I'm thinking that London, England was Part I, Europe (Greece and Spain) was Part II, and then after a month stop-over in the US, Central America is Part III. So, I'm on Part III of this world adventure and I am currently in Central America, San Pedro Guatemala to be exact. And very aware that I need to tell the stories I've left out in the last month or so...but for now - I'm sitting in The Buddha in this tiny lake-side village, having a pot of mint tea and watching the afternoon rainfall soak the botanical landscape that never had time to dry from last night. The mist has rolled in from Lake Atitlan and covers the green mountains in an eery and mystical way, and the locals walk about selling banana bread and nuts in baskets - sometimes carried on their heads. The village's dogs might find dry shelter for their nap, if they can be bothered to move. This is a place I've never fathomed before - could not have brought up in my imagination. The streets are so narrow that they feel like sidewalks, the brightly colored stucco buildings so close to the edges, it seems more like a path to walk down. They have bicycles, three-wheeled motor taxis, and motorcycles that effortlessly weave in and out of tourists and a few vans that brave the main roads - some rubbing paint against paint. I believe it's rainy season, hence the almost daily afternoon/evening rains, which means everything is damp but beautiful. The breeze is cool, and there are so many quaint little open-air cafes and restaurants that line the winding paths of the village.
Living with a family in a foreign-speaking land is something one should try to do - because in one swift moment you are completely thrown out of your comfort zone and into something real. I had a plate of black beans and tortillas for dinner last night, feeling very authentic, mumbled some spanish conversation, and generally waffled back and forth between feeling awkward and grateful. Thankfully my friend Helen is along for this adventure and we're staying together, each of us with our own room (something like a thin mattress with a sheet and blanket in a large room with one fluorescent lightbulb in the ceiling, damp stucco walls and tile floors). The bathroom is really an area with a curtain with a drain in the floor next to a toilet and a tiny sink - you don't close a door, you never walk barefoot, and you don't flush toilet paper. This is the real deal here in Guatemala.
Spanish school started today. For four hours I sat under a botanical canopy listening to birds and wildlife while my teacher attempted to bring forth all the years of spanish learned too many years ago. My brain hurts a bit - and I'm loving it. I'm determined to leave Central America in four months with some seriously good Spanish!
I've got until Sunday here in this beautiful paradise before Helen and I make our way to Belize. Flying into Guatemala City, I was dropped in Antigua for a few hours before my almost 4-hour journey to San Pedro. Antigua was lovely and big compared to this small village. Bright-colored buildings, dogs wandering, kids eating ice cream, volcano in the background, motorcycles driving recklessly, magenta colored flowers, cobblestone streets, and ancient buildings. The drive to San Pedro was like a carnival ride through the mountains and over pot-holes the size of small countries, and on slick pavement. Palm trees swayed next to pine trees, cows and donkeys grazed on the side of the road, random chickens darted around, trucks carrying too many pigs drove too fast, Latino women walked in their beautiful skirts in the rain, carrying baskets of goods on their heads while Latino men sat or stood in the back of pick-up trucks, some covered in tarps to stay dry. Graffiti competed with general destruction of the road-side buildings that appeared vacant and long-forgotton. Rocks and boulders lay strewn in the road from the mountainside and mudslides, and one had the sense that this is a place that "anything goes." The people seem friendly and flexible and generous and willing to deal with all of the gringos who have barely-there Spanish. I have a feeling this is going to be one special adventure.
Time to do my spanish homework...Hasta Luego!
No comments:
Post a Comment