Guatemala is my new favorite port! The most recent port is always the best. It was also our last port. I definitely recommend a trip to Guatemala for a not-too-far-away vacation. Guatemala is the size of Louisiana with a population of 13.7 million. There is 1 police officer per 1400 people; NYC has 1 per 400 people. Because of the considerable poverty we were advised to be especially on guard to protect ourselves & our belongings. Guatemalans rely on tourism for income &tourism with tourism down violence is up. The current president who was elected by the indigenous population is working on decreasing poverty. One thing they are doing is paying families to send their children to school. Children are expected to work so sending them to school reduces family income. This model has led to some success in increasing school attendance.
In the 1950’s Arbenz was the President. He moved to nationalize the land. This was during the Cold War and smacked of Communism to the US. Further an American company, the United Fruit Company owed 70-80% of the land there. In 1954, Eisenhower wanted Arbenz out of office. The US bombed Guatemala and killed 20,000 people. A dictatorship remained in place for the next 20 years. From the mid-80s to the mid-90s Guatemala went through its own civil war. We saw a church where people took refuge during that time & also artwork commemorating the violence & suffering of those years.
We had only three days in Guatemala & managed to make the most of them. Two of us planned the trip for seven people. We had drivers to take us on all legs of the trip which was easy to arrange & clearly the best way to travel. It took us 3½ hours to get from Puerto Quetzal to Panajachel, a village in the highlands. We stayed at the lovely little Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan. Three volcanoes surround the lake, Atitlan, San Pedro & Toliman. We enjoyed lunch on the open patio, did some walking, strolling the beautiful gardens, swimming in the pool, using the hot infinity tub & finally margaritas. Dinner was in town at Casablanca, owned by German expats. The night continued with cards and bourbon & then to bed.
Day 2 started with huevos rellenos on the patio & then we walked only 5 minutes down the drive to the Atitlan Nature Reserve where we adventured on the zip-line, Cables X-tremos. We hiked up to the first station & then zipped across the reserve from the eight stations. The longest run was 320 m & lasted 45 seconds. We loved the views of the land & the lake, the height & the speed. Great time! After that we hired an outboard to boat about 30 minutes across the lake to 2 different villages, Santiago & Santa Catalina. Our driver walked us through Santiago & recommended Restaurante El Pescadores for lunch. We saw the local church that I mentioned above. We went into a back alley Mayan church where one man was praying while kneeling & smoking to a mannequin icon of their god, who was also smoking, or at least holding a lit cigarette. The man in prayer had an intermediary who was helping him to express himself in the proper manner. Other people were in the room, some eating, some collecting donations from viewers & photographers. It seemed a bit of a tourist set up; we thought they were already conducting their worship there but did not object to raising some funds from spectators. See the photo of this unique experience.
Our group split up late in the afternoon Hóg & the ship doctor & her husband went back to Puerto Quetzal. Hóg was going on a one day trip to Antigua on day 3 & the doctor was scheduled to be on call that day. The other 4 of us went to Chichicastenango, an hour farther into the highlands. A couple in the group had spent time in Panama & Guatemala in the 70’s & wanted to see some of their former favorite places. We checked into Hotel Santo Tomas & then walked through town. We had a drink at the Mayan Inn where they had stayed years ago but they were disappointed that it was not as active & attractive as they remembered it. However, the same bartender was still working there! We went back to our hotel for wine & dinner and finished the night with more cards & bourbon. Chichicastenango is known for its huge market that draws people from 60 area villages. The market area bordered our hotel. After breakfast on day 3 we spent the morning hours in the market. Very few westerners were there; the market was filled with indigenous people in local garb. Bargaining is second nature to us now but sometimes you have to stop yourself when you are trying to get down 1 more dollar (8 quetzales) with someone who is relying on this small income for handmade work. A large part of the market area was filled with vendors selling local handicrafts. Some areas featured vegetables, meats & live chickens for sale. I could not resist a few more purchases in our last port. The trip back to the ship took us through many agricultural areas where all work was still done by hand.
While Lisa was gallivanting about the countryside, I was hard at work trying to graduate on time. On day 3, I went on a Mayan Calendar Divinatory Workshop, an SAS trip that was the culmination of my class on calendars, their math, history & culture. The lecturer, Vincent Stanzione, has written several books on the subject & Mayan culture. He speaks Spanish & several of the local languages including Mayan, Nahuatl & Yucatecan. The Mayan calendar is their genesis story & when you understand their calendar you are close to understanding their culture & their way of thinking. He explained the significance of human sacrifice & cannibalism in their culture. We talked some of the significance of your birthdate & how it effects what you will be in life. I find this fascinating stuff. Later we had some free time to wander Antigua, a charming city that once was the capital. Apparently it is fine during the day but several students were crime victims while out at night. Boo-hoo! Our last port is now history.
As we move on to the Panama Canal we are wondering about the growing swine flu pandemic, locally known as la grippa porcina.
In the 1950’s Arbenz was the President. He moved to nationalize the land. This was during the Cold War and smacked of Communism to the US. Further an American company, the United Fruit Company owed 70-80% of the land there. In 1954, Eisenhower wanted Arbenz out of office. The US bombed Guatemala and killed 20,000 people. A dictatorship remained in place for the next 20 years. From the mid-80s to the mid-90s Guatemala went through its own civil war. We saw a church where people took refuge during that time & also artwork commemorating the violence & suffering of those years.
We had only three days in Guatemala & managed to make the most of them. Two of us planned the trip for seven people. We had drivers to take us on all legs of the trip which was easy to arrange & clearly the best way to travel. It took us 3½ hours to get from Puerto Quetzal to Panajachel, a village in the highlands. We stayed at the lovely little Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan. Three volcanoes surround the lake, Atitlan, San Pedro & Toliman. We enjoyed lunch on the open patio, did some walking, strolling the beautiful gardens, swimming in the pool, using the hot infinity tub & finally margaritas. Dinner was in town at Casablanca, owned by German expats. The night continued with cards and bourbon & then to bed.
Day 2 started with huevos rellenos on the patio & then we walked only 5 minutes down the drive to the Atitlan Nature Reserve where we adventured on the zip-line, Cables X-tremos. We hiked up to the first station & then zipped across the reserve from the eight stations. The longest run was 320 m & lasted 45 seconds. We loved the views of the land & the lake, the height & the speed. Great time! After that we hired an outboard to boat about 30 minutes across the lake to 2 different villages, Santiago & Santa Catalina. Our driver walked us through Santiago & recommended Restaurante El Pescadores for lunch. We saw the local church that I mentioned above. We went into a back alley Mayan church where one man was praying while kneeling & smoking to a mannequin icon of their god, who was also smoking, or at least holding a lit cigarette. The man in prayer had an intermediary who was helping him to express himself in the proper manner. Other people were in the room, some eating, some collecting donations from viewers & photographers. It seemed a bit of a tourist set up; we thought they were already conducting their worship there but did not object to raising some funds from spectators. See the photo of this unique experience.
Our group split up late in the afternoon Hóg & the ship doctor & her husband went back to Puerto Quetzal. Hóg was going on a one day trip to Antigua on day 3 & the doctor was scheduled to be on call that day. The other 4 of us went to Chichicastenango, an hour farther into the highlands. A couple in the group had spent time in Panama & Guatemala in the 70’s & wanted to see some of their former favorite places. We checked into Hotel Santo Tomas & then walked through town. We had a drink at the Mayan Inn where they had stayed years ago but they were disappointed that it was not as active & attractive as they remembered it. However, the same bartender was still working there! We went back to our hotel for wine & dinner and finished the night with more cards & bourbon. Chichicastenango is known for its huge market that draws people from 60 area villages. The market area bordered our hotel. After breakfast on day 3 we spent the morning hours in the market. Very few westerners were there; the market was filled with indigenous people in local garb. Bargaining is second nature to us now but sometimes you have to stop yourself when you are trying to get down 1 more dollar (8 quetzales) with someone who is relying on this small income for handmade work. A large part of the market area was filled with vendors selling local handicrafts. Some areas featured vegetables, meats & live chickens for sale. I could not resist a few more purchases in our last port. The trip back to the ship took us through many agricultural areas where all work was still done by hand.
While Lisa was gallivanting about the countryside, I was hard at work trying to graduate on time. On day 3, I went on a Mayan Calendar Divinatory Workshop, an SAS trip that was the culmination of my class on calendars, their math, history & culture. The lecturer, Vincent Stanzione, has written several books on the subject & Mayan culture. He speaks Spanish & several of the local languages including Mayan, Nahuatl & Yucatecan. The Mayan calendar is their genesis story & when you understand their calendar you are close to understanding their culture & their way of thinking. He explained the significance of human sacrifice & cannibalism in their culture. We talked some of the significance of your birthdate & how it effects what you will be in life. I find this fascinating stuff. Later we had some free time to wander Antigua, a charming city that once was the capital. Apparently it is fine during the day but several students were crime victims while out at night. Boo-hoo! Our last port is now history.
As we move on to the Panama Canal we are wondering about the growing swine flu pandemic, locally known as la grippa porcina.
We must talk about the Guatemala experience at some point!
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