Happy Valentines Day all!
I arrived in Antigua this afternoon for a couple of days of relaxation,
good Internet connections, and fine food. Those of you who have been to
Antigua understand why I like being here. Those of you who haven’t,
will just have to keep wondering…
I’d like to apologize for my last group mailing. It had been a long time,
and I was out of practice. I’d meant to B.C.C. the mailing list and
instead C.C.ed everyone. Thus, revealing all your addresses… Oops!
Sorry…
That mailing I had to keep rewriting as my departure kept getting
postponed, and my plans kept changing. So, in it I had said, “When I
leave LA, I’ll head east across the states…” I’d originally written, and it
was still in my head this way, “I’ll travel across the south, and follow the
East Coast up to NYC.” So, It will be my friends in Alabama, Florida
panhandle, the Carolinas, DC, etc. that I hope to see.
And lastly, not everyone who normally receives these missives, did so…
So for them, this will be the first! My sister, Janice has volunteered to
take care of the mailing list, and after we get that organized hopefully
everything will go more smoothly.
But, I’m still waiting to hear from someone who would enjoy being the
web-master…
After two and a half weeks in Zipolite, and following the instructions of
people who had said, “Fred, we don’t really want to read about you
spending your days on the beach in your hammock, drinking
Margaritas at sunset… “ I left, without having written anything…
A long overnight bus ride got me to the border with Guatemala. Around
8:00 am I crossed the border, and began the day’s adventure of getting
to Lake Atitlan by way of the chicken buses. These old worn out
American school buses, which in their prime carried around 40 happy
school kids back and forth, now are patched together, brightly painted
and decorated, and carry around 1,500 seated, with another 300
standing in the aisle…
But, I love them!! So, I wedged myself aboard, and we were off with a
belch of black smoke. The first ride was uneventful, and I arrived in
San Marcos just in time to force myself into another bus heading for
Xela. We had only been underway for about ten minutes when I heard
something give way in the engine compartment, and we coasted to a
stop on the side of the road.
After the driver determined that this would not be an easy fix, he
started refunding us our fares. A few people were able to catch rides on
collectivo pick-ups that passed by, and then another bus came along.
I was at a disadvantage in the rush for the bus, as I had my backpack.
Plus, trying to squeeze the 1,500 people from our bus onto the already
full other bus, was even tough for the Guatemalans… So, I let it go.
I stuck out my thumb and a minute later a car stopped, and I had to put
up with riding in a comfortable seat, with air conditioning and a CD
playing…
Around 4:00 pm I arrived in Panajachel, found a room, took a shower,
had a nice meal, and went to sleep. The next day, which is now
yesterday, was a great day!
My cousin, Leslie, had spent three years in Guatemala with the Peace
Corps. For you non-Americans, the Peace Corps is an aid program of
the US government, which sends volunteers around the world to
underdeveloped countries. It is kind of the opposite of the War Corps
for which we are much more famous…
Anyway, Leslie had spent her time in a small town in the hills above
Lake Atitlan. About 1½ years ago at Leslie’s wedding I met Florencia, a
Guatemalan friend of hers, and this is whom I was going to visit.
Florencia lives in San Andres, a nice quiet town in the hills high enough
to be comfortably cool. I got to her house just in time to watch her bath
a two week-old baby boy, the son of her friend Johanna. I also learned
that in Guatemala, babies are not given a name until they are a month
old!
Also at their house lived two little girls, little Florencia and Mayli, aged
6 and 3. Florencia said that Mayli was, un poco loco… But, I thought
she was great!
We had lunch, and afterwards went for a long walk even up higher in
the hills, to the village of Aldea Lascanoas, where Leslie had lived her
first year.
From the top of these hills are some incredible views. I was really
enjoying it all, but little Florencia, who had come with us, was getting
tired. Her short legs were taking at least twice as many steps as I was…
Florencia pointed out the house in which Leslie had lived, and she was
greatly amused to point out the out-house. Even Guatemalans find the
out-house funny!
Unfortunately, the out-house is lost in the shadow… Ha, ha, ha…
Yesterday was without a doubt the best day I’ve had on this trip so far.
I’ll be leaving here on Sunday, blazing a trail for Utila and a couple of
weeks of diving, then on to check out Little Corn Island in Nicaragua.
Realizing that my head is already into the trip in Central Asia, I’ll do
these couple of things, and then get back to LA, and get going on that
dream!
The Internet on Utila is extremely expensive, so I won’t do another
mailing for a while. And, if you wish to write me, please do so quickly so
that I can pick it up before I get on the island.
All the best,
Fred B.