I live in a family compound, which means the family stays in one house, and I live in another, but we share the same yard. Therefore, my front yard is their backyard. We have coffee plants in our yard. I love them. They don't have a smell, but when the red cherries come in, they are really pretty.
I think my bedroom is pretty common. Dressers here are really expensive ($150-$250). I'm not sure how they can afford them, but they are beautiful. They are hand-carved and painted. As you can see, I have a shelf that was made by the volunteer I replaced. It definitely comes in handy. I have a lot of clothes for just 5 months in country, but I didn't bring all of them on the plane with me. I waited until I got here, and then went "Paca" shopping. It's like shopping in a thrift store at home. A lot of people cannot afford to buy clothes out of the store because they are expensive. My host sister and I going shopping together sometimes. I get really good deals with her because she's Guatemalteca.
My bathroom is kind of big for the area I live in. My shower is huge; big enough for a tub, but I don't have one. This is probably for the best here. I have a "calentadora". It's an apparatus that the water passes through to make the water come out hot (or should I say warm). It's not that bad, but sometimes in the morning, it's cold. The wind blows in and it defeats the purpose of trying to take a hot shower. You're just trying to get in and get out.
Here's one of the shelves I made from cement blocks and pieces of wood. I must say I did a good job trying to store everything in one area. It looks like a lot, but the shelves are not that big. Maybe sometime in the future, I will get a chance to paint them. You know, make it a little more feminine. (lol)
My kitchen is an interesting topic. It's not a regular kitchen; it's a room that I made into a kitchen. The volunteer before me bought the stove top. As you can see, I only have 3 eyes. It runs on gas, which is a good thing if the power goes out. I can still cook food! I don't have an oven. A complete stove is expensive. Most volunteers only have the stove top. I have a toaster oven that I use to bake things. Last week, I made chocolate cake. Yum! Most of the time, I bake chicken because it produces less fat. I'm trying to lose a couple of pounds while I'm here.
If you noticed before when I was talking about my bathroom, there was no sink. Most of the older homes here, especially out in the aldeas, do not have sinks in the bathroom or the kitchen. We use "pilas". A "pila" is a large sink that usually sits in an open, central area. The left side has a basin board so you can wash clothes. As you can see, I even have a scrub brush to help get the mud out of my clothes when I'm working in the coffee fields. The middle is deep to store water in. In my town water only comes twice a day, in the morning and in the afternoon. We store water in the pilas to get us through the day. Now at my house, we have a storage tank. It holds several gallons of water; therefore, we don't have to store water in the pilas if we don't want to. Sometimes, we run out of water. I practice storing water in my pila. (Just-in-case) The right side, I use to wash dishes. The sun comes in strong on that side in the mornings, and I need my dishes to dry fast, so I can put them up before I go to work. I wash my face and brush my teeth on whichever side is open at the time. Yes, I use pila water. We were told we shouldn't because we could get sick. I started using it while I was sick, so know I don't have any problems getting sick from brushing my teeth. I am acclimating to my environment.I don't have a fully-enclosed house. Each room's door is leads to outside. I have a porch-like area that allows me to go from room to room without the weather getting to me. (So I always have to have clothes on to go to the bathroom.) 
My porch-like area is nice because I do not directly get sun. Normally, I sit in my hammock in the mornings and read a magazine with a nice cup of cappuccino. It's rather peaceful despite the noise from the chickens, roosters, and turkeys. After a while, you tune them out, and after about 7 am, they don't make as much noise.
My yard is great. I share it with my host family. I have celery growing by leaps and bounds. I try to eat some at least three times a week with peanut butter and raisins. (I'm crazy about "Ants on a Log"!) I also cook with it. Many people here use it when they cook rice along with carrots and peppers. It tastes great. In a couple of months, I will plant the bell pepper seeds I have been collecting along with the watermelon seeds. I can't wait to have my own watermelon growing.
I also have a flower garden. It seems to be doing good, but I would love to add some roses in there. We'll see if i can make room for some. The plants are in a good location to get adequate sunlight.
I have a fire-burning pit to dispose of most of my garbage. My town does not have a garbage collection system. They either throw it in this large area beside the river or burn it. I have chosen option 2 because I don't want to help pollute the water system. Besides, there are a lot of plants and trees where I live. It will help cut down on the air pollution. As I get to know the town's people more and more, I am going to suggest a trash system that doesn't involve polluting the water.
As far as my clothes go, after I wash them, I hang them up to dry. I have three clotheslines in that get sunlight, and two under my porch (for the rainy days). I try to wash clothes at least once a week because the drying process takes time depending on the weather. Some days, my clothes will dry in 2 days. Other times it will take 3 to 5 days. We get several cloudy days due to the volcanoes and their smoke. I haven't lived through the rainy season yet. I hope it truly doesn't rain every day. Otherwise, I'm going to have save up on money to visit the local laundry mat. It's really expensive. They dry by weight, and (of course) wet clothes weigh more than dry ones.
Last, but not least, I have a bicycle. Now, those of you who know me are asking yourself, “What does she need that for?” I don’t really use it often. I prefer to walk. You can’t look cute sweating on a bike. (lol) Actually, it’s a little rusty. When I save some more money, I’m going to have it fixed. Then I will ride it to work. It will definitely cut my time down. I may even ride it to the grocery store. It’s all the way on the other side of town. It will be good exercise.
Well, that’s my home. I hope this answers most of your questions. I’m quite sure, you will still have more. You are more than welcome to post your questions in the comment section. I enjoy reading them.
Have a blessed day!
