Well, first, a few words on why I’m going to Guatemala…
As some of you know, I got laid off in 2002, in the middle of the great Silicon Valley Crash. My boyfriend dumped me three weeks later, leaving me free to take off for Southeast Asia. So I went for six months–the best six months of my life.
Well, I got laid off again in March, after just four months at my new employer, Openwave. They handed me a truly gigantic severance check (nine weeks’ pay!), and then, just for the fun of it, immediately turned around and started trying to rehire me.
(I am making light of this, but there were a lot of wonderful people who went to great efforts to place me within Openwave. To them I am truly grateful.)
So here I am now, with a job offer from Openwave and a truly gigantic severance check. There’s only one thing to do: go traveling.
So I negotiated three weeks before starting up my new job, and I’m off! I picked Guatemala because, of all the Central and South American countries, it has the strongest weaving tradition. The most enjoyable moments I had in all my travels were the four days I spent studying spinning and weaving with an old weaverwoman from an Akha hilltribe, living in an Akha village (bamboo house and all), and eating their food. I’m hoping for a similar experience in Guatemala–also a chance to collect some of their gorgeous textiles.
I also, of course, want to try eating the most bizarre foods I can get my hands on. In Southeast Asia, I ate rat, scorpion, and dog (although I missed trying roasted bat, for which I’m still kicking myself)–what awaits in Guatemala? I dunno, but I gotta try it. 🙂
Right now I’m prepping for the journey–buying various essentials, putting together my med kit, and so on. I’ll write more about that later, if I find time.
Tien
