Blogs from Western Highlands, Guatemala, Central America Caribbean - page 108

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Hieronder volgen alleen foto´s! Ik zal deze pagina steeds blijven vernieuwen! ... read more
geen
geen
een ontzettend ondeugend meisje!


Mmmm...Guatemala. At this moment I feel that I might be beginning to have a love affair with this country. "Third time´s a charm," right? Even though I am blasting through here at lightning speed and visiting cities I´ve already seen, I am totally captivated. Not that Guatemala is an idyllic paradise...its flaws are perhaps even more glaring because of the extreme beauty that it contrasts...but it is impossible not to be won over by this country. Both Antigua and Xela are colonial cities with all the European charm of cobblestoned streets, Baroque facades, lively plazas, and flowering gardens artistically adorned with sculptures and fountains. The central plazas at night, with the uplighting on the grandiose cathedrals, columned walkways, and pillared municipal buildings, hold a certain romanticism -- enhanced by the occasional horse-drawn buggy strolling by and ... read more
Vendors break for conversation
Xela's Cathedral and surroundings
Mayan women


Now I understand why people came here in the seventies and never left. We spent the first night in Panajachel in a little room in a hostal down some random little alleys. Geared to tourists and gringos, this place is hippie and granola central. Every restaurant has vegetarian options, rare in this country, if they aren't completely vegetarian. There are artisan and clothing merchants lining the entire main drag ready to sell you everything from traditional Guatemalan blankets, to purses to jewelry. If you're looking for something, you'll find it here, but the price might be a little steep. Definitely try your luck at bargaining. The best technique I've found being the "walk away". Shoot off your price and see if you can walk off without him agreeing to it. If he doesn't you know it's ... read more


Hoi allemaal, ik zal proberen om mijn afgelopen twee weken kort samen te vatten. Ik zal beginnen met de paasdagen! Dat noemen ze hier dus de heilige week "Semana Santa", ik heb jullie al verteld dat het geloof hier in een hele heftige mate plaats vindt! Je kunt je dus wel voorstellen dat de paasdagen hier een hele happening zijn! Met de meiden van mijn schooltje en de lerares hebben we afgesproken dat iedereen die dat wilde in traje(originele kleding) op school mocht komen, om een speciale dag te hebben! Ik heb vervolgens mijn camera meegenomen en heb prachtige portret foto's van de kinderen gemaakt! Prachtig om te zien! Iedereen helemaal trots en druk bezig met het zichzelf mooi te maken! Het was heel bijzonder voor de kinderen, omdat ze helemaal geen foto's van zichzelf hebben! ... read more
Het plaatsje Santiago, tijdens goede vrijdag
De dragers met de kist waarin het Jezusbeeld ligt
Santiago


Over the course of the last couple nights, I was befriended by one of the longer term gringo inhabitants of Lago de Atitlan. We'll call him Joe. I think Joe liked me primarily because I was able to go head to head with him and not fall down, resulting in a couple of expensive nights and a couple of rough mornings. Nevertheless, as the Dirty Willies flowed (Dirty Willies - rum and ginger ale, known elsewhere as Quebec Libres), Joe told me a bit about himself and a few of the odder denizens of this navel of the world. Among the more sinister aspects of the lake of which he informed me, the revelation that there were many mercenaries and/or assassins living there surprised me. Perhaps it shouldn't have, Central America being the home of American ... read more


...read this instead: Executive summary and if you have time: Full report ... read more


Went to see Maximon today. Actually, I've encountered him at least once before, near San Cristobal, Mexico. Turns out, the Maya of the village of Santiago de Atitlan, who worship Maximon (or San Simon, when giving lip service to the Catholic church), came to the area from Mexico. They are, however, not to be confused with the Maya in Santa Clara, on the other side of the lake, where we are staying, who speak a completely different language and came to the area at a different time. Nor are either to be confused with the Maya of San Marcos or San Pedro, each speaking their own language and with their own historical traditions as well. How on earth people living just kilometers from one another have maintained completely seperate languages through the years I don't know. ... read more
Sky and post


Lago de Atitlan is considered a very sacred and spiritual place by the Maya people, so I am told. In fact, they consider it "the navel of the world." This of course makes it one of four or five "navels of the world" I have visited or heard tell of, and I have no doubt that there are as many more as there are ancient indigenous cultures, making the world a many-naveled thing, and conjuring images of countless umbilici waving like tentacles into the reaches of space. Nonetheless, there is no denying the spectacular setting the lake provides, nor, for lack of a better term, the positive energy that seems to envelop the place. Stretching perhaps 10-15 kilometers from east to west, and seven or so from north to south at its widest point, the lake ... read more
Under the Volcano
Over the lake


Mijn project verloopt geweldig! Inmiddels heb ik nu twee klassen gehad. Ze gaan nu al vanuit zichzelf tandenpoetsen als ze de school binnen komen en dat was mijn doel, dus ik ben erg tevreden. Ik werk in kleine groepjes zodat ik meer aandacht aan de kids kan besteden en het hierdoor voor mij ook wat makkelijker is. Na het poetsen vraag ik altijd even of ik in hun mond mag kijken, om te controleren of ze het goed hebben gedaan. Ach ja ben en blijf een controlefriek hahaha! In ieder geval heel veel kindjes wilden niet dat ik in hun mond keek. Echter tijdens de pauze kwam er een meisje naar me toe die zij dat ze erg veel pijn had in haar mond, aangezien ze een aantal verrotte tanden had. Ik vervolgens nauwkeurig in haar ... read more


I can't believe it's my last day in Xela!! I have been here for three weeks, it doesn't seem possible. I had my last Spanish class today, and a test over everything I've learned. I got a certificate for completing my classes... too cute. Afterwords, I went for a celebratory beer and taco with my teacher and others from the school. I'm going to miss this place, and so many people here. It really has felt like home for a while... But, I'm also so excited to go and travel!! I leave tomorrow for Antigua, then I'm meeting up with some chicas from my school in Guatemala City, where we will travel on to Tikal, Rio Dulce and Livingston. After that, I think I'm on my own and off to the Bay Islands in Honduras, but ... read more




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