Back home there were themed and scripted group musicals at Angel Chajon Estrada’s school. One even had a karate demonstration, for reasons he never quite determined. There, parents were only focused on their own kids. He was an extra among all the friends he grew up with. But at the LBCC talent show, everyone in the theatre was looking at him.
Some things he has found that are different in America–extra credit, advisors, scholarships–All these things don’t exist in Guatemala. Also, once he dressed up like Babe Ruth for a class at LBCC. That was definitely different.
Angel Chajon Estrada spoke with The Commuter after the talent show about his experience and his favorite things.
So I came from Guatemala City, which is in the state of Guatemala, which is in the country of Guatemala.
We spent in the Texas airport 8 hours. After a long flight. And then another long flight all the way from Texas to Oregon. It was during spring and for us it was really cold. We were freezing. It was just so funny because I got used to the weather and it’s like, did I really almost die for this weather? I mean, it’s chill. It’s not even cold.
In Guatemala and most of Latin American countries, we have this perception that always in December in the US there is snow. The US always has a white Christmas. That’s not true. Not at all.
I was going to a university over (in) Guatemala when I moved and I was studying something called information systems engineering or sometimes they call it computer systems engineering. There’s no such thing here.
I have to doubt myself because either I go (in)to computer science or do electrical engineering, because it’s kind of the same thing. And you could say, well, why don’t you start something different, right? But I spent two years studying that thing over there and, you know, that’s frustrating. The most frustrating part of it? I couldn’t transfer my credits. I have to start all over.
My favorite food is called shucos. There’s not such thing like that over here. It is kind of a super hot dog.
And the sausage is cut in little pieces. And then it has guacamole. It has chili. It has a lot of stuff on it. And it’s really big. And then there’s another thing called transmetros, which are like even bigger shucos, like one foot size. It’s like, whoa.
I’ll say something that is really radically different–the system of government. Because in Guatemala we are a republic, but we are a central republic. Over here you have the county government. Then you have the state government. And then you have the federal government, which is all the United States.
The other thing I will say is different here or doesn’t exist over there is justice itself. Guatemala, unfortunately, is a country where corruption has taken power. So that’s one of the main reasons why I abandoned it. It is really sad. That doesn’t mean I don’t love my country. I love my country. But the United States is a better place to live.
Guatemala is not ruled by the President, but ruled by bad people. That’s all I can say. So you have the fear of the bad people coming after you, and that’s an everyday thing. You cannot open your own business over there because they will come, the bad people, and say, hey, either you pay me or you die.
I will say the difference between left and right is really, really big here. Over in Guatemala (it) is really difficult to differentiate if someone is right or left. But over here the difference is really clear
So when I arrived, I was really surprised about the buttons that you press when you want to walk and the stop lights because there’s no such thing like that in Guatemala. So you will cross and you have to expect that nobody hits you with their car, you know?
There’s something that I relate a lot with Latino guys here. We have to translate a lot for our parents.
So, it’s like there is a letter, can you read it for me?
And I’m like, yeah, it says this and this.
Are you sure?
Yes, I am sure. 100%.
Use the Google Translator.
Why didn’t you do that at the beginning? You’re asking me to use the Google translator.
This was more a thing at the beginning. I will translate for them (every) single thing. Like I will go with them to every single place.
They both are doing really great. They are able to communicate a little bit more and they don’t need me anymore.
I had a friend who was from Nicaragua and we find a lot of similarities. Like our moms (are) basically the same mom. Like the most feared thing for a Latino is the chancla. You know, the chancla is just like a sandal. But it’s a cultural thing. They hit us with the sandal when we were kids.
That’s something a lot of Latinos share. Also, I will say, the food. A lot of Latinos are proud of their own food. I am proud of my own food, you know, like tamales.
We have this joke over (in) Latin America that Americans just have burgers, but burgers are from Germany. They have french fries (that) are french. I don’t want it to sound like something negative. People here are really kind. Our neighbors are really kind. The hospitality of Oregon is really great. I’m with my whole family and we’re lucky. Living a good life here.
I had the opportunity to study US history with Dr. Harrison. He’s a really great history teacher. He gives you a list of characters you can perform. You choose one of them. And I chose Babe Ruth because I really like Babe Ruth, I have to say. The US has a really great history. But something that I notice about the US education system is the way that they teach the continents.
I don’t know why, for Americans there are seven continents, but for the rest of the world, there are just six. Actually, there’s just one America. The continent is called America itself, and it is split in three different subcontinents. So you have North America with Greenland, Canada, U.S. and Mexico. You have Central America, where I am from. Where you have Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. And then you have South America, which is from Colombia all the way to Chile. When I teach that to other American friends who ask me, they’re like, what, has this always been a thing?
It’s not a negative thing. It shows the pride that Americans have for their own country. That’s a really great thing and I respect that for sure.
There’s a lot more community activities over here. Yeah, I was surprised actually. There’s a lot of people who organize activities with the community or volunteer. I would say the communities over here are really strong and they support each other.
I’m a video games guy. I’m really passionate about them. If I could, I would work at the Gamestop. Actually, that’s the reason why I started studying engineering over Guatemala, because I wanted to develop video games.
I participated in some talent shows in my native country, but nothing like this one. Yeah, it was kind of scary.
I sang a song by Vicente Fernandez. He was my great grandmother’s favorite singer. Unfortunately, she passed away.
Oregon weather is really different than Guatemala’s. More cold and rainy. And my throat’s not ready for that. So it was like, oh, my God, my throat is going to fail.
I would like students to (know), don’t be afraid of expressing their talents. We all have a talent. Sometimes we don’t know what it is. Sometimes we are afraid to express it, but I don’t think we should hide it. So, if I could say something to the students, I would really encourage them to express their talent to the world. Because if they don’t, they will hide it forever and nobody will know that they had it.
