Antigua

On Friday, January 15th, our group from CSB|SJU left Xela for the city of Antigua, a city renowned for it's history, architecture, ruins, and tourism. I've heard it referred to as "Gringo Central," the "Capitol of Tourism," and more of the like.

But the city is by no means inauthentic. It has a rich culture of its own, as well as several natural attractions (e.g. a volcano with lava you can roast marshmellows on) that make it a natural draw to travelers. This has the added benefit of enhanced security in the city, which has its own "Tourist Police Force."

We arrived in Antigua on Friday night. Before settling in at our hotel, we stopped by Common Hope, an organization dedicated to children's education. Started by Minnesotan natives,

Common Hope has proven to be a capable organization with the flexibility to add to and reduce its mission and adapt to new challenging situations.

The organization learned in its early stages that putting a kid in school won't do much if they have no home/home life. Thus, a new component was added: Common Hope builds homes for the families of the children it supports. There are no handouts, however. Families are required to earn what they receive--typically through working at Common Hope for individual family-specified hours. For example (don't quote me on this), a single mother with a young child might have to log 40 hours of service to receive a house, and an extended family of 10 may have to log nearly 500. Learn more about Common Hope and how you can contribute here: http://www.commonhope.org/ourwork/index.htm. Having toured their Antigua headquarters and critically analyzed their work, I have faith that the organization is doing good things.

Icaro Tours, the tour agency at Celas Maya (our language school), hooked us up with transport and excellent accommo- dations. After throwing our bags in our rooms, we had a delicious dinner at Las Palmas. But after another day-and-a-half in Antigua, I learned that coming across delicious food is not a challenge.

After dinner, we hit the town. There's a main drag running north and south in Antigua (if you're ever there, you can use the volcano to the south of the city as a reference) that passes by Parque Central and hosts a number of bars and shops.

Geno, Becky, Billie and I went to an Israeli bar named Gaia and relaxed over drinks and a hookah (strawberry flavor) in our own private "tent." Afterwards, the other 3 hit the discoteca and I ran into a group of young El Salvadorians that have their own drum corps. I accompanied them to a bar a few blocks off the main drag and watched them perform 3 sets. They're definitely one of the coolest live acts I've seen. The bar was full of ex-pats and backpackers from all over the world, but primarily Europe. I had some nice conversations with a few Germans. I went to the Parque Central around 1:00 A.M. to meet up with Geno, Becky and Billie and go back to the hotel. Before they got there, though, I met a large group of locals who taught me some good slang terms. We all agreed we'd meet in the park again the next night.

Then we went to bed.

We woke up for a group breakfast the next morning around 9:00. The bulk of the rest of the day was spent running around Antigua trying to see all the churches and ruins on the list given to us by our trip leader, Brother Dennis. It was truly a quantity over quality endeavor, which was a bummer. But we did get to see some cool sights.

Back in the day, Antigua was essentially the focal point of Central America. It was home to the Church, and therefore lots of churches and "residences" (palaces). Then, in 1872, the city got rocked by an earthquake and most everyone just took off, leaving ruins in the wake. The open air cathedrals were especially cool in relation to the closed cathedrals we saw on the same day. The girls I was touring with and I had lunch at a small cafe on their terrace that had a great view into the cathedral in the photo on the left.

I spent the whole day exploring the city, opting out of a nap to get more out of the city. It was

fun to walk around, and when not walking, to watch and meet other people. I met an ex-pat from Tennessee who owns a small trade-in bookstore, and he gave me the name of a good, affordable place to eat dinner. Of course, for us Americans, almost nothing is un-affordable in Guatemala. Everything's super cheap. Anyway, I took his suggestion of a place to eat, and was glad I did, as were the other people who joined me there. I'm spacing the name of the place, but it was something lame like "Travel Menu," and it specializes in western (Asian) food. It's owned by some Dutch guys. The food is great, and comes in large portions at a good price, which was great after a full day's worth of walking.

We went out again after dinner, I caught some more of the El Salvadorians and then joined the rest of the group at a discoteca. A large number of us (about 10) finished the night at Gaia, again with the hookah.

Sunday was our last day in Antigua. We took the day easy, lounging around, hitting up the

market and taking a slow lunch. Geno and I ate at a cool place called Sky Cafe, which has three levels (including a rooftop terrace with a decent view of the city) and good food. And delicious mojitos. Over lunch, I told Geno about a guitar I spied in a store the day before for 350

Quetzales (about $40). We decided it was a good investment. So after lunch, before jumping on the bus back to Xela, we made the purchase.

And, as you may know from the last post, we sold the same guitar a week later (for a 10Q profit, no less!).

Semuq Champey

Last weekend, a large group from Celas Maya, my language school, made the trek to Semuq Champey, said by many to be the most pristine spot in Guatemala. Located in the rainforest of the eastern lowlands, Semuq is a natural wonder, consisting of a river that cascades into a dark abyss and continues underground for nearly a mile. Above the river (which is not traversable at this point--sorry diehard rafters) lies a "land bridge" covered with natural shallow, sun-warmed pools. At the end of this bridge, the water falls down to the river below, which emerges from underground.

I hope that makes sense to you, dear reader. The picture above and to

the right is of the "bridge." The river is surging underneath the pools. The picture to the right is of the river befo

re it goes below, and to the left is a shot of Bec

ky, Billie and myself where the river is devoured by the darkness.

But let's start from the beginning of our trip. Between Xela (my home city here in Guate) and Semuq lay a near 12 hour bus ride. Our group of around 19 (including bus driver and guide, Phil) left on Thursday, January 21, at 11:00 A.M. We arrived at a hotel near Coban, still 3 hours from Semuq, around 7:00 P.M. that night. We rose early Friday morning and made it to our hotel near Semuq by 1:00 P.M.

The hotel, one of 2 within an hour of Semuq, was comprised of 5 or 6 cabañas that housed 6 people each. The property is situated right on the river, a 10 minute walk from the entrance to the natural park home to Semuq. This picture is a view of the river from the hotel, complete with swing and paraphernalia from the previous night's festivities.

We didn't waste much time when we got to the hotel, leaving immediately for the park. Our guide, Phil, took us on a tour, first to the pools (seen above), and then to the mirador, a deck with a spectacular view. It was from there that I took the shot of the pools from above.

We spent the rest of the day in the pools, jumping off little waterfalls, relaxing in the shallows (see photo below), and letting minnows eat the dead skin cells off our hands and feet. Afterwards, we all headed back to

the hotel for dinner, drinks and song. The meal is served to all hotel clients at once. There's no other option for food! Your choices are "vegetarian" or "meat."

Sounds risky, but in fact the food was delicious. After our meal, we got to know the other hotel patrons and wound up around a fire by the river, singing songs late into the night.

The next morning, we hit up the "other" natural wonder of Semuq: the caves. There are reportedly two main caves. One that is large and cavernous, another that is smaller and follows a subterranean river. We took the river.

This was probably my favorite part of the trip. We traversed the cave, usually about 10-15 feet wide, by candlelight. Much of the time was spent wading or swimming through water (candle in one hand, paddling with the other). We encountered numerous obstacles, most notably a 15 foot waterfall we climbed up via rope. At another point in the cave, we climbed up a small wall and jumped into a dark pool below. As I was in the front of the group, I was usually the guinea pig for these endeavors.

At the end of our trek (about an hour into the cave), we stopped in a large cavern and blew out all our candles. Enveloping ourselves in complete darkness.

Cool feeling. We then made our way out of the cave, and took tubes down the river back to our hotel. But before we did this, we jumped into the river via rope swing, some of us shooting over 20 feet into the air before plummeting to the wet conclusion of our flight.

Geno and I were the only two of our group who returned to Semuq in the afternoon. Most people didn't feel like paying the 50 quetzales ($6.00) to gain entry, but Geno and I thought the price was more than worth it for such a beautiful spot, especially after such a long trek to get there.

We ended up not paying anyway, we just flashed our tickets from the day before and got in for free. For nearly 6 hours, we explored more of Semuc Champey (check Geno climbing above!), received more spa treatments (compliments of the minnows), enjoyed some select beverages, and conversed with other tourists from all over the world.

As the sun was about to set, we met an English, Canadien, and French trio, Adrian, Conrad,

and Robin. Who are currently studying in Veracruz, Mexico. The three were on their way to El Salvador when Conrad's bag was stolen. Passport included. While he's waiting for the British embassy to get him a new ID, they're staying in Guate.

The five of us decided to catch the last rays of light from the Mirador, and were rewarded with some gorgeous views. Also on the Mirador were a family from Guatemala City. I took some pictures for them, and the father of the family offered me free Jujitsu classes in return (whenever I make it to Guate, that is).

From the Mirador, the five of us returned to our friends' hostel (across the river from ours) for some drinks. Meanwhile, darkness had fallen, and our group sent a search party into the park calling out our names, fearing bad things. While they were there, however, Geno and I returned to our hotel in time for dinner. What a mess life without cell phones is!

The search party returned, all was made right, we filled our stomachs with food and drink, and returned once again to the fire. We left around 8:30 the next morning the same way we came, in the bed of a pickup, and rolled into Xela around 12 hours later.

Semuq was a great and needed getaway. Now I'm back in Xela reminiscing about days in the sun, with the minnows at my feet, Gallo (Guatemalan beer) in hand. I think I'll go back sometime.

First Weeks in Xela

Here I am, halfway through my third week in Xela, yet to write about my first two weeks. Here's the recap:

Our group from CSB|SJU, which includes 13 women, 3 men, and our two trip leaders, Dennis Beach (OSB) and John Van Rooy, arrived in Xela on January 2nd--Saturday night. I was dropped off at my host home's doorstep by the van which transported Billie, Becky and myself from Atitlán. That night, I met my host parents and three of their four children, all of whom live outside the house and have children of their own (or at least have children on the way!). I was given a tasty combination of nachos and chicken soup, and entertained a number of my host family's questions with semi-passable Spanish before promptly falling asleep.

The group spent Sunday orientating ourselves with Xela. I found that I have the longest walk from home to Celas Maya, our language school, with a roundtrip requiring about half an hour.

We began 5 weeks of morning classes at Celas Maya at 8:00 A.M. on Monday morning. The classes are in the courtyard of the building, which also hosts an internet cafe, travel agency, two outdoor gardens (one of which I refer to as the courtyard), a patio, and a ping pong table. Boom.

Classes run from 8:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M., with a "pausa" from 10:30-11:00. Each student is paired with their own teacher, or maestro/a. My maestro for the first two weeks was R

onaldo, a fun, well-dressed 23 year old Guatemalteco who alternates between living in Spain and Xela. I had a lot of fun working with Ronaldo in the first few weeks, and he also proved to be a great teacher. I feel that my Spanish has really begun to formulate the basic foundation it's never had.

The highlights of the first two weeks were definitely the mini-excursions.

Every week, Celas creates a schedule of different trips and events. In the first week, we hiked up a mountain for a fantastic panorama of Xela and the surrounding cities, drove to and relaxed at Las Fuentes Georginas (hot springs), and

on Saturday, hiked up the side of Santa Maria, a large inactive volcano, to watch the eruption of Santaguito

(spell?), an active volcano on the side of Santa Maria. The creation of Santaguito as a volcano in 1998 signaled the end of Santa Maria's fiery existence, and a large lake now sits on the top of the larger, dormant volcano.

On the hike, we were joined by two furry companions.

Oh, I should also mention that I got sick the first week. Because there are different bacteria that reside here in Central America, it's almost a given that a foreigner will at some point become sick. I was happy to get mine out of the way in the first few days in Xela. After catching around 14 hours of sleep Tuesday night, I was good to go.

The second week of classes, I started going to a gym (Pro Fitness) close to Celas. It's the same gym that Ronaldo, my maestro, now goes to, and I went with him on Monday. It turns out that the owner of the gym, Roberto, has been looking for a way to improve his English. The way it's turning out, I'm going to have free access to a weightroom with a personal trainer for free, in exchange for helping Roberto with his English. Great connection, ya?

Also on Monday, John (trip leader), my friend

Geno (in the picture with the dog) and myself went to a small bar, Utz Cana, and heard some great live music. A four-piece, comprised primarily of an electric guitar, Mayan flutes, a djembe, small congas, and a tambourine, was rocking some great Mayan folk tunes. After they finished their first set, I sat in on the congas, and had my first opportunity in Guatemala to play music. It was a

lot of fun, the highlight being a Mayan folk-rendition of Stairway to Heaven. After playing, we chatted with the other musicians, and it turned out that one is the owner of the bar. He welcomed us to come back and play whenever. Another great connection. I have since went back to Utz Cana one time, and got to play again.

Our main excursion the second week was to another hot spring, this one called Aguas Amargas (Bitter Water). These hot springs weren't as natural or pristine as Las Georginas, but you can't beat the tranquility of a warm pool nestled at the base of mountains covered with lush forest.

This is all I'm recalling from the first two weeks, prior to our trip to Antigua (Guatemala's tourism capital), which I'll cover in my next post.

Oh, also, I watched Avatar in Spanish.

Intro & Atitlán

Surprise!

I'm keeping a blog of my adventures in Central America over the next few months. I'm here for a semester program through St. John's University (C

SB|SJU), along with 15 other 'Johnnies' and 'Bennies.' I've already been here over two weeks, so I have a bit

of recap to do.

I flew out from Minnesota December 30th with my friends Billie and Becky...

Our group was to report to Guatemala on January 2nd, so the t

hree of us decided to come a little early to ease our transition to Guatemala and enjoy some vacation time.

We went to Lake Atitlán. It's a large body of water in the western

highlands (mountains) of Guatemala. There are many small villages on the shores of Atitlán. We stayed at a hostel in Panajachel, the most accessible city via

road. 'Pana,' like other towns around the lake, hosts a sizeable population of U.S. expats, most of whom run restaurants or shops in the city. And there is no shortage of shops or street vendors.

Transport to other towns around the lake is simple and cheap. Simply walk down to the shore and hop on a lancha (boat). In our case, we ended up at the shore after a mini-adventure on a tuk-tuk, small 3-wheeled taxis c

ommon throughout Asia. While walking around Pana, Rudy, one such teenage tuk-tuk driver, picked us up. We only wanted a ride to the lake, but instead we ended up at San Cristalina, another town on the lake, for lunch. A

fterwards, Rudy returned us to Pana and dropped us off with his friend who owns a lancha.

We took the lancha to San Pedro: backpacker headquarters of Atitlan. San Pedro is situated on a hill on the shore, and it wasn't hard to find a cafe with a great view.

Also in San Pedro, we witnessed a New Year's festival with actors wearing giant masks of various characters, including two babies, an old man, a cowboy, a drunk, a

nd Michael Jackson. On our way back to the docks from this spectacle, we received an invitation to a New Year's celebration at a private residence on San Pedro volcano, which we obliged.

Before we went to the celebration, however, our lancha captain took us to San Marcos, another village on Atitlán home to a myriad of yoga retreats, holistic living centers, massage salons and more of the like. We didn't opt for any of these activities, but merely wandered around the village and enjoyed the views and people.

Later that night, we went to the private residence (La casa de Antonio) to usher in the New Year. As the clock struck 12:00, we had an amazing view from the volcano of nearly every town's firework display. Imagine the thousands of flashes that go off at a professional sports game or concert: this was the consistency a

nd frequency of the fireworks. Unbelievable! Of course, we also had a perfect vantage point for watching the blue moon and clear night sky above Atitlán.

The rest of our time in Atitlán was spent relaxing and enjoying the great weather. We spent

most of our time on the shore or on the roof of our hostel (Hotel Tzutujil) soaking up the sun

and the views. We also spent some time on the water in kayaks.

On our last morning in Pana, we rose early to watch the sunrise. We were joined by a small pack of dogs, which ordinarily would be dangerous, but when they approached us we just kept walking, and they decided to join us. They then took on the role as our protectors, and even attacked a man on the beach. There really wasn't anything we could do to help, as we had no control over the dogs.

Later that day, Billie, Becky and I hopped on a van that brought us to Quetzaltenango, or Xela, where we're living and studying for this semester.

Atitlán was a great start to our four months here, giving us a small, somewhat touristy but nonetheless valuable taste of Guatemala. We had our fill of relaxation and sun, and arrived in Xela ready for what the next few days would bring...