Home for the Holidays

December has flown by. It's gotten surprisingly chilly here in Alta Verapaz, but only because there's 1) no indoor heating and 2) no way to close my windows. After the sun goes down, the cold air chills my house to a brisk 50 or 60 degrees. So here I sit, at 8pm, in bed, wool sweater, wool socks, wool blanket, and a hot water bottle (i.e. a canning jar filled with boiling water) under my legs. It's cozy, until I have to get up.

In two days I'll be back in the States, after 8 whole months of being here in Guatemala. It's amazing to think that all that time's passed since I left to come here. People in Campur are very excited about my trip, too. Many of them still can't comprehend how I could spend all of this time living so far away from my family. So they're very excited for me to be spending the holidays at home. So am I...my bags are packed, fridge is empty...I'm ready.

In other news, the Guatemalan military has just declared a State of Seige in Alta Verapaz for the next 30 days in order to combat Mexican drug operations. There's a curfew in place, and I've been advised to carry identification on me at all times. I haven't been out of site since the siege was put into place (my aldea remains unaffected), so I'm anxious to see what it's like when I head to the airport tomorrow.