Adios Central America

I awoke this morning and was momentarily confused about where I was. There were no new bed bug bites, no black flies swarming, no firecrackers and bombs sounding, no fresh coffee brewing. Then, the realization - I am home.

After leaving Utila, I decided to make a quick visit to the Honduran town of Copan Ruinas, which is located near Mayan ruins of the same name. The town itself is very charming, with trademark cobblestone streets and Mayan Artisan Centers lining them. Linka Indians, in particular, have a very distinct style of pottery and I made a significant financial contribution to their people.

The ruins themselves are very beautiful. Experts put them in the same category as Chichen Itza in Mexico and Tikal in Guatemala, which are supposedly the best. Not having visited the others, I can't be sure, but they were incredible. I spent the day wandering through this ancient city envisioning what life must have been like for the people who lived there. Every rock and tree root had a story to tell.

Yesterday, I left Guatemala at sun rise with Volcan Fuego belching smoke and lava in the distance. It was very beautiful and sums up everything that I've come to love about Central America in three short weeks - it's beauty and volatility. There is so much I didn't see, and I was sad to leave, but emotion overwhelmed me when the US customs agent in Miami welcomed me "home."

Honduran Wonderland

It's been quite a while since my last post and so much has happened that I'm not sure a post can do it justice. I left Rio Dulce last Sunday on a boat headed towards Livingston. The river itself is a tropical paradise and there was much to see on the two hour journey. The boat made a stop at a natural hot spring in the middle of the river and I was able to swim for the first time on my trip. We saw children paddling in kayaks, a fort built to control river access and am iguana spotted from an impossible distance by our boat driver.

Arriving in Livingston, I no longer felt like I was in Guatemala. It's on the Caribbean coast and feels as such. The people, called Garifuna, are beautiful. They have very dark skin and speak their own language, which is a combination of Spanish and others. It was quite challenging for this Spanish novice to decode! After one night in Livingston, which included the elusive Coco Loco and high intensity punta dancing, it was time to surrender to the call of the islands.

Utila is one of 3 Bay Islands off the Honduran coast. It was an excruciatingly difficult journey to get here, which included a boat, van, shuttle, 2 buses and another boat over 18 hours, but entirely worth it. I arrived too late on New Years Eve to dive, so this afternoon is my first opportunity. I have 7 dives scheduled over the next 3 days, including one tomorrow to the North side of the island where whale sharks have been frequently spotted very recently. I'll also dive tonight in an attempt to overcome my fear of the dark!

New Years was wonderful and spent with an international group of new friends/fellow divers. Australia, Holland, Germany, America and England were well represented in the motley crew that spent the evening together, creating wonderful memories.

Honduras is so different from Guatemala. There is no trash, the trees are lush and the landscape green. The people mostly speak English as tourism is very prevalent here. I love it here and yet the mystic beauty of Guatemala is calling to me. Part of my heart will forever remain in that incredible country.

I am also beginning to feel the call of home. I'll leave this beautiful island paradise on Saturday to begin the journey back. What an amazing trip this has been...one that has renewed my spirit and given me so many other gifts along the way.

Welcome to the jungle

Woke up this morning in my mosquito net in Rio Dulce. Showered with a bat and was shat upon by something unidentifiable that was living in the rafters. Boarding a boat to Garifuna land of Livingston and rain seems imminent. Much more tropical here...coconuts and pescado abound (albiet caliente, not frio!). Onward...

Even cowgirls, rockstars and superheros get the blues!

I sent an email home yesterday that didn't make it as a blog post due to its negative nature. While I stand by my thoughts, I did learn a lesson in thinking before I speak and giving situations some time to settle down before I rant about how bad they are. I mean really. So I was homesick and had a bad day. We all do. The bottom line is that I'm still traveling in one of the most amazing countries in the world and my journey isn't even half done!

So, about my time in Antigua, the city in Guatemala - not the island in the Caribbean. It was a really good thing that my entry into Antigua was terrible. It forced me to seek out a Spanish school, in which I ultimately enrolled and had one of the most amazing experiences of my life! I couldn't ask for better hosts than the Ramirez family who have housed me for the past 2 days. I eat 3 meals daily with them - typical Guatemalan fare. Last night, I was given the honor of sitting at the head of the table and no one ate until I began. While the family feasted on tamales, I had sopa, pollo, arroz, frijoles and pan. I felt guilty, and secretly wished for the tamales, though the dinner was the best I've had since arriving in the country! After dinner, I insulted my hostess by offering to help clean up.

I had nearly 12 hours of Spanish lessons over 2 days. Alicia is my teacher and finds me an amusing student. We laugh loudly and often, much to the dismay of the other teacher-student pairs. I have learned a lot and now have about a 5 year old's ability to speak. I can understand much more however, and managed to understand an entire museum tour today in Spanish. Verb conjugations and infinitives escape me in English these days, so I'm not sure how I'm supposed to master them in Spanish!

The architecture in Antigua makes it very charming. Ruins are everywhere and history abounds. The city takes pride in it's appearance before and after dark - thousands of lights twinkle well into the night in the Parque Central.

I visited 2 museums in the Antiguan suburb of Jocotenango today - one for coffee and one for traditional music. The process of growing, harvesting and roasting coffee is very interesting and complicated. The most interesting thing I learned is that the most expensive coffee in the world is processed through the digestive system of the civet cat and costs nearly $100 per pound. I was able to eat a raw coffee bean today. I wonder if the biproduct will be as valuable.

Forgive me this one fleeting thought, as thoughts are very odd when traveling alone and your mind wanders to places otherwise forbidden. It has been 9 days since I heard an airplane, smelled a french fry, or gazed upon a NASCAR t-shirt. Ahhh...nirvana.

What a day in Guatemala this has been! I was sad to leave San Pedro this morning, but looked forward to being on the move again. I decided to take the long way to Antigua and was rewarded with stunning views of the Guatemalan countryside. I managed to take 5 connections (4 chicken buses and a boat) on my 3 hour journey to Antigua...surely some sort of record!

Antigua is completely different than San Pedro. I really hate to be negative, but I haven´t found many redeeming qualities here yet. Let me preface that by saying I´m tired, hungry and terribly homesick today. (A friend told me I would get to this place...she was right.) So I walked from the bus station into the city looking for a hotel. The few I found that had availability (apparently every American in Guatemala has traveled here for Christmas) were going to cost a fortune. So, I needed another plan.

Several months ago, I began corresponding with a professor in Antigua at a Spanish school. So, I decided to find Juan Carlos and see what he suggested. What ended up happening was very unexpected. I enrolled in 3 days of language class and am now staying with a Guatemalan family. I suppose this is the silver lining and will probably make my Antiguan experience much more wonderful. I have only met the family briefly and am looking forward to dinner tonight.

Alicia is my Spanish teacher. She is 22 years old and speaks about as much English as I do Spanish. She made the mistake of asking me if I missed my family and the waterworks began. But, my tears brought out her sense of humor and we both laughed more than we cried. Then we spent 3 hours practicing the difference in the verbs for "to be¨ and "to have." They are all very confusing and there´s no way 3 days are enough to master them.

¿Todo Bien?

Loosely translated, the phrase means is everything okay?.¨ It became the theme of my day. My morning began at 5 am when I awoke to hike Volcan San Pedro. (I spent yesterday doing absolutely nothing but visiting on the back deck of my hotel! It felt great, but I needed to be active today.) My guide, Domingo, met me in town before it was light and we began the most difficult trek ever! The hike to the top of the volcano is 5 miles...all up hill. The Guatemalans don´t believe in switchbacks, preferring to cut 15 trillion stairs (only a slight exaggeration) into the mountain where tree roots don´t provide natural stairs, forcing hikers to go straight up. This 3 mile hike would have been 20 in the US.

Domingo and I walked the first 2 miles to the national park. He passed me off to my guide Sabien, who speaks no English. Needless to say, I got quite a lesson from full immersion today and my vocabulary has greatly expanded. The next 3 miles were even harder than the first two. As we got closer to the summit, it got steeper. The last 10 steps were excruciating, but I was determined. (I met a group of 10 yesterday who didn´t make it.) The views from the top, at 3000 meters (9000 feet), were amazing. San Pedro is not an active volcano, so there was no sacrifice to the fire gods, but I could see 7 or so villages and the lake below. Talk about peaceful!

The park is full of wildlife and beautiful foliage. Sabien patiently named many of them for me in Spanish and K'iche (one of 22 Mayan languages spoken here). All of that vocabulary has already escaped me, but I was a diligent student in the process.

If the way up was difficult, the way back down was twice as painful! Talk about a slip-and-slide adventure. Your legs are screaming and the ground is moving beneath your feet. I managed to make it back down with only 1 spectacular fall and 3 or so magnificent sliding accidents. That doesn´t count the amount of times Sabien took a fall! That´s where I learned most of my new words. ¨Be careful.¨ ¨Are you okay?¨ Several other exclamations that weren´t quite expletives, but could have been! But, it was well worth it and Sabien assures me that Volcan Pacaya, an active volcano I plan to hike while in Antigua, is muy facile compared to San Pedro.

So, todo bien? Si. I had a long massage this afternoon, which helped with the soreness of the hike and folks are starting to crowd the streets for fiesta. The collective good mood is infectious. There are many solo travelers in San Pedro, so we will all celebrate Navidad together tomorrow.

I do miss you all and hope that the holidays are wonderful for you. I will probably leave San Pedro after Navidad. More adventures on la camionetas del pollo to come!!

¡Feliz Navidad! Hasta luego.

If I don´t come home, I´m in San Pedro

I hadn´t planned to write today, but the internet cafe was calling my name. They are so easy to access and cheap, so worth the 30 minutes and $.15! I left Chichicastenango early this morning to travel to Lake Atitlan. I had decided before leaving to travel to San Pedro La Lagunas and make that home base for the next 5 or so days. While waiting on the chicken bus, I met a couple from Alaska who had the same plan, so we traveled together.

(A note about traveling alone. It´s incredible and I highly recommend it!!! I have not actually been alone one moment that I didn´t want to be. There´s always someone inviting me to share a meal with them, or a seat on a bus.)

Everything that Chichi was - dirty, chaotic and loud - San Pedro is not. It is by the water...quiet and serene with Volcan San Pedro looming high above. We took the chicken bus to Panajachel and then boarded a lancha (boat) to cross the lake. When you enter San Pedro, you are in ¨Gringolandia,¨ called that because that is where many expatriates live. Lots of folks stay for long periods of time to study Spanish as well since the schools here are the cheapest in the world. Women walk the streets selling homemade banana bread and other treats. They are also allowed to sell in the restaurants, but unlike Chichi, they leave you alone after one ¨no gracias.¨ I must admit though, it is difficult to say ¨no gracias¨ to homemade banana bread, especially when drinking the best coffee I´ve ever had.

Speaking of coffee, they grow it here and dry it next to my hotel. It doesn´t smell like coffee when it´s first harvested, but rather, tobasco. The other major cash crop is marijuana. There is a large rasta scene here and many gringos have tattoos or dreads. There is a full moon party tonight. For Q25, you get on a boat to who knows where for music and dancing. Several from my hotel are going, so I think I´ll see what it´s about.

There are yoga studios, massage and holistic healing centers - I have a massage scheduled for tomorrow! Everything is very casual here and I am learning a lesson in being spontaneous. ¨Tomorrow¨ seems to be the best time to make a decision, any decision, and dinner plans were made for "after sunset.¨ It´s easy to see how people come here and never leave.

I´m staying in Hotel Casa Elena, which is very close to the dock and definitely in Gringolandia. I had not planned to stay there, thinking I would prefer going into town instead, but a water front view with a hammock and hot water for $4-night was too much to pass up! I took a 3 hour nap in a hammock today...

Earlier today I was wandering around San Pedro looking for lake access to write a bit. Roads are not paved and foot paths are unmarked. I wandered down a path that looked heavily traveled, but was apparently private land. I didn´t know that until 4 guard dogs chased me away!!!

How I spent my 31st birthday...

I titled this such because as I reread what I´ve written, it feels very much like an elementary school paper!

¡Feliz cumpleaños a mi! What an incredible day it has been. I needed a break from the sun and so am in the internet cafe listening to the craziness on the street. My day began at 4 am when fireworks, aka small bombs, started going off in the square! Some of them sounded as if they were in the courtyard inside my hotel. I awakened again at 6 to the sounds of marimba outside my window. I decided to get up and was rewarded with a HOT shower!! What an unexpected treat. On my way out the door in search of coffee, I ran into the owner of my hotel. When he found out it was my birthday, he insisted that the festivities in the street would wait. I must accompany him upstairs for coffee. Ahh.....Guatemalan coffee. It´s the best! He buys the beans and roasts them himself (he´s promised that I can take a pound when I leave tomorrow). He also shared an anona fruit with me, which tastes much like passion fruit. We spent hours talking politics and religion (Guatemalan and American). He took me on the roof to show off his solar power system he built himself (because I raved about the hot water!) and i enjoyed an incredible view of Chichi. He gave me tea as a gift and sent me out into the morning sun.

The festival is nuts! There are fireworks and firecrackers everywhere. There is no such thing as being careful...explosions happen all around you. The sky rains ashes and smoke makes it difficult to see. Incense is burned everywhere. People crowd the streets and I always seem to be going against the flow, although turning around isn´t any easier. I´ve been trampled more than once. Everything happens at the bottom of the stairs to the church and today, there were bands and parades that escape description. You´ll have to wait for the pictures and movies.

I bought a strange fruit from a street vendor for Q5. It looked like an avocado on the outside and a cantaloupe on the inside with a large black seed. It tasted terrible! So, I gave it to a beautiful little girl on the street. She was hesitant, but accepted it with her mother´s encouragement. Her smile was the best birthday gift by far!

I visited my first ATM. It was inside a bank in a closed room with a door that you locked behind you. An armed guard stood watch outside and escorted me back into the street once I was finished. Crazy!! Even with these precautions, I have not felt unsafe since leaving Guatemala City. I stayed out after dark last night with a sweet couple from LA. Dottie and Alex are here celebrating his 70th birthday (which happens to be the same day as mine)!

One more story and then I will sign off for the day. I am clever, if I do say so myself. I had spent 30 minutes this morning trying to locate a Mayan idol, the Pascual Abuj. It is supposed to be an easy walk from the center of town. Due to my inability to follow the detailed instructions in Lonely Planet, I was unable to find it on my own and decided to give up. Here´s the clever part...I noticed 3 gringos pay a Mayan woman several quetzals and begin to walk in the direction of 9 Calle. On a hunch, I followed and, what luck! They led me straight to Pascual Abuj without paying even one centavo! I also didn´t risk going by myself, which is not advised. It was a beautiful walk on a pine tree lined path and provided a nice break to the heat. There was evidence of recent rituals, empty liquor bottles and chicken feathers. A dog hung around to clean up what was left.

Since arriving in Guate, my senses have been completely assaulted and my story telling abilities are not what they should be right now. Much of what I am experiencing will take years to fully process. It is amazing what happens here in 1 hour...every hour.

Las Camionetas del Pollo

I´ve been in Guatemala for 3 days now and think I´ve finally started to come out of culture shock a bit. While my senses are assaulted at every turn, I am better able to sort through it and write...maybe.

My best adventure so far was the chicken bus ride from Guate to Chichicastenango. I shared the trip with a French couple who stayed at my hotel the night before. The bus station was chaos, but boys directed us to the appropriate bus and we boarded. The buses themselves are retrofitted school buses from the US. They are painted bright colors and play loud music!! We spent three hours going break neck speed down mountains and then creeping back up the mountains passing anything that got in our way, regardless of what was coming in the other lane. Thus another possibility for their name. I finally stopped looking out the front window as my heart pounded each time we veered into the other lane. The side windows rewarded me with beautiful views of the countryside and waving children.

It was actually a comfortable ride at first. There were plenty of seats to go around and my backpack fit nicely at my feet. Then, we rescued a broken down bus. So, the entire bus load of people boarded our bus. I had to fold myself into positions I didn´t know possible and we fit 4 in my seat. I had at least 1 Latino girl underneath me and one or two on top of me. This only happened for the last 30 minutes of the ride, and so wasn´t unbearable. Everyone is always in good spirits, which makes all the difference. We grouchy Americans could learn a lesson or 2 from them!

Gabrielle, Christian and myself were the only 3 to disembark in Chichi and it was interesting having to climb over everyone to get out. We managed though, with the help of many and began a long journey to find my hotel, which ended up being their hotel as well. We all travel to Lake Atitlan tomorrow.

No hablo espanol

40 days. Only 40 days until I fly off into the sunset, headed for parts unknown. Well, that's not entirely true, but it sounds good if not more than a little cliche. I actually have a morning flight, so technically I'll be flying into the sunrise...a much more optimistic direction, I think. And, since my ticket says Guatemala City, "parts unknown" becomes 20 days in Central America.

In anticipation of my trip, I have spent every waking moment of late trying to learn Spanish. Before I go any further, let me officially declare that I am not naive. I completely understand that many folks I encounter will speak English. More realistically, many won't speak English or Spanish as there are 40 different Mayan languages whose usage prevails in the small, rural towns where I will spend most of my time. Even so, I'm using this trip as an opportunity to learn another language and I'll do it if it kills me!

I have used dictionaries and CDs and DVDs and online learning tools...none of which have taught me anything. I failed terribly at making a hotel reservation for my first night in the country, even after employing my Spanish-English dictionary. The simplest of phrases eluded me until I discovered a wonderful podcast called Coffee Break Spanish. It declares to "bring language learning with your latte." Perfect! Kara and Mark are wonderful hosts with thick Scottish accents who patiently teach me and hundreds of other listeners Spanish in 15 minute increments. All is going very well.
Mark asks me how to say "I have two sisters." I can squawk: "Tengo dos hermanas."
Where are you from: De donde eres?
I am hungry: Tengo hambre
Where is the cathedral: Donde esta la catedral?
Is there a bar nearby: Hay un barre cerca de aqui?
I need another beer please: Quisiera una cerveza por favor.
Uno, dos, tres, hola, como estas, hasta luego...and on and on. All useful phrases, which I confidently speak (though I realize my spelling has a long way to go).

I am certain that I have begun the process of mastery...that is until tonight when I visit my favorite sushi restaurant. The chef - who, ironically, is not from Japan but Honduras - puts my knowledge to the test by speaking to me only in Spanish. I fail miserably. While I can generally understand him, answering his questions proves impossible. I totally freeze. I even forget the phrases I've practiced the most: "I'm sorry, I don't understand" and "Please speak more slowly." When the conversation deviates from my comfortable and structured digital lessons my mind goes blank. While I feel very confident belting out Spanish phrases within the safety of my car with Mark and Kara, everything sounds strange when verbalized in a public setting.

I'm making my peace with the fact that the most I'm learning from Coffee Break Spanish is how to speak English with a Scottish accent! While this will be very useful in hiding my status as an American, it's not going to get me very far when asking for a table at a restaurant, trying to find a bank, or bartering in the centro commercial.

40 days. 40 days! Perhaps I need a new plan...at least I'll play a mean game of charades when I return.