "This is not how we want to spend our time," and then leave. I don't know if I've ever been on a vacation where that seemed like an option. It usually seems like once you plan for a trip, especially to a place you are unfamiliar with, you stick to those plans even if they are less than ideal out of some sense of loyalty to your plans, and not your happiness. This felt both adventurous and empowering to get in our car and get the heck out of dodge because we could.

So, we went to Roca Sunzal instead. James, Jen, and Jack (same couple we went to Honduras with) went to Roca a few weekends ago, but it was a new experience for Julian, Charlotte, and me.

My attempt at artsy photography of beached rocks at low tide

I loved it! As James recently shared, the waves are big enough for surfers, but not too overpowering to body surf and get in the water. We spent our time swimming, boogie boarding, drinking fruit licuados (smoothies), playing Scrabble, reading, and exploring diffferent places along the beach. I love that each lodging place along the beach also has a bar of some sort, so you can stay at a place like we did (for $17/night) but go enjoy your meals and beverages at the higher-end places where the atmosphere is better (e.g., more hammocks, a swimming pool overlooking the water, more comfortable chairs). It is too easy to spend a few hours in a shaded hammock listening to the crashing waves and feeling the breeze. One evening we visited The Cave Bar (the concept is as obvious as the name). Its best feature was the air conditioning, but unfortunately it was expensive, so we didn't stay long.

In the Cave Bar

This was definitely a favorite weekend for us! We both love the beach, and considering how close it is (3.5 hours) with a straight/safe drive, cheap lodging, and beautiful coastline, we will be going back time and time again. Next time we might even work up the courage to take some surfing lessons because, hey, when else are we going to learn to surf?!

A sensational Sunzal sunset!

James and I also really appreciate being on beaches that have a unique, local, undiscovered atmosphere. There are no high rise resorts, no one hocking key chains or magnets, no senior trip groups, and no one there with a tourist-laden "cater to me" agenda. We really love experiencing a different culture, not just American culture in a different place.