Tucked away in a swamp

A quiet hostel run by a quiet man

Who smokes a cigarette from time to time

And sticks toothpicks into a lime

Familiar faces, a family from the Lodge

An unfamilar animal as a pet

A micoleon (Google it)

Draped over my bed a mosquito net

Hot and humid, restless sleep

Happy to leave for Livingston

Dear family and friends,

After several tests and hours lost waiting in the doctor's office, it has been declared that I am free of the following:

Parasites

Hepatitis

Viruses

It appears to be just a bacterial infection that should be resolved with some antibiotics. What doesn't kill me makes me stronger.

Love,

Ellie

Well, part one of my Central American adventure has come to a close and part two has just begun. I loved every second of my time at Earth Lodge and it was incredibly difficult leaving a place that after such a short time felt like home. I gave lots of hugs and shed a few tears.

I spent Sunday night in Antigua and woke at 3:30AM to catch a 4AM shuttle (that didn't arrive til 4:30). The ride was bumpy and I drifted in and out of sleep, feeling the gradual climate change from cool and comfortable to hot and humid. I tried not to keep track of time because I had been told the ride would be 6-8 hours and looking at the clock would have only made me ansy. When we got to the Honduran border I rushed through immigration. For my first border crossing, it was a breeze. I paid some fees, filled out the forms and waited for the rest of the group to do the same.

While I was waiting, a man walking with a stick came up and greeted me. "How's it going?" I asked. The man, with his three kids and wife behind him, replied honestly and under his breath, "Everything's f***ed." (rough translation). He told me how his foot was run over by a motorcycle and was looking for a few bucks to cross the border. I felt bad, but in my sleep-deprived state, I was skeptical and apologized profusely. His kids snacked on watermelon and seemed content. The little girl put on a proud grin and said "Bye!" in English. Minutes later I watched the family walk across the border and felt assured that someone had the generosity that in that moment I lacked.

I arrived to Copan, Honduras shortly after and put on my two backpacks (one on my back, one on backwards) as I got out of the van. I was bugged by taxi drivers who told me my hostel was far, there were too many turns and I would get lost. I repeated in my head 'Up one block, left, right, left' and made it to the Iguana Azul Hostel in 5 minutes flat, even with my big bags and the steep, cobblestone hills.

I checked in, asked too many questions, and napped right away. When I woke up, I went to a highly regarded local restaurant called Comedor Mary. I ordered a Central American speciality called pupusas (stuffed tortillas): one chicken and one ham & cheese. They are small and delightful but the heat and exhaustion overpowered any feeling of hunger I would normally have.

Then I took a tuk tuk (a three-wheeled motortaxi) up hill to Macaw Mountain, a park with rescued parrots, toucans and owls. I walked around for about an hour with no one in front of or behind me on the trail. It was so peaceful (with the exception of being barked at by a three-legged dog). Did you know parrots have an average lifespan of 30-80 years?!

At the end, I had a photo shoot with three parrots named Buffy, Piña and Mixi. I tried not to piss my pants as their claws wrapped around my wrists and scratched my head. It was quite an experience to say the least...

On the way out, I met the owner, a man fromTennessee, as he fed two 6 week-old toucans. They had fallen from a tree when a plot of land was being cleared and were brought to the park. The man hand fed them papaya and told me stories of how he got to Central America, started the park and continues to get donations of various birds. He told me I could reuse my ticket if I wanted to come back at any point in the week.

Later in the day I ran into three British girls who had stayed at Earth Lodge and joined them for dinner. I have a feeling I will cross paths with plenty of former guests on the backpacker trail and therefore am not too worried about being alone.

After dinner, I sat on the curb with a local making artisan crafts. We had a good chat as I perused his selection of rings, bracelets, and earrings. I must admit, I have a soft spot for artisans and can't help but buy something from each one I pass. This particular vendor told me I could pick out whatever stones I wanted, design my own ring and name my price. So for $2.50 he whipped me up a ring as he told me his sob story. His wife is 7 months pregnant and has just gone back to the States. He applied for a visa to join her but was denied when he failed his drug test... Oops! He has been punished for a year and must now pass drug tests monthly. The kid will be born in the US In September and he wont be present. We said goodbye, knowing we both had busy days ahead of us and probably wouldn't see each other (today alone I have run into him on three separate occassions).

I woke up today and went straight to a lab to submit some samples. I have been feeling fine energy-wise but haven't maintained a meal or had an appetite in over a week. It was the sketchiest doctors office I have ever visited. The exam room was also the lab so I stared at tubes of blood while the doctor took mine (without gloves or much warning). I was told to come back later in the day for my results.

In the meanwhile, I walked to the Copan Ruins. I was told the walk was simple but of course I managed to take a wrong turn. Two men on the side of the road hollered at me to ask where I was going. I stopped and they redirected me. One of the guys was wearing a UNC shirt so I paid him a compliment. Turns out he lived two years in Charlotte.

Anyways, I got back on track and made it to the entrance. I had been informed that tours cost 500 lempira ($25) but if you get a group together you can split the cost. The first guide that walked up said in a familiar tone "¡Hola Rebecca! ¿Cómo estás?" He asked if I was going to work today and I responded that I didn't have a job, although I knew he was confused. He came over minutes later and realized I was not the American archaeologist he met weeks earlier.

I heard a small group speaking Spanish and popped up quickly to see if I could tag along. An Argentine couple and their daughter had arranged a private tour and told me I was free to join if the guide didn't mind. I looked to the guide and she told me it was up to the family. So it was settled, I had been adopted for the morning. Within minutes, another girl asked the same question and looked to and from the family and guide for approval. The Russian girl was adopted to the group as well. As we entered the ruins we saw half a dozen red macaws. The guide, Gladiz, said "Did you know...those birds, just like all men, are monogamous?" We all took a second to catch her sarcastic remark and then guffawed. Once we started the tour, I couldn't stop smiling. I hadn't planned to come to Copan but an Australian family gave me their itinerary and I just decided to follow it so I wouldn't have to make too many decisions. So far, I am so happy to be blindly following someone else's travel plans.

The ruins were spectacular and the guide made it all come to life. She told us of nature, Mayan gods and culture, making plenty more facetious remarks.

One of my favorite annecdotes was about the sun. The Mayans believed that the world was a giant turtle and we all lived on the top of its shell. The sun would go from one side to the other and at the end of the shell it would be devoured by a monster. The sun then turned into a jaguar (I guess inside of the aforementioned monster) the fastest animal they knew, so it could run through the underworld and rise on the otherside. If ever the sun didn't come out, it was thought that the jaguar had been detained by the evil gods of the underworld. The Mayans would then throw huge parties and make animal & sometimes human sacrifices until the sun returned.

Another favorite was at the Mayan ball court. They played a game (as a ritual, not for fun) where they hit a dense, 9lb ball using only their knees, hips or shoulders. No hands or head allowed and very minimal protection. The captain of the winning team was then sacrificed. Maybe we should ask NFL players to do the same...

After the tour, I gave Gladiz a tip and parted ways with the Argentine family. The Russian and I walked back to town comparing Latin American travels (her list of countries blew mine out of the water). We said goodbye at the edge of town only to discover later we were staying at the same hostel. (I'll admit this is a very small town)

I went and got my results from the lab, however I have to go to a doctor to have them read. I did lots of translating and Googling but can't make sense of them myself. I was told the doctor would read them and I assumed he would just look them over and hand me a prescription. Unfortunately, it wasn't that simple. I will go back to the office tomorrow morning before leaving town. Then I return to Guatemala by bus, headed for a community called Rio Dulce (Sweet River). It is a two-hour boat ride from there to the Caribbean coast and a fascinating town, Livingston, with a mix of cultures distinct from the rest of the country. Who wants to place bets on the number of bug bites to come??



¡Hasta pronto, amigos!

It's hard to believe I have been in Guatemala over a month (and that I haven't written more). Here is my update of the past few weeks:

• I picked up a book last week called How to Steal Like an Artist. I read half of it before bed and the rest in the morning. It is a short book about creativity that was truly inspiring. A few parts I couldn't get on board with but several chapters really lit a fire under my @$$. Before I left for Guatemala,I laid out a few goals for myself that I neglected upon arrival. Among them: meditate, practice yoga, hike, help at the local school and other personal goals for my physical and mental well-being. Here are a few quotes that spoke to me and helped me yo revisit my initial goals: "Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic."-- Jim Jarmusch
• "Whenever you're at a loss for what move to make next, just ask yourself 'What would make a better story?'"
• "Establishing and keeping a routine can be even more important than having a lot of time."
• I have started using all of the above quotes, and so much more, to inspire me. This past week has been filled with goodness.
• I met a beautiful girl named Bird who showed me her art. From that day on I have been painting water colors. It has been so delightful!
• I have practiced yoga twice and the instructor LeeLee is such an inspiration. Her teaching is so full of passion and her energy is contagious.
• I went to school for craft club and had goofy conversations with the kids while putting together puzzles and making friendship bracelets. On the way there, I greeted every man, woman and child who crossed my path. One group of young girls stopped to chat. In English, the littlest one asked "What's your name?" I replied and we both began to dance the funkiest little dance in the middle of the road. It was a mix of the Chicken Dance and the Charleston. They all giggled like the little school girls they are as I danced down the road headed in the opposite direction.
• Every day I show guests a map of hiking trails in the area and explain how to do a 90 minute loop (having never done it myself). So after craft club I went for a hike on my own, without a phone or camera, nada. Just a map that I have seen dozens of times, a water bottle and strawberry wafers. I hiked up and around through fields of flowers, forests of pines and oaks and by small homes. I came across a group of teenage boys with shovels in hand, looking like they were in the midst of farm work and I asked what they were up to. "Chatting" they replied and we had a good laugh as I powered up the dirt hill. At one point I doubted my own instructions and took a turn with great hesitation. I chose not to ask for directions as I passed a smiley, local woman carrying her baby on her back and balancing a bottle on her head. We said "Buenas tardes" and I continued down, down, down. Finally, I stopped to ask a little girl how to get to the pila (a water station where women go to wash their clothes just near the lodge). She offered to show me the way and ran ahead of me barefoot. I struggled to keep up but within 3 minutes I was back at the top of the hill I call "home".
• The bugs in my room struck back so the other night I got to stay in our coveted Tree House. It is booked almost every night til the end of August but I lucked out Wednesday night. It is constructed in an oak tree(that shakes when the wind blows) with a huge window looking out at the valley. The bathroom has a wide, open window so you can do your business or take a shower with the fresh breeze and breath-taking vista. I woke up at 6AM just to take a picture at dawn.
• I went down to Antigua a couple of times. I went to the market and bargained for a top I (kinda) wanted. It was listed as 90 Quetzales ($12) but I didn't have enough. I told the woman I still had to pay my bus fare and I really wanted, no NEEDED, an ice cream. We went back and forth until I told her I just couldn't pay the price. She relented and let me take it for 70 Quetzales ($9.33). Victory!
• I also went to a Mayan cosmology museum and got a free tour. Main take away: 'The End of the World' last December was all a hoax. None of their writings had any mention of such nonsense.
• In the Central Park, I was approached and interrogated by half a dozen school boys who trembled as they spoke. When they walked away, an old man named Francisco chatted me up. He works in real estate and his office is the park. He arranges meetings and says 'You'll find me in the park. I have a moustache, wear a black cap and a green shirt.' He pays no rent or electricity and his clients find him without fail. Francisco wished me the best of luck in my future endeavors and we parted ways.
• In a week I will have my last shift at Earth Lodge. As a common theme in my life, and particularly this last year, indecision haunts me. My original plan was to go south to El Salvador and Nicaragua, but I am now considering going north to Mexico instead. Ayayay... Any input is welcome. Leave a comment and cast your vote!

¡Hasta luego amigos!

Things have been going well for me recently, I just thought I'd write up a few tidbits.

• On Sunday, I went with all the female volunteers to Marisol's birthday party. Marisol is a local girl who works in the kitchen and just turned 17. Her house is a 15 minute walk from the lodge and even though it had been pouring down rain, we put on our jackets and trekked uphill. It cleared up shortly after. At the house, Marisol sat behind a table and her friends lined the walls sitting on plastic stools. The boys all congregated in one corner, acting too cool for school, & the girls giggled and whispered secrets on the other side of the room. Marisol's guy friend made a speech and then asked her to close her eyes. I thought he was trying to steal a kiss but instead he blew flour into her face. It covered her nose, entered her eyes and dyed her hair gray. She ran out mortified. Reggaeton music played and no one danced. One of my coworkers, LeeLee, started dancing with a local boy. The other gringas from the lodge joined in and I took to dancing with a toddler. Eventually, I was dancing with 4 little kids playing follow the leader. When Marisol returned, she had changed her outfit and styled her hair with little blue flowers. She re-entered the house with a bang (literally, they set off fireworks as she walked in) and then she danced with her boyfriend. The immature friends chanted "Beso! Beso!" (Kiss! Kiss!) and her boyfriend went in for the kill as she rolled her head to the side and avoided it all together. She giggled and they just kept dancing.
• The girls that work in the kitchen all live in the nearby town like Marisol. Most are in their late teens although a few are in their 20's or 30's. They all wear traditional dress, meaning a long skirt and colorful, conservative tops. I have become good friends with them, often joking around. They are fascinated by my clothes and accessories because they have never tried on anything like it. Yesterday they all begged to try on my jeans. We stood side by side trying to gauge whether my pants would fit them. I postponed the fashion show to another day, but in the meanwhile I let Marisol try on my glasses. She was immediately dizzy, although I confess my prescription isn't all that strong, so she looked in the mirror, giggled & took them off. This whole interaction provoked a conversation with another coworker, Justin, who remarked how unfair it is that local men can wear jeans and t-shirts while the women are limited to the traditional dress. While it is a beautiful element of their culture, it is clear that women do not have the same freedom of expression as their male counterparts.
• I went to craft club the other day at the local school. Kids are currently on vacation but are encouraged to come work on art projects for a few hours during the week. I taught a boy named Mario how to knit and he caught on quickly. The girls made friendship bracelets and the boys knit scarves, while I made childish jokes about stinky feet. When I saw Mario later that week, he was walking around town, knitting needles in hand.
• The volcano Fuego has been spouting and smoking recently, allowing for some really breathtaking moments shared with guests and staff and cool photo-ops to share with the folks back home.
• Recently, I have been having really weird, vivid dreams. I don't know if it's the change in location or the recent visit from the exterminator, but something has been altering my brain activity at night. It is really interesting and often fun, but last night, for example, it just led to restless sleep. I woke up with all my sheets, pillow cases and comforters in a ball, laying on top of a bare mattress. Additionally, I have a frequent visitor in the morning: a yellow-backed oriole. It appears he is either trying to wake me up by colliding into my window or attempting to mate with his reflection. Either way, I am annoyed and wish he would find another window to tap at 6AM. To his credit, he is a very beautiful bird and if I were him I'd be obsessed with my reflection, too.
• In addition to the birds, there are an insane amount of creepy crawlers. Whenever I encounter a new creature I feel like I am in the Lion King: the scene where Timon & Pumba devour colorful bugs and teach Simba the meaning of Hakuna Matata. It is quite often that I imagine my life as a Disney film. Another example is when our dogs, Rufus and Lola, begin to howl and bark, communicating with dogs around town and throughout the valley. It feels like 101 Dalmations when all the dogs are conspiring across the city.
• The other day, Rufus and Lola followed a guest uphill and disappeared. As I left around 12PM, I told the driver what had happened and just shrugged, hoping they would come back soon. At 3PM, we were driving uphill from Antigua (a 20 min drive, a 90+ min hike) when I spotted a woman walking with the two pups. Their tongues practically reached the ground and Lola looked like she could collapse at any moment (she's a bit overweight and has really bad hips). The woman planned to walk the dogs all the way back to the lodge, giving Lola frequent breaks. We hauled the dogs into the van and drove them home. At the top of our hill, two stray dogs tried to attack Lola. Some local women were doing laundry and threw a bucket of water on the dogs, who quickly ran away. I led our dogs back to the lodge and they spent the rest of the day recovering from their ambitious adventure.

Coming up, we have a busy weekend, live music and a barbeque. More stories and pictures to come.

Shout out to my newest readers, Jamie & Kyano, two of my former students!

(The photos are in no particular order. Apologies for the ones that are blurry or have bad lighting.)

So a few of my readers have complained that my posts are a bit verbose and perhaps confusing. Now that I am settled at Earth Lodge, my blogs wont be nearly as long as I am slowly but surely getting into a routine.

I came back up to the Earth Lodge on Sunday just in time for live music and a barbeque. It was a beautiful day and a lot of people came up just for the afternoon. Upon arrival I was informed my first shift would start at 5PM. My responsibilities generally include:

-making drinks

-serving food

-answering phone calls and emails

-picking up after guests

-feeding a mule

The last task was very unexpected. Sophie, a veteran staff member, walked me through all the nitty gritty details. Around 10PM, she took me to meet Tuna (full name Fortuna) & showed me where to find pellets or hay. Big animals generally scare me so the next day when I went to feed Tuna by myself I didn't bother shmoozing. I dumped the food and shouted '¡buen provecho!' (the Spanish equivelant of bon appetite) as I ran away. As I mentioned previously, there are two dogs, Lola & Rufus, and a cat called Crunchie.

The other morning I was in the staff bathroom casually scanning the contents of the shelves from bottom to top. Shampoo, soap, books, toilet paper... all normal. The top shelf really freaked me out. All I saw was fur. Until I stood up and realized Crunchie was enjoying a cat nap. The windows of the bathroom are wide open allowing both a fresh breeze and a cat to come through.

I have been trained for all three shifts and will have my first solo shift tomorrow. I quite like having a lot of different tasks to do. After my first night of work it was hard for me to unwind because I was so excited for the weeks to come.

The guests generally vary in age. I have seen families, young couples and solo travelers come through; however most visitors seem to be in their 20's. They also come from a variety of countries: Spain, Argentina, Luxembourg, Sweden, and most often the US.

On my first day, a former volunteer named Emma looked at me and said "I want to give you a big responsibility because I feel confident you can handle it." I got kind of nervous trying to figure out what she was asking me to do. "When I used to work here, we had hat parties every night. I want you to revive the tradition. I can tell you have the energy to make it happen." I popped up from my hammock and went in search of the two dozen hats Emma helped to collect. I walked around the lodge putting hats on everyone's head. Although some resisted, I was quite successful in initiating la fiesta del sombrero. Emma clapped and cheered "I knew you could do it!!" Today a guest asked when the next hat party would be so he could bring his own. It seems silly but when you live up in the mountains, you gotta get creative.

In my free time I have been playing a lot of games with the guests and staff (including Lotería, kind of like a Guatemalan bingo), reading, writing, playing with the animals and just enjoying the view and the sounds of nature (all the while trying not to scratch my bug bites... I have yet to succeed in this endeavor).

My day off is Saturday and Sunday one of the locals who works in the kitchen is having her 17th birthday party. She chased after me this morning to invite me to her house. I am so excited to meet some people from the nearby town El Hato and take part in a local celebration.

That's all for now! I apologize if I wrote too much again... There's just so much to share.

Paz y amor

After 5 days at Lake Atitlán, I am back in Antigua. I didn't anticipate staying at the lake for as long as I did but once you see a few photos you'll understand why it was so hard to leave. 

My journey started with a 2.5 hour shuttle from Antigua to a town called Panajachel. I didn't have a very solid plan but I figured I would visit a small town called San Marcos. The night before I left for the lake I met a man who referred to himself as Guatemalan Jesus and wouldn't reveal his real name. In my journal he drew a map of the country and identified cities and towns that I shouldn't miss. For each place on the map he gave me the name of a hostel and knew most of their owners. Turns out "Jesus" runs a hostel of his own in Guatemala City and is very well-connected.  He told me to go to San Marcos and stay at a hippie dippy place called Del Lago. I was told that at each hostel I visit I should let the owner know that Guatemalan Jesus sent me. 

Anyway, in the shuttle I met a French man who has been living at the lake for 20+ years and runs a hotel in San Marcos. When we arrived to Panajachel, I asked if I could follow him to San Marcos. So we got on a boat with as many passengers as it could possibly hold and stopped at towns all around the lake. On the boat were three American kids, two boys with their father & a little girl on her own, all of them returning from school. Instead of a car or a bus, they took a boat. Instead of seat belts, they wore life vests. What a life!

When the boat arrived in San Marcos, the French man pointed me towards Del Lago. I followed the dirt/gravel road until I arrived at the hostel. It was a very simple place but had the most magnificent view. I was given a key to the door of my dorm but there was no need... Of the two window panes in the door, one was missing. My roommates, two girls from Colorado, decided to forgo the door and simply entered through the open window. 

While I was down at the lake front writing I met a group of three: Sawy from England, Anne from Brazil & Dahab from Mexico. All of them had come from Vera Cruz, Mexico to explore Guatemala. We became instant friends and I spent the next three days with them laughing uncontrollably and learning how to speak Mexican Spanish. I also practiced a little bit of Portuguese with Anne and Sawy, whose father is from Portugal. 

That night we watched an Australian film called Red Dog which I highly recommend. It was a knee slapper and a heart warmer. At one point I took a break from the film to go lay in a hammock by the water. Being surrounded my mountains, the clouds felt so close. I watched the lights twinkle on the adjacent hill and felt the breeze gently rock my hammock. I thought how amazing it would be to watch a storm over the lake and in that very moment a bolt of lightening lit up the other side of the lake! Later that night I was able to capture the distant lightening with my phone. 

The next morning I met a local named Pablo who had come to enjoy the view. He asked me if I felt the earthquake at 3AM that morning. What earthquake?! Well, I guess that explains my weird dreams...

In the afternoon I went for a swim. The water was perfect: calm, clear & cool; however, I was really cold when I got out (I left my towel at Earth Lodge... Oops). While I dried off in the sun, a German named Marta sat down next to me. She immediately opened up and told me of her struggles. She also showed me her tattoo, a recycling symbol on her chest. Marta's grandmother passed away while she was in Mexico & on that day she went and got her tattoo. She paid with three beers which she then helped to drink.  I went to go buy something from the shop and when I got back she was gone. 

Dahab and I chatted by the lake & were soon joined by a man from California. He spoke soft and slow & wore a hat with lots of feathers in it ( did he call it macaroni?). For the past three days he had been on a salt water diet. He planned to continue for two weeks. His belief is that we all came from the water (possibly even different planets) so why not sustain ourselves on just that. Also, he listed off 101 things he is allergic to. It wasn't until he was on his way out that he introduced himself as Gourmet. 

A bit later I put on some salsa music and Dahab insisted we dance. He plays in a salsa orchestra and also gives dance lessons so naturally he is a great dancer. We both sang along bits and pieces of the song and I followed his lead. It was the most fun I've ever had dancing salsa!

When my friends left for the store, I heard someone call my name. It was Pablo from earlier that day. He invited me up to the balcony and introduced me to his Japanese friend Taito. Together we took in the view: the lake, mountains, volcanoes & stars. All of a sudden, Pablo began to see red off in the distance... A volcano was erupting! Nothing terribly big but enough for us to see from across the lake. The volcano Fuego (Spanish for fire) spewed out the top as well as out the side. It was so remarkable! 

The next day we (Anne, Sawy, Dahab & I) traveled to another town called San Pedro. It is much more developed than San Marcos and therefore has more tourists. I wasn't nearly as enchanted although our hostel offered a really nice view from the roof. 

The next day I debated what to do over coffee. I went with my friends for breakfast and then Dahab & I went to a town called Santiago. It took us awhile to find the dock and when we finally arrived the boat had just left. We walked around for a while and came back an hour later to catch the next ferry. Santiago attracts tourists because of its Mayan saint Maximón (Ma-shee-mon). It is a wooden statue dressed in a cap and dozens of ties to whom locals make offerings of money, clothing, cigarettes & alcohol in exchange for health, crops, love, business, success, etc. Maximón has been around for over 500 years & each October is taken around the lake as part of a Holy Week procession. He changes houses from year to year. Because of his relocation, the locals pointed us in a few different directions. 

While we walked we saw a never-ending line of local indigenous people.  I made Dahab ask someone what wad going on because he is more personable and assertive than I am. The ice cream man told us that once a year the government comes and gives each person 40 Quetzales ($5). It doesn't matter if someone has 10 children or a disability, everyone gets the same amount. We also came across a second line where the government was giving out one bag of fertilizer to each person. 

Eventually a local boy, Adan, showed us the way to Maximón. We went down a tiny alleyway to a private house. There was Maximón in the center of the room and a man lighting candles to start his own ceremony. I was fascinated by the whole idea but felt a little uncomfortable. Dahab snapped a few pictures and we were on our way. 

Dahab and I walked back to the dock and said goodbye, promising to stay in touch and hoping to some day visit each other.  Dahab got on a boat to go back to San Pedro while I headed to a new town: Santa Cruz. 

Santa Cruz was even smaller than the first town I visited and had practically the same view. However, it lacked the serenity of San Marcos. 

Why? Because a group of 25 people from Kentucky had taken over the hostel. I ate dinner with a group of people my age but failed to find a place on the property where their presence didn't disrupt my peace. Regardless, I enjoyed the clear night sky and the chirping of the bugs. I felt like I was at summer camp although it turned out I was the only guest in my cabin. 

In the morning I packed my bag, ate breakfast & headed over to Panajachel to catch my shuttle. I was early so I walked around, bought some trinkets, and chatted with the man at the tourist agency. 

The shuttle took a little over two hours and I spent about half of the time playing peek-a-boo and making silly noises with the driver's son. 

Tomorrow I go back up to the Earth Lodge for a barbecue and live music. Oh yeah, and to start working.  :)




And to end this blog with a fun fact: Guatemala comes from the word cuauhtemallan which means land of the trees. Although Guatemalan Jesus told me it meant land of the captive eagles. Maybe someone needs to check his facts...

Upon arriving in Guatemala, I felt as if I was in a mini-Quito. Immediately I felt at home with the wretched smell of diesel and the winding highways through the bright green mountains and volcanoes in the distance. My driver took me through Guatemala City, then by Antigua, and finally up the mountain to a small town called El Hato. We were held up a bit when the locals wouldn't budge from their festival in the middle of the road. Mario, the driver, dropped me at the head of a dirt trail and wished me luck as I headed 300 meters downhill.

I arrived at Earth Lodge and couldn't believe my eyes. I had seen plenty of photos but nothing compares to real life. The property is majestic with a view of the city down below and volcanoes in plain sight. The staff gave me a warm welcome, complete with a special drink they call a New Mexican Wildcat: pineapple juice, ginger ale & (drum roll please...) jalapeño infused vodka. The first few sips were rough but after a few more my sinuses cleared and I began to enjoy this outrageous beverage. It was a very appropriate induction to a hostel that runs its reception from behind the bar.

There are two dogs on the property who are very handsome/beautiful. A cat roams around too but steers clear of the German Shepherd who is quite intimidating. He sits and stares a lot; either at the cat or a deflated soccer ball. The other pup sleeps on her back, just like my Stewie, with her paws in the air and belly bare, just begging to be rubbed.

The staff is from all over: Holland, France, Canada, Scotland & various parts in the US. They're a lovely bunch but a lot of them are at the end of their volunteer stint & are heading home in the next week or two.

Dinner was pasta with capers, garbanzo beans, garlic bread and salad... ¡Qué rico! My pasta had ham in it but it didn't taste quite like the ham I'm used to. This morning my bacon had the same taste which led me to believe I might be a vegetarian on this trip (Just kidding! I had chicken in town today and it was delicious).

After breakfast I took the shuttle into town, checked into a hostel cleverly named El Hostal, and then began to explore. I went to the local market and was amazed by the range of products sold. From underwear to raw meat, the market offered everything. The main product sold is fresh fruit which fills the market with vibrant colors.

I continued to walk aimlessly for a few hours and found myself in the park a couple of times. At one point I was offered coffee and when I responded "No gracias", the vendor stopped dead in his tracks. He turned around and asked if I was Cuban... That was a first! He then introduced himself as Cutie and sat down to tell me his life story. Cutie moved to Miami, converted to Judaism & then moved to Israel to enlist in the army. We talked quite a bit about Israel before I said "Hasta luego" and moved to the shade.

I've spent the afternoon lounging in the hostel, waiting for the rain and clouds to pass. Tomorrow I'm going to Lake Atitlán for a few days before I start my work at Earth Lodge. Many more stories to come... Stay tuned!