The Explorer to Self: Get Lost!!
A man that they refer to as "The Cowboy" picked me up at my hotel and we were off in his pickup truck. His name is Don Vicente, an older man, and he certainly wore a cowboy hat. We had a bit of a delay because a truck carrying massive amounts of bottled beverages - beer, water, soda, etc had swerved and spilled tons of it on the highway. People in droves were collecting them...it was like winning the lottery! We had lunch in a town called Zacapa - Chinese food of all things! It wasn't bad at all! Gualtemalpecs apparently really like their Chinese food. Finally we reached the office and it was really nice. I'll explain who works there and everything another day. The best parts are that there is wireless internet and a laboratory to classify the coffee into different aromas and flavors. Lucky me! I get to try out the best Guatemalan coffees!
During the week I really had to concentrate hard to understand the constant barage of Spanish. It's so tiring being immersed in the language but I was really eager to improve and expand the vocabulary. I put a lot of pressure on myself to understand the coffee industry and learn about the organization. I also realized that week how much they appreciated me. They bent over backwards (well besides not picking me up at the airport) to ensure I have everything I need and seemed anxious for me to help their organization become sustainable and profitable. Gulp! I felt a lot of pressure to perform well! More about that later too.
Since there's nothing to do in my little village out in the boonies, I've really looked forward to escaping on the weekends and explore the country and region. It's great to travel with friends of course but it's cool to go off and explore on your own once in awhile. You set your own timetable and you can be as lazy or ambitious as you want! There is also the thrill of the unknown. You need to figure out how to get there, arrange where to stay, and figure out how to get back. It takes a lot of energy!
So I decided to visit Antigua because I heard amazing things about the town. It's a beautiful colonial town with many ruins of delapitated churches that were destroyed by earthquakes and volcanoes. It was at some point the capital of Guatemala before they had to move it. Guatemala has 30 volcanoes and 3 active ones. When I heard that you can climb one of these active volcanoes, I knew I had to make it my first destination.
Boy, was it an exhausting trip! Woke up at 5ish in the morning on Saturday, hopped on a bus and rode 4 1/2 hours to the capital, then took a taxi to another station, hopped on a 'chicken bus' for 2 hours, and finally arrived in Antigua and it was HOT. I settled into a really nice hotel , walked around the town snapping pictures, buying really nice jewelry and other stuff, and then I saw 'Brokeback Mountain' at this special cinema-dinner deal. What a great movie! Fabulous acting! Then the next morning I woke up at 5ish yet again and met up with the tour group to go to Volcan Picaya. I met a very nice Welsh girl on the street and a group of gringos came up and joined us. There was a Guatemaltec in the midst of the group and he told us that there were 2 guys on the corner who he knows are theives and he said 'don't worry...I have a gun.' Whaaaat?!? You have a whaaaat?! Well thank goodness there was no need for a confrontation as the 2 guys walked away. Finally, on another bus as we were approaching the launching area for the hike, one of the tires blew out....but we keep right on truckin! We make it thankfully and on the hike I meet Mark and his son, Will. They're both in Antigua for the week taking Spanish classes. The kid is 14 and taking Spanish and the dad told him to study during the summer and the reward is to go to Guatemala. That's cool! I'm SO going to do that one day if I have kids!
We get back around 1PM and I dread the long journey back so I walk around a little bit more and go shopping for a bit. Relunctantly I head back and I arrive in my little village safe and sound but exhausted at 8:30PM. I resolve I need to take trips that are closer to me cuz my ass just can't take it no more!!!
Check out the pics from my weekend to Antigua and Volcan Picaya below:
http://picasaweb.google.com/caroliciouschan/AntiguaAndVolcanPicaya
During the week I really had to concentrate hard to understand the constant barage of Spanish. It's so tiring being immersed in the language but I was really eager to improve and expand the vocabulary. I put a lot of pressure on myself to understand the coffee industry and learn about the organization. I also realized that week how much they appreciated me. They bent over backwards (well besides not picking me up at the airport) to ensure I have everything I need and seemed anxious for me to help their organization become sustainable and profitable. Gulp! I felt a lot of pressure to perform well! More about that later too.
Since there's nothing to do in my little village out in the boonies, I've really looked forward to escaping on the weekends and explore the country and region. It's great to travel with friends of course but it's cool to go off and explore on your own once in awhile. You set your own timetable and you can be as lazy or ambitious as you want! There is also the thrill of the unknown. You need to figure out how to get there, arrange where to stay, and figure out how to get back. It takes a lot of energy!
So I decided to visit Antigua because I heard amazing things about the town. It's a beautiful colonial town with many ruins of delapitated churches that were destroyed by earthquakes and volcanoes. It was at some point the capital of Guatemala before they had to move it. Guatemala has 30 volcanoes and 3 active ones. When I heard that you can climb one of these active volcanoes, I knew I had to make it my first destination.
Boy, was it an exhausting trip! Woke up at 5ish in the morning on Saturday, hopped on a bus and rode 4 1/2 hours to the capital, then took a taxi to another station, hopped on a 'chicken bus' for 2 hours, and finally arrived in Antigua and it was HOT. I settled into a really nice hotel , walked around the town snapping pictures, buying really nice jewelry and other stuff, and then I saw 'Brokeback Mountain' at this special cinema-dinner deal. What a great movie! Fabulous acting! Then the next morning I woke up at 5ish yet again and met up with the tour group to go to Volcan Picaya. I met a very nice Welsh girl on the street and a group of gringos came up and joined us. There was a Guatemaltec in the midst of the group and he told us that there were 2 guys on the corner who he knows are theives and he said 'don't worry...I have a gun.' Whaaaat?!? You have a whaaaat?! Well thank goodness there was no need for a confrontation as the 2 guys walked away. Finally, on another bus as we were approaching the launching area for the hike, one of the tires blew out....but we keep right on truckin! We make it thankfully and on the hike I meet Mark and his son, Will. They're both in Antigua for the week taking Spanish classes. The kid is 14 and taking Spanish and the dad told him to study during the summer and the reward is to go to Guatemala. That's cool! I'm SO going to do that one day if I have kids!
We get back around 1PM and I dread the long journey back so I walk around a little bit more and go shopping for a bit. Relunctantly I head back and I arrive in my little village safe and sound but exhausted at 8:30PM. I resolve I need to take trips that are closer to me cuz my ass just can't take it no more!!!
Check out the pics from my weekend to Antigua and Volcan Picaya below:
http://picasaweb.google.com/caroliciouschan/AntiguaAndVolcanPicaya
posted by Chica Chan @ 9:44 AM
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