i'm sorry, my friends. i have been seriously slacking in the blog department. for some reason i've been a bit distracted .....
since rio dulce i have been in honduras and arrived in nicaragua yesterday. we ended up taking a bus to la ceiba, honduras, and a ferry over to the island of utila. hello tropical paradise. 5 days of my open water class turned into ten days of diving, relaxing, and making some wonderful new friends.
Diving: Holy cow ... where has this been all my life? Breathing underwater!! I am hooked .. thank god underwaterland is limited in michigan (trust me, i will be exploring those wrecks) or else i'd be in for a whole new load of adventure expenses. the carribean is so blue, and their are so many amazing animals under there. we saw cowfish, trunkfish, green and spotted moray eels, spotlight parrotfish, a shortnose batfish (look this one up, sooo weird), squirrelfish, lionfish (invasive in the carribean and totally gorgeous), crazy corals and anenomes, a stargazer, angelfish, and more more more. At this one sight called Diamond Caye we swam with these three gray angelfish the size of big dinner plates that always come when divers do. they eat the life that is stirred up from the bottom and floats around you .. so they swim through your legs and around your body and it feels like you are playing in a pile of puppies. my favorite part of diving is swimming along a coral wall where it is endless deep blue on one side, the sea floor is so far below, and the other side is a wall of color and life .... and i soar, with my arms extended, suspended in great blue space. wow.
Relaxing: there wasnt much of a beach, but we discovered a place called the driftwood cafe, run by some fabulous expats from texas, with a great dock over two meters of water to swim in (where i saw a huge spotted eagle ray), good food and very cold beer. also, monkey balls (a homemade coffee liqueur shot that will change anyone's life). we logged quite a few hours in this location.
New FRIENDS!!: up until the last week i have been travelling with laura and jaylene, but they left the island 4 days before me, and now i'm with new wonderful people. i met abbie in my openwater course, and she just happens to be from door county, wisconsin, so naturally we midwesterners just clicked. this girl is a joy, a ray of sunshine that makes travelling even better. throughout my ten day stay in utila i met so many wonderful people (in addition to the expats at driftwood: bruce, barbara, jungle jim, danny). dan, yael, andrew, thing one and two from california, almog, sarah, lydia, mario ... i feel so blesssed to have these folks and others in my life, if only for a short time. if any of y'all read this: thank you.
so, all good things must come to an end, and after ten days abbie and i finally managed to peel ourselves off the island (we tried to leave three times and somehow ended up still being there by lunch time). we took the ferry over to la ceiba and jumped on a shuttle to the jungle lodge and went rafting! how in the world did i miss out on this amazingness the whole time i was in north carolina? ted, we are playing on your boat when i get back. our river guides were awesome ... we hiked, swam, jumped off of large boulders, checked out a weird spider, and watched the guides jump off of even bigger boulders. and then we arrived at our boats and blasted down the river. waaaaaaaaahhhhh .. ! i love when you have so much fun you cant help but laugh outloud.
at the jungle lodge we disovered isabelle, a girl from sweden who stayed there and worked for a week and a half. she happened to be heading to the same place as us, so now we have a new travel partner. two days ago we took a bus from la ceiba to the capital of honduras, tegucigalpa. while for most travellers this is a city to get in and out of as quickly as possible, we got picked up at the bus station by local friends of a friend and were convinced to stay a day to check things out. these guys, raul and malcom (with the help of a few others) spoiled us rotten. stayed at a home with real beds and a hot shower, breakfast, then explored the university! i love universities. these two guys are biology students and showed the world of reptiles, butterfly, and honduran natural history. raul works at a reptile rescue place with so many cool snakes, turtles, crocodiles, and iguanas (raul actually works everywhere that there's a need ... he will save the world someday). after a day of exploring the city (lunch in los dolores, downtown, a maze of comedores that hadn't seen a gringo in there maybe ever) and university we did a salsa lesson with raul. haha, not my forte.
yesterday morning we jumped on a bus the took the long way to managua, nicaragua, then a cab ride to granada, and now here we are. i think we'll head to the artisan market in masaya today, to la laguna de apoyo tomorrow, and ometepe the next day (or something like that ... it's likely the plans will change, they always do).
safe and sound in nicaragau...... missed you all for thanksgiving (although i dont know if i've ever felt more thankful on that holiday). cant wait to see you at christmas. only 4 weeks to go ....
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
hangin in a dirty port town ...
man, the longer i'm here the harder it gets to stay updated on this blog. here goes ...
we (laura, jaylene, and i) spent the last week, after lanquin, on a 1 kilometer diameter island called flores, on lago petèn itza, attached to the mainland by a small landbridge. the lake is about the size of lake leelanau in the middle of a jungle. total island feel, everything is slow paced and you see the same people over and over again (not difficult considering it takes 20 minutes to walk the entire perimeter). we were in flores to see tikal, the most famous mayan ruins in guatemala, but had to stay a few extra days because jaylene had a skype interview with some people waaaaaaay up in the north of canada and needed to be sure she had a solid internet connection. so we spent a lot of time at the same restaurant because it had cheap food and suuuper cheap beer (3 brahva extras for 15Q, or about $1.75). we brought that place a lot of business (really the food had nothing to do with it, although the burritos were quite satisfying). on the second day we took a lancha (small public boat) 15 minutes across the lake to a zoo, and saw crocodiles, a macaw, tucans, an ocelot, some other wild spotted cat, and some odd rodent like mammals. they also had some bitchin waterslides through the jungle, which were not turned on, which was devastating for a one sarah regina wright.
halfway through the week we headed to tikal, waking up at 3:45 am in hopes of entering the park before sunrise to hear the birds and howler monkeys awakening. unfortunately, the shuttles were operating on guatemalan time as usual, and we arrived at the ruins well after sunrise. the park was quite amazing ... huge temples and ancient structures sprinkled throughout true jungles. we saw some bizarre animals, including one like a giant hamster with hooves like a goat. we also saw squirrel monkeys and heard howler monkeys screaming (growling? roaring?) in the distance. a truly remarkable sound. we were able to climb many of the temples, and from temple IV, where we made delicious veggie sammiches, could see the entirety of tikal.
the day after jaylene's interview we jumped on a bus and took off for rio dulce. this place is incredible; i feel more at home here than any other place in guatemala. it reminds me a loooot of the florida keys. the streets are alive with market activity and the bustle of a busy guatemalan town, and the shores of the river are lined with weathered sailboats and fishing rigs. neil, you would looooove this place. i wish you were here to see it. the people are a mix of guatemalans and wrinkled, weather beaten north americans straight off the water. today laura and i took a shuttle to the cascadas of finca el paraìso. the BEST day. a hot, hot water sulfurous river poors 20 feet over rock into a clear blue pool of cold water, perfect for swimming and relaxing for hours. as laura said, it was our first truly hot shower in guatemala. i think this is the most wonderful place i have experienced in this country so far. we swam for hours, then headed back to town, hungry and perfectly satisfied.
we are staying at a rickety hostel literally on the water (one of the dorms is a dock) called hotel backpackers. the proceeds from the hotel go to the home for abandoned children that is connected to the hostel, and many of the former residents are employees here. dinner was incredible, on the dock with lake/river wind threatening to blow away the toppings from our pizzas. i kind of want to stay here forever.
right now we are the look out for someone sailing/boating to utila, honduras, from here sometime in the next few days. laura and i are getting on the marine radio to make the announcement at 7:30 am tomorrow, when there is something of a forum for local boaters. if we arent able to hitch a ride, we'll pay a lancha to take us up to livingston, a carribean garìfuna town at the mouth of the rio dulce, take a ferry from livingston to puerto barrios, jump on a bus from their to la ceiba honduras, and take a ferry to the island of utila for a week of diving on carribean reefs. yea!
over and out, mis amigos ..
we (laura, jaylene, and i) spent the last week, after lanquin, on a 1 kilometer diameter island called flores, on lago petèn itza, attached to the mainland by a small landbridge. the lake is about the size of lake leelanau in the middle of a jungle. total island feel, everything is slow paced and you see the same people over and over again (not difficult considering it takes 20 minutes to walk the entire perimeter). we were in flores to see tikal, the most famous mayan ruins in guatemala, but had to stay a few extra days because jaylene had a skype interview with some people waaaaaaay up in the north of canada and needed to be sure she had a solid internet connection. so we spent a lot of time at the same restaurant because it had cheap food and suuuper cheap beer (3 brahva extras for 15Q, or about $1.75). we brought that place a lot of business (really the food had nothing to do with it, although the burritos were quite satisfying). on the second day we took a lancha (small public boat) 15 minutes across the lake to a zoo, and saw crocodiles, a macaw, tucans, an ocelot, some other wild spotted cat, and some odd rodent like mammals. they also had some bitchin waterslides through the jungle, which were not turned on, which was devastating for a one sarah regina wright.
halfway through the week we headed to tikal, waking up at 3:45 am in hopes of entering the park before sunrise to hear the birds and howler monkeys awakening. unfortunately, the shuttles were operating on guatemalan time as usual, and we arrived at the ruins well after sunrise. the park was quite amazing ... huge temples and ancient structures sprinkled throughout true jungles. we saw some bizarre animals, including one like a giant hamster with hooves like a goat. we also saw squirrel monkeys and heard howler monkeys screaming (growling? roaring?) in the distance. a truly remarkable sound. we were able to climb many of the temples, and from temple IV, where we made delicious veggie sammiches, could see the entirety of tikal.
the day after jaylene's interview we jumped on a bus and took off for rio dulce. this place is incredible; i feel more at home here than any other place in guatemala. it reminds me a loooot of the florida keys. the streets are alive with market activity and the bustle of a busy guatemalan town, and the shores of the river are lined with weathered sailboats and fishing rigs. neil, you would looooove this place. i wish you were here to see it. the people are a mix of guatemalans and wrinkled, weather beaten north americans straight off the water. today laura and i took a shuttle to the cascadas of finca el paraìso. the BEST day. a hot, hot water sulfurous river poors 20 feet over rock into a clear blue pool of cold water, perfect for swimming and relaxing for hours. as laura said, it was our first truly hot shower in guatemala. i think this is the most wonderful place i have experienced in this country so far. we swam for hours, then headed back to town, hungry and perfectly satisfied.
we are staying at a rickety hostel literally on the water (one of the dorms is a dock) called hotel backpackers. the proceeds from the hotel go to the home for abandoned children that is connected to the hostel, and many of the former residents are employees here. dinner was incredible, on the dock with lake/river wind threatening to blow away the toppings from our pizzas. i kind of want to stay here forever.
right now we are the look out for someone sailing/boating to utila, honduras, from here sometime in the next few days. laura and i are getting on the marine radio to make the announcement at 7:30 am tomorrow, when there is something of a forum for local boaters. if we arent able to hitch a ride, we'll pay a lancha to take us up to livingston, a carribean garìfuna town at the mouth of the rio dulce, take a ferry from livingston to puerto barrios, jump on a bus from their to la ceiba honduras, and take a ferry to the island of utila for a week of diving on carribean reefs. yea!
over and out, mis amigos ..
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
jungle paradise
wow, i love guatemala. right now we are in lanquin, near the park semuc champey, below peten, in the central eastern part of the country. i'm currently travelling with two girls from vancouver and three guys from israel, and neil left this morning. so this was my yesterday ... woke up at eight in a hostel on a raging river in a fertile jungle wonderland. ate breakfast near the river, and hopped on a truck with the two girls from vancouver (laura and jaylene, super awesome) and neil, to semuc champey. this park was mindblowing. a river flows all the way through, raging up and down stream from a series of tranquil aquamarine pools. most of the water flows under these pools in a crazy cave, so the water is nearly still above, filled with cylcids and beautiful ancient rock formations. spend a few hours swimming (and with neil this is always the best). after the park we crossed a bridge to the caves. we walked, waded and swam into a cave for over an hour by candlelight alone (yeah, we swam deep into a cave holding candles with one hand and keeping afloat with the other). climbed some sketchy ladders, climbed a rope up the rock while being pummeled by a waterfall, and scalled a 2.5 meter boulder and jumped off through a very narrow passage into a dark pool. in a cave!! soooo cool. topped the whole experience off with ten minutes of tubing down the river, then jumping off a 30 foot bridge (our collectivo driver convinced neil and i to do it). last night we had a big family dinner with everyone at the hostel. our israeli friends arrived at 10 and we continued to drink beer while alternating between the sauna, holding onto a rope in the center of the river (so as to not get swept away) and lying out mostly naked under orion and shooting stars. best day. ever.
good stuff, huh? i think we are going to head up to flores and the ruins of tikal on thursday, spend a few days there, then go to the rio dulce and experience more wonders of nature. after that, diving in the bay islands in honduras and then to the coast of nicaragua for some serious surfing. i might try to find a little job down there to stay afloat until i head home in december.
so yeah, little things, big things, all is well. i'm meeting wonderful people and doing/seeing crazy things. pura vida para mi.
love to you from the jungle ..
sarah
good stuff, huh? i think we are going to head up to flores and the ruins of tikal on thursday, spend a few days there, then go to the rio dulce and experience more wonders of nature. after that, diving in the bay islands in honduras and then to the coast of nicaragua for some serious surfing. i might try to find a little job down there to stay afloat until i head home in december.
so yeah, little things, big things, all is well. i'm meeting wonderful people and doing/seeing crazy things. pura vida para mi.
love to you from the jungle ..
sarah
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
it happened so fast
oh wow, sorry it´s been a bit. so much has happened. this is how it went:
neil and i were sitting in hostel friday night discussing how we were going to travel to lake atitlan. i didnt particulary want to take a chicken bus on long mountain roads, and shuttle busses are pretty expensive. "well, let´s just walk there," we joked. 30 minutes later, neil walks into the room with toto, the kid the kid would be guiding us on foot over 5 mountains to atitlan starting the next morning. en serio .. we walked. the next day we joined toto, our guide saul, and three guys from israel (gilad, gal, and avia) in a van and drove thirty minutes into the mountains. we started our hike in a little pueblo at 7000 feet. my god, these mountains are so beautiful. indescribable. my pictures wont do them justice. the first night we stayed in a cement room in someone´s house in a town with maybe 50 people. their shower is a sauna, and they fired up this little room and we each bathed and used the sauna one at a time because it was so small. the next day we rose at 5, significantly earlier than the sun, enjoyed a cup of hot milk and corn flakes, and headed off as the sun made its way above the mountains. my legs were already sooooo sore from the day before, but we proceeded to descend steeply for 2.5 hours until we reached a raging river. scariest thing of MY LIFE crossing two foot bridges made of logs strapped together with natural cordage and suspended 15 feet above the rio braced by giant bolders. we arrived in a town called santa clara at about 3 in the afternoon and slept in a cement building with no lights and straw mats for beds. we managed to get quite tuned up off of liters of gallo with the israelis and one of our guides. this made waking up at 4:45 to see the sunrise over lake atitlan pretty weird. after watching the sunrise with a group of 17 other trekkers, we headed off on a two hour hike with hangovers and no water on a tiny little bench cut trail. and now, here i am, in san pedro la laguna, a super hip beach town on a mind blowing lake amidst mountains and volcanoes. we are still staying with the israeli guys (in two hotels rooms that are costing us about $2 a piece per night), and our guides have headed back to xela. this town is awesome .. i could imagine hanging around here for quite a while. we have three more nights booked here, and might stick around with these guys for a bit longer as then check out other places around the lake. let me tell you, we´re having a damn good time.
well then, that´s the story. it certainly seem to happen quickly .. strange how things fall into place like that. until next time .....
neil and i were sitting in hostel friday night discussing how we were going to travel to lake atitlan. i didnt particulary want to take a chicken bus on long mountain roads, and shuttle busses are pretty expensive. "well, let´s just walk there," we joked. 30 minutes later, neil walks into the room with toto, the kid the kid would be guiding us on foot over 5 mountains to atitlan starting the next morning. en serio .. we walked. the next day we joined toto, our guide saul, and three guys from israel (gilad, gal, and avia) in a van and drove thirty minutes into the mountains. we started our hike in a little pueblo at 7000 feet. my god, these mountains are so beautiful. indescribable. my pictures wont do them justice. the first night we stayed in a cement room in someone´s house in a town with maybe 50 people. their shower is a sauna, and they fired up this little room and we each bathed and used the sauna one at a time because it was so small. the next day we rose at 5, significantly earlier than the sun, enjoyed a cup of hot milk and corn flakes, and headed off as the sun made its way above the mountains. my legs were already sooooo sore from the day before, but we proceeded to descend steeply for 2.5 hours until we reached a raging river. scariest thing of MY LIFE crossing two foot bridges made of logs strapped together with natural cordage and suspended 15 feet above the rio braced by giant bolders. we arrived in a town called santa clara at about 3 in the afternoon and slept in a cement building with no lights and straw mats for beds. we managed to get quite tuned up off of liters of gallo with the israelis and one of our guides. this made waking up at 4:45 to see the sunrise over lake atitlan pretty weird. after watching the sunrise with a group of 17 other trekkers, we headed off on a two hour hike with hangovers and no water on a tiny little bench cut trail. and now, here i am, in san pedro la laguna, a super hip beach town on a mind blowing lake amidst mountains and volcanoes. we are still staying with the israeli guys (in two hotels rooms that are costing us about $2 a piece per night), and our guides have headed back to xela. this town is awesome .. i could imagine hanging around here for quite a while. we have three more nights booked here, and might stick around with these guys for a bit longer as then check out other places around the lake. let me tell you, we´re having a damn good time.
well then, that´s the story. it certainly seem to happen quickly .. strange how things fall into place like that. until next time .....
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
pluggin along
hi family, still in xela, still studying spanish, still living the life. i went to the mayan festival in a neighboring pueblo on saturday. the dancing was over but the played marimba outside of a really old church (300 years old?) and it was pretty incredible. i then proceeded to drink too much rum with a friend, which resulted in me feeling quite crappy yesterday and today. i have my standard post-cold cough, and hopefully i can avoid antibiotics with mucho miel and limon (honey and lime .. they dont have lemons). today we went to the oldest church in central america with my class (i believe 436 years old). we also visited a home where they make traditional fabrics. you guys wouldn´t believe these traditions materials and clothes. they are so colorful and intricate, and all of the traditional mayan women where these elaborate outfits. many of them have babies strapped to their backs with clothes and baskets of clothing and food on their heads. it´s beautiful. if i get pìctures i´ll post them, but i need to take care to be respectful to the people. speaking of pictures, i havent taken many, but i have some. i´ll try to remember to bring the cord for my camera next time i use the internet and i´ll post some pictures.
neil gets here tomorrow! i´m pretty damn excited, let me tell you. we´ll be here for a few more days, maybe take a trip to some rivers outside of xela with my friend on saturday, then take off for other places. luke advises me to stay guatemala for a while longer because it is so culturally rich, so i might look for another language program elsewhere in the country before i move on.
as far as spanish goes, it´s getting better. a man from japan has moved into our house, and by some crazy turn of tables, i am now translating for him. it´s pretty cool .. buen ondo as they say here. okay then, adios!
neil gets here tomorrow! i´m pretty damn excited, let me tell you. we´ll be here for a few more days, maybe take a trip to some rivers outside of xela with my friend on saturday, then take off for other places. luke advises me to stay guatemala for a while longer because it is so culturally rich, so i might look for another language program elsewhere in the country before i move on.
as far as spanish goes, it´s getting better. a man from japan has moved into our house, and by some crazy turn of tables, i am now translating for him. it´s pretty cool .. buen ondo as they say here. okay then, adios!
Saturday, October 16, 2010
being sick here is the same as being sick at home ..
Ugh .. estoy resfriada (I have a cold). Not fun at all. My nose is draining like a fountain. A hotel room with heat, a hot tub and tv in English would not be a bad thing right now. Thankfully, I´m an adult and I´m going to most likely make it through this without my mom (haha).
So I´m done with my first week of classes and I´m sure I am much more profficient in Spanish than I was when I started, but it kind of doesnt feel like it. I went to a yoga class Thursday and Friday morning, which was an incredible way to start the day. It was definitely the most strengthening yoga class I have been to .. my body is suuuuuper sore. My friend/housemate Tomas left today to go back to the states after being here and in Honduras for over a year. For me, sad and also a little scary considering he was my translator when all else failed. He played guiatar and sang last night at a place called El Cuartito (the little room) ... the first time I´ve gone out since arriving in Guatemala. Today I´m going to a Mayan festival in San Cristobal, a town about 45 minutes away, with a teacher from my school. I´m not lookind forward to bleeding snot all over Guatemala, but I figure this an opportunity I can´t pass up. Pretty excited actually, this is basically my first adventure outside of Xela. Neil arrives on Wednesday (yea!!), I finish classes on Friday (although I could use months more) and after that we are off in travel land. Definitely going to visit Luke´s friend on Lago de Atitlan, and I´d also like to see some ruins and head up to the teeny tiny Carribean cost for a little hammock relaxation. I certainly dont feel like I´m on vacation right now considering I´m thinking/working as hard as my junior year in college when I took 18 credits. Playing and lounging in a week will be a welcome change.
Thanks for following, miss you all.
So I´m done with my first week of classes and I´m sure I am much more profficient in Spanish than I was when I started, but it kind of doesnt feel like it. I went to a yoga class Thursday and Friday morning, which was an incredible way to start the day. It was definitely the most strengthening yoga class I have been to .. my body is suuuuuper sore. My friend/housemate Tomas left today to go back to the states after being here and in Honduras for over a year. For me, sad and also a little scary considering he was my translator when all else failed. He played guiatar and sang last night at a place called El Cuartito (the little room) ... the first time I´ve gone out since arriving in Guatemala. Today I´m going to a Mayan festival in San Cristobal, a town about 45 minutes away, with a teacher from my school. I´m not lookind forward to bleeding snot all over Guatemala, but I figure this an opportunity I can´t pass up. Pretty excited actually, this is basically my first adventure outside of Xela. Neil arrives on Wednesday (yea!!), I finish classes on Friday (although I could use months more) and after that we are off in travel land. Definitely going to visit Luke´s friend on Lago de Atitlan, and I´d also like to see some ruins and head up to the teeny tiny Carribean cost for a little hammock relaxation. I certainly dont feel like I´m on vacation right now considering I´m thinking/working as hard as my junior year in college when I took 18 credits. Playing and lounging in a week will be a welcome change.
Thanks for following, miss you all.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Español es muy dificil ..
Is it possible that this language gets harder as the days go on? I was talking to a guy from Australia that attends my school yesterday and he said he feels like he knows less after two weeks. Ahhhhh!
I´m still not quite used to being here. When I wake up in the morning I think I´m in my bed at home, and I slowly awaken to the unfamiliar sounds around me .. mostly Spanish. My home here is comfortable, I feel very welcome. It´s certainly not a bad thing waking up in foreign territory, just a bit of a surprise every time.
I have classes in the afternoon today because my teacher had a doctor appointment this morning. I am trying to become orriented to the city, walking around and trying to find places that I have been before. So far, so good. Spent the morning making exactly one million notecards of spanish words and practicing them in a super cool cafe attached to a bookstore. And here I sit ...
I´m still not quite used to being here. When I wake up in the morning I think I´m in my bed at home, and I slowly awaken to the unfamiliar sounds around me .. mostly Spanish. My home here is comfortable, I feel very welcome. It´s certainly not a bad thing waking up in foreign territory, just a bit of a surprise every time.
I have classes in the afternoon today because my teacher had a doctor appointment this morning. I am trying to become orriented to the city, walking around and trying to find places that I have been before. So far, so good. Spent the morning making exactly one million notecards of spanish words and practicing them in a super cool cafe attached to a bookstore. And here I sit ...
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
In Xela!
¡Hola amigos y mi familia! I´ve arrived safely in Guatemala, so you can stop your worrying.
Traveling on Sunday was looooooong and exhausting. I left Brent´s house in Chicago at 3:00 am and arrived in Xela at 8 pm. Travelling was pretty much problem free, although it was necessary to use my weak Spanish as I moved from plane, to taxi, to bus, to taxi. When I arrived in Xela after dark no one was at the school/hostel where I was staying the first night. After a moment of panic my cab driver and I figured it all out, and I ended up under warm covers on a chilly night.
The next day I started lessons at 8 am with my teacher Miriam, who is wonderful. We went to a neighboring town, Zunil, and saw a shrine to the Mayan "evil" saint, San Simon and a beautiful Catholic church. In the afternoon I moved in with my wonderful Guatemalan family. Another American, Tomas, is living with us, and is beyond helpful with the language barrier.
So Spanish is way harder than I want it to be, and I kind of feel like a dumbass. However, I´m learning A LOT and i think after two weeks of language classes I´ll be a lot more comfortable with the language.
Xela is a big city, lot´s of houses and business packed together with narrow volcanic stone streets busy with people, cars, and big chicken buses (old U.S. school buses used for chaotic public transportation). Green mountains rise sharply out of the city, and you can see volcanoes from many parts of the city. Here and in neighboring pueblas they grow vegetables that they export all over the place (probably Michigan, even). The weather is a lot like Michigan this time of year, cold at night (40´s?) and comfortable in they day. Apparently they have been getting a lot of rain, but it´s been sunny and warm the two days I´ve been here. The people here are very friendly and welcoming. I feel safe and essentially like I am a new person in any city in the world. I´m not a city person, so while I´m enjoying being here in the swirl of things, I´m excited to get on the road and be in smaller towns.
And that is my story thus far. I promise to keep y´all posted. ¡Hasta luego!
Traveling on Sunday was looooooong and exhausting. I left Brent´s house in Chicago at 3:00 am and arrived in Xela at 8 pm. Travelling was pretty much problem free, although it was necessary to use my weak Spanish as I moved from plane, to taxi, to bus, to taxi. When I arrived in Xela after dark no one was at the school/hostel where I was staying the first night. After a moment of panic my cab driver and I figured it all out, and I ended up under warm covers on a chilly night.
The next day I started lessons at 8 am with my teacher Miriam, who is wonderful. We went to a neighboring town, Zunil, and saw a shrine to the Mayan "evil" saint, San Simon and a beautiful Catholic church. In the afternoon I moved in with my wonderful Guatemalan family. Another American, Tomas, is living with us, and is beyond helpful with the language barrier.
So Spanish is way harder than I want it to be, and I kind of feel like a dumbass. However, I´m learning A LOT and i think after two weeks of language classes I´ll be a lot more comfortable with the language.
Xela is a big city, lot´s of houses and business packed together with narrow volcanic stone streets busy with people, cars, and big chicken buses (old U.S. school buses used for chaotic public transportation). Green mountains rise sharply out of the city, and you can see volcanoes from many parts of the city. Here and in neighboring pueblas they grow vegetables that they export all over the place (probably Michigan, even). The weather is a lot like Michigan this time of year, cold at night (40´s?) and comfortable in they day. Apparently they have been getting a lot of rain, but it´s been sunny and warm the two days I´ve been here. The people here are very friendly and welcoming. I feel safe and essentially like I am a new person in any city in the world. I´m not a city person, so while I´m enjoying being here in the swirl of things, I´m excited to get on the road and be in smaller towns.
And that is my story thus far. I promise to keep y´all posted. ¡Hasta luego!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
the first step
i'm leaving leelanau county today ... the first leg of my journey. i have another couple hours of packing/cleaning to go and then i'm off to marquette for the night to pick up kendra and brent.
it's kind of weird .. i feel a little more sad and anxious than excited. transitions are hard, regardless of how fantastic or terrible the upcoming journey is expected to be. well, as coleen shared with me last night, the anxiety will build until i truly set off ... so hopefully that happens when i get on the plane sunday morning. regardless, i'm pumped. here i go .....
it's kind of weird .. i feel a little more sad and anxious than excited. transitions are hard, regardless of how fantastic or terrible the upcoming journey is expected to be. well, as coleen shared with me last night, the anxiety will build until i truly set off ... so hopefully that happens when i get on the plane sunday morning. regardless, i'm pumped. here i go .....
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
packing ...
i always, always, ALWAYS wait til the last second to pack. that's what i'm doing. i have this swirlynervousexcited feeling ... leaving home in a day and a half and will be in guatemala on a bus by this time 5 days from now. yikes.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
the beginning (or something like that)
a lot of y'all have expressed concern about not knowing what the heck i'm up to when i'm traveling. i figure the best way to keep everyone on the same page is like this. (i honestly detest the idea of a blog, but this is for you: mom and dad, kendra, jesse, elizabeth, kyle(s), dana, aunt missy, and lots of others that are worried. i love you). i'll do my best to keep it updated, i swear. you might even see a picture or two.
so i take off in 10 day ... leaving the county in a week to pick up my sister and brent in the u.p., then heading down to chicago to whoop it up family style before i fly out of o'hare at 6 am sunday, october 10. currently pulling together last minute things that i should probably have taken care of over the last month. last day of work at the riv ....
that's enough. jeez, this is weird.
so i take off in 10 day ... leaving the county in a week to pick up my sister and brent in the u.p., then heading down to chicago to whoop it up family style before i fly out of o'hare at 6 am sunday, october 10. currently pulling together last minute things that i should probably have taken care of over the last month. last day of work at the riv ....
that's enough. jeez, this is weird.
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