Introduction to Guatemala

We arrived in Xela (aka Quetzaltenango), Guatemala yesterday by bus. We crossed the border out of Mexico at Cuidad Cuauhtemoc very smoothly and changed about $50 USD for Quetzals. We crossed our fingers that we would be able to get money from an ATM once getting into Xela. A scandal associated with Guatemalan bank (supposedly a US Senator was also involved) caused a loss of printed money, making it very difficult to get cash anywhere. Luckily the ATM in Xela was working, but you can only withdraw about $140 USD at a time.

After we bought our guidebook to Guatemala, I felt a little apprehensive about coming to Guatamela because there are all these warnings about crime, but after some discussions with our tour guide today, we are not quite so nervous as long as we take proper precautions. For example, in certain areas you need a guide/escort for hiking, you shouldn't be in certain areas after dark, etc. The guidebook also described the history of Guatemala, and I was suprised to learn of the atrocities committed against the people by the federal government, as recently as the early 1990s. There is still obvious vast corruption and poverty, and the pollution/litter is terrible. Anyways, despite all the bad stuff, the scenery has been beautiful, we are surrounded by volcanoes. The people are beautiful as well, the majority of the indigenous women still wear their traditional clothing and carry everything on their heads. I think we will have a good time here.

This morning we ate breakfast in a cute little cafe, the ceiling was the same height as Luke, must be a Mayan café!

We took a tour to two indigenous towns, one is a farm town, where there is one of the largest distributors of vegetables in central america. The soil is very rich and fertile due to its volcanic origins. It is very difficult to take photos of people here (same as in Chiapas) so we don't even bother, which is too bad, because the clothing is so colorful and fun! I took one shot today through our car window of 6 ladies in the back of a pickup, each wearing traditional clothing. We tried cushin, some sort of large peapod (1 foot long), where you take out the seeds and chew off the outer coating and then spit out the seeds. The part you eat is sweet and really tasty. We went to a ceremonial center, where they come to get spiritual and physical healing from the Mayan saint named San Simon. Lastly, we went to a hot spring on the slope of a volcano. Very relaxing!

Tomorrow we will get up early and take a chicken bus 3+ hours to Lake Atitlan and try to get to the town San Pedro on the lake. A chicken bus is nothing more than an old US school bus, often painted in bright colors, with a roof rack for luggage. Not too comfortable, but dirt cheap compared to the first class buses and tourist minivan shuttles. Plus, they are probably safer, because they are not really a target for highway armed robbers, compared to the tourist shuttles full of rich people.