This may or may not be a picture of all of us, including our visiting friends Becky from the States and Cristina from Espana.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Pictures, Maybe....
This may or may not be a picture of all of us, including our visiting friends Becky from the States and Cristina from Espana.
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Plan of the day...
Today I signed up for a Mayan weaving class. I start Monday and will be learning to weave for four hours a day for two days, and two hours the next...Why? Because I need another craft.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
It would have been faster to drive, but...
Three days and 45 kilometers later, we are back in Xela (pronounced Shay-la, in case you were wondering...). The trek, as it's called, was awesome. The terrain and views were varied, the food was good, and the group of people was laid back.
We started out the first day with a two hour uphill hike. It was good to get it out of the way, and it was during this hike that Cheka, Phoebe and I discovered that according to Guatemalan tourist trekking standards, we are pretty fast! We kept pace with the lead guide. The hike up was on a rocky trail through the woods, and it reminded us of East Bay hiking trails (it's funny though, because a girl from Pennysalvania said that it reminded her of the trails where she lives. I guess even when away we are all looking for home.). At the top of the hill we stepped out into the grass lands. It is just now starting to hit the rainy season, so the grasses were all brown and dry. Ana, one of the guides, told us that these grasslands stretch all the way from Alaska down to Chile. I never think of climates as running horizontally, but I guess they do! Pretty cool. From the grasslands we hiked through a couple towns. First we hit Nueva Xitinamit (sounds a little like saying shit in the mist, although if you say it with the proper accent, it doesn't), which was rebuilt after Hurricane Mitch. From the towns we hit the woods again. I found that mostly I looked at my feet in an attempt not to trip, but when I did look up it was lush green plants of varying shapes and sizes and the occasional purple, pink, or orange flower.
We spent the first night in an abandoned medical clinic in a town called Santa Clarita. I do not recommend sleeping in abandoned medical clinics. There was no electricty or water (reminded me of Casa little...), and we slept on the floor of cement cells. Dinner was good though. We all ate in the "kitchen" which was the largest room, and the only room that had a bed, which served as our kitchen table. Although the accomadations were less than five star, we had a good time. The best part was that we got to use a temescal (home made sauna) in someone's backyard. The guides kept saying that we could clean up in the temescal, although it was beyond me how sitting and sweating more would make me clean. But the temescal was awesome. The room was small, maybe five feet by five feet, with a low ceiling and hot stones heated by the fire below. There was a spigot of cold water and big barrel of hot water and we mixed them together and cleaned up. Hands down, it was one of the best sauna experiences ever, although it was weird to step out and realize that wow, we were in someone's backyard.. .We fell asleep the first night to the sound of church bells, and woke up the next morning to the sound of church bells. In between I had an elaborate dream about a company that creates beautiful beds with soft pillows and elaborate bedspreads. It's a service that you purchase for your friends as gifts, and it sneaks into houses to set them up. It's a bit of a practical joke service too, because as nice as the beds are, they are also shortsheeted. I note this mostly because the next day was April first, so it was a pretty apt dream...
Sunday morning we ate a typical Guatemalan breakfast of eggs, beans, and rice (and this weird hot drink made of bananas...), and set out on the road again. We started off walking along a dirt road with cliffs rising to the left and steep almost vertical mountains rising to the right. Kids from the town we walked through ran out asking to have their pictures taken. After a couple of hours we hit a river where we took a little rest, and then climbed up one of the nearly vertical mountains. It was tough, but there was good cloud cover, and it's actually really rewarding to climb such a mountain. From there it was more little towns, dusty roads, and green plants. We hiked through cornfields and had lunch and a nap (all 17 of us...) on a grassy place by a river. Much of the second day was spent hiking up hills only to hike down them. We came into a valley where we crossed a the same river not one, not five, but fourteen times. This was actually one of my favorite parts of the hike.
We spend the second night with a family. They cooked us a wonderful meal and we spent the evening roasting marshmallows and hanging out with their four boys, ranging in age from 1 and a half to 13. The thirteen year old played the guitar, including a Guatemalan verion of Ode to Joy. Pretty cool. We woke up the next morning at 3:30, and walked along a paved road to a lookout point over Lago Atitlan, where we watched the sunrise and ate breakfast. From there it was two and a half hours of downhill with an optional hike up a hill called Nariz Del Indo, which looks like a nose. From there we had spectacular views of the lake, as well as the joys of having hiked up yet another steep hill. We swam in the lake, I collected more shells (this time taking care to cover my back, which had, by the way bubbled and peeled. Yuck.), and then hopped on a lancha over to San Pedro. After lunch we left most of our group in San Pedro, and then hopped in the back of a pick-up truck for the two hour ride back to Xela. We were lucky in that there was no road construction, and less lucky in that it poured. Apparently we are trying to make the trip between Xela and the lake as many ways as possible. We have taken a chicken bus, walked, and now ridden in a pick-up. Next I am planning on taking a boat.*
Overall, the trip was well worth it. I hadn't been backpacking for years, and this has definitely renewed my interest in it. What was interesting about this hike though was the purpose for the trails. In the states all the trails I've hiked on are there as fire trails, or specifically there as hiking trails. These trails, while looking pretty similar, are actually in use by the people leaving near them. We pulled to the side of the trail several times so that local folks could get by with their huge loads of firewood or corn, which they carry tied to their heads. It definitely put our trek in perspective.
We got back to Xela around 5 and settled into our apartment (great place with a kitchen!), and dined on yet more papusas and atol. Yum. Today is a simple day with simple errands of internet, shopping, and trying to find volunteer opportunities and good things to put in our tummies.
*Note: There is no body of water that connects Xela with the lake.
We started out the first day with a two hour uphill hike. It was good to get it out of the way, and it was during this hike that Cheka, Phoebe and I discovered that according to Guatemalan tourist trekking standards, we are pretty fast! We kept pace with the lead guide. The hike up was on a rocky trail through the woods, and it reminded us of East Bay hiking trails (it's funny though, because a girl from Pennysalvania said that it reminded her of the trails where she lives. I guess even when away we are all looking for home.). At the top of the hill we stepped out into the grass lands. It is just now starting to hit the rainy season, so the grasses were all brown and dry. Ana, one of the guides, told us that these grasslands stretch all the way from Alaska down to Chile. I never think of climates as running horizontally, but I guess they do! Pretty cool. From the grasslands we hiked through a couple towns. First we hit Nueva Xitinamit (sounds a little like saying shit in the mist, although if you say it with the proper accent, it doesn't), which was rebuilt after Hurricane Mitch. From the towns we hit the woods again. I found that mostly I looked at my feet in an attempt not to trip, but when I did look up it was lush green plants of varying shapes and sizes and the occasional purple, pink, or orange flower.
We spent the first night in an abandoned medical clinic in a town called Santa Clarita. I do not recommend sleeping in abandoned medical clinics. There was no electricty or water (reminded me of Casa little...), and we slept on the floor of cement cells. Dinner was good though. We all ate in the "kitchen" which was the largest room, and the only room that had a bed, which served as our kitchen table. Although the accomadations were less than five star, we had a good time. The best part was that we got to use a temescal (home made sauna) in someone's backyard. The guides kept saying that we could clean up in the temescal, although it was beyond me how sitting and sweating more would make me clean. But the temescal was awesome. The room was small, maybe five feet by five feet, with a low ceiling and hot stones heated by the fire below. There was a spigot of cold water and big barrel of hot water and we mixed them together and cleaned up. Hands down, it was one of the best sauna experiences ever, although it was weird to step out and realize that wow, we were in someone's backyard.. .We fell asleep the first night to the sound of church bells, and woke up the next morning to the sound of church bells. In between I had an elaborate dream about a company that creates beautiful beds with soft pillows and elaborate bedspreads. It's a service that you purchase for your friends as gifts, and it sneaks into houses to set them up. It's a bit of a practical joke service too, because as nice as the beds are, they are also shortsheeted. I note this mostly because the next day was April first, so it was a pretty apt dream...
Sunday morning we ate a typical Guatemalan breakfast of eggs, beans, and rice (and this weird hot drink made of bananas...), and set out on the road again. We started off walking along a dirt road with cliffs rising to the left and steep almost vertical mountains rising to the right. Kids from the town we walked through ran out asking to have their pictures taken. After a couple of hours we hit a river where we took a little rest, and then climbed up one of the nearly vertical mountains. It was tough, but there was good cloud cover, and it's actually really rewarding to climb such a mountain. From there it was more little towns, dusty roads, and green plants. We hiked through cornfields and had lunch and a nap (all 17 of us...) on a grassy place by a river. Much of the second day was spent hiking up hills only to hike down them. We came into a valley where we crossed a the same river not one, not five, but fourteen times. This was actually one of my favorite parts of the hike.
We spend the second night with a family. They cooked us a wonderful meal and we spent the evening roasting marshmallows and hanging out with their four boys, ranging in age from 1 and a half to 13. The thirteen year old played the guitar, including a Guatemalan verion of Ode to Joy. Pretty cool. We woke up the next morning at 3:30, and walked along a paved road to a lookout point over Lago Atitlan, where we watched the sunrise and ate breakfast. From there it was two and a half hours of downhill with an optional hike up a hill called Nariz Del Indo, which looks like a nose. From there we had spectacular views of the lake, as well as the joys of having hiked up yet another steep hill. We swam in the lake, I collected more shells (this time taking care to cover my back, which had, by the way bubbled and peeled. Yuck.), and then hopped on a lancha over to San Pedro. After lunch we left most of our group in San Pedro, and then hopped in the back of a pick-up truck for the two hour ride back to Xela. We were lucky in that there was no road construction, and less lucky in that it poured. Apparently we are trying to make the trip between Xela and the lake as many ways as possible. We have taken a chicken bus, walked, and now ridden in a pick-up. Next I am planning on taking a boat.*
Overall, the trip was well worth it. I hadn't been backpacking for years, and this has definitely renewed my interest in it. What was interesting about this hike though was the purpose for the trails. In the states all the trails I've hiked on are there as fire trails, or specifically there as hiking trails. These trails, while looking pretty similar, are actually in use by the people leaving near them. We pulled to the side of the trail several times so that local folks could get by with their huge loads of firewood or corn, which they carry tied to their heads. It definitely put our trek in perspective.
We got back to Xela around 5 and settled into our apartment (great place with a kitchen!), and dined on yet more papusas and atol. Yum. Today is a simple day with simple errands of internet, shopping, and trying to find volunteer opportunities and good things to put in our tummies.
*Note: There is no body of water that connects Xela with the lake.
Friday, March 30, 2007
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.
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.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
I am a triathalete
Well not really, but we were pretty active today, a nice switch from lazing around in the sun, as enjoyable as that was. Today we hiked from Santa Cruz, where we are staying to San Marcos, where we are not. It did take about three hours, and was a nice mix of hard uphill, slippery downhill, rock scrambling, and flat trail. There were points where it felt exactly like hiking in the East Bay with tall brown grasses. Pretty much the whole time we had a wonderful view of the volcano ringed lake. It was sunny and sparkly, and from where we were we could see boats and towns and random crops high up on the hills. It was lovely, although more often than not one of us would trip while trying to both walk and take in the view.
I did not have my aura read in San Marcos. Instead we got lunch (tofu and cheese sandwhich, who would have thought...) and then headed to the shore. We rented kayaks and paddled around the edge of the lake. We swam right off of the kayaks, which seemed like a great idea until it was time to get back in. Leah pulls herself up onto the kayak, Leah falls headfirst into the water. Adventures in clumsiness, I suppose. On our way back two of my traveling companions hollered at a naked guy bathing on the shore, and of course we met up with him not five minutes later. Adventures in something...
Tonight we´re checking out a different hotel for dinner, and tomorrow we´re going to go check out a different town on the lake. Becky leaves from there, and then we take off for Xela.
I did not have my aura read in San Marcos. Instead we got lunch (tofu and cheese sandwhich, who would have thought...) and then headed to the shore. We rented kayaks and paddled around the edge of the lake. We swam right off of the kayaks, which seemed like a great idea until it was time to get back in. Leah pulls herself up onto the kayak, Leah falls headfirst into the water. Adventures in clumsiness, I suppose. On our way back two of my traveling companions hollered at a naked guy bathing on the shore, and of course we met up with him not five minutes later. Adventures in something...
Tonight we´re checking out a different hotel for dinner, and tomorrow we´re going to go check out a different town on the lake. Becky leaves from there, and then we take off for Xela.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Since Becky showed up, I have been dedicated to keeping this trip Guate, and it is going very well. We did some bargaining in the market, visited a macadamia nut farm, and climbed an active volcano. We got not three feet from active flowing lava, and would have roasted marshmallows on it except that we forgot to bring sticks. This might be obvious, but the lava was really hot. I mean, really hot. As Becky said, it was so hot that you could stick it in your barbeque and cook a chicken.
Yesterday we hopped on a shuttle from Antigua to Lago Atitlan. We're staying at a place called La Iguana Perdida a hostel right on the shores of the lake in a town called Santa Cruz. They've got a big family style vegetarian dinner every night, hot water, and hammocks. It's lush and green, not too hot, and the lake is surrounded by huge mountains. It's really lovely, and might be the thing that actually inspires me to figure out how to post pictures.
Today we spent the whole day lying in the sun. I collected hundreds of tiny white shells, so small that all of them would fill maybe a tablespoon. Along with the shells I also got one hell of a sunburn. Good times, good times.
Tomorrow we're going to wake up early and walk to San Marcos, which is about three hours away and offers such services as massages and aura readings. I'll let you know how it goes...
Yesterday we hopped on a shuttle from Antigua to Lago Atitlan. We're staying at a place called La Iguana Perdida a hostel right on the shores of the lake in a town called Santa Cruz. They've got a big family style vegetarian dinner every night, hot water, and hammocks. It's lush and green, not too hot, and the lake is surrounded by huge mountains. It's really lovely, and might be the thing that actually inspires me to figure out how to post pictures.
Today we spent the whole day lying in the sun. I collected hundreds of tiny white shells, so small that all of them would fill maybe a tablespoon. Along with the shells I also got one hell of a sunburn. Good times, good times.
Tomorrow we're going to wake up early and walk to San Marcos, which is about three hours away and offers such services as massages and aura readings. I'll let you know how it goes...
Friday, March 23, 2007
The Guate Part (pics)
Antigua is a really lovely city. It was at one point the capital, and there are some really nice details to it, such as the fountain in the central park. Stone women cup their bossoms and water streams from their nipples. 
There are old churches with intricate stone carvings, ruins of other old buildings, and a nice yellow archway. The buildings are low and brightly colored, and the streets are cobble stone. There is definitely an international/touristy feel about the place. There are several books stores that sell primarily books in English, and on every street there is at least one internet place and one travel agency, frequently both in the same building. There are also tons of really cute coffee shops and restaurants. A couple nights ago we watched most of Fight Club at a really swanky bar with comfy couches, tasty crepes, and a huge movie screen. Last night we went out to a great sushi dinner at an American owned place. It was beautifully decorated, the service was amazing, and the sushi was creative and suprisingly good. The guy we went with, the same one we went to the coffee finca with, knows the owner, and we wound up sitting around this beautiful low wood table talking him and drinking mojitos.
One astute reader of this blog e-mailed me and noted that I've seen a lot of the mala part of Guatemala, and it's now time to find the Guate part. So that's the goal.
Our friend Becky showed up today, and I'm officially begining the Guate portion of my trip. We are leaving tomorrow for Lago Atitlan (we have reservations for a hostel that hosts a cross dressing party every saturday...). We're going to check out a number of the towns around the lake and hopefully do some swimming, boating, and laying in the sun. The week after that we head to Xela where we're working for our room and board for a week. After that, it's a little up in the air. My wonderful girlfriend is coming the week of the 14th, and hopefully I'll be able to give her a best of tour.
This really should be a whole separate entry, but I wanted to let you all know that we're officially moving to the Bay Area in August. I'll be attending law school at UC Hastings, and KJ will be persuing her masters at UC Berkeley. I am pumped.
There are old churches with intricate stone carvings, ruins of other old buildings, and a nice yellow archway. The buildings are low and brightly colored, and the streets are cobble stone. There is definitely an international/touristy feel about the place. There are several books stores that sell primarily books in English, and on every street there is at least one internet place and one travel agency, frequently both in the same building. There are also tons of really cute coffee shops and restaurants. A couple nights ago we watched most of Fight Club at a really swanky bar with comfy couches, tasty crepes, and a huge movie screen. Last night we went out to a great sushi dinner at an American owned place. It was beautifully decorated, the service was amazing, and the sushi was creative and suprisingly good. The guy we went with, the same one we went to the coffee finca with, knows the owner, and we wound up sitting around this beautiful low wood table talking him and drinking mojitos. One astute reader of this blog e-mailed me and noted that I've seen a lot of the mala part of Guatemala, and it's now time to find the Guate part. So that's the goal.
Our friend Becky showed up today, and I'm officially begining the Guate portion of my trip. We are leaving tomorrow for Lago Atitlan (we have reservations for a hostel that hosts a cross dressing party every saturday...). We're going to check out a number of the towns around the lake and hopefully do some swimming, boating, and laying in the sun. The week after that we head to Xela where we're working for our room and board for a week. After that, it's a little up in the air. My wonderful girlfriend is coming the week of the 14th, and hopefully I'll be able to give her a best of tour.
This really should be a whole separate entry, but I wanted to let you all know that we're officially moving to the Bay Area in August. I'll be attending law school at UC Hastings, and KJ will be persuing her masters at UC Berkeley. I am pumped.
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