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Published: July 26th 2006
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Hello Everyone! I made it to Guatemala with no problems and the immersion process is now in full effect. My first day in Central America was very long with a big dose of excitement and culture shock all thrown together.
I started the day off at 3:30am with only two hours of sleep due to anticipation and a late night call from my buddy Tam (appreciate it). The first leg to Miami was great. The guy sitting beside me on the plane was a 17 year old kid from Chile. His name was Jose Antonio Droso Merino Kypreos aka Pepe (No Joke) and he happily tutored me in Spanish the entire two hour flight. Next came a 4 hour lay over and then a 3 hour flight to Guatemala City. Looking out of the plane at Guatemala City below and the volcano perched high above it was surreal. The realization of what I was about to embark on suddenly sank in.
I walked out of Guate airport and found my shuttle driver holding a sign with my name on it. I was the only one on the shuttle and my driver spoke only a few words of English, so
I practiced my Spanish on him from Guate City to Antigua (poor guy). The driver took me to a hostel that was only $3 per night and it wasn't at all that bad I must say. The hostel was mostly populated with Europeans and the majority were women (sweet).
The town of Antigua is an impressive sight. The city is nestled between three volcanoes with cobble stone streets, colonial buildings, and several preserved ruins. I walked around the city from the Central Park to the old Catholic Church (La Mercad). I walked myself around until darkness crept up and got me disoriented. All of a sudden, the streets looked the same and I couldn't for the life of me remember the name of the hostel nor the street it was located. To make a long story short, I walked around in circles for an hour or more and finally went back to the church to get oriented and soon found home.
That night at the hostel, the noises were unbearable for a light sleeper like myself. The hostel's doorbell buzzed non-stop until 1am, there were people talking till late, dogs barking all night, a horrific cat fight to
the death, sirens, fireworks, an insane rooster, and the church bells started at 6am and went on periodically till 7am.
The next morning, my first mission was to get a map of Antigua with road names on it. I found the help of an attractive Swedish girl to show me the way to the tourism office. She didn't speak much English, so we had to communicate through Spanish. I'm sure my excellent Spanish made quite an impression (rrrrright!) Back at the hostel, I met a group of six backpackers travelling together (4 of them started out solo). The two that were together were from the UK (Ben and Bex) and the others were from Norway, France, Israel and the U.S (Cali.). Like me, they were headed to Panajachel, but by chicken bus. They told me about an all day party on Saturday in Santa Cruz La Laguna, which also lies on Lake Atitlan. The party was to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of a hostel called La Iguana Perdida (The Lost Iguana), which was run by Europeans. I told them I would try to make it and then I headed out to meet my shuttle to Panajachel.
The
shuttle ride to Panajachel (aka Pana) was quite the experience. The van was packed full with 13 people and the driver attempted to pass every vehicle possible, nearly slamming us head-on on several occasions. Just when I thought that there couldn't be any worse a driver than our very own, a truck passed us on the shoulder of the road just as we were passing a large truck ourselves. I soon realized that the chicken buses seem to have a death wish. These buses will pass you with no room in front of your vehicle and a car coming at it head-on without even breaking a sweat. The trip to Pana took two hours, but for a normal driver that values life, it's about three.
Pana is a lively, little town and the only water-access point to the other villages on the lake. I landed a nice hotel room with cable TV and a shower for 50 Quetzals ($6 American). I then purchased a cell phone and calling card for $45 in order to stay in touch with home.
That night I ran into Ben and the gang. We sat for a chat and some excellent tacos that
The Hostel in Antigua
Not a bad view for $3 per night. were three for 10Q (7.5Q = $1). Well, I guess I'd better end this entry. Tomorrow I will catch an early boat to Santa Cruz for a little fiesta -Oh Yeah!
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