When the ground moves and the walls come alive

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Guatemala is keeping me on my toes. It started with the earthquakes. I was sitting at a restaurant named after Frida Kahlo eating enchiladas when all of a sudden I got the sensation of being at sea. Turns out that is basically what an earthquake feels like. Mild rocking, some tourists shooting each other confused glances and running for the exits... and then more enchiladas . Life goes on. I'm told we've had over 30 earthquakes since new years but I have only felt 2.

Another curveball came a couple days ago in my hostel room, where there was a picture of a log cabin hanging on the wall. In the corner of the picture, across from bold typeface Christian affirmations, was what appeared to be a decorative moth. It's wingspan was easily 7 inches, and it was placed at a perfect aesthetic angle to the picture. It sat there, unmoving, the entire night; we put our faces inches away and I even said out loud "man, it would be crazy if that thing were ALIVE". Later, in the dead of night, when we least expected it, the moth attacked. I know I am not a hyper-masculine guy, but this thing was basically Mothra, and made a formidable foe. I was fending it off as best I could when I realized that there was also some sort of giant beetle-roach on the floor, and so I took 10 minutes and an Inspector Gadget-esque number of tools to capture and remove the multifaceted infestation. I have been a more wary traveller since.

But there have been the good times too. I went to Semuc Champey, which makes the garden of Eden look like a cesspool. Unbelievably idyllic. There are a series of caves, and we got a guide to show us around. We used candles to light the way, which would be fine, but there are several sections where you need to swim, and one where you need to climb up a waterfall. Apparently that basic elemental clash is lost on people here. I had one pretty nasty fall, but walked away unscathed, and feeling pretty damn adventurous, as though I was starting to live up to the giant mountain-man beard I am developing.

Today I went and saw the ruins at Tikal, which was also a highlight. Tikal is the epicenter of Guatemalan tourist, but even that can't take away from the feeling of being near something so impressive for its history and sheer magnitude. We were there to watch the sunrise, listening to the howler monkeys and tocans wake up the jungle. We later saw both types of animals, as well as parrots, spider monkeys, and something the guide called a raccoon which was clearly NOT a raccoon, but was interesting nonetheless.

I am off to Rio Dulce tomorrow, with hopes of hitting the Caribbean coast for some R and R. I will keep you all posted.

Much love

Tim

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