Israa, the hostess

UPMUNC planning and preparation - professional indeed

Discussing procedures and pizza toppings

Yes… it’s all about Peace!

Amr - the Academic rector, Adriana - the UPMUNC Secretary General and the Iranian Professor Reza Eslami

The Embassy of the Netherlands provided the wine for the Diplomatic Reception and we had several embassadors show up

My fellow chair Ana and great supporter Tonieh

Karen - all the way from Mexico for UPMUNC

On the way home after the Diplomatic Reception

Esthee was kidnapped by some crazy wanna-be-Bangladeshi Canadian (Icelandic speaking breakdancer)  

so we accepted their kind offer of a tea party at the Pakistani headquarters

After missing the Diplomatic Reception, Afghanistan joined in the UPMUNC with full force

The Peacebuilding Commission

Varghese (India) was representing Pakistan while Usman (Pakistan) was representing India. Strangely, a little out of character… Pakistan suggested dedicating the session to Gandhi and having a two minute silence in his honor… later we would have all sorts of religious and other “culturally sensitive” motions

The Bangladeshi, Japanese and Italian representatives discussing the breaking news of a hostage situation in Afghanistan

France cooperating with the Afghani government

 Germany coordinating the action

The USA and UK secretly plotting Afghanistan’s destiny

Norway and China united over Afghanistan

Bangladesh expressing himself to no avail - it would be an international intervention not an Islamic one

 UPEACE professors support poppy farmers in Afghanistan!

The professors engaged in a loud and aggressive protest before being physically removed by UPEACE Security guards on the orders of the UPMUNC Secretary General 

Adriana, the UPMUNC Secretary General, notifying the Peacebuilding Commission that some 3000 US soldiers had left US command forming a rebel force with Afghani forces and trying to safe the hostages from the Talibans who were trying to flee to Pakistan… later we had a videoconference with Leutinant Patterson who announced that they had all the helicopters, weaponary and information necessary to independently undertake this mission and that they were doing it because the Peacebuilding Commission still had not been able to create peace in Afghanistan. Things were getting a little surreal and absurd…

The BBC reporter faithfully reported on the Committee’s activities…

while CNN in an exclusive interview with Leutinant Patterson somehow understood that Patterson was in Afghanistan trying to safe his mother… never trust CNN - they love drama!

The Afghani, Pakistani and US delegates preparing to report to the Security Council on  how to create peace in Afghanistan, stop Patterson and safe the hostages.

Of course peace was created in Afghanistan in the end to the Afghani government’s great satisfaction

Some of the Peacebuilding Commission Delegates

Some of the organizers

The way home

Paul and Oscar

The Welcome Mat:)

The UPEACE Mission Statement

World Peace and Harmony? Hippies?

UPEACE Photo Day!

Marina with a pastel de mil hojas - delicious!

Flora and her faithful dog the administration keeps on trying to block from campus

Amr (Egypt) - the Academic Rector - with Victoria’s baby girl

The International Law professors - Gudmundur - the Icelandic - is the tall one

UPEACE Theatre of the Oppressed

My wild kitten - Guapo!

Saturday, my first day in Antigua - the central park

The Central fountain

We were trying to analyze this… either the central fountain can be regarded as a naughty improper sculpture or it can be seen as the “nourishing centre” of the town.

 The Catholic Church in Antigua… or one of them…

In the evening, cuddled around a bonfire at the hostel after watching Memento; Raz, one of the Israelis, leads us in a primary/high school group bonding activity with cards and straws:)

it fell

ooops

When the bar at the hostel closed, we went out…

Strangely… the game continued…

Smiling on pictures was suddenly outdates, given all the new cool facial expressions we had just discovered… I worried I would never get a proper picture of any of those people:)

Sunday excursion to Guatemala City with the Icelandics I met in Antigua completely at random. The public busses are old school busses from Florida, US, painted in crazy colors, Guatemala style.

Vala eating McDonalds ketchup with salt… or salt with ketchup, not quite sure… after the movie “La Capsula Dorada” we went with some Guatemala guys to Pizza Hut. It’s good I’m not living with them because I would not survive this sort of a diet - in only a day they at the American Bagle place in Antigua, McDonalds, a bakery, popcorn in the cinema and then Pizza Hut! Well…  I did eat at all these places too except McDonalds as it makes me sick.

—————-CHRISTMAS EVE—————–

Sunday: Everyone at the hostel decided to come together to cook the Christmas Dinner… of course I was a big advocate for this - talking about how Christmas Eve is special, at least in Iceland, it’s a family celebration - we should come together like a family and celebrate.  

The Israelis took charge of most of the cooking, the Canadians took care of the grill, and the rest was left with the shopping, side dishes, drinks and set-up. The food was absolutely delicious!

 The Canadians

And the Israelis brought the drinking out of control while people were still eating by bringing out the shot glasses and insisting that rum and tequila were just as classy as wines at the Christmas dinner table… I don’t think they see Christmas the same way I do… uh ehm… maybe because they don’t celebrate Christmas?

Dave washing dishes in the garden sink

I don’t know how the same guys that did most of the cooking ended up doing the dishes too… a little coordination problem… the people supposed to do the cleaning said they were too drunk to do it. Other drunk people therefore decided to do it. The next morning, the kitchen staff decided everything had to be rewashed:) 

Our perfect impeccable adorable British backpackers

 Fireworks in the streets… made sense to some who thought fireworks were worth stopping traffic and scaring pedestrians skitless… others wondered why guys, all ages it seems, like to fill fish and cute teddy bears with explosives and blow them into pieces.

The British getting a little tipsy:)

The Israelis… briefing me on the poor status of the alcohol supplies - not quite sure what happened to the insane amount of liquor we bought and suggesting the only solution is to go out… ON CHRISTMAS EVE!

 of course, the Israeli girls were very supportive of their idea…

I still don’t get this picture, I don’t think I was making his donkey ears… I might have been though… but then he probably deserved it… right?

 April hitting on Santa Claus…

The park at night… the guys take lead to check for safety…

Safe they say… Dave playing rough with the streetkids… they take him down…

then say they’re sorry as they laugh their heads off… it was actually really funny… maybe  you had to be there, be intoxicated, or both, to see the humor of it.

 Dave quickly recovered and joined us for a group picture… then figured the street children had robbed him in the middle of their “fun-play-fight”…

What funny Christmas!

Horses for the lazzzzy

Watching the sunset

Pacaya, our desired destination

It was dark already when we got up there

The first glimpse of lava

One of the guides

Mezmerized…

The Marshmallow roasting volunteer…

It’s not as easy as it looks… it’s hot hot hot hot!

Adrenaline junkies jumping over the lava

US April, my fellow hiker

It was completely dark when we headed down the vulcano - six of us with two flashlights