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Published: March 7th 2006
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Guatemalan Racing
You haven't lived until you've been on a Chicken Bus! Instead of backtracking the same route I took to get here, I have decided to join my Israeli buddy Philip on his journey through the Western Highlands. Little did we know, the road that carves it's way through the mountains to the west of Coban is made of dirt, gravel and full of curves.
We both arose early (5:30am) and got to Coban 5 hours before the shuttle actually left for the west. We used this time to run errands and to take an hour tour of a local coffee manufacturing company (Finca Santa Margarita). The only tour that we could fit into our schedule was the one given in Spanish. It was tough for me, but Philip has his Spanish down. The tour was interesting. We got to see the different stages of coffee production and tour the fields. You can actually eat the fruit that covers the coffee bean, but not the bean itself. It doesn't taste great, but it is worth a try. To wrap up the tour, we enjoyed a cup of their fresh Guatemalan coffee.
We caught a shuttle leaving at 1pm to Nebaj. This is when the paved roads turned into dirt and
the road construction stalls began. The scenery throughout the Western Highland region was absolutely beautiful. Sorry, I was unable to get pictures due to my inability to move for so many hours that I wish not remember. The shuttle constantly stopped to pick up people that were headed our direction. I believe the most we had in our shuttle at one time was 23 people. This journey across the bumpy mountain roads finally ended in Nebaj 6.5 hours later. The sun had long before set and we had to walk 8-10 blocks through the shady streets of Nebaj with all of our belongings hanging off our bodies. Don't worry though, I had my pepper spray and blade within reach. Finally, due to exhaustion, we settled for the worst hospedaje (small family run hotel) I have ever seen. Although, we did have a good dinner and watched the end of
Predator in Spanish. The city of Nebaj mainly speaks a dialect of Mayan, so communication here was quite difficult
The next morning we took a tour of the city and saw it's Mayan prayer sites. Of course, all they had was a Spanish-speaking guide. The tour was not very good
at all. The guide took us to see the same thing over and over again, and didn't give us information on anything. The city of Nebaj had trash everywhere...which was very sad. We decided to get out of this city and try to make it to Chichicastenango (Chichi), being that Thursday is one of the big market days.
Let me just start off by saying that you have not lived until you have ridden in a Chicken Bus packed full of people, travelling 70+ mph down windey, mountain roads, passing trucks with flammable cargo placards, while going around a narrow curve. The trip to Chichi took 3.5 hours and there wasn't a minute that went by that my butt wasn't puckered. I must say that I found it quite humorous how crazy these bus drivers really are. Towns have placed speed bumps throughout their roads to slow them down, but this doesn't phase them. The drivers simply hit the speed bumps at an angle and send all of the passengers airborne. Now I know why all the buses are painted up like race cars.
We arrived in Chichi just in time to find a good place to sleep
and to take a walk through the largest market in Guatemala. Arriving later in the evening was kinda nice because the huge crowds were gone and the vendors were dropping their prices for a quick final sale. I enjoyed my time in Chichi, but I can see how it could get old quick. Every time you turn around there is someone hassling you to buy something. The next morning Philip and I hiked up into the hills to watch Mayans pray at their sacrificial stone (Pascual Abaj), which is the local shrine to Huyup TakĀ“ah (The Mayan Earth God). The local Mayans come here regularly to offer incense, food, liquor, cigarettes, and flowers to the Earth God. Sometimes they even sacrifice chickens for good health (Not the chickens!), but I missed out on that show. Philip and I hiked back to the town center and went into the local church to witness more Mayan worship. Here Philip and I discussed his religion of Judaism and his view on worldly religions. I find it interesting to hear other peoples views and beliefs. After leaving the church, we grabbed our stuff and hailed a shuttle to Panajachel. It took us three different
Our Hospedaje for the Night
You can almost smell it can't you? connections to finally get there. I must say it sure felt great to be back at the lake. It felt as if I was home again after a long trip. Well, that sums up the end of that little adventure. Now, I hope to do some volunteer work and help out where I can. I'll write you all again soon. Take care.
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Tam
non-member comment
Hey.
I think we have the same bus drivers in Vietnam. They must work half of the year there and half of the year in Vietnam. That's all I have to say.