Travels - Guatemala

In November-December 2004 I traveled to Guatemala, where I took a 4 week intensive course in Spanish. I had no idea what to expect, and was excited like a little kid. It was completely different than what I expected. But, in a totally positive way. The school was fantastic, and the country is beautiful.

Antigua is a very nice colonial city, the building ordinances restrict the construction of houses with more than one floor. So there are very view buildings which (legally) have a second floor. The streets are all organized with the same quadrant system used in almost all Central and South American cities constructed by the Spanish. This makes it very easy to find your way around. There is a nice bar/cafe called the skytop cafe where you can sit on the second story roof (one of the few 2-story buildings) and drink a cocktail and watch the fantastic sunset. The houses are constructed side by side, usually with an inner courtyard. The central plaza, is almost always full of life, and surrounded by shops, bars, restaurants, etc.

I lived with a family the entire four weeks I was in Guatemala. The entire family were extremelyI lived with a family nice. The house belonged to Areminta, although 80 years old still very active. Her daughter Claudia, and her son Daniel also lived in the house. They rented out 2 rooms to students to supplement there income. And a German who has been living in Guatemala for sometime also lived in a back room. Rudi, the German, seemed to have several shops in Mexico where he sold Mayan jewelry, and artwork. A nice guy, who had been living at Areminta’s for some time, was building his own house in Antigua. And I can not forget Jauanita, there older cook and housekeeper. An extremely friendly women, probably well over 80, but with eyes of a 20 year old. She is also a fantastic cook. When I told the other students about here meals, they were extremely jealous.

Upon arriving in Antigua I took a walk to wind down, and pass the time. Rudi had just shown me his construction site, and on the way back to Areminta’s, I experienced my first Latin American procession. Very interesting with lots of incense, music, and beautiful flower carpets on the streets.

I was very lucking to receive Carlos (el rey del sol) Estrella as a teacher.
He was very patient, and had a way of coaxing you into conversations, in order to use the grammatical rules he was trying to teach. His wife, a beautiful women with a eyes to get lost in, also worked as a teacher at the school. When she smiled, you could see Carlos eyes light up.




The first week at school I participated on a school activity, a hike to the top of volcano Pacaya. It was quite a trip! I don’t believe it would have been possible in the USA or Europe. The last 2 Kilometers, were above the tree line, with winds probably around 100 Km/h or more. They almost blew you off the path. When we arrived at the top, some of the female students were in tears from the strain and fear. Unfortunately clouds spoiled the view, but occasionally they would clear for a moment and the view was unbelievable. I can only imagine what it would have been like without the wind on a clear day. The lava near the top was steaming and warm. I was sitting about 5 meters under the top, when our guide (José) called to me “ Hey Dave look at this”. I climbed up to him and looked into a hole full of molten lava. In that moment it made a small plump, and almost swelled to the top of the hole. I realized in that moment, that his is not a place you want to hang around for long. The trip back down was in the dark. It only took a few minutes to reach the tree line. It was almost like skiing through the lose stones. Everyone was excited when we got home, and the trip was the talk of the school for the next few days.

Antigua is full of small travel agencies. There is really no need to book in advance. If you want to go anywhere, just drop into one of the agencies and start to negotiate. I had a travel agency organize a package for my first weekend. I traveled to Panachel, Lake Atilan, and Chichicastenango on the first weekend. The entire weekend with transportation, and hotel cost less than $40. Upon arriving in Panachel were I spent the night in a very nice hotel directly in front of Lake Atitlan. The view was unbelievable. While checking into the hotel, I was surprised to see a Dutch woman from another school who I had meet on the way up to the Pacaya. She had not been told what to take on the trip, and was in shorts, and did not have a flashlight. So, I lit the way down for her. Actually, although both of us were of the older generation, I believe the 2 of us were the only ones who had no Problems with the hike.

Anyway I spent the day crossing the lake, walking around Panachel, and visiting the small museum in Panachel. That night I met the 2 girls on the roof of our hotel, to enjoy the sunset and have a couple of beers. Later we went out for a nice diner.

The next day I was up early, and had breakfast at a small restaurant next to the hotel. The waiter was very friendly, and as I was the only customer I had the chance to practice my poor Spanish with him.

A minibus picked me up at 8:30, and took me to Chichicastenango and it’s famous market. The market was quite an experience, and although there are tourists everywhere, it is also a market for the locals. Where they sell almost anything you might need. It stretches through almost every street in the city center, with hundreds of booths and stands. I even by chance stumbled onto a pig auction in a back courtyard. Although I did not buy anything, I enjoyed walking around and talking with the locals. They collected in a small park in the center, for lunch and to relax for a minute or 2. It was fascinating to watch them sell there goods in there very colorful traditional dress. There friendliness, laughs, and smiles seem to fill the town with a very joyous atmosphere.

I do not know why, but I seem to attract children. And in Guatemala there are children everywhere trying to sell trinkets to the tourists. While in Panachel, I bought 2 hair ribbons from 2 girls who were pestering us while we were having a coffee. Pestering is possibly the wrong word, because I really enjoyed talking with them. Then the next day, I was waiting for my minibus behind a beautiful colonial hotel, where all the minibuses parked, when 2 girls walked right by 30 or 40 other tourists straight to me trying to sell me some trinkets. I talked with them teasing them, telling them I was poor and had no money, etc. These kids are smart cookies, and were having nothing of it. Anyway, after about 15 minutes of dickering, I gave the 2 girls the ribbons I had bought the day before. They were very happy, but in that minute, there little brother popped up from behind and cried “ what about me!”. So I bought one of his wristbands. Besides a hammock, it is the only souvenir I have from Guatemala, and I treasure it because of the experience.

The next weekend I traveled around Antigua, visiting the museums, ruins, art galleries, and nearby villages. Antigua has several small museums, most of which are not really fantastic. There is however a very nice museum located in the most expensive hotel complex of the city. It is actually the ruins of an old monastery. Antigua, once the capital of Guatemala, was entirely destroyed by an earthquake in 1773, at which time it was almost abandoned. There are still several sites throughout the city which can be visited. The history is very interesting. I really enjoyed the art galleries. I do not know if they exist for the tourists, or the rich Guatemaltecans who visit the city on the weekend. Guatemala is definitely a country of contrast. With 80 percent of the population living under the poverty level, and 80 percent of these poor people are extremely poor. When the hurricanes hit the Caribbean coast in 2006, over 650 million dollars were spontaneously donated to the Mexicans hit near the tourist centers of Cancun. I doubt that more than a pittance was donated to Guatemala, which was hit much harder. It seems to me a lot of people relieved there conscious by giving to the rich instead of helping the needy. Why is it that so many extremely hard working people are still being oppressed in this world.

On the third and last weekend of my trip I visited Tikal, the Mayan ruins in the jungle near Flores. Defiantly the highlight of my trip. To visit these fantastic monuments, and then to realize that we, the western cultures, destroyed almost all documentation of there history and culture is depressing. The arrogance the conquistadors and church possessed is incredible. There culture, and the culture of the Aztec, Incas, etc., were in many ways more advanced than there conquerors. I hate to think about what knowledge was lost in the name of “God and the Church”, but in reality out of greed and ignorance.

You have to have seen Tikal, to realize what a feet it must have been to construct all these temples and buildings. We traveled to Tikal in a group of four from the school. We opted for flying to Flores in order to save time. The bus trips take quite a bit of time from Antigua. Florian, a German I met at the school, and I shared a room at the Tikal Inn. The Tikal Inn is just outside the Park, and actually is a part of the park infrastructure. The rooms are very nice, and there is a swimming pool to relax at during the hot afternoons, or at night.

We arrived in Flores late Friday night, and spent the night in a nice hotel just across the bridge from Flores. Flores is a quaint small town on an island just off the shore of the lake Peten. It is a very quaint town with lots of restaurants and bars. We had a nice dinner, and got to bed early in order to catch the early bus to Tikal. Flores is about 45 minutes drive from Tikal.

After arriving at Tikal we stashed our bags at the hotel, and began a guided tour of the park. The guides are very proficient, and give a very nice tour. We returned to the hotel for lunch and to relax a bit, as we planned to return to the park for sunset. The sunset from the top of a temple was indescribable, at the time, I thought it would be hard to top. On the way back to the hotel in the dark, we came across this little snake crossing our path. A biologist in our group, told us not to touch it as it was very poisonous. A group of schoolgirls got quite excited. Upon reaching our hotel room, Florian looking down asked me what a black spot was sitting just in front of the doorstep. I pointed my flashlight at the spot, only to see a huge but beautiful tarantula. The spider was poised on the doorstep, as if to say, open the door so I can get in. I contacted the front desk and they sent a ranger to us. He gently coaxed the spider onto his arm, and it climbed up on his shoulder where it sat quietly and seemed to enjoy the view. The ranger explained to us, that the tarantellas are very gentle animals, which do not bite unless heavily provoked.

The next morning Florian and I got up at 4, in order to enter the park and watch the sunrise. We had planned to go on our own, which as it turns out is not allowed. We were confronted by a guide, who in a very fast march, got us to the top of the temple with the best view just before sunrise. Later he gave us a second tour of the park. The money for the tour was well invested. We sat at the top of the highest temple to watch the sunrise. It was almost a religious experience and probably one of the most beautiful I have ever had! Except for some noisy Americans, everyone was in awe and silent. A very tranquil moment. After a view minutes even the Americans were taken by the moment and shut up. At almost 5 minutes to sunrise, the monkeys began to scream. It was almost as if they were saying “Hey Joe I am awake were are you, how is it going” then from the other side of the jungle another monkey would scream back in reply. This went on for about 5 minutes and then, just before sunrise, it stopped almost immediately and the jungle was completely silent again. It was an experience I will never forget, and I believe you can read our feelings from the expression on our faces on this picture.

During the last week in Guatemala Florian and I decided to rent a car and take a trip to the pacific coast with our teachers. It was a beautiful trip, where we parked our car, and took a boat ride through the mangrove swamp to the coastal town of Puerto Rico. We then walked to the beach and spent the day relaxing in a bar and swimming at the beach. The breakers were very strong, and towards the afternoon actually dangerous. We heard later that many people have drown in the undertow. It was a fantastic day, and I really enjoyed spending the day with our teachers.

The people in Guatemala are extremely friendly and helpful. It is a very pour country, which can change your outlook. If people who are fighting to survive, fighting just to have enough to eat, can have such a positive outlook, why are we from such economically rich countries always so negative and dissatisfied. I definitely want to return, and would recommend this visiting country to anyone who wants to see the real world. Everyone, who are willing to accept that the world does not center around there own country.

To put it in simple terms, I loved Guatemala!!!