From the lake...And back...

We left the lake yesterday on a chicken bus to Xela. Xela, the name that everyone calls Quetzaltenango, is Guatemala's second biggest city, and is located in the Highlands. The ride here was lovely. Chicken busses are actually really nice. Their well maintained, cheap, and frankly pretty pimped out. They are brightly colored and kept really clean, and they are decorated inside and out with information about Jesus, such as the fact that only he can change your life, and that he is coming, so prepare yourself. The scenery was lovely though. We drove into the mountains and the whole lake was spread below. Then it was patchworks of crops and little towns, and of course the obligatory road work.

Xela is nice, so far. The central park is pretty, although we haven't spent much time in it yet. After finding our hostel (and learning that there is not actually work there for us, as we expected...) we ventured into the mercado. There we ate at a comedor, where we sampled vegetable soup with huge whole vegetables, rice, and thick plain corn tamales. We've gotten more bold in our culinary choices, as breakfast yesterday was purchased off the street, and was quite tasty and cheap as well.

The big goal now (how did TFA language slip in there?) is to find something to do for the next couple of weeks. Cheka and Phoebe are still looking for long term volunteer opportunities, while my schedule really only permits shorter ones. To this end we went to a benefit dinner for an organization called Quetzaltrekkers. Volunteers lead people on hikes, and the proceeds go towards a school and orphanage for street children. The dinner itself was awesome. All the food was donated by local restruarants, and it was held at the house where all of the guides live. Cheka and Phoebe are actually thinking of becoming guides, and so all of us are leaving tomorrow on a three day hike BACK to the lake so that they can check it out.

Last night we dined with a bunch of foreigners, smoked a hooka on couches covered in cat print sheets, and then walked out onto the streets of Xela. We walked towards out hostel with the sounds of 80's pop fading behind us. We're realizing through our travels what a strange place Guatemala is. There's this strange undercurrent of backpackers/tourists. My understanding is that many countries have this backpacking culture. But to me, this one seems somehow unsettled, new, like things haven't had a chance to shake down.