In this mountainous village of Guatemala, the smallest of things are the most surprising. People live their lives with habits and practices that you would never expect would be normal. For someone unfamiliar with the culture, seemingly insignificant actions can cause great offense to the locals and to a first time visitor, the strangest activity can be considered an everyday norm.

The challenge is discovering and deciphering these cultural differences and hopefully doing so before a mistake has been made and offense given.

Knock Knock!

In a rural land with houses tucked away in the corners and slopes of rolling hills, doorbells are a rare sight. Land is marked with tall plants or maybe a barbed wire fence with a tin gate. Before you enter someone’s land or before you pass the threshold of their house, you must ask for permission. Wait outside the door and say, “Con permiso!”  Wait for “Pase!” which they often say with a smile and a hug.

Eating with what?

Don’t be surprised if you receive a meal and are not offered utensils. Many times, the tortillas you have in the middle of the table are used as forks and spoons. Eat up and enjoy the bursting of fresh and delicious flavors in your mouth as you use the tortilla or your hands to eat. Maybe you’ll be given foods you’ve never seen before. If you don’t know how to eat it, don’t be too shy to ask. Watch those around you and you’ll catch on quickly. And don’t forget to end your meal with a loud “Muchas Gracias!” for the whole table to hear. Then chime in when they respond, “Buen Provecho!”

H20

Water is so precious especially in the small farming community where I live. But there are different types of water. You can’t just ask for water. The locals won’t know what to give you. Water to wash? Or water to drink? Water to drink needs to be purified beforehand. It can be filtered, boiled, or bought already processed. So be careful before you take a sip from the faucet. It’s probably not agua pura.

It takes a village

In my mountain village there is a deep sense of community and family. People invite guests into their homes and offer them the best of what little they have. If someone is sick the most common response is to get a group together to visit them. Women chat together as they walk down the dusty roads to grind their corn at the mill. Men laugh together in the fields, working side by side. Children call out to their friends to throw together a quick soccer game. No one is a stranger in these hills.

Beneficial Exercise

How do you get from place to place? There are few cars navigating through the narrow alleyways in town and even less climbing up the steep rocky paths. The most common form of transportation besides the public buses are your own two feet. Children walk for hours to get to school. Women travel up and down the wooded hills to gather firewood. Men hike miles to their fields. I can hardly climb the mountain to the village without fainting in exhaustion and I know several women who can do it with a baby on their back, fifty pounds of wood on their head and hardly break a sweat.

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There are many different cultural differences from where I grew up and this Guatemalan village where I now live. It has taken years of listening and watching to learn these social norms and even to this day I find myself giving offense by my actions. I am grateful for patient friends who give me grace despite my faults. Hopefully, when you come to Guatemala, you can learn from these cultural differences and have a great experience in this beautiful country.