I have nothing but incredible things to say about Casa Xelajú. Here are the things that I loved: 1) My teacher: She was incredible and very knowledgable, but also flexible. During class, we broke up periods of lecturing/exercises with fun excursions (e. G. The Cerveceria — beer factory, The Cemetery, and a local woman's weaving collective). My teacher was 20 (my age) and we got along so well. 2) My family: best of both worlds in that they were very experienced in hosting students but also excited about having me and eager to give me a window into their life and culture. And the food. The food was incredible. 3) The Pedrera: This is the after-school program for children run by Casa Xelajú, It's about 30-minutes away (the walk offers an amazing view of the city), but you do the walk with some of the children. I tutored math and played games with the kids. It was a great experience — I just wish I'd done it more, as I suspect that the kids get frustrated with having volunteers constantly coming and going. 4) The administration: In my experience, they were very flexible (though some of my friends did not have similarly positive experiences). But they are eager to make students happy, letting them change teachers or families as needed. 5) The other students: I met students from all over the US, as well as from other countries. The students are eager to do things together and make friends, which just rounds out the experience.
if you're coming to xela, do yourself a favor and come to cx.
1) My teacher: She was incredible and very knowledgable, but also flexible. During class, we broke up periods of lecturing/exercises with fun excursions (e. G. The Cerveceria — beer factory, The Cemetery, and a local woman's weaving collective). My teacher was 20 (my age) and we got along so well.
2) My family: best of both worlds in that they were very experienced in hosting students but also excited about having me and eager to give me a window into their life and culture. And the food. The food was incredible.
3) The Pedrera: This is the after-school program for children run by Casa Xelajú, It's about 30-minutes away (the walk offers an amazing view of the city), but you do the walk with some of the children. I tutored math and played games with the kids. It was a great experience — I just wish I'd done it more, as I suspect that the kids get frustrated with having volunteers constantly coming and going.
4) The administration: In my experience, they were very flexible (though some of my friends did not have similarly positive experiences). But they are eager to make students happy, letting them change teachers or families as needed.
5) The other students: I met students from all over the US, as well as from other countries. The students are eager to do things together and make friends, which just rounds out the experience. if you're coming to xela, do yourself a favor and come to cx.