GettingLostInAlleys

On Friday morning, I woke up in my little jungle bungalow and had to pack and prepare for our day on the lake and then visiting the small Caribbean town of Livingston. After breakfast, we all piled into a little speedboat and set out for a lovely day on Lake Izabal. Cruising through mangroves and passing by colorful lake front beach shacks, it felt like paradise but also, as though I had left Guatemala and been transported to Jamaica. We arrived in Livingston, a sleepy little town with a super relaxed vibe and a really interesting history. It's located in Eastern Guatemala and sits at the mouth of the Rio Dulce at the Gulf of Honduras. It's well-known for its unusual mix of Garifuna, Afro-Caribbean. Maya and Ladino (mestizo) people and culture and several languages are ... read more

My last day with Guise in Guatemala City was spent running errands as she continued to show me around town. We delivered some of her freshly made bread to friends of hers across town and in the evening, made homemade pizzas while drinking boxed wine. The next morning we woke up early for our mini road trip to Antigua and Guise had made fresh banana cupcakes to drop off at her church. She sent some with me as part of a care package along with a loaf of fresh-baked bread. Guise had volunteered to drive me to Antigua so that we could enjoy a farewell breakfast together and she could buy some goods to send to her daughter Jennifer in the states. We hugged each other goodbye when she dropped me off at the Central Park. ... read more

Clusters of white clouds float past my window as if someone's shaved off the frothy tops of hundreds of thousands of individual root beer floats. Or perhaps we are slowly approaching a new planet that's been overtaken by a mob of cotton candy. This visual makes me laugh quietly to myself as I imagine an army of cotton candy faces charging at us--their swords in hand. As our plane gets nearer and we appear larger and more threatening, they call for backup--a fleet of unicorns with candy-colored hair. With a new journey upon me, I'm embracing a whimsical sense of adventure and imagination! It's been three years since I've last traveled on my own and since I've shared my experiences with an audience. Three years ago I set off on a solo adventure to explore Spain, ... read more

Yesterday morning I bid farewell to Josh yet again as it was time for me to move on to Valencia from Madrid. We spent three lovely days together walking the busy streets of Madrid and finding hidden streets where we could catch up on one of his crazy stories or read the morning paper. We popped into several cafés for a morning coffee or afternoon beer and spent hours people watching while sharing tapas. I also allowed myself some "me" time to explore the park and Prado museum and stopped in one afternoon to enjoy churros con chocolate (warm, sugary fried dough with a side of thick chocolate pudding for dipping). It was delightful! On Tuesday night Josh revealed to me that he had booked a place for two days in Toledo and had invited me ... read more

Yesterday afternoon we arrived in Seville, Spain after spending four beautiful nights in Portugal. After leaving Lisbon, we stopped off in Evora for the day to explore the city & to check out the Chapel of the Bones (Photos included in previous entry). Although a bit morbid, I found it to be absolutely fascinating. As the story goes, the city of Evora had too many cemeteries during the 16th century--taking up way too much land in the city. It was decided by a Franciscan monk to tear up the cemeteries and therefore the buried corpses were exhumed in an effort to save their souls from condemnation. The chapel's walls & ceilings are covered and decorated with the bones of over 5,000 people. in the entryway there is a famous warning that reads: "We bones that here ... read more