Swimming in Guatemala

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Today we left Belize, I was feeling a little anxious about the upcoming change after all Belize was good to us and I was unsure of what Guatamala would be like. We had to pay nearly $40 Belize to leave the country and $20 Quetzal (about $3 US dollars) to enter Guatamala. There were swarms of people wanting to exchange money for us and asking if we wanted a taxi. It's kind of annoying, you feel like you are being harassed when people swarm your car before you have even opened your door. They are salesmen I suppose, a job I could never do well at. We didn't have any US dollars left and found that we would have gotten a better rate if we did. On top of that people in Guatamala except and prefer US dollars. I think I should have brought more US currency from the states but I was concerned about getting robbed which obviously hasn't happened yet so I would have been ok. We took a very expensive ride from the border to El Ramate. The driver spoke great English, he told us he had went to school in Belize and that is why his English was so good. He was a really nice guy giving us lots of advice on the drive which was maybe an hour. I saw a sheep tied to a tree on the drive, as if it were a dog, I found it very amusing! A pig also ran out into the road at one point, amusing as well, what can I say it doesn't take much fore me I guess! The driver recommended a hotel for us, it is wonderful! Less than $9 US each and by far the nicest place we have stayed. It's really cute too, there are hammocks everywhere and lots of places to sit outside. We walked down the road after lunch and went out to a cabana on a dock on the lake. It is beautiful! There are mountains and the water is quite warm, I was shocked because when we swam in the river yesterday it was much colder. We met some rainbow people, (Google if you don't know who they are) I didn't notice at first but they were swimming nude. I found one of them from Uruguay to be obnoxious but the rest seemed nice. We spoke to a man from Spain for quite a while and when we told him about the Russians we stayed with he said "do they have a daughter named Annetta?" My jaw must have dropped, turned out he had met them at a rainbow festival. I know it's cliche but it really is a small world. We went out to a more private cabana and stayed there until the sun set, it was beyond lovely. 4 boys came out a swam where we were, they were nice and enjoyed the attention as we watched them do back flips off the dock. Rainbow people came and went, we met some people from France, Alex can contact juggle which was fun to watch. We enjoyed our time on the lake so much that we decided to stay a 2nd night. Even though I was stung by an aunt right in the butt, as if I needed any more bumps on me. I'm still having quite a bit of discomfort with all my bites. We found a pharmacy this morning but the calamine lotion is no help and neither are antihistamines. People keep asking us about them too, I find it slightly embarrassing. Not letting it ruin my time though, we truly had a wonderful day once we arrived here. We have noticed the locals aren't as friendly as the Belizians, not to say that they are unkind, simply that they aren't as friendly. I have also noticed that the local women of Belize and Guatamala swim in shorts and a shirt. I feel a bit out of place since none of them are in swimsuits. They don't seem offended though and after all the rainbow people are laying naked on the dock so I think I'm doing alright. We stopped at the store on the way back to the hotel and I got some pineapple juice, I love that stuff so much, I could possibly chug a half gallon. When we returned to the hotel we were quite happy to find that we could book the bus rides that we need over the next two days and that we could pay with credit card. We leave at 5:30 am tomorrow to see some ruins, are we nuts or what!? In our defense we have heard its less crowded if you go early and if we are tired we will just take a nap; aahhhh the beauty of our current life. We met a couple from Spain at dinner, they knew a little English and we were trying to speak Spanish to them. They were very patient and I was admiring Dan's never give up attitude. I find that he is just as outgoing here as in the states, he talks to almost everyone we are near and says bien benitos! He also deals with the "sales people" quite well and every day I'm thankful to be traveling with him.

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