Living the Life of Guatemala...

Famous Tapado Stew Recipe from Livingston, Guatemala

Main Ingredients:

shavings from one coconut

4 green bananas

1 King Fish

Shrimp

1 lb rice

Chicken Seasoning  to taste

Salt & Black Pepper

Water

Vegetable Oil

Basil

Recommended Ingredients:

Crab

Lobster

Conch

Tomatoes

 Onion

 Squash

Sweet Pepper

     

                                                                                                            

Steps:

Cut open coconut with the back of knife, pour out water and shave out the insides into a bowl. Cover shavings with clean water and then strain shavings. Throw away shavings and put that coconut flavored water inside your pot. Next, slice open the green bananas (considered a starch when not ripe) with a knife and cut into small chucks. Place pieces in a bowl of clean water and pour it all into the pot with coconut water. Next, cut up all chosen vegetables into bite size pieces and place in pot. Let all ingredients come to a boil on stove-top  Meanwhile, place rice into another pot with oil and salt (Here’s a Caribbean “Grandmother trick”  to get the right amount of water for your rice – place a large cooking spoon in the pot on top of the rice, stop adding water where the handle begins – you rice will come out perfect! See photo…Another tip: do not stir rice at all while it is cooking; keep it on a medium heat; turn over rice one time once water is all absorbed). Next, Slice fish into approximately 4 pieces and cover in chicken seasoning (try to add seasoning to inside of fish for added flavor). Do the same for shrimp and other chosen seafood. Once the bananas are soft to the touch and the soup is at a steady boil, add seafood to the pot. Add seasonings and basil to taste. Let boil for another few minutes until seafood is cooked through. Finally, serve soup in bowl with a side of rice…Bon Appetit from Livingston!

Thank you to Jr. for your cooking class and to the whole family at Rasta Mesa!!

Backpacker Travel Tip

Traveling solo really comes in handy if you are trying to learn a new language – this way you are not competing for conversation with the locals if your travel partner out dues you in language proficiency. My advice, be friendly to every local you encounter and the majority will watch your back! Only downfall to solo travel is that sometimes you get charged more for private rooms if you are single (hence, find a travel buddy to split the bill with once in a while).  

Traveler Spotlight “What’s Your Story?”

Shahdaroba Rodd (“Hatman” as we call him) is a man of simple taste but who lives life to the fullest on the daily. Originally from Ann Harbor, Michigan, Rodd has been living out of his car in Key West, Florida for the past 12 years. Rodd is no stranger to Latin America travel and tells the locals to consider him the “Bobo Gringo”, or the Silly American. Rodds’ new founded dream is to seek out a place he considers home for retirement somewhere in Central America. He states he’s fond of Guatemala, Honduras and Panama but adds “I haven’t closed my mind to any possibilities. I don’t know what I’m looking for but when I see it I’ll know it”. What inspired Rodd to live down south, an even hotter place than the Keys, was his introduction to the concept of building infrastructures out of used plastic bottles. Rodd met a friend, Gerson, who directs Hug It Forward NGO in Guatemala. Basically, NGOs like Hug It Forward and tons of locals collect thousands of used plastic bottles and fill them with inorganic trash which creates schools for Guatemalan children.

Rodd explains he’s already talked to some land-owners but is still searching for his future home. He hopes to have the rights to build a house and pool and pay a cheap amount on rent so that when Rodd finally passes, whatever he builds will be the property of the family who he lived out his final years with. Rodd says he believes life is grand adventure (gran adventura) and reflects his message to others: Don’t be afraid to travel. I didn’t travel outside of the United States until I was 60 years old out of fear and economics. The world is not a scary place like they put in the newspapers”. Coincidentally, Rodd is an author of a book called "Be A Legal Pain-In-The-Ass & Beat Your DUI". Rodd’s final thought to add to this interview was “senorita wanted”. 

Did you know?

Did you know that Livingston, Guatemala is the most diverse Caribbean style town I’ve ever experienced? They pride themselves with heritages of Garifuna (African slaves brought the New World – ancestry from the island of Roatan off Honduras), Caribbean Mayan Indigena groups and Mestizos/Ladinos (persons of mixed indigenous and Spanish ancestry). If you want to experience a fisherman’s lifestyle and are open-minded to Latin and Caribbean culture, than this is the place for you to visit.

Local Wisdom of the Month

Ronald Lopez is a tour guide and business owner in Flores, Guatemala. What made me decide to interview Ronald was his sincere caring for me during a day of waiting for a bus to Quetzatenango. As I shuffled myself and my heavy backpack through the bus station in the early morning I was confused why the bus companies were taking me all the way back to Guatemala City (which is out of the way to Xela). Ronald pulled me aside and asked how he could be of help. After I finally paid for my bus ticket to the city that leaves at 8pm at night I wondering what I was going to do in Flores all day, Ronald offered to keep my backpack safe in his office while I roamed the beautiful island. I got on the back of his motorbike and we headed toward his office. I had utmost trust in Ronald, something I typically shy away from while traveling alone. We hung out most of the day together when he was not working – he practicing his English and me my Spanish.

Ronald is 29 years of age and originally from Quetzaltenango. He decided to move to Flores when his brother asked for his assistance with his bus company. Ronald really loved the area of Flores and has been there for 6 years. He quickly found that learning English was a huge help to communicate with foreign travelers. A while later, Ronald and a colleague opened a tour guide business called “La Canada de Jaguar” and he also has his own company called “Onca” (oncatravel@gmail.com). Ronald admits that his goal in life is to be “successful and have my clients be happy with their experience here..and to remember me and Flores like, wow, I want to go back to Guatemala”.

Ronald’s wisdom for travelers and for life in general really struck a chord in me after hearing this all too familiar story.. Ronald explained “It’s important to be nice to people who want to help you explore their country. I don’t like being ignored…two Canadian women ignored me when I asked if I could help them” and he admits that it was not a good feeling. Ronald says “I like people to get to know me – I’m not perfect, but I’m patient. I don’t care if they’re in a bad mood, I’m still going to say I love them with all my heart and not judge.” Ronald’s final message: “trust starts in your heart, trust yourself first before you can trust others”.

The message I took away from this experience with Ronald was be nice to everyone who approaches you! Keep your wits up while traveling but always smile and be polite. A simple ‘no thank you’ (muchas gracias pero no) shows you respect that person for trying to help. And most importantly, don’t be afraid to ask for help and receive it – trust yourself and your instincts because there are good people everywhere!

Quote

“I do not forget any good deed done to me & I do not carry a grudge for a bad one.” Victor E. Frankl

Travel Update

I've arrived to my first volunteer/host-family experience in Quetzaltenango (Xela), Guatemala where I'll be teaching conversational English to the students at K'amawik' School. I will be here through the end of May. Photos coming soon.