Blogs from Guatemala, Central America Caribbean - page 343

We arrived in Antigua after dark, having caught a direct shuttle bus from Copan. The main plaza was lit with fairy lights and you could just see the outlines of the 3 volcanos looming over the city. In the light of day we were able to fully appreciate why travellers come here and bypass Guatemala City. Despite the hoards of people passing through, Antigua seems to have retained it's own cultural identity - cobblestoned streets, brightly coloured biuldings and colonial churches in various states of ruin and repair. We spents a couple of days exploring the city, wandering the streets, museums and churches. Karen's favourite museum (in truth the only one we actually went into) was one displaying the different textiles made by local indignous groups in the area. Immediately after we stumbled across an earthquake ... read more

01/30/06 I took a little trip this weekend from Copan over to Antigua, Guatemala. A beautiful city nestled in a volcanic valley and filled with colonial Spanish Architecture. It was packed full of tourists from all around the globe. I met a few Americans there and a few Germans and we had some good times. I headed back to day on what was supposed to be a five and a half hour trip but turned into a twelve hour shuffle between buses, and me trying to find my way around in Guatemala City. I missed the shuttle bus that takes you directly through back to Copan and I had to ride it the local way on chicken buses and little buses that are packed to the brim with stinky Hondurans. It was an adventure for sure ... read more

Sunday is a visit to the market of Chichicastenango, which goes on my top 10 list of favorite words to say. Here you can buy and bargain anything from Mayan textiles and jade necklaces to telephones and safety pins. My best purchase was a chocolate covered banana for the equivalent of 10 cents from a Mayan woman sitting on the church steps. Located next to the market is the church, Iglesia de Santo Tomas, which dates back to 1540. It is still the scene of Catholic and Mayan rituals. The market is smoldering with the smell of incense that burns constantly on Sundays in front of the church.... read more

There are Mayan villages surrounding the Lake. We stop in Santiago and it is here that I can see the poverty of the Mayan people, who have gotten some pretty crappy deals over the years. As the boat pulls up from the dock natives run to meet you. I am accustomed to this from other countries, but I have never seen it under these conditions before... the dogs on the street look like skeletons, flies swarming around them, I don´t know if they are dead or sleeping. children pulling at my arms and legs, begging for money for food, not all the villages are in this condition, but I am searching for smiles here too...there are smiles everywhere...I just can´t find them here. I don´t want to sound like some kind of world hunger campaign, but ... read more

and no, not chips and salsa. i mean salsa dancing. ok here´s the thing. goal number one for this trip is to volunteer. but my goal in guatemala is to speak spanish more fluently, i planned not to plan anything else for the short time i´m here. posted at the school are dozens of other activities. but two catch my eye in particular...one for salsa classes and one for volunteer opportunities....now i´m in quite the pickle....work with children. salsa dance....work with children. salsa dance. ok. how can i justify this? perfect...i´ll dance here, and then i´ll add it to my teaching curriculum. after all, it is art. that works right?... read more