Lots of Canadians

---

Hello again,

I am writing from Antigua, Guatemala. A lovely colonial town nestled between vast volcanos.

Firstly, its cold. Sadley my bronzed physique is suffering from a lack of sun and an over indulgnce of fast food, such is the nature of the place. In my defence however, I have stuck mainly to Guatemalan fast food. My stomach did have something to say about that for a few days, but I feel like I've made my point.

Anyway, firstly I stayed in the Yellow House hostol, which was rather nice and allowed me to meet all sorts of interesting people. Mainly Canadians. I would say, without any exaggeration, at least fifty percent of the world's surface area is occupied by Canadians. This has lead me to the only logical conclusion, that their ever polite atitude is a facarde. In really they are slowly taking over the world without anyone realising. Don't say that I didn't warn you.

Spanish classes began on a Monday so I had a few days to kill before I thought I do the only responsible thing and assimilate into the culture. So Jahn, Teresa and I pop off to Lago de Atilan (or something), which is a big lake sort of south west of Antigua. There were several little towns around the lake, party towns, cultural towns etc etc. We ended up in San Marcos, along with every American hippy regect who appear to have collectivly left reality and never returned. San Marcos was home to such courses as, the luna course. A month long program starting on the first full moon, aimed at discovering the true nature of blah blah blah blah.... madness. What really concerned me though, is that the once level headed nurse Teresa began to discuss 'energies' at great length, and let me assure you, there is no talking to her when she is in that mood. Jahn and I did entertain it for a while, but apparently we were just stealing her energy. I still don't feel bad about that.

So I signed up for a crash course in Spanish (including salsa classes). I suck at Spanish, and although I try to practice, everyone is Candian so there is no real need. Instead I have become fluent in lazy English (you can look forward to that peach when I come home)! Unfortunatly I am yet to finish my classes because I thought maybe I should do somehing worthy for a while. Well, that and the fact that my atitude, along with my speach, is again, lazy. So off I trot to a hospital for HIV postive children, just outside of Antigua city. I was under the impression that I could stay there, but sadly I have had to commute. I must say that it wasn't as desperatly sad as expected, and bar a few, the kids look very healthy. As an additional bonus, I have found a new reason to learn Spanish, a new reason to keep trying, ever pushing myself towards the sumit of personal achievment.... Hot Guatemalan Girl. She works at the hospital. It's more of a pet project to distract me from the crush reality of the situation for the kiddies, call me cheep, but it works.

Right then, other things to wet your apitite. I climbed an active volcano!!! I was about three meters away from flowing lava!!! That stuff is hot. I mean obviously you expect that to a point, but dear lord its toasty on top of a volcano. Hot and incredibly dangerous. All the rocks crumbled benieth you feet and radom hot gas vents kept opening up just steps away from us. Perhaps the most dangerous thing of all however, was the drunken Irishman. He was wasted. The kind of wasted that just standing near him felt like necking a bottle of rum. before too long he ended up falling head first into a big hole. I don't say this often, but it was so funny that I nearly wet myself. He was fine by the way, no long term damage. Semastian (a rather nice French Canadian chap I met in Utila, Hoduras) then inlightened me to the Triad principle. It states (or at last French Canadian paramedics state) that 90% of accidents a coursed by a combination of alcohol, stupidity, and gravity. Certainly fitting in this case.

All of that aside, it was an increadable experince, and one of the things that really touched me was the view on the trek back down. Basically you could see the darkening sky, then the volcanoes (capped with white mist that they wore like a sombrero), then a layer of rolling clouds. The amazing thing was that the clouds didn't cover the whole sky line, so you could see the city below. So small. I have never felt so small. For the briefest of moments, I was truely humbled.

Jahn at Teresa are leaving tomorrow, so I shall no doubt hangout with any number of other friends I have made. I will miss them though. They have been my family for the past month. Still, soon onto some Mayan ruins, jungles, who knows what else (that is after I have put in a bit more time at the hospital, and then returned to finish school).

I hope evryone is well at home. I wish that you could have seen these things. Words can not express them. You are all missed greatly.

---

Comments

[anonymous]

Hola amigo! Como esta? It sounds like you're having a blast and I'm sooo jealous!! missing u xxx Ciao! :o)

[Karen]

hey another Canadian here!
I'm planning to go travel in Antigua later this summer actually. Do you know if the language course would give me enough opportunity to go dig the Maya ruins in the north east?? :D

[Dave Andrews]

Ummm, I have no idea pumpkin, If in doubt, just try untill you can´t do it and then find someone better at it than you ;)

[Hazel]

All sounds good love, glad to hear you have a Hot Guatemalan Girl to focus your interests on! Do you know what that volcano was called? Fuego and Pacaya are both hugely active volcanoes in that area. Was it overlooking Antigua City or Guatemala City? Sounds ever so exciting, whatever it was! Keep up the good work, missing you loads x x x

[Dave Andrews]

Hello Haze, it was Pacaya. It was bloody active.