All these things that I've done

First of all, happy birthday to my brother (today) and my mom (yesterday)!

Hmmm, the things that I've been up to (besides missing you all, of course!). Climbin' up volcanoes, bathing in hot mineral waters, getting pelted with flour and eggs during Carnival...you know, the usual!

Needless to say, the Spanish lessons are going well, and I am having a lot of fun in Xela and its surrounds. I'm still feeling awkard about communicating in Spanish, but it is coming along. I am finally learning the past tense (well, the simple one, anyway) this week, so I'll be in better shape as the weeks pass...er, I hope.

One of the first things I did when I got to Xela (besides being drowned in daily Spanish lessions) was do a day hike up to the Volcano Lake Chicabal with some other kids from my school. Now for those who have climbed cathedrals and Great Walls with me before, you know that I am just a climbing fool! Well, this was pretty tough for me! It was 3 hours uphill (um, like 30+ degree angle?), and I was hurting pretty bad for a couple days afterwards. As in, it hurt to take a step. Ow ow OWEEE. Anyway, it was worth it though! You can see what I mean...


The view above was from a lookout point...because, after you hike uphill for 3 hours, of course you must climb down a HUGE flight of stairs to reach the actual lake. SIGH. Anyhoo, it was nice, despite the pain.


In fact, here's a picture of me looking slight delirious as I climbed down the stairs. At least the view is nice.


The waters of Lake Chicabal are considered sacred to the Mayans. A lot of locals leave offerings in the lake for their ancestors and recently deceased family members. In light of such information, I assumed that no swimming was allowed.


In order to avoid the 3 hour hike down from the lake, we hitched a ride in the back of a pickup truck for Q$2 (US$0.26). FOURTEEN GROWN PEOPLE in the back of a pickup truck. I felt very close to my classmates. :) Actually, we look quite comfortable in this photo, but that may be because you cannot see the other half of the group crammed into the back. At the time I was taking this photo, the jagged edge of the pickup door was rammed into my back, and some firewood was scraping against my leg. All this as we speeded down a mountain road...driven by a 12 year-old (YES!). On the way down, we ran over a kid's orange (probably the only source of vitamin C that this poor, mountain village boy was receiving all week) and a dog (the dog survived). In restropect, very fun...at the time, an extremely harrowing experience!


No other reason for the inclusion of this picture other than the fact that I just love it. It was taken at a little tienda that sold drinks and snacks along the hike.


After we got back to Xela from Lake Chicabal, I had the pleasure of attending my first real Latin American football game. It was fun! The home team, Xelaju MC kicked Antigua's ass 3-0. I finally learned the off-sides rule from my schoolmates. Adding to the excitement was that it was the 64th birthday of the Xelaju MC team that day, so there was a nice, albeit very dangerous, display of fireworks. Hey, did you know it is perfectly acceptable to shoot fireworks into the field during Guatemalan football matches? Whee! The whole experience was just very, very divertido (fun).

In another trip arranged by the school, I went to the Aguas Armagas (Bitter Waters) hot springs in the mountains of Zunil, just outside of Xela. It was great!


There is first an outside pool filled with warm natural waters, heated by the hot springs. It is really refreshing and wonderful. The backdrop of the mountains is not too bad either...


After the refreshing dip in the warm pool, my friend, Jenny, and I decided to brave the private, super caliente baths, filled with extremely hot waters. As it looks like above, the bath was in a little shack that had a natural rock/stone tub. The initial entry into the bath was like being cooked like a chicken, but after the suffocating shock of the heat, it's really quite nice! Jenny and I nearly passed out, but it was quite nice for getting rid of my pains from the volcano lake hike!


Ah, and then there was Carnaval (Fat Tuesday). Apparently, the tradition in Guatemala is not collecting beads, but having eggs smashed against your head. Um, yeah. Luckily, most of the time, the eggs are actually just empty, decorated shells (cascarones, I think?). My friends and I walked through the night market during Carnaval and discovered the downsides of being a traveling troupe of gringos - namely, you are the prime targets for being pummeled by eggs (both empty and RAW), flour, and confetti. I felt like an unbaked cake by the end of the night. At the time, not such a fun experience...in retrospect, amusing!


One day after being pummeled by flour, I visited a medical clinic just outside of town, Primero Pasos, which provides basic medical care to kids who live in the nearby mountains (think Appalachia here). They do some great work. If any of you are looking for a volunteer opportunity in Xela or a (tax-deductible) way to donate to a worthy cause, I encourage you to check out potential opportunities with the clinic at www.psiguatemala.org or www.primeropasos.psiguatemala.org. Feel free to contact me, too, if you have any questions, and I can put you in touch with the right people.


And, just today, I took a little day trip with my friends to climb up to a kind of public park up in the hills behind Xela. The park is called Baul and offers a great view of the city.

Guatemala is rockin' so far.