school – Snapping The Globe

El Diario de Guatemala UNO

EL DIA UNO

As I left home this morning, I was thinking that I was crazy for thinking that going to school in another country to learn another language at my age was a good idea. To say the least, I was extremely nervous. Although I had been to Guatemala on vacation with my son a couple of years ago and I felt very comfortable there, there are so many things that go through your mind.

What if I did not like the school or my teacher? What if I did not like being there for more than a few days? What if I got sick while I was on my own?

Nevertheless, I have learned over the years that I need to put myself into uncomfortable situations. In the end, it all works out and I’ll tell anyone who will listen about my wonderful experiences!

So, I made my way through security and to my gate in Richmond trying not to think about anything other than getting there. After landing in Atlanta, I boarded my flight to Guatemala City, arriving 3 1/2 hours later. The airport was nowhere near as crowded as was the first time we visited. I would imagine that this is due to Covid restrictions and people not traveling as much as they have in the past. Clearing customs and immigration, it then took me only a couple of minutes to find my driver and we were soon on our way to Antigua.

Although I have studied a great deal over the past year, it’s quite difficult to sit in a car for an hour and try to make conversation with someone who is fluent in the language you aren’t completely familiar with. Realizing that I needed a bit of help, I turned on my phone and utilized my translation app and I think Senor Sergio really appreciated my efforts! Before long, I recognized the entrance to the beautiful city that was to be my home for the next two weeks and I was being dropped off at my hotel.

After settling in, I headed out to the cobblestone streets searching for a restaurant for my lunch. Devouring a Caprese panini and fries I realized that it actually was much later for me with the time difference and I probably wouldn’t be very hungry later. I then continued on Avenida 5a Norte and passed thru the Santa Catalina Arch. Spotting Iglesia de La Merced, one of Antigua’s famed churches up ahead, I began to look for my school which was located nearby. Discovering the doorway and entrance, I breathed a sigh of relief knowing that I wouldn’t have to spend precious time in the morning locating it. The second thing on my agenda was finding the place that was to be my home starting the next day. That didn’t take very long either as my Airbnb was located only a block away…talk about picking the right location!!!

I was so excited to be back in the city and wanted to stop and see everything that I remembered, however I decided to head back to my hotel to use the pool since the sun was trying to sneak a peek out of the cloudy skies…rainy season, you know.

A little colder than I expected, I didn’t last very long and headed back into my room for a much-needed nap. I was exhausted but freshened up and headed to a restaurant that my son and I had enjoyed on a couple of occasions. A few beers and some fish tacos and I was finally ready to get some sleep so that I would be ready for my first day of school!

What I learned today: Know the correct verb…asking the convenience store owner what time the shop is bored in the morning is quite confusing, however quite comical! Abburido and abierto are two very different words!!! Truly a mistake I will never make again!

Picture of the day: Hello Antigua!

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Casa del Parque Hotel

https://www.hotelcasadelparque.com/
Address: 4th Ave North #5, Antigua, Guatemala, 03001

Santa Catalina Arch

Address: 5a Avenida Norte 28, Antigua, Guatemala

Old School

Many years ago, I remember sitting in my first-grade Catholic-school classroom listening to Sister Mary Marshall play songs to help us recall vocabulary, spelling and mathematics. Sitting next to my friend, Nina, we watched our teacher write on the giant chalkboards in her neat “nun” handwriting and cowered from her wrath when we were caught misbehaving!

Although our school was relatively small, it was gigantic compared to the some of the first schools established in the United States.

After the first settlements were founded, eventually, the need arose for the children’s education. Small one-room schoolhouses were built and a teacher was brought in to deliver instruction. Since there was a small number of children, all ages were taught together.

Although the Oldest Wooden School House, located in St. Augustine’s historic district, only dates back to the early 18th century and was by no means the first, it does hold the title of the “oldest” as it is the only one still standing. No other wooden structures in the city, built prior to 1702, remain as the British burned St. Augustine to the ground during that year.

The Oldest Wooden School House was built for the Genopoly family in the Minorcan Quarter. It was a single-story building made of cypress and red cedar and had a detached kitchen and a privy. The first schoolteacher, Juan Genopoly, eventually commissioned a second story to guarantee privacy for himself and his family.

Today, visitors enter through the gift shop and pay the admission fee. From the gift shop they step into the quaint walled-in garden and observe the many statues of international educators, the old school bell in the corner of the courtyard and a 250-year-old pecan tree which still bears fruit.

After my walk through the garden, I took a peek inside of the kitchen and learned that it was not used as a cafeteria, but as the location where the teachers whipped up their own meals for themselves and their family. Students brought their own “lunch pails” and the kitchen was built as a separate entity to avoid unnecessarily heating the schoolhouse or catching it on fire.

Turning to find the entrance to the schoolhouse, I stepped inside, taking care to monitor the uneven floorboards. The two rooms on either side were decorated in the style of the time and it was evident that one was used as an office for Teacher Genopoly.

Passing into the main room, I observed the small, narrow stairway leading up to the family’s main living and sleeping quarters and the small space underneath the stairs which demonstrated “the dungeon” where unruly students were placed for punishment. To the right was the main space where instruction took place around the fireplace.

In long showcases along the back wall, there are many artifacts, including old textbooks and school supplies from the eighteenth century and a list of the last class which attended school there in 1864.

As I ventured closer to the students, I wondered how they were segregated for learning purposes and observed how the dunce cap was used not on the head of the ill-behaved child, as I had thought, but the head of the slow learner. Although it was a common practice, it was not one that I thought was fair.

And with that, my time visiting the Oldest Wooden School House was complete.

Short and sweet, yet very educational…for me and for those who came before me…both visitors and students…I really enjoyed this American Treasure, such an important part of St. Augustine’s past.

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Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse

Address: 14 St. George Street, St. Augustine, Florida, 32084
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 1000-1700, Friday and Saturday, 1000-1900
Admission: Adult, $5.00, Students (ages 6-12), $4.00, Children (under 5), free

Castle Rock

Across the James River, less than half a mile from the Belmead mansion, lies St. Francis de Sales.

Sad, neglected and slowly succumbing to the passage of time.

Built by enslaved people in the 1800s, the Belmead plantation was eventually converted to both a school for boys, St. Emma Military Academy, housed in the Belmead mansion and St. Francis de Sales School for Girls which offered educations for Native and African American students. These schools were established by Mother Katherine Drexel, a former heiress and socialite who devoted her life to the church and later went on to become one of only two American Roman Catholic saints. The girl’s school was named for Drexel’s father, Francis, and often referred to as Castle Rock…a castle to the girls that resided there and a foundation (rock) for their futures.

Both schools were closed in 1970 and since this time, the buildings have fallen into disrepair.

Visiting with a tour organized by local photographer John Plaschal, I had already done a full exploration of the Belmead mansion and its surrounding property. I headed to St. Francis de Sales, having to take the long way around with the James River bridge outage. Parking in the lot adjacent to the former school, I made my way through the opening in the gate, heading to the front of the building. The back was a bit lackluster, but it was the Gothic facade was what I wanted most to see.

Part of the front of the building had collapsed in the past few years and this made for some interesting photography, but the part I was most excited about was the church. With its arched doorway, capped with a splendid stained glass window and statue of its namesake, St. Francis de Sales, it was breathtaking. Creeping vines covered the façade, some still in bloom, and an occasional window was shattered, allowing the outside to venture in.

Waiting my turn, I finally entered the doorway. The narthex was enclosed by a low barrier and I had to be content to view the entire church from this viewpoint. It was obvious that mass had not been celebrated here in some time. There were two pews in front of the altar which appeared to be waiting for the worshipers of the past. The vaulted ceiling rose above and it looked as if great portions of it had fallen, leaving only the beams visible. What I loved most, however, were the colorful stained glass windows, visible on the left side of the church.

An agreement had been made with the current owner to allow visitors to venture no further than this point, due to the current state of the property. It was sad, as I would have liked to inspect each part of the church more intimately and especially to look back towards the choir to see the light filtering through the stained glass window above the doorway.

Walking completely around the building, I paid attention to the numerous architectural details while making my way toward the former art studio. The doorway was open and I spied blank chalkboards, empty shelves and tables and chairs covered in the crumbling debris from the aged ceiling.

The back of the building was in especially atrocious shape with the right side collapsing from the main structure. I was able to make my way closer, however, to see the balconied areas and vine-covered entrance. The rusty fire escapes still clung to the back of the building and I could only imagine the occasional student’s attempts to venture out using these dilapidated steps when curfew was upon them.

Following the path behind the school, I inspected the tall chimney and an abandoned building. An old gas pump stood neglected in the weeds nearby and I wondered if equipment used at the school was stored there at one time.

Continuing on the path through the woods, I admired the changing leaves and tall trees that lined the path. Eventually, I encountered a low wall, a landmark that I had been instructed to look for. Just beyond, I found the small, humpback bridge that crossed the small creek. I photographed every angle, even stepping down into the creek bed to see it from below, while the water coursed past my feet.

My journey back to the main building seemed much quicker and I sought out some of the other buildings on the property. Finally, eyeing the darkening sky, I jumped into my car and made my way to the main road. There was, however, a stop I had to make along the way.

The nun’s cemetery.

John, aware of my love of cemeteries, insisted that I visit on my way out and described the landmarks that I needed to navigate the area successfully. Pulling my car over to the shoulder, I headed into the darkening forest.

Now, I have watched enough scary movies to ask myself, “Why are you going into the forest…at dusk…by yourself…looking for a cemetery?”

Still, I ventured on, finding what then made sense as I saw it…a tree tunnel. Well, it was more like evergreen bushes trained to grow into a shape that resembled a tunnel, but instead of walking around it, I heeded my instructions and overcame my fear of the creepy crawlies that probably resided there. Moving quickly through it, I continually eyed the light at the end. “Come to the light,” it called, evoking memories of supernatural movies where the dead passed on, heading towards a bright aurora. That thought was applicable, as when I stepped out, it was there that I found the nun’s cemetery.

About eleven small headstones, marking the final resting place of the nuns that resided there, were scattered around the overgrown graveyard. In the moment, I was more concerned with snakes, than ghosts, so I headed back to the path.

Continuing on into the ever-growing gloom, I passed through a gate and found the children’s cemetery. Now, if dead nuns don’t make you scared, dead children might…especially in the dark.

I made quick work of photographing the small burial ground and finally, returned as quickly as I had come…maybe quicker!

A successful day of photography, both the Belmead and St. Francis de Sales, although, shadows of their former selves, make for stunning architectural subjects. It is good to know, however, that both buildings have been recently purchased by a new owner and a foundation has been established in an effort to restore and reuse the buildings.

Possibly one day, after renovations, everyone may have the opportunity to see these stunning pieces, reminders of time gone by.

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St. Francis de Sales

Address: 3500 St. Emma Drive, Powhatan, Virginia 23139
Admission: Admitted by invitation only
Hours: No regular hours

John Plaschal Photography

https://www.johnplashalphoto.com/2019-events/2020/11/14/the-belmead-on-the-james-experience