I woke up at 4:30 and finished packing my suitcase. The bus arrived at 5:05. The morning was warm and dark. There were only three other people on the bus. I was the last person to be picked up. As we drove to the airport, I chatted a bit with the other girls. When we arrived at the airport, I went to the money changing place to see about changing my lempiras into dollars or quetzales, but the rate was horrible (about 28 lempiras for one dollar instead of the current rate of 19-20 lempiras per dollar). I decided to wait. When I tried to check my suitcase, the woman asked me if I had coffee in my carry-on. I did because it is a heavy item, but she told me I had to put it in my checked bag. I am not quite sure why. I went through security after eating my apple and juice box. I found my gate and wrote my journal on the computer for more than two hours before boarding the plane. Our bags were inspected one last time on the way to the plane. The plane left at 9:45 from Guatemala City. I had tea with sugar, and I didn’t like it that the stewardess spoke to me only in English, although she was speaking Spanish with the Guatemalan passengers. We arrived in Dallas at 2pm after a flight of 3 hours. I went through customs and security without a problem. I talked to Tammy and my mom. We entered the plane, but before we took off, the pilot informed us that there was a tiny problem with the plane and the mechanic had to come and check it out. We waited a half hour and I used my phone to text Tammy and my family. Finally, we left and I wrote in my journal and took notes from my Debbie Diller math stations book. I arrived in Chicago and found my suitcase. I called Tammy and she came in and helped me with my suitcase. We had to run quickly to where Brennan had parked because it was only a loading zone, not a parking area. It was wonderful to be at Tammy’s house with her. Laura arrived and we were together for the first time since December 12. It is so fantastic that Tammy and I get to spend six days together before she heads off to Costa Rica!
Saturday, September 17, 2011
el 20 de julio 2011
I slept rather poorly the night before. I kept waking up, I was cold, and my stomach hurt. The bed only had a sheet on it, so I tried to sleep under my towel, but it still wasn’t warm and the fan was blowing on me. I tried not to toss and turn too much since Amber and I were sharing the double bed. I woke up nearly every hour, and when the alarm went off at 5:30, my stomach was not happy. We got ready and I videoed Amber doing a Tato impersonation and we took a final picture. I took some medicine that Lauren had and went to the bathroom one last time. I was worried about being on buses (without toilets) for most of the day. It would have been better if I could have taken a shuttle at six. We left at 6:15 and we parted ways right outside our hotel. I headed toward the park and after asking a few people, I found the collectivos to the border. There was one waiting to leave, which was nice. I was feeling muy mal and spent the 20 minute trip to the border praying for easy connections for the four buses I was going to have to take and for my stomach to feel better. We arrived at the border at 6:45. I exchanged my meager amount of lempiras for quetzales and got my passport stamped. I walked across the border and found the Guatemalan customs office and paid 10Q to enter Guatemala and get my passport stamped there. While I was paying, a man came up to me and asked if I was going to Guatemala. I said that ultimately I was going to Antigua, but I was willing to take a shuttle to Guatemala. He told me that actually the shuttle was going to Antigua and that there was one seat available! What an answer to prayer and so fast! I climbed in the front middle seat, between the driver and a girl from UT in Austin who is getting her master’s in social work. Her friend was in the back and she is in the program, too. She is interested in working with people with disabilities. I got her email address so Emily can contact her. It was really windy because we had the windows all the way open. I talked to Nancy for about an hour and then she slept. I started feeling better soon after getting into the shuttle (another answer to prayer!) and I didn’t feel horrible again the rest of the day. We stopped at 8:30 for breakfast and bathrooms. I ate my peanut butter sandwich. We drove for another half hour or so and then Nancy and her friend Jennifer got out to take another shuttle to Coban. I now had the advantage of having the whole front seat to myself! I read my Bible and wrote in my journal. Then I worked on school stuff for two hours! I am so thankful that I can read and write in moving vehicles. Poor Amber feels carsick even if she is not reading and I don’t feel sick even if I am reading. There was a lot of traffic in Guatemala City and I think our driver tried to take a detour and got lost. Finally we made it out of Guatemala City and went to Antigua. We arrived about 12:30, which was hours before I would have made it taking four public buses! Our driver only dropped us off at one point, about a block away from the park. We drove right by where I needed to get off (about two blocks away from the house), but as my bag was on the roof, I could not just hop out. I met a family who had been in the back of the shuttle. Then I lugged my stuff to Elvira’s house.
Enrique opened the door for me and I went in and chatted with him and Elvira for fifteen minutes. I stayed in the room downstairs next to the kitchen. I put my stuff away and went to the bathroom. The only person who was still at Elvira’s from before was Alex. I met Luis from Quebec and Dexter from Minnesota who works at a school in Guatemala City. Rosa also ate with us. We had guisado de res (beef stew), rice, guacamole, and plantanos with mole. My Spanish was flowing nicely as I talked with the new guys, told Elvira and Enrique about my trip, and discussed recipes with Elvira. We all think that she needs to write a Guatemalan cookbook. After lunch, I stayed and talked for a while before heading out to do my errands. As I was preparing my purse for errands, I found 1,000 lempira in my other wallet! I was surprised that I had nearly run out of money, and now I know why. Ahhh! Why couldn’t I have found that before I crossed the border where you can get a great exchange rate?!
I needed to book a shuttle for the next day to get to the airport, but I had no idea how difficult of a task this would be. I went to an internet café for 15 minutes to make sure I knew what time my flight left (9:45am) and I chatted with Tammy and Laura for a few minutes. I then went hunting for a shuttle. I wanted to find one that left at 6, but there were not any, unless I wanted to pay big bucks for a private shuttle. I then settled on leaving at 5am, but most places only offered a 4am shuttle. The prices had gone up a lot from last year when I paid $5. This year I had to pay $10! After checking in about 12 travel agencies, I finally found one that offered a 5am shuttle (Ash Travel Agency). The woman working there (Maibely) was very friendly and gave me a 24 hour number in case of emergencies.
In between stopping at the travel agencies, I went to the grocery store and bought some unique foods that cannot be easily found in Indiana. I bought two pieces of milk candy from a little shop and a caramel ice cream from Pollo Campero in honor of my last day in Guatemala. I then passed by a Burger King, which I did not know existed in Antigua. In Honduras, I had seen an advertisement for green soft serve ice cream, and I was really curious about it. I wondered it if was lime or pistachio or fig. I went in to investigate, but this Burger King did not have that flavor and the ice cream cones cost nearly 3x the price of Pollo Campero ice cream! I went to the bank to see if it is possible to exchange lempira for dollars or quetzales (it isn’t). I went to the market and bought a few last souvenirs. In one stall, I talked with Tomas for a long time. He is from Chichicastenango and has 7 brothers and sisters. His father died and the three oldest all work in different cities to support the family. He only learned Spanish five years ago when he left his village where only Quiche is spoken. He also speaks two other Mayan languages and a bit of English. His boss is a pastor and Tomas earns $100 a month no matter how much he sells. I gave him the money for my purchase and a little more for him and his education. I bought an oil painting of Antigua for me at the next stall. The boy working there was named Jose. He really wanted me to buy his painting, but I liked his sister’s work better. I got the painting $15 when the asking price was $25. I need to find my oil painting from Hong Kong. I bought a tiny oil painting of Lake Atitlan last year. Too bad I don’t have a piece of art from South America. I guess I will have to go back sometime! I stopped a the Feria de Libros in the park and bought a book of kids’ riddles in Spanish. I headed back to the house to sort the clothes that I was going to donate. Our Spanish school collect donations. I left at 6:12 to walk all the way across town to the school. I got some atol de elote on the way since it was my last day. I needed Amber to share it with me, though, because I could not drink it all. When I got to the school, it was closed for some strange reason. I rang the doorbell, but no one answered. I booked it back toward Elvira’s and stopped in a tienda to spend my coins. I had actually accumulated a lot and bought candy. I got back just a few minutes before dinner, so I washed up and helped Elvira in the kitchen. Enrique did not eat with us because he was at a political meeting (maybe our joke about him running for office is coming true!). Dexter did not eat either. We had elbow macaroni with alfredo sauce and herbs, a hot dog with tomato sauce on it, and broccoli with lime juice on it. We talked about Lyme Disease at dinner. Alex has a friend in New Jersey who has it badly. After dinner, I headed to my room to pack. I say that I hate packing, but really packing up to come home is not too bad because everything must come. Luis had loaned me his travel scale to weigh my suitcase. It is really nice and small, too. Elvira came and said goodnight and asked me to turn off the light when I went to bed. I did a good job using stuff up and leaving stuff behind because my suitcase only weighed 40 pounds when I was finished! I moved some books from my carry-on to my suitcase. When I came, I had about 80 pounds of stuff not counting my backpack and when I weighed my stuff last night, I had about 60 pounds of stuff! I finally finished packing about 9:45. I rinsed off in the shower (good temperature, poor water pressure) and laid out everything I would need for the next day. I went to bed about 11pm.
el 19 de julio 2011
We woke up at 6, and the other girls. My stomach hurt and I spent a good portion of the morning in the bathroom. After an hour, I started feeling a little better. I have felt like this since the Saturday in La Ceiba. Maybe we ate something bad. I tried to check my email, but Gmail wasn’t working. I sent a message to Elvira to say that I would not be coming back until a day later. We ate hot ham and egg sandwiches. Amber still didn’t feel well. We took a picture with Tio Victor and we left for the bus terminal at 7:25. We arrived and bought our tickets for 130 lempiras each. Tio Victor insisted on walking us to our bus and he carried my bag. The bus arrived a little before 8. It was an old school bus with bucket seats. I sat in front of the other girls and put my bag above my seat on the rack. A man entered the bus and preached for a while. I guess this was to make up for the fact that we have missed church the last two Sundays. The bus left at 8:10 and was supposedly going to only stop twice, but, in reality, the bus stopped more like 10 or 12 times. Each time, vendors would climb aboard and try to sell their wares before the bus pulled out again. An old lady sat down next to me with a cat wrapped in a plastic bag (except for its head). His name was Javier, and his owner told me that he likes to travel by bus. I’m not so sure. I took a photo of him and then I peeked back at Amber and Lauren. They were both asleep with their mouths open. They both looked dead. I took a picture of them, too. The next time we stopped, the police climbed aboard and randomly began checking people’s IDs. They asked for Lauren’s and Amber’s passports, but for some reason, they didn’t ask me. They asked the girls about our trip: where we were coming from, where we were going, and other questions. I don’t know why. We arrived at Copan Ruinas at 12:15 instead of the scheduled 11am arrival. Amber had to go to the bathroom right away, so we stopped at Hotel Patty so she could go. Then we walked to a hostel nearby where we reserved a room for 210 lempiras at Hostal Posada Honduras. We paid and registered and went to the ruins. We found them easily. There were lots of semi trailers parked along the road. The drivers hang hammocks underneath them and lots of them were taking an afternoon siesta when we walked to the ruins. We didn’t have a lot of money with us, but we wanted to get a guide. The entrance fee cost $15 or L285 each and our guide (Obed) cost $25. We walked with Obed to the biggest estelas (I am not quite sure how to translate this word… basically it means the different temples and buildings that are there… the “ruins”). Amber sat down on benches or rocks whenever she could. She is such a trooper to participate with us even though she was feeling awful. The Mayan structures at Copan are incredible! I learned that the Maya constructed temples and houses over already existing structures. For this reason, there are four other temples under the biggest temple. There are still many structures that have yet to be excavated. The guide told us that the archeologists estimate there are enough structures to excavate that it will take 300 years to uncover them all. The Mayan had three main gods: the god of the sun, the god of the rain, and the god of the corn. It made me laugh to see the god of sun shaded by a roof to keep the sun off of him. We saw the giant stairway covered with hieroglyphics. The stairway is a “book” about the history of Copan. The stairway was ruined when it was discovered, and for this reason, the stones are not in the correct places. We saw the field where the Mayan played their famous ball game. It was much smaller than I had anticipated. The best players were sacrificed to the gods three times a year after the game. We saw the altar where they did the sacrifices. We also saw the “disco” of the Mayan people. It was interesting to learn that there were three classes of people in the Mayan society. However, it was possible for a person to change classes simply by studying or playing the ball game well. The women were honored in the Mayan society and had certain rights in the community. The women were the astronomers and dentists. Finally, the community and the land could not support the population of 30,000 people. There were diseases and not enough food. All the people either died or moved. There were 16 kings in Copan, all from one family. The first king came from Tikal, in Guatemala. The Copan river was very near the ruins and it was eroding the land and destroying the structures of Copan, so the archeologists changed the course of the river to protect Copan.
After the tour, we returned to our hotel and lay down for a while. The other girls slept, and I wrote in my journal. I decided to walk through the town. Lauren woke up, but since she wasn’t feeling well, she decided to stay in the room. I went to the park and found a street of souvenirs. I looked at the earrings, bracelets, and necklaces. I talked to an old man named Carlos who makes jewelry. He had a necklace made out of a Honduran coin. I liked it a lot, but I didn’t have enough money with me. I looked for information about a shuttle to Antigua, but there was no more space on the 6am shuttle. There was only one spot left on the noon shuttle, but that was really too late for me. I bought ice cream: one scoop of lime and one scoop of caramel in a cup for L25. I returned to the room, and we decided to go walking together. I asked in two more places about a shuttle to Antigua with no luck. Each time, the owner assured me that there was room, but when he called to check, there was not. I realized that all of these tour companies share a common shuttle. I went to look for souvenirs with Lauren and Amber. I bought the necklace from Carlos and took a picture. We asked him about a good place to eat baleadas. He recommended a restaurant near his table called Vamos a Ver. We went to look for more souvenirs and information about buses before returning to the restaurant. We ate humongous baleadas (flour tortillas with beans and cream inside) and licuados. I had a watermelon licuado, Amber had mango pineapple, and Lauren had chocolate (which had a flavor similar to chocolate milk). The baleadas and licuados cost L30 each. A child served us. There was a man at the other table that looked very much like David Durica. After we left the restaurant, we went searching for an internet café. We tried in four different locations, walking all over the town, but it seemed like all the places were either closed or did not have working internet. We went to a small shop and bought water and cookies for Jenny. Lauren and I went to the hotel to get Tio Victor’s number while Amber went to call her dad. Lauren and I found the place where you can make international calls. Amber was talking with her mom and Kevin since her dad was at a church meeting. Lauren called Tio Victor and tried to call her family, but they didn’t answer. It only cost ten cents a minute to call the U.S. I tried to call my mom, but she didn’t answer. I left a message and paid two lempiras. We returned to the hotel and I gave Amber a foot massage. I showered, and then she gave me a massage while we talked. We went to bed at 10:40.
el 18 de julio 2011
Amber woke me up at 6:30 because we wanted to take advantage of the morning. The plan was that Tato would come to the beach house to get us at 10:30. Amber wasn’t feeling well. I made scrambled eggs with cheese, and we also ate avocado and bread. We put on our swimsuits and sunscreen and went to the pool. I wrote by the side of the pool for more than an hour and a half. I finished Amber’s notes and I wrote in my journal. We rinsed off in the shower and finished packing. I cleaned the house a bit. Amber was feeling very poorly and was lying down on the bed until Tato arrived at 11:30. We left the remainder of our food for Sandra and her family. Tato had Homer with him. We put our luggage in the back of his truck. Homer sat in the back with Amber and me. He is a badly-behaved child. Tato told him to sit on the seat, and he wouldn’t do it. He doesn’t obey Tato at all. We arrived at Tato’s house and we left our stuff in the truck. We went in and greeted his family. After a short time, we went outside and ate lunch with Tato and his father, Roberto. We ate lasagna and plantains with cream and Coke and Pepsi. Amber didn’t eat much and felt worse. Someone gave her medicine (an antacid). It was white and she accidentally spilled a little on her jeans. She lay down on a bench. I saw my first avocado tree with huge avocados on it. I took a picture, of course. At 2, we left the house and went to the mall to see if we could find a Victoria shirt for Tio Victor. Victoria is one of the soccer teams in La Ceiba and Tio Victor’s favorite team. We stopped at a drive thru pharmacy on the way and bought Alka Seltzer Black for Amber’s stomach. When Tato had told us about Alka Seltzer Black, we all envisioned Alka Seltzer tablets that were black instead of white. However, when Amber took the Alka Seltzer, we were all disappointed to see that it was white, as usual. The package was the only part that was black. The actual name of the medicine was Alka Seltzer Extreme.
When we arrived at the mall, Tato forgot about our bags in the back of the truck. I asked him in Spanish if he was going to put our bags inside the truck before we went in. He replied in English, “That is already going to take place!” as he put the bags inside the truck. We looked for the shirt, but they do not carry them this time of year. We went to the bus station and we bought tickets. It was a really nice bus, which was reflected in the higher price. Each ticket cost 270 lempiras or about $13.50. However, it was well worth the extra price. This was the only bus I went on this time in Central America that had a toilet, and it was good because Amber was so sick. The bus had air conditioning (although it was actually too cold) and blankets and pillows. The stewardess gave us water, potato chips or a sandwich, and pop. Amber got sick about 40 minutes into the journey. I was so glad that we had a bathroom for her sake. She was really cold, so I stole another blanket off the rack. Amber and I sat next to each other, but we didn’t talk much because she was resting. The trip lasted three hours and when we arrived at the bus station in San Pedro Sula, we didn’t know where to find Tio Victor. Lauren went to look for information about a bus to Copan for the next day, and Amber went to the bathroom. I guarded our stuff. Tio Victor came to the bus terminal and found us. Lauren was still gone, so Tio Victor went to look for her. Amber and I waited with the stuff for them to get back. Then, Tio Victor drove us home and insisted on carrying our bags up to our bedroom. He is so thoughtful! He is a big man with a big heart. After a bit, Leslie came up to tell us that the dinner was ready. We went down and ate Honduran tacos. Amber didn’t eat very much. Doctora Vicky came down to ask about Amber’s symptoms. She sent Tio Victor to the pharmacy to get ciprofloxacina for Amber because the only Cipro we had was really old. Lauren used the computer when Victor finished. I massaged Amber’s feet and we talked. I went to bed around 12 and Lauren was still downstairs on the computer.
el 17 de julio 2011
I woke up at 6:30 and went out to read on the balcony. Amber and Lauren appeared around 7. We wrote in our journals for a while. I ate cornflakes, and then Amber showed me how to cut mangos and we ate two. Afterwards, we put on our swimsuits and sunscreen. However, when we looked outside, the church party had already started at 9am! Tato had told Lauren that there was going to be a retiro of the church at the beach house on Sunday. We thought that there was going to be a retirement party. However, the people outside were all teenagers. Later, we figured out that “retiro” means retreat, not retirement. We decided to go to the beach instead of the pool. The sun was very strong (bien fuerte) and we were hot. After an hour, we put our stuff back in the house and we went swimming in the warm ocean. Later, we returned to the house and I showered for the first time at La Ceiba. With all the extra sunscreen, my body felt very dirty, so I was thankful that we had water working. Next, we ate sandwiches with some questionable lunchmeat that we had purchased at the grocery store. We also ate carrots (some of the biggest carrots I had ever seen, I might add) and apples with peanut butter. We relaxed a while and then we went to walk on the beach, looking for a place where we could buy water. We were nearly out of bottled water, and it is not safe to drink the tap water. We left a note for Tato in case he came over. The sun was still quite strong, so I was glad that I had put on more sunscreen. We found children selling pan de coco (coconut bread) and we bought two for 20 lempiras. They were in the shape of a spiral (kind of like a flat version of a cinnamon roll) and very sweet. While we were walking, we came across the woman who had made the bread. She noticed us eating it and told us that it was her grandchildren who had sold it to us. We talked with her and then we continued on our walk. Someone had told us that there was a shop nearby where we could buy water. We walked to a restaurant that was similar to the one at which we had eaten on our way to the beach house and then we turned around, still looking for the illusive shop. There is a picnic area near the beach house with lots of tables and grass. Families come and hang their hammocks and enjoy the weekend at the beach. We asked a family about the shop. The mother offered to drive us in their truck. We couldn’t exactly understand her directions about the location of the shop, so we took her up on her offer. We awkwardly climbed in the back of the truck (as some of us were wearing skirts) and the man drove us. It was farther than we had anticipated. We drove by a soccer field filled with people. We were the only people that I saw who were not Garifuna! We bought a bottle of water, four bags of water, and three granizados (icy fruit drinks) that were delicious. We offered to buy something for the man, but he refused our offer and bought beer. He drove us back to the beach. We returned to the house and Tato was there. He had brought us lunch (it was probably about 4 at this time). Although we weren’t very hungry, we ate chicken, tortillas, beans, and Coca Cola. Sam and other friends came also. Lauren asked Tato if there are any hammocks at the beach house because she remembered some from the time before. He ordered the man who cares for the beach house to get out the hammocks. When it started raining, we relaxed in the hammocks under the house. Tato and his friends sat out under the roof by the pool. Lauren and Amber shared the big hammock and I lay in the other. I continued to copy Amber’s Spanish notes for almost two hours. The man left at 6:30. We played Rummy on the floor under the house. Sandra, the woman who cares for the house, came over to talk to us. She has two children, Susana (~4 years old) and Fernando (~2 years old). After they went back inside, we played a bit more, but the bugs started biting us and we decided to go swimming before going inside. I was surprised that the water felt warm, or maybe even cool. The teenager who lives here (some relative of Sandra?) stayed out near us because of the danger of bad people passing by on the beach. We returned to the house and rinsed off. We gave each other massages. I read for a little and went to bed at 10:45.
el 16 de julio 2011
Today is Lauren’s birthday. I woke up at 7:30 and read for a little while. I like the balcony a lot, from which you can see the ocean. Every morning there is tons of bright sunshine. Working together in the kitchen, we made scrambled eggs with spinach and onion, toast, and tea. We ate this elegant breakfast on the balcony. We talked about money, debt, and credit cards, an interesting birthday topic. We washed the plates and put on our swimsuits. We lay outside around the pool and wrote in our journals and read for a couple hours (covered in lots of sunscreen, of course). I have tried to be really careful about applying liberal amounts of sunscreen with frequency to avoid getting burnt, and so far, it’s worked! I copied part of Amber’s Spanish notes (her new words) but I still lack seven entire pages (both sides) to do. I spent some time in the shade of the roof that is over the table near the pool. Tato had told us that he was going to come over at one, but we didn’t think he would be on time. We stayed out by the pool until he arrived with his friends at 2:30. We went back inside and got dressed and then came back out. The next nine hours consisted of a big party at the beach house. We practiced our Spanish with Tato’s friends and they practiced their English with us. Most of his wealthy friends had attended bilingual schools and most had studied in the U.S. at some point. Four Garifuna children showed up while it was still light. They were trying to catch crawdads in the stream next to the house. We talked to them in Spanish and they tried to teach us how to count in Garifuna (abba, biama, oora, gahdrew, san-goo). The girl braided Amber’s and Lauren’s hair. Mine was all twisted back so she couldn’t braid mine. We tried coconut tablets (a Garifuna dessert) and casaba (a hard and salty cracker). We took pictures together and gave them orange pop and bug repellent. We were getting hungry and finally Tato had someone bring some food from town. We ate different kinds of meat and a little bit of beans with a tortilla. La Ceiba is known as the party city of Honduras. I found it interesting that three of Tato’s friends said that they want to move to another city because there are not many opportunities in La Ceiba to work or for entertainment other than drinking. However, other people said that they love La Ceiba and think that La Ceiba is the best place in the whole world. Tato drove home after the party, although he probably should have found a designated driver. He thinks that having a fun life is more important than anything else. Amber said something to him about what would happen if he had a wreck when he was driving when he probably shouldn’t be. He said that that it is not important if he has a wreck or even dies because he enjoys every day and that is what is most important. It is amazing how people can have such different perspectives on life. We stayed down there until about midnight. I went up at 11:30 and the girls followed within a half hour. I was in my bed munching on cornflakes when they came up. My stomach wasn’t feeling well, especially in the morning. I did a little bit of school work today, but I still have a lot left that I want to do before I return to the U.S. We gave Lauren her birthday cards, and I went to bed at 12:30.
el 15 de julio 2011
We woke us at 5:45 and got ready. I went down first and posted an update on the blog so everyone would know that we were not going to have internet access. Tio Victor came out and made toast and orange juice for us. That was the perfect breakfast because we were still full from the night before. We went with Tio Victor to the gas station at 6:25 but Tato did not arrive until 7. Tio Victor waited with us until Tato came. Victor is so nice. He didn’t act like it bothered him a bit to wait for so long. We talked the whole time we were waiting. At one point, Lauren invited him to stay with her family if he ever came to the States. He mentioned his wife and how she is too sick to travel. He said that he wouldn’t want to leave her. Instead of making it sound like he has to stay in Honduras to care for her, he made it sound like he was the one that it would upset if they had to be separated.
Riding in the minivan with Tato were his wife, his son Homer, and his father Roberto. Homer slept for the first hour. The three of us sat in the back seat. We stopped at a restaurant, but we didn’t eat anything. Lauren and Amber had coffee. When we got back in the van, Homer climbed over the seats up and down all over the van. The only time he stopped moving from seat to seat was when he was playing his DS. We talked about the use of technology by children. It is hard to believe that a three year old has a DS! Homer started being a little bit mean. He grabbed Lauren’s hair and dug his fingernails into my arm while making a mean face just a few inches away from mine. We stopped another time at a gas station where Tato’s wife works. Then they dropped us off at a grocery store to get supplies for the weekend. We had 40 minutes to shop. We bought what we needed for three days at the beach house. I went to the bank to try to exchange my quetzales for lempiras, but it was not possible. If I would have known that I couldn’t exchange them later, I would have changed more money at the border. If I would have not told my bank that I was only going to use my card in Guatemala, I could have taken out money in Honduras. (Can you tell I was practicing the imperfect subjunctive tense when I wrote this in Spanish?) Lauren took out more money from the ATM and loaned me some lempiras. Thank you, Lauren! I waited with Amber and the food for 40 more minutes while we waited. Tato came and took us to his house for a few minutes where we met his mother, Flor. She was going to be a candidate for mayor of La Ceiba, but she didn’t run (I think because of the coup two years ago). Roberto (her husband, Tato’s father) was mayor twice, I believe, and Tato told us he is thinking about running for representative (diputado). The thought of Tato running for office is a bit shocking. He lives to party and drink. After we left his house, we stopped at a bodega (warehouse store) where we waited in the van with Homer while Tato and his wife bought stuff for the gas station. Then we stopped at another gas station to drop those things off. We went back to Tato’s house because Tato was going to get a spare cell phone to give to Lauren, but the maid couldn’t find the charger. We went in the van for a short while and soon we stopped in a Garifuna community for lunch. It was a seafood restaurant and their grill wasn’t working, so I had fried chicken. It came with fried plantains (of course) and salad. I drank two glasses of lemonade. Lauren and Amber split a whole fish. Tato didn’t like the music that was playing and he asked the waitress to change it. Later, Tato was talking about his brother Mike who had been with his girlfriend for nine years before they got married and has only had her. With his wife sitting next to him, Tato remarked, “How sad! I can’t imagine life with only one woman. How boring!” We talked a little bit about the political situation in Honduras. Tato paid the bill and we went to the beach house. It was incredible! It is a huge house with an open area under the house for a party. There is also a smaller house for the servants who care for the property. There is a pool and the property is almost in the ocean, it is that close to it. There are covered areas and tables where you could eat or read. It is totally paradise and I can’t believe that no one uses it on a regular basis! We are staying here without paying a lempira and it is the most luxurious place we have stayed. Homer swam in the pool for a half hour until it started raining. They left and we read and relaxed. At 5, we had tea, a banana, apples with peanut butter, and Marias. We sat at the table on the balcony. It was raining, but the balcony is covered. We talked for a while and the rain settled down into a light rain (llovisma). We decided to walk on the beach. There is a stream near the house with cold water and the water in the ocean was warm. When we came back, we were wet but happy. We played cards: Rummy twice, the pile game that our friends from New Zealand taught us, and ERS. We ate cornflakes and candied cashews. I prepared the mystery fruit that was green and yellow and round. It tasted like an orange even though it was yellow-ish on the inside. I also had a piece of bread. During Rummy, a bat fell from the ceiling onto a rug. We took pictures and I picked up the rug and put it out on the balcony. After a while, the bat flew away. We continued playing, but twenty minutes later, suddenly we heard another bat fall to the floor. He began to climb the doorframe. I took a photo and used the rug to move him outside the door. How strange! We wondered how many bats were in the house, but we didn’t see anymore that night. We finished the games and went to bed. Amber and Lauren shared a bed in the room with air conditioning and I slept in a room with our stuff. We are very blessed to be able to use this house as if it were our very own!
el 14 de julio 2011
I woke up at 4:30 because I was cold from the air conditioning. It was 64 degrees in there! I wanted to turn the AC off, but I didn’t know how. Amber woke up at 5:30 and I asked her to turn it off, which she did. After this, I slept until the alarm went off at 7. We got ready for the day and ate egg sandwiches with Tia Liliana. She has diabetes and is blind in one eye and only has 20% vision in the other. After breakfast, Vicky told us that we each had to pay $10 for gasoline for her to drive us to the beach. Gas was about $4 a gallon and we were only going an hour away, so I think that was a bit much, but we didn’t say anything. We went in a nice red car with cool AC. I sat in the back with Amber. We looked for the place where we could walk to the waterfalls that Lonely Planet suggested, but we had some trouble. Vicky asked several people, but they kept telling us that it was dangerous. It is interesting that there is such a spirit of fear in Honduras. People were constantly telling us that things were dangerous (bien peligroso), especially the buses because they stop every ten minutes and let on thieves. Vicky had never been on a public bus because she said they are too dangerous and expensive. She was surprised by how little we paid to get to San Pedro Sula. After driving down some gravel trails, we decided to head straight to the beach of Omoa. We looked for a beach, but it was not nice there because the water went straight up to the houses and shops. Vicky took us to another beach near Omoa that was better. We spread out on our towels. Amber and Lauren read and I thought. After a while, I walked up and down the beach. Vicky went to sit in the shade under a little roof and I went back to lie on the beach. We could hear music coming from a seafood restaurant on the beach. At 12:40, we went to the restaurant to get lunch. It was very expensive. Amber, Lauren, and I shared grilled chicken and some sort of seafood. I had a watermelon licuado. We were all really thirsty and finished our drinks before the food arrived. The meals also included beans with rice, tons of fried plantains, and salad. The plantains were similar to French fries, but they have more texture. We talked for a while and then Vicky suggested that we go to another beach that she knew about. We didn’t really care, so we headed off. When we arrived, it turned out that there was not a good beach. A man told us that the beach was dangerous and suggested we go back to the beach we had come from. We decided to return to San Pedro Sula so Vicky could nap. We arrived home at 3:30. We went swimming in the pool that Tio Victor had built so Liliana could do therapy in the pool. We showered and used the internet. Lauren and I put our laundry in the washer with the help of Lesli. We ate dinner with Tio Victor and Vicky. We had baleadas (flour tortillas with refried beans, cheese, and cream)… delicious! I ate two. Lauren had received a message from her cousin Allan with his telephone number. Lauren and Victor called him and Allan told us that he would come pick us up in ten minutes to spend time with his family. We quickly got ready and his driver picked us up and took us to a luxurious restaurant called El Portal. We were wearing casual clothes and when we arrived, we noticed that everyone was dressed up in suits and dresses. We met many of Lauren’s relatives (on her grandmother’s side). Allan ordered food and drinks for us, although we were quite full from dinner. Everything was very fancy. We talked with her family for more than two hours and her cousin Tato (Roberto) was going to return to La Ceiba the next day and told us that he could take us with him and we could stay in the beach house. We left the restaurant a little before ten. Allan paid another driver to take us back to our house. Their family has a lot of money. We assumed that Allan had told the driver where to take us, so we were surprised when the driver asked us how to get to our house. We didn’t have the address with us, but fortunately Lauren had Tio Victor’s number so the driver called him to ask for directions and we were very close to the house. We thanked Tio Victor and asked if he could take us to the gas station at 6:30 the next day to meet Tato. We felt bad asking him to cart us around, especially so early, but he was very gracious and assured us that he always gets up early anyway. We packed and went to bed at 12:45.
el 13 de julio 2011
We got up at 7, got ready, and left the hotel around 7:45. We ate breakfast at Antojos Dana. It was a great breakfast with eggs (estrellados), beans, tortillas, cheese, crema, plantains, and a fresco made of seeds. The fresco had ice in it, and we were concerned that it might not have been made from pure water. We also had a big flour tortilla that we shared and was absolutely delicious, especially after eating corn tortillas for so many weeks. After we ate, we went to find a colectivo to get to the border. We found one and paid Q20 each. The colectivo had an interesting collection of people: a man who moved from the U.S. a year ago to teach English and travel (his relatives were from Guatemala), Maximiliano (a cute grandpa man), among others. The English teacher had had a motorcycle accident and had a huge infected wound on his arm. We arrived at the border and had our passports stamped on the Guatemala side. We also changed money. I only changed Q400 for 940 lempira. I should have changed more. The exchange rate was 2.35 between quetzales and lempiras, which was very close to the 2.4 that we had found online the day before. We rode a little farther in the colectivo when they deposited us on the border of Honduras. We had to walk to the immigration office where we filled out forms and paid the entrance fee of 60 lempira. A man advised us to take a taxi for ten dollars each. We just wanted to find a public bus. We walked for a bit on a slightly sketchy road and then found an old school bus. The temperature was very hot and humid. There was a pretty woman with a baby inside the bus and also a lot of mosquitoes! We left after 10 minutes. The bus cost 51 lempira. The bus stopped many times (every two minutes) and the driver played loud music. After a long time, we arrived at Puerto Cortés where the ayudante showed us the bus to San Pedro Sula. This next bus was very good with comfortable seats and air conditioning! I sat in the front with Amber and Lauren sat a few rows behind us. It was nice to have some time to talk with Amber about things I have been thinking. This bus cost 48 lempira and took one hour. This bus, too, stopped frequently, although it was labeled a “direct” bus. We arrived at the bus station at 2. The bus terminal in San Pedro Sula is connected to a mall. I wanted to buy a green soft serve ice cream cone from Burger King for 7 lempira, but we only saw an ad not the actual restaurant. We looked for a telephone so Lauren could call her uncle. We walked a long way to the terminal for Hedman Alas, the bus company Lauren had used when she came to Antigua. I watched the bags while Lauren went to call him. After this, we bought licuados for 20 lempira (one dollar). I had watermelon with milk. The watermelon flavor wasn’t very strong, but it was very refreshing after a dehydrating day of travel. Tio Victor arrived and we went with him and his daughter Victoria (Vicky) to their house. They have four dogs including two Golden Retrievers who like to swim in the pool and then jump on people, a Boxer, and a Chihuahua that bites. We went up to the room where we were going to stay. It worked out well that the room has two beds, a twin and a double. The room had air conditioning, which was wonderful. We spent the rest of the afternoon reading Lauren’s Central America book to decide what we wanted to do with our time in Honduras and then we showered. Around 6, Lesli, the woman who works for the family, came to tell us it was time for dinner. She came to their house in September when she was pregnant. Tio Victor is very generous. Lesli lives and works at their house with her baby Andrea Fernanda. There is another woman named Monica who lives in the house, too. She used to work for them a long time ago. She didn’t know how to read or write, so Tio Victor paid for her to go to school and then college. Now she is a nurse but still lives with them. We ate avocado, fried plantains, and beans with cheese and cream. After dinner, we talked for a long time about family history and Lauren’s family tree. Tio Victor wrote out a family tree for Lauren’s grandpa’s part of the family. Vicki spoke English to us most of the time and it was hard for us to keep speaking Spanish. Tio Victor showed us pictures of his farm and La Mosquitia (an undeveloped area of Honduras that has a lot of problems with drug trafficking). He also showed us the hair from his grandma (that was cut off in braids) and ancient documents from Lauren’s relatives including birth certificates, marriage licenses, and passports. At 9, we returned to our room and wrote for a while before getting ready for bed at 10:15. Amber was already asleep in the small bed and Lauren and I shared the large bed.
el 12 de julio 2011
We woke up at 6:15 and packed everything up. We ate two plates of eggs with plantains, beans, plantains, and toast and a bowl of cereal with banana. We paid our bills (they kept a running tab during the time we were there) and I owed 535Q including our shuttle ride to Rio Dulce. We left at 7:40 with the couple from New Zealand. They want to open a hostel. On our way to Lanquín, we had to stop for a truck that couldn´t make it up a hill and was blocking the road. Finally we arrived in Lanquín and we changed to another bus. This time, it was just us and three girls from England. We got stopped another time along the road because a gas truck was stuck trying to come up a hill on a curve and couldn´t turn in time. Our driver maneuvered around the stuck truck with the other guy directing. We made it safely around with three inches to spare! The road to Río Dulce was not really a road, it was more like a gravel trail filled with hills, curves, and potholes. In two places, we had to get out of the bus and walk so that the bus could go up the hill! I gave Amber a massage, which was possible because she was sitting in the seat in front of me. We guessed when we would arrive in Río Dulce, and my guess was 2pm. We stopped at 11:30 at a restaurant and some people ate sandwiches. Amber was sleeping during part of the stop. We switched vans again, and I was happy that the driver put our bags inside the van because I was scared it was going to rain and our stuff would get wet. The new bus did not smell so good. I read the rest of my book (Cast Two Shadows) and then we arrived in Río Dulce at 2pm! We decided to look for a bus to get to Puerto Barrios because it is closer to the border with Honduras. A bus man wanted us to spend the night in Río Dulce and take a direct bus to San Pedro Sula the next day for 130Q, but when we didn´t want this option, he showed us a colectivo to Puerto Barrios that cost 30Q. We wondered if we had paid too much. I sat with Lauren and worked on my memory verses while she read the Bible. This trip was much smoother with a better road. We kept stopping and picking up people. We arrived in Puerto Barrios around 4:30 (which was faster than I had anticipated). We tried to find information about the bus for the next day, but we did not have success. We went to Pollo Campero for dinner. I had a grilled chicken sandwich and a vanilla ice cream cone. It began raining. We decided that Lauren and Amber would go look for information about a bus, find a hotel, find a grocery store, and call Lauren´s uncle while I stayed at Pollo Campero with our stuff. I was going to write about things I had been thinking about on the bus, but I met a new friend instead from the table next to ours. Her name was María José and she was 7 years old. Her little sister was named María Alejandra and she was 9 months old. María José sat next to me at my table and we talked for a long time. When she found out I was from the U.S. she asked me if I had seen a pregnant dark-skinned woman with black hair without any moles on her face: her cousin from Los Angeles. She was disappointed that I didn´t know her. I learned that there is a Chuckie Cheese in Guatemala City. The sky was very dark with lots of rain. María José wanted her family to take to a hotel. It was a bit awkward because she would go over to her dad and whisper in his ear and ask if they could take me to my hotel. I didn´t want him to think that I had asked her to ask him! Finally her family left and I began to write. I had scarcely begun when my friends returned. Their mission had been successful. They had reserved a room for us at a sketchy hotel, found information about the buses, a supermarket, an ATM, and a place for us to eat breakfast, and Lauren had talked to Tio Victor… all in the space of about an hour, in the rain! It was still raining a bit when we walked back to the hotel. I paid (Q123 for the three of us). A hotel man showed us to our room and it was funny because he pointed out the bathroom and the TV about four times each! We left our bags there and went to the ATM and the supermarket where we bought snacks for our trip (cookies!). The city was a bit sketchy, especially at night. The Lonely Planet book described Puerto Barrios as a sketchy and unfriendly place that most tourists leave as quickly as possible. There are many bars and brothels. We returned to our room. Amber gave me a massage which helped my tense muscles. I wrote a bit in my journal and we went to bed around 9:30.
el 11 de julio 2011
We woke up at 7, although Amber had woken up an hour and a half earlier. We got dressed and went down to the restaurant where we said goodbye to Erika and Felippo. Felippo didn’t finish all his plantanos, so he gave them to us. We ordered breakfast and read/wrote while we waited for it to arrive. We shared two plates of eggs with plantains, beans, and toast. During breakfast, the couple from New Zealand, Alex and Paul, arrived and we talked with them. We were going to visit the cave of K’an Ba at 9:30, so we still had some time to kill before we went. For this reason, we read/wrote in the restaurant and the cabin before going. We went with Hugo, Alex, and Paul. When we arrived, there was a huge group of people waiting to enter. I was disappointed that it appeared that we were going to be part of such a big group. However, Hugo presented us to our guide, Carlos, and he was the guide for only the five of us! The cave is really amazing. In order to enter the cave, all you need is a candle and rope tied around your flip flops to make sure they don’t fall off. This would not be allowed in the U.S. We didn’t even have to sign a waiver; there was just a sign that warned of entering the cave at your own risk. The level of the water was higher than the day before due to the rain. We had to swim with our candles above the water, like I had the year before. Amber had been there four years ago. During one part, we had to cross under a furious waterfall. I went first. I could not see what I was doing or even where I was going. All I could see was the river pounding over the waterfall. I gripped my candle (that had gone out from all the water), held onto Carlos’ hand, and blindly followed him under the rushing water. It was a little scary, but I completely trusted Carlos. We all made it safely across, and after climbing a ladder, we relit our candles. The big group was in front of us, and because of this, we had to extinguish our candles (to save them for later) and wait for the group to advance. There were four pools that we had to swim across. Because it was dark and you couldn’t see through the water, once in a while, we would stub our toes on a rock. The next day, we could see bruises on our legs where they had collided with underwater rocks. After we had climbed a ladder, we had to grab onto a rope and walk across walks that were submerged in the rushing river. Carlos found some black ashes that were on a rock and made a cross on each of our foreheads that looked like a cross from Ash Wednesday. Finally we passed the other group that was jumping off a high rock and we went deeper into the cave into a big room with rock formations. One of the formations looked like a hat and because of this was called El Sombrero. When the big group caught up to us in the big room, the room was illuminated by all the candles. Their guide secretly climbed up on a high rock. Then he got our attention and jumped off. When the large group got ready to leave, Carlos directed us to swim first. We returned by the same route by which we had entered.
After the cave, we used inner tubes and went down the river with Carlos. We wrapped our legs around each other so that we were all connected. The water was quite cold, but the sun was out. We floated all the way down to Las Marías where Carlos left us. We showered, and it felt so good to be clean. We ordered two chicken sandwiches and a fruit plate to share. Afterwards, we played a card game that the couple from New Zealand had taught us during lunch. They went to Semuc Champey in the afternoon. Johnny taught us another game that was similar to the New Zealand pile game. His game was called Presidente. It was a bit unfair because the loser had to give the winner his-her two best cards the next round. While we were playing, a big tree fell down over part of a cabin and harmed the roof. Johnny and his brother Juan cut the tree into pieces. The sun came out and we decided to take advantage of it. We went to the platform by the side of the river. It had a roof over part of it, which we needed because it began to rain shortly. We did our nails, read, and wrote. Amber and Lauren left, but I stayed there for another hour or two, reading, writing, praying, and thinking. There was a group of three people from Argentina who were camping by the river. They were swimming and then they cooked dinner over a fire. Johnny arrived and jumped off the platform in the river because he said he had ants in his pants from cutting up the tree. Two children who lived nearby came and the people from Argentina shared their food with them. I talked with them and Ramiro read my journal over my shoulder (I had written in Spanish). José, the other boy, left, but Ramiro stayed for a while. He taught me two words in his Mayan language (Q´kek che?): notebook and rain. Both words began with H, but I could not pronounce either of them correctly. I left shortly after Ramiro did.
For dinner, we shared two plates of food: one of chicken and one of beef. After dinner, we played Presidente and then Johnny and Juan danced salsa with us. There was a new group from France and the United States there. I met a man who is part of the Peace Corps near Sololá. At ten, the lights went out, but we were still having fun, so we went into the other dining area and Johnny lit candles for us that he stuck in empty glass pop bottles as holders. We played cards (Johnny, Juan, Amber, Lauren, and I) and talked for three hours. The other group only stayed up for maybe another hour. Johnny gave us Gatorade to drink. It was pouring down rain. Finally, at 1:30, we went back to our room and got ready for bed. We went to bed at 1:45 with only 4.5 hours to sleep!
el 10 de julio 2011
Lauren and I got up at 7:30. Amber already had awoken and was doing exercises. We got ready for the day and headed down to breakfast. We shared a fruit plate, an omelette, and fried eggs. The egg dishes came with beans and plantains, a great way to start the day. We ate with Felippo and Erika. After eating, we got ready to head over to Semuc Champey. We went with Felippo and Erika. We walked there together and crossed the bridge that Amber had jumped off of when she was here four years ago. We paid the entrance fee of 50Q and walked to the river. Semuc Champey is incredibly beautiful. When I imagine the Garden of Eden, I think that parts of it must have looked like Semuc Champey. We walked to the wells and we swam in the chilly water. There were small fish in the water that nibbled on our toes. Tammy would not have been a fan of this experience! I didn’t like the sensation, but it didn’t scare me, it just tickled. We enjoyed the wells while talking with Erika. Felippo was taking pictures with his high-quality camera. After this, we walked to where the river goes under the wells. We took some pictures there with Felippo. There were several security lifeguards around Semuc Champey, which impressed us. We hiked up to the viewpoint. The view was amazing, although I had been here just one year ago. We ate snacks and took pictures before going down by another path. It was difficult to get down because the mud was so slippery. Erika and Felippo were getting ready to head back to go to the caves, but we decided to stay one more day in Semuc Champey, so we could enjoy more time there and then go to the caves the next day. Lauren still was not feeling well and wanted to rest a bit. Erika and Felippo returned to the hotel and gave the message that we were not going to visit the caves that day. We went back to the wells because the sun (which had been non-existent so far) finally appeared. We were chilly so the warm sun was a welcome change. We sat down on some rocks on the edge of a well, but it was uncomfortable because there were lots of plants and insects. Lauren and I wrote and Amber was reading, but twenty minutes later, there was a storm. We left the wells and went to the shelter to wait for the storm to pass. We talked and continued our activities while we waited for the rain to subside. When the rain lightened up, we returned back to the hotel. We ate cereal (corn flakes with a bit of granola) with milk and banana. A couple from New Zealand came and we talked to them. Afterward, Lauren went to lie down. Amber and I found hammocks and we wrote/read for a short while. When it began to rain, I went to the restaurant and talked to the people there. Felippo showed us the pictures he had taken and Amber saved some of them on her flashdrive. The pictures were marvelous, even though it is hard to capture the majestic scenery. Each night, the restaurant serves one meal and tonight, it was fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and salad of lettuce, tomato, onion, and lime juice. We each had our own plate (no sharing), and we were all stuffed after the meal. After dinner, we taught Erika how to play Hearts and talked with Gustavo and Eliana, the people from Argentina who were paying for their travels by making and selling jewelry. Amber and I bought coconut rings. After this, Amber called her dad to wish him a happy birthday. Johnny dialed the number and talked to her dad first. Then he played loud birthday music for him while Amber was trying to talk. Johnny offered us rum and coke in honor of her father’s birthday, which was funny since he doesn’t drink. We only had ten minutes left until they were going to turn out the lights, so I hurried and finished getting ready for bed just as the lights turned off and it began to rain.
el 9 de julio 2011
We woke up at 6:20 and got ready for the day. At 7:15 we ate breakfast with the family. We had two pancakes with maple syrup or blueberry jelly, a tostada (similar to a sugar cookie), and pineapple. We said goodbye to everyone and returned to our house (#59) to wait for the bus. While we waited, we talked with Larry about his testimony. He had to give us the short version, and I wished we had had time to hear it all. The bus arrived a few minutes before 8. We were the first people on the bus and we chose seats near the front of the bus for Amber. I sat behind Amber and Lauren, on the left side of the bus. It was a big, nice bus. When we got on, I noticed that it was the same company that I had used last year when I went (when I had a less than desirable experience). One of the guys on the bus was even the same guy that had been in Coban the year before and sold me my tour package! We drove all over Antigua looking for the other people for more than an hour! We passed our house three times! We saw Enrique and Larry and Dorothy walking through the city. Finally, we left Antigua at 9:15. Again, we were the only Americans on the shuttle out of 19 people! There were people from Holland, Australia, England, Spain, and Italy. We talked to some interesting women from Spain. We asked how long they had been traveling and they said they’ve been traveling since 2008 (if I remember correctly)! We got to Guatemala City at 10:30 and then continued on. We drove for another hour or so and then we stopped by the side of the road so people could answer the call of nature in the bushes. I am not sure why we didn’t stop at a restaurant, like we usually do. A police officer stopped and talked to the driver. I think he was confused about why we were stopping. Later, we stopped at a restaurant at the side of the highway around 11:45. Supposedly we were going to be there 15 minutes, but in reality it was more like 45 minutes. We talked with the Italians, Felippo and Erika. Felippo works at a hostel in Nicaragua. Erika was visiting her boyfriend in New York and then came down to visit Felippo for a bit. Finally we left the restaurant and continued on our journey. We arrived in Cobán at 3:30. I am not sure why the trip took so long because the weather was good the entire trip. In Cobán, lots of people got off the shuttle, including the women from Spain. We got their contact info about their organization. When we asked them when they started traveling, they answered “2006.” We had been expecting an answer of a few weeks or months! They were really funny. Sara read the Spanish words I was copying from Amber’s Spanish notes and she told me that “chistista” is not a word.
We left Cobán at 4. The driver told us that the trip would last two hours to get to Lanquín, but in actuality, it took a bit less than that (for once). When we arrived in Lanquín, we got our backpacks and bags and immediately, a man from Las Marías, a hostel in Semuc Champey, asked us if we wanted to go to Las Marías. We had wanted to stay in Lanquín because it would be easier to leave on Monday, but he kept trying to convince us. We walked most of the way to El Retrato, a hostel in Lanquín, but we discussed it as we went. Transportation was our biggest problem. However, as we went over our options, we decided that it might be better to stay in Semuc Champey because we wouldn´t have to pay for a tour of Semuc Champey and the caves. We sent Lauren back up to find the man and tell him that we wanted to come with him to Las Marías. Amber and I stayed with the bags. We tried to ask several people about the public transportation from Lanquín, but everyone kept telling us that we had to take a shuttle. We were frustrated because we knew that if someone had a relative in Copán or Puerto Barrios, he or she would not be paying to take a shuttle to get there! Lauren arrived in the back of a pickup filled with other people. Amber and I got to sit in the backseat inside the cab. We tried to look at a map in the Guatemala book as we went. Our original plan had been to go to Copán from Semuc Champey, but it didn´t seem to be very possible. For that reason, we thought about going to San Pedro Sula first and then go to Copán at the end of the trip as I headed back to Guatemala. We arrived at Las Marías after a 30 minute bumpy ride. We found it interesting that the guide book described the road from Lanquín to Semuc Champey as “a long, hot walk.” The road was actually quite hilly, rocky, and quite far. I think it would take many hours to walk that distance. I am surprised that Lonely Planet said that it was even walkable!
We settled into the second level of a cabin in a dormitory (35Q/$4.50 per person per night). There were five beds in the room, but we were the only ones up there. We put our passports and money in the safe. We sat with Filippo and Erika. Amber, Lauren, and I shared pollo de la plancha (grilled chicken) and a ham and cheese sandwich. I drank peach juice in a can. After talking with Erika and Felippo, we returned to the cabin. During the dinner, it had started raining and continued raining heavily until we went to bed. Because of this, we had to walk up the hill to our cabin and then to the bathhouse in the rain. I forgot to use the bathroom while I was there and so I had to take an extra trip there in the rain. Also, I had to return to the main area of the hotel to ask Hugo about the light in the cabin. We couldn’t find a light switch anywhere. We had seen a sign down below that said that the generator (and therefore the lights) are turned off each night at 10. Hugo told me that all the lights would go out then, and if we wanted to turn off the light earlier, we could grab the lightbulb with an item of clothing and unscrew it from its socket. Lauren was feeling sick and, for that reason, fell asleep early. Amber and I wrote in our journals until the light turned off at 10.
el 8 de julio 2011
Today we climbed the Pacaya Volcano. The shuttle picked us up at 6am from our house. We rode in the shuttle for more than an hour. We were the only Americans in the group. Some people were from Mexico, Australia, and other places. When we got to Pacaya, the air was very chilly. Everyone else in the group had worn shorts except for me. On the way there, I thought maybe I’d made a mistake, but when we arrived, I was glad that I had on long pants and hiking boots. The tour cost 70Q and the entrance price was 50Q. We stopped at a little shop, and I went to the bathroom (0/5 on the good bathroom scale). I bought marshmallows at the shop because we forgot to buy them in Antigua. There were men following us leading horses. They called out, “Taxi, taxi!” There was a lot of fog as we climbed up. We couldn’t see the view from the lookout point or the lake in the old crater. However, when we arrived at the volcano, the fog began to disappear. It was creepy-looking with black volcanic rock beneath the swirling mist. It looked like something from outer space. We talked with a guy from Mexico as we hiked. We came to the crack in the earth where you can roast marshmallows. The heat was intense as we leaned over the crack and roasted our colorful marshmallows on a stick. We shared with the other people around us. A dog followed us and wanted to eat the marshmallows, too. While we were standing around the crack, another volcano (Fuego) made some eruptions. I took pictures, but they aren’t as impressive as it was in real life. Apparently, it erupts about every 20 minutes. After that, we went over to the cave. We had to wait for another group to come out and then our group went in. When Pacaya erupted last May, this cave was created by the lava. We entered into the cave and were amazed by the heat inside! We chatted with the Mexican guy, Geraldo, and his mom. She gave us the unusual compliment that she thought we were Europeans because we spoke Spanish so well and usually Americans say that they speak Spanish, but their Spanish is horrible. She is a doctor and works in Cleveland, Ohio, which is where I was born. It felt so nice down in the cave. When we left, we felt cold because of the contrast. We hiked back by a different route and we saw where the journalist died last year during the eruptions, trying to get photos. We got back in the shuttle and drove back. The way back seemed longer and most people tried to sleep. Elvira had given us pineapple cereal bars and we ate cranberries, also.
When we arrived back home, we showered and then it was time for lunch. We had hamburgers (without buns), salad of lettuce, tomato, and avocado, pasta, and a crepe with crema and blueberry jelly. In the afternoon, we signed up for a shuttle ride to Lanquin the next day for 150Q and we went to the market where we bought a few souvenirs. Then we had our last dance class. I danced with Carmen and we took some pictures. I went to the internet café after that. For dinner, we ate black bean soup with corn chips on top of the soup, tamales with flowers and chicarrones inside, bread, and fried plantains. We talked for a while after dinner and then Elliott (Elvira and Enrique’s son) and his wife arrived, but they only stayed for a half hour. At 8:30, we walked together to Pena de Sol Latino, a favorite restaurant of Jenny and Amber. Sharon, Lara, Alex, Larry, Dorothy, Elvira, Enrique, Lauren, Amber, and I went. Amber, Lauren, and I bought desserts for everyone—hot brownies with ice cream, blackberry pie with ice cream, chocolate mousse, and pineapple flambé. We shared the desserts, just like a big family. The restaurant has a live band that plays fun music using interesting instruments. They kept taking breaks every time I got ready to take a picture. I think Lauren got some, though. I collected everyone’s email address and we talked and took some pictures. We headed back to the house around 10:30. We went to the house with E&E and paid them. Elvira gave us bracelets from Guatemala. We packed our stuff and went to bed at 1:15. I had more work to do to pack up my stuff since I had to decide what I was going to leave in Antigua. Amber just had to pack everything up.