Guatemala at last

---

So after a frustrating day at the airport, I finally got on a standby flight to Ft Lauderdale and spent Wednesday night in a hotel before I boarded my Thursday morning flight to Guatemala.

A little bit of confusion at the list minute boarding my flight- my bag was tagged 'standby' and flew to Ft Lauderdale on a different flight than I was on and was supposed to be automatically transferred to my Guatemala flight the next day. Due to a new regulation which prohibits your bag from getting on the plane if you don't get on the plane, they typically hold the standby bags to make sure the people actually get space on the flight. Bottom line is at the last second the gate attendant radioed the baggage people and they found my bag and put it on the plane. Then as I was about to board the plane they didnt have my modified reservation in the system (eventhough I had a boarding pass for that flight with a seat assignment). Then they asked where my return ticket was (i didnt have one) and werent sure if it was ok to go 1-way to Guatemala. Finally they let me board the plane...

Upon arriving in Guatemala I was picked up by a driver from the Spanish school in Antigua and brought to the school and then to my host family. Oscar and Rosario Ramos are hosting me here for the next couple weeks. They live about 5 mins walking away from the school and about 10mins from the city center. I have my own room with electricity (no AC), and they provide 3 meals a day 5 days a week. Mealtimes are a little weird since Rosario prepares food for me - and only for me - so I eat by myself and then go about my business. Dinner tonight though they ate with me. Meals are simple - pancakes and coffee for breakfast, Guatemalan hamburgers for lunch, and fried wrap filled with cheese and bean soup for dinner so far.

Spanish Lessons
I started Day 1 of Spanish Lessons today, and after walking around the city yesterday and being slightly impressed with how much Spanish I know (given that I never took any classes in school), I realized i cant really converse well. We spent the first 2 hours doing some written lessons in the alphabet, origins, to be's, and questions. Then we went for a long walk to a church that had an easter vigil with colorful saw dust floor paintings. More about that tomorrow.

Loneliness
So far I feel rather lonely since I dont have any friends here and I'm not staying in a hostel where I can meet people. I know it will get better with time and its only been 2 days so far. I did join the local gym today which is pretty nice (and much more expensive than I thought - $39 for a month). I met a guy named Julio who is from California and now living in Guatemala. I'm probably going to meet up with him tonight and go to some local place.

Tomorrow is the weekend and I have no plans - no school on the weekends and no meals provided by the family, so I'm on my own. I'm thinking of going to the market and then maybe signing up for some tourist trip to a volcano. who knows.

I will update this post tomorrow and add some pictures.

---

Photos

Street Meat
Those who know me the best know I love nothing more than some street meat

The main church
The big church at the main central park in Antigua, there was a vigil there that night

Comments

[Uncle Matthew]

Are the Guatemalan hamburgers kosher? I would suggest that you meet up with Julio down by the school yard. Hey-ohhhhh.