RUAB Guatemala: Bean There, Done That!

Life in San Miguel Escobar, Guatemala is quite different from New Jersey or anything we could have imagined. San Miguel Escobar is right in the heart of coffee country, which is where we had the opportunity to work with De La Gente, our alternative break partner organization.  De La Gente was created to provide economic opportunity for farmers and give them all of the profits from sale of coffee.  De La Gente literally translates to “for the people.”  This alternative break encompassed education, service, understanding of culture, and most importantly insight into the lifestyle that the farmers of Guatemala.  The experiences that we took part in and the emotions that we shared were unlike anything we could have ever anticipated.  

Culture and Lifestyle

Every single family’s lives were directly or indirectly related to coffee.  Parents work hard each and every day on the coffee fields in order to provide for their families, keep food on the table, pay for healthcare, and pay for their children’s education.  Each day, the farmers would spend approximately 8-10 hours on the farm (during season) and consistently work in the hot beating sun, only taking breaks for meals.  It put in perspective the importance of family and community, a concept that I feel sometimes gets overlooked in the United States and sometimes taken for granted.  Many of us students could never even imagine the kind of struggle that these families had day in and day out, but it was even more difficult to understand how they were able to maintain such a positive attitude in the midst of so much struggle.  It was absolutely incredible.

There was quite a bit of language barrier for our group when trying to connect with the farmers and locals in San Miguel Escobar.  We had students who were able to speak Spanish fluently (as best as possible) and sometimes, it made conversations difficult.

“At times it wasn't easy to get a message across in talking alone. When those moments came, there was usually someone who could speak on behalf of others, or we would resort to smiling and making eye-contact, and that could be enough get a warm message across.”

Sometimes the language barrier didn't matter.  Sometimes it was nice just to be having a conversation where body language and smiles could hold an entire conversation.  As the trip progressed, however, more and more of us were able to understand what was being discussed in conversations and we did our best to give input and try to relay any relevant information.  We had conversations with so many different farmers and their families at the dinner table: Gregorio, Mercedez, Armando/Lesbia, Timoteo and Eduardo, just to name a few.  These conversations were an intimate opportunity to learn more about life in Guatemala, the infrastructure of the corrupt government, the changes that De La Gente has made to the community, and what their families lives were truly like.  It was also an opportunity for the farmers to ask us any questions they had about the United States.  

“My most memorable moment of this break was being able to talk to the farmers, particularly Timoteo aka "El Tigre", as if he were one of my guy friends from back home. It was awesome to see how down-to-earth he was, despite the fact that he was so much older than me (and did not seem it). His stories were funny and sometimes shocking, and it just added so much to my experience. It's one thing to learn about the hard work that goes into making a product such as coffee, but it's completely different when you get to experience the humanistic side behind it.”  

Major Cultural Differences:

These differences were based on what we noticed in San Miguel Escobar and are not necessary an entire representation of the country as a whole.  Life in Antigua and Guatemala City, much more touristy areas, were quite different from where we specifically stayed.  

Education is viewed quite differently from us.  In Guatemala, there is less emphasis on formal education and more on what skills would be necessary to make ends meet on the farm to be most productive.  A lot of the time, there was inadequate access to uniforms, school supplies, books, transportation, and even proper facilities that were not provided to rural areas like San Miguel Escobar.  Because of this, children choose to do whatever they can to help sustain the family.  

Drinking alcohol is vastly different in Guatemala than it is here in the United States.  As far as we were exposed to, drinking is only done for major parties or celebrations, not just casually with friends or with dinner.  It is typically not talked about unless someone truly has a drinking problem.  That being said, it seemed that there was general consensus that many of the farmers really liked whiskey, because instead of saying “cheese” while taking pictures, they told us to say “WHISKEY!”  Some of the other farmers told us they also enjoyed tequila.

“One of the most shocking things in this trip was seeing the meat hanging in the market, not refrigerated and not in a container. As a nutrition major, all I could think of is the endless amounts of food borne illness that could arise from this extreme lack of food safety. As someone who is not particularly fond of the FDA, it did give me much appreciation for the food safety standards we have here in the U.S. It also gave me much concern for the general public of Guatemala, as well as an urge to educate them on the severity of refrigerating meat.”

Food safety was just an interesting observation that we made.  None of the farmers or families refrigerated their eggs, they were simply left out.  The concept of not taking the proper precautionary measures to avoid cultivating bacteria or disease was completely foreign to us.  That being said, foods in Guatemala are most likely less affected by factory farming the way that much of the United States is.  

Education

When you’re at the register about to purchase another cup coffee, do you ever stop to think where exactly your coffee is coming from? Or where the money goes? On this trip we looked beyond the register and had a hand-on experience learning not only how coffee is processed but where the every cent paid for it goes. We first learned about those who control major factors of production which includes the Famers, Exporters, Shipping/shippers??, Roasters and last but not least Retailers. Each role plays a significant part in making sure we get our delicious coffee. Farmers plant the coffee beans while exporters harvest and process the beans. Shipping of course entails delivering the beans where they need to be delivered. Roasters, such as Nestle or Starbucks, roast the coffee and deal with the packaging of the coffee. And retailers advertise for you to buy your coffee at their vendor. Lucky for us we got to see most of the steps for processing coffee since most of the farmers apart of De La Gente farm and process their own coffee! The harvesting part was already done since the coffee was planted a season before we got there. The beans first have to be separated from the cherry through this pulping machine.

                         

After that, they are fermented and washed. After being left out to dry for a day or so they must go through another machine that rips off the dried parchment. And then they must be sorted by hand, which is where we came in. We all sat at a long table covered with green beans ready to be separated as “defected” or “trash.”

After sorting the rest was up to them. In the end they even gave us a complimentary bag of coffee made just by them.

Even though them giving us a bag of coffee was a reward on our part, this gesture leads us to another pivotal learning fragment of our trip. It turns out that only a small segment of the money we use to buy to our coffee is given to the farmers. The profit of the coffee is split despairingly disproportionately through the production chain. You would think a huge chunk of your $2.35 coffee would go the farmers or the people who export the beans right? Turns out it’s not; of course the money is split between the factors such as Roasters and Retailers but most of the people who put in the manual labor get the shorter end of the stick. To fix this we should invest in what we call Fair or Direct Trade, both of which are very different. On the third day of our visit Andy, the man who started De La Gente, talked a little further about production and economics of producing goods such as coffee. Through Fair Trade you pay a little extra for your coffee and the money is then split equally among the farmers, shippers, retailers, and etc. But that only touches on the surface of our problem. However with Direct Trade, which De La Gente follows, makes sure your money goes directly to the farmers! They put in the most manual labor and even process and roast their own coffee. The money you pay to farmers through Direct Trade helps them tremendously in the long run. Not only do they have the income to produce better coffee but most of the money is invested to their family and education. When we sat and talked to the farmers at dinner each night they all shared how being a part of De La Gente has impacted not only their family but the community as a whole for the better.

Service

As part of our service we helped dig holes for the farmers to plant their next harvest of coffee beans. We trekked up the edge of volcano which took about an hour and half (these farmers walk up this trail every day as early as 6am). Once we made it to our destination Timo and Eduardo handed us hoes that we’d be working with. And for the next hour or so we dug holes into the ground with special technique that the farmers taught us. It was arduous but also exciting to help out the farmers. It was great to give them a break and to experience what they do for a change. What we did was only a fraction of hard labor they put in every day.

The bulk of our true manual labor was the two days after, where we laid down cement and cinder blocks to create walls.  Our volunteers, along with the many other volunteer organizations that had offered their services to De La Gente, were constructing a community center that could hold all of the equipment, tools, and miscellaneous storage items that the community of farmers at the cooperative needed.  It was difficult work to say the least, especially since most of us had not ever worked with our hands that strenuously before.  

So much of our service was to be fully immersed in the culture and lifestyle, and understand how the coffee industry affects the local economies in rural areas of Guatemala.  

“De La Gente has a very beneficial impact to the community in the sense that they help everyone else see the social and economic issues, as well as providing the farmers who work a part of De La Gente with great opportunities to work with exporters and people in different areas of the world. I think De La Gente is going a great job in educating others in a way where we want to go spread the word.”

“De La Gente helps farmers and artisans to receive better pay for their work and connects people in the community for a stronger economic system. They build trust and that makes the biggest difference of all.”

We were part of this community.  We got to experience what life is like in San Miguel Escobar.  Because we were part of this trip, we are now able to use the knowledge we have as service to carry it over into our consumer choices as well as educating our friends and families.

Understanding culture, lifestyle and being educated on the matters are just as important aspects of service as palpable service like manual labor and traditional volunteering.

Tourism

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:

Reflections

Each night, after winding down from the day’s activities, we had reflections of the day where we talked about our highs and lows of the day and also what we learned.  We asked a few of our RUAB member’s questions pertaining to the trip as a whole and here’s what we got…

“Before going on this trip, I simply expected to learn more about the coffee-making process and get some insight on Guatemalan culture. But this trip meant so much more than that. Our group guide, Jane, said one of the most important things we could take back is what we learned, and I couldn't agree more. Of course, we learned technical processing and had a taste of the labor required, but we also learned about the effects of this industry and the impact this coffee cooperative had on the lives of an entire community. Although there are pictures that may depict some of what we learned, it is truly up to us to spread the stories of the people we met: who they are, what they do, and why they do it.”

“This trip was very exciting and inspiring. It was a very good learning experience and I wish we had a longer time to be there in order to learn more about their community as long as providing more service, because the farmers were so kind and heartwarming towards us”

Aside from simply reflecting on our palpable experiences, we also reflected on the disparity between the United States and Central America.  Aside from the initial culture shock from being in a foreign country, the first thing that opened many of our eyes was the constant correction of a misconception that many of us constantly verbalized.  Many of us referred to the our native country as “America” but we were corrected by the staff from De La Gente that in Guatemala, we were also part of America.  Central America was still America.  The United States are simply one part of America.  We reflected on this topic by discussing the meaning of “American Exceptionalism,” the concept of the United States believing it is vastly different from the rest of the world.  This is clearly displayed by the difference in the distribution of wealth within the coffee supply chain.  The retailers and roasters in the United States reap more than 80% of the profits within the coffee industry leaving the developing countries along the coffee belt struggling to support their families with their mediocre wages.  It is simply unfair and lacks justice that must be served for these farmers.  

After our trip had ended, our opinions of “America” had been changed forever:

“America is a land of freedom, diversity, and contains different social and economical values that shape various people who they are today. Guatemala is in "America" and saying we are only from America is politically incorrect…  ‘America’, to me, means the continents of North and South America. "America" is the Western civilizations, including in the north, in Central America, Latin America, the Caribbean, and South America. That's ALL America to me. “

How has this experience influence now that you’re back in the US?

“This trip and experience has influenced me because I have learned how self-sustainable these farmers are and have really compared it to the life here. It has also influenced me in a way that I will understand the process of where coffee comes from and educate others in the sense that drinking this type of coffee does make a difference. The activity about supply chain of coffee really intrigued me because it was shocking to see how little farmers make”

This is the second year of Rutgers University Alternative Breaks working with De La Gente to learn about sustainable agriculture and the coffee industry with local farmers and I sincerely hope this tradition continues for many years to come!

New Orleans RUAB Spring 2014!

Our first Alternative Break meeting, we sat in a room full of 13 strangers from all different backgrounds, talking about a trip that seemed to be in the very distant future. We never would have guessed that after a spending a week in New Orleans together, we would go through life-changing experiences and become a perfectly cohesive, dysfunctional, and hysterical group of close friends. Not only did we become close, but the passion that we had for our project and the homeowners  was overwhelming. #NOLA2014 was something we'll never forget.

After landing in New Orleans early Sunday morning, we drove to the United Saints, which was the non-profit organization who led our community service. We settled into our little apartment for the week, and headed out to use our free day to explore the city. We passed things such as the Super Dome, The Smoothie Center, and eventually parked at The French Quarters.

The city of New Orleans itself has so much culture. Anything from Mardi Gras beads, to Dia de Los Muertos and Voodoo dolls. Even the streets picture the original Spanish names from centuries ago. There's so much art and culture to be seen around every turn. The architecture is unlike any you would normally see on the East Coast. Not to mention the food is out of this world. I'm pretty sure I magically grew tastebuds just for southern food during this trip.

Famous Cafe du Monde Coffee

Beignets

Blackened Redfish Tacos at Juan's Taqueria

It was very easy to appreciate every thing that the city had to offer on that first day. We got to experience to tourists' side of the city, however that enjoyment quickly turned into heartbreak and compassion as the week went on. Driving through the back roads of the city, the damage that was still left from Hurricane Katrina even after 8 years, was truly shocking. Each road had about 3 beautifully decorated houses, each separated by abandoned, over grown residences. The contrast between the beauty and the horrific damage still left untouched gave us a completely different experience than most tourists.

As the week went on, we were eventually assigned to a few smaller projects such as restoring a community garden in the Ninth Ward, and helping to roof a house. We soon fell in love with a specific project, which we made our home for the rest of the week. Morris and Steve, an older couple whose home was damaged in Hurricane Katrina, welcomed us with open arms to help them finish construction on their house before their June 2014 deadline. I can think of no other way to describe our experience with Morris and Steve other than the fact that they will forever be family. The personal stories they shared with us, both about the hurricane and their lives in general, will forever stay in the back of our minds. They sang and danced with us, they helped us with construction when needed, they laughed with us, they brought us tiny gifts and snacks, they gave us pounds and pounds of Mardi Gras beads, but most of all, they gave us a piece of our lives that we will never forget. Their infectious positive spirits, even after living through many tragedies, was truly inspiring. By the end of the week, we had put every ounce of blood, sweat, and tears that we possibly could into their house. We know that they will complete their project before their deadline, and will be stress free to enjoy their beautiful home and the rest of their lives together. 

Experiencing New Orleans from an Alternative Break standpoint was not your typical vacation. I now know that you can never truly appreciate a city until you have seen it all, the good, the bad, and the ugly. It might be painful to see and discouraging, but the work we did, the lives we touched, the lives who touched us and the lessons that we learned were worth every second.

Benefitting the Bay: Team Biloxi

March 16th, 2014 (Traveling & Settling In)

        Waking up at 4 AM to catch a shuttle to Newark International is not something I had ever done before. However, it was easy to start the day at this early hour knowing that our service projects were awaiting us right past those airport terminals in Mississippi. After everyone had made it through airport security, the pre-boarding hours proved to be an exciting time to get to know one another. A majority of us were wearing glasses, so naturally a few #teamglasses selfies were in order.

Our initial flight to Atlanta, GA went by fairly quickly (especially considering most of us were sleeping). After landing, we all grabbed a quick snack and prepared for our final flight to Gulfport, MS. When we arrived here, the humidity hit us immediately after exiting the airport. It was warm. There were palm trees randomly placed around. We certainly were not in NJ anymore. After sorting out the rental car specifications, we head to Camp Wilkes where we would be lodged for the rest of our service week.
        Inside of our living space, there were ~15 bunk beds for both our group and a group from Georgia Southern University separated by a small hallway. The bathrooms and showers were co-ed, which seemed a little odd to me at first, but became the rule instead of the exception by the end of this trip. After settling in, it was time for dinner and for us to meet the Camp Wilkes leader, Steve! The choices were fairly continental, but the most interesting part about eating was cleaning the dishes. In order to produce the least amount of waste products, the scraps of food were saved for composting, while the plates were cleaned using the Triple-Dip (scrub, wash, bleach) system we all grew to appreciate :p. I brought school work with me (even though I avoided it), so after dinner I attempted to start it and ended up having a wonderful get-to-know-each-other conversation with my site leader Saad. I encourage all of you to have these types of in-depth conversations with your site leaders and peers while on this trip :D. At 11 PM, it was time for us to sleep and prepare for our long and eventful first day at the Head Start program.

March 17th, 2014 (Service Day 1 at the Isiah Fredericks School)

        Our first day of service (for me and most others) started at 5 AM sharp. We ate a continental breakfast and then prepared for our rides over to the Head Start program location in Biloxi, MS. Up until this point, we were only told that we were going to be working with children of some age group at a school, so needless to say, we were all very excited and nervous to begin our first day of volunteering. When we arrived at our destination, we were quickly signed in and whisked away to our separate rooms. One Team Biloxi volunteer was admitted into each classroom and this was the last time we would see each other for a few hours. After being assigned to my classroom, I slowly closed the door and turned around to see about 20 3-to-5 year olds staring at me inquisitively.
        I gazed around the room to see the teacher, Ms. Dusset, preparing breakfast for these young children. I arrived just in time for the meal, so I was asked to sit down with them in order to model good behavior. This was fairly humorous considering I am 6' 2" and the chair I was sitting in was made for 3 year olds. After taking a seat, I tried to subdue my anxiety by asking some of the kids what their names were. After many blank stares and no answers, I realized that I should probably wait until they start asking me questions to begin talking comfortably. When breakfast was finished, I was in charge of cleaning up all of the tableware (and most of the tables, considering a lot of the food missed the mouths of these young children on account of their unfamiliarity with silverware and its purpose).
        Ms. Dusset began clapping her hands and singing which meant it was time to learn. I found my spot on the carpet next to all of the kids and began to clap/sing the nursery rhymes belted out by Ms. Dusset. Keeping the attention of the kids was a very challenging task and I commend Ms. Dusset for her ability to do so. After we were finished with the nursery rhymes, it was time for a bathroom break. As with any other time children are asked to line up, this was complete chaos. Eventually, Ms. Dusset brought them all into line and the trip was not problematic at all.
        Lunch time was soon which meant it was time for me to set up all of the plates and other dining accessories for the kids. After wiping down the tables, it was then nap time. I went to the break room to meet up with the rest of my peer volunteers. Many of us were exhausted from our early wake-up and classroom service. This break would become a time for us to exchange hilarious classroom stories and our feelings about the nature of the Head Start program. Upon my early return to nap time, I had the chance to finally talk with Ms. Dusset one-on-one and learn more about her story.
        Ms. Dusset was born and raised in the south (specifically, Louisiana). Currently, she was on her way to achieving a Master's degree in education and even thought about pursuing a doctoral degree afterwards. She had faced several hardships in her life with respect to personal matters and moving around often, but I never saw her not smiling in class. When I asked her how she made it through everything and still maintained a positive outlook, she replied with "Feel blessed wherever you are. Be blessed wherever you are". I thought this was quite profound and a wonderful motto to live by.
        After nap time, we all left the school and returned back to the camp for dinner and reflection. Reflection was my most favorite part of the day because I really enjoyed listening to how my fellow volunteers felt throughout the day and how they handled the chaotic nature of a pre-kindergarten classroom. Understanding the connections between the kids, our teachers, and each other also made for a great reflection experience.

March 18th, 2014 (Service Day 2 at Head Start/Day 1 of Boys and Girls Club)

        After another smooth wake-up, it was time to start our second day of service! We all felt a little less anxious heading into the school this time because we knew what was expected of us and how we should handle specific situations. Interestingly enough, on the ride there, we ran into one of Steve's cousins (The Tin Man) who offered words of wisdom and encouragement as we began our trek.

        When we arrived at our classrooms, both the teaching assistant and the head teacher were there to help facilitate the goings-on of the school day. For most of us, the school day went by fairly fluidly. The main challenges were trying to keep the attention of 20 3-year-olds and having to constantly explain to them the behavioral rules necessary for a school classroom. My favorite part of this day was "center time" which was a 35 minute period in the day where the kids would play with toys and just be themselves. I was on "puppet duty" where I got to entertain a young kid named Morris. Morris was the only one at the puppet center today, so I figured I should keep him company so he didn't feel left out. It was heartwarming seeing that the smallest amount of attention or care meant so much to these kids. This Head Start program was organized for kids who may not be growing up in the best familial or geographical setting, so being able to make them smile and be carefree definitely made this a wonderful experience :).

        As our second school day finished, we decided to head over to the Boys and Girls club in Biloxi to play games with the older kids.

This was a nice change of pace from the hectic school setting, but was still just as rewarding. We were only able to stay for an hour or so on this day, but several games of foursquare and dodgeball still took place which brought along a lot of positive energy.

        As the night came to an end, there were a few photoshoot opportunities that took place on the dock at our campsite. 

It was great to see that everyone was having a great time and I could not have hoped for a more cohesive crew than #teambiloxi on this trip :3

March 19th, 2014 (Last Day at Head Start/Day 2 at Boys and Girls Club)

        As we began our last day of service at Head Start, we felt saddened knowing that this was going to be the last time we would see our young students for a while. Fortunately, Steve's other cousin, the Hump Day Fairy, was there to see us off on this fine Wednesday morning.

        The school day routine in the morning was basically second nature to us at this point. There was a moment of spontaneity in my class on this day because we were finally well-behaved enough to go outside to play!! Playing on the playground with my class was another one of the best experiences I had on this trip. I was growing closer to Morris, so naturally I was his playmate today as well. After bringing out a bunch of toys and asking him what he wanted to play with....he picked the empty container that was holding all of them. He then ran around the whole playground with this container on his head while chasing me. Again, seeing all of the kids having fun and just worrying about being kids was a neat experience. The rest of the day seemed to fly by very quickly and before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye. Our respective classes lined up to give us hugs right before we left and then we were off to the Boys and Girls Club once more.

        We arrived a little earlier to the club this time around which meant more time to hang with the kids! The best part about being around these kids was the stress-free nature of everything. We could just play games and talk about their day and everything. The dodgeball game was especially fierce today since we arrived at the very beginning of it. Nota Bene: They picked teams and I wasn't picked last, so that was a very exciting time for me :D. After dodgeball, we returned outside to play a large game of catch with a kickball. There was a great feeling of inclusion while playing and it was great to see that we were directly affecting these kids in such a positive manner.

After returning to the camp, it was time to prepare for our New Orleans trip!!!

March 20th, 2014 (Beach Trip/New Orleans Trip/#TeamNOLA Meetup)

        After breakfast on this day, we decided to stop by a beach on the way to New Orleans to unwind and have another photoshoot. There were palm trees bright skies involved, so this was a great way to start the morning.

        After this brief stop, it was time to make our way to New Orleans!!! Our first stop in this lovely city of eclectic art, music, and culture was the famous Cafe Du Monde. Here, we tried a few beignets, which were basically densified funnel cake, but were still very delicious.

We met an eccentric magician after leaving this establishment and then we proceeded to walk around town and view the colorful architecture.

After traveling down the very interesting Bourbon Street, we got dinner at an authentic Nawlins restaurant where a few of us had the always popular Po Boy sandwiches. I even tried the fried alligator here (which actually does taste just like chewy chicken).

        When we were finished eating, it was time to meet up with our fellow Alt Breaks team! It was great sharing some RU pride and hearing others' stories of service and enlightenment on this trip.

        We then returned back to Camp Wilkes to get a good night's rest for our last day of service (which we were told was going to involve environmental work with Steve!)

March 21st, 2014 (Last Day of Alt Breaks Service/Environmental Day)

        On this Friday, we headed to a nature reserve to save the Mississippi-famous Live Oak trees which were covered in vines and unwanted underbrush. These trees would eventually die if such plants were not removed, so it was nice to know we were keeping history alive.

With the help of Steve and his son Francis, we cleared out a large chunk of area within a few hours. This definitely felt much different than when we were in the classroom, but it was still great to be conducting service with the #hellatight #teambiloxi. For lunch, Steve had a surprise for us and took us down to the giant Ruskin Oak tree nearby. This tree has been around so long that its branches have grown underground and formed roots again. As Steve said, this tree is a great metaphor of resilience for the people of Mississippi. Even after Katrina, everyone there re-grew their roots and began anew to face the day with an even stronger disposition.

        After visiting the tree, we returned to the nature reserve to finish up our outdoors work and then we all headed back to camp for our last night together.

March 22nd, 2014 (Returning Home)

        Just like when we were flying down to Mississippi, we had to get up very early again for our flight home. I didn't mind this wake-up because we were able to see the sunrise from the Atlanta airport :). After safely making it back to Newark International, it was time to prepare for our return to RU.

        On a personal note, this trip was the best social/service experience of my whole career here at Rutgers. Working with Head Start, the Boys and Girls program, my peers, and with Steve has forever changed me in a way that no other academic experience has. I've learned so much about everyone else (and myself) and even the thought of this trip inspires me today. We set out to uplift others and become hellatight and that's exactly what we did. I could not have asked for a more lovely, positive-minded, thoughtful group of participants and site leaders on this trip and I can't wait until we meet up again soon :D.

        - Fish Ludy