Should I stay or should I go?

I like it here in Xela and with my family so far, and I wonder if I want to stay another week. I think the hassle of switching the ticket, confirming with the school in Ecuador that it is ok (not that they would tell me I cant come if I dont come next week, but I kind of like the the family I am supposed to stay with at first - they live far from the school but near the university, and I think it will be posh living with my own TV and bathroom). Plus they have a kid a year older than me and the father is a civil engineer, which could be interesting to hear about. Anyway, I guess I will think a day or too more. The main reason to stay would be to have time to do daytrips to places nearby Xela. The school has them some days - there is an activity every day, but sometimes it is a roundtable discussion or a dance class, and in two weeks I could see more plus do those activities rather than striking out on my own and not knowing where exactly to get off the bus, etc.

The other student in my house is a 32 year old guy from Holland who quit his stock trading job last year and has spent the time traveling. I actually understand a little more Spanish than he does. The lady we are staying with, Doris, says a long prayer before every meal.

So I confess that one reason I was interested in coming to Xela is because all the guidebooks wrote about this place called La Luna that serves 7 different kinds of hot chocolate. Last night, I went with the guy from Holland and a girl from the states that we ran into at dinner last night that he knew. We each had a different kind and shared - mine was cinnamon, and it was ok. The ambiance of the place was great, with moon figures everywhere and it sort of looked like the exterior of the building although we were inside...anyway, I guess in the end I am not really a hot chocolate afficionado, because I feel that if I dont get back there, its not a big deal. I think I was expecting to think it was the most delicious thing ever, but in the end its just liquid chocolate.

My teacher here is Edy, who is 23. He studied law for a year but didnt like it. He had to pay 130 quetzals for the year (remember about 7.8 Q to the dollar). It sort of makes you wonder why in the richest country in the world we need to spend almost $40,000 a year on tuition alone. I understand what he says and like him, and he is going to teach me prepositions, which my other teachers sort of refused to do, one said because I wouldnt understand yet. This school is more formal and Edy and I made a plan for the entire week of what I will learn each day in class. I hope the Ecuador school is similar. He also talked some about the social history of Guatemala and the civil war - I think they make it a point here to teach students about politics of the country (although there is another school in town that is more formally a socialist-leaning school).

The afternoon activity was a hike up to some saunas. Only 4 students went and only one went in to the sauna. We were all a little out of breath and being hot doesnt make me want to get in a sauna to be hotter! Last night I didnt get to bed until about 10 and didnt use my ear plugs, and tonight I am hoping to sleep better. But I also have homework of a 45 line composition! But I havent written more than single sentences with different verbs, so it will be good for me to try to put something more complete together.

There are only about 12 students who study in the morning and a lot of the American university students who are here seem to study in the afternoon, although I dont see any here right now so maybe they go elsewhere or do independent research? They are in the internet cafe quite often too, using Facebook.

Friday night is a dinner at school and a talent show. I am 27 years old but have no talents to be displayed in front of a group. Oh well.