A Girl’s Guide to Travel, Studying, Working, and Volunteering Abroad

Written by DIWYY guest writer, Robyn, who recently moved to Antigua, Guatemala from Silicon Valley.

I’m in Antigua.

…No, no. Not the warm Caribbean paradise with 5 star, all-inclusive resorts and swim up bars.

I’m in Antigua, GUATEMALA.

Every time I say that, this is the neurotic conversation that takes place in my head:

 “I’m in Guatemala? Wait. What? …Que?”

(Repeat with panic: “I’m in Guatemala!”)

“I’m in Guat-e-freaking-mala! On one way ticket no less. I’m a high-maintenance Vegan! WHAT AM I DOING HERE?”

I mean. Guatemala???  Where toilet paper can’t be flushed, “beans and rice” are not necessarily vegetarian, and where, more importantly, I don’t speak the language.

And let me just say that I am SUCH a Silicon Valley girl. Phrases like “IPO” and “emerging technology” make my heart beat faster. I read VallyWag.com more often than US Weekly. I get email on my Smartphone, Twitter like they pay me, and as far as I’m concerned- a day without Facebook just doesn’t happen.

I do not dress down. Ever.

I wear stilettos to the grocery store and spend more time at Whole Foods than some of their employees. I consider The Daily Show my news outlet, and TiVo the hell out of Prime Time. I also love my own bed.

In short, I AM NOT a traveler.

I’d like to be a “traveler”. The same way I’d like to be one of those girls who doesn’t own a TV and says things like, “I’m more of a reader.”

I wish I were that girl. But I’m not. And yet, somehow, I’m in Guatemala.

(I just had that conversation in my head again.)

Retracing the steps….

Silicon Valley failed me. After a major layoff at my company, I found myself without a job, or an identity.  And then the boy I loved so much cheated on me. We broke up and all of I sudden, I was lost. And though 12 lbs lighter from post-breakup angst, I could hardly pull myself out of bed (Or off his Facebook page) to enjoy the skinny jeans I could be wearing.

 A few months prior to the breakup disaster, a friend of a friend mentioned he was going to Central America to write. He threw out a half-serious, and quickly dismissed invite to go with him. I mean. How could I leave my boyfriend? Or Silicon Valley? In my mind I was already getting behind in life. I needed a mortgage. And impressive business cards. And a husband.

But my plan wasn’t going that way I’d anticipated. So in a daze of post-breakup-self-empowerment, I called my friend’s friend and asked, “Is Guatemala still on the table?”

So I’m here. And I’m all in. And I didn’t even pack a single pair of heels.  I’m confident I will be a huge disaster. But the adventure is on… and there’s no backing out now.

We’ll be following Robyn’s journey with regular posts of her trial and tribulations in Antigua, Guatemala. You can also follow her blog.