Guatemala: Day 2
This is Day 2 of my Guatemalan trip. Again, anything in [brackets] was not in the original entry, but is added for explanatory purposes. Just as a warning, I often abbreviate Guat for Guatemala:
Lots to write. First off, "Penelope" is actually Loraina -- go figure, I was a bit off. Had breakfast with the archy dudes, 2 Israelis, and a tall blond from Lancaster, PA. Her name was Tera - no fuck, I forgot her name, but I have her email somewhere. [I think I remembered her name later and filled it into the space I left for it.] She's going into special ed stuff and is going to some lang[uage] school in Chetaltenango or whatever. I should learn Guat city names. Anyway she doesn't know any Spanish, save the bare basics. We walked to the airport, exchanged money for just under 8 quetzales to a dollar. Rode the local bus for 1Q [quetzal]. Wanted to get off on 19th Ave, but ended up getting off on 9th, 10 blocks north. We made our way back down with a couple interactions. This is where I realized that I may not be fluent in Spanish, but I can sure get around town and hold decent conversations with people. One skanky dude walked up to us and asked if we were together [Tera and I]. Wrongly, I said no. So he asked if she was my sister. I told him yes, which wasn't good enough and he basically asked if I'd give her up so he could get his. [This was all done in Spanish.] Told him no and we walked on from there. We ran into other guys that wanted to give us rides. I told them we were just going to walk around town. The chic and I parted ways on 7th. Hopefully she found her destination, I can't imagine not knowing any of the language and getting around.
Me, I had to ask two people and wasted a half hr. before I found my bus stop. Some lady standing outside a barber shop gave me good directions. As I was getting there, this bus rolls by with a guy hanging out it yelling, "Antigua, Antigua!" I nod my head and the bus stops for me [in the middle of the road]. I get stares from everyone on the bus as I enter. I now know what its like to be black in the white-man's world. [Ok, that's cheesy, but it was the first time I was different from everyone around me.] I take the first available seat and watch how the Guat bus system works. You've got the bus driver who honks every 20 seconds and at the same time gets honked at. Then there's the recruiter that hangs out the door yelling the bus's destination as I previously described. He does this all through town with the bus driver stopping whenever somebody on the street gives a nod or wave. The recruiter hops off, lets the person on, then as the bus starts rolling again, he jumps back on. At certain points along the route the bus stops for a couple minutes allowing vendors to come aboard and sell their oranges or plantanos, newspaper, candy, etc. There's also the occasional handicapped beggar or mother with a fucked-up kid -- that person got more of a response than the blind man. [I didn't explain how these people would go up and down the bus aisle holding out a cup for change. As I said, the mothers with the poor, disfigured children got more tribute than just old, blind beggars.] Eventually when the driver gets tired of it, he starts rolling and the peddlers/beggars know their cue, and the recruiter hops back on [after those people get off]. This process goes on for the whole trip but more so within the first 20 miles or so of the 1 hour-15 minute trip. After this 20 mile-ish point, the recruiter collects 5Q [queztales, the equivalent of 65 cents or so]. A lot better than the $10 offered at Dos Lunas [my hostel]. Those buses, however, can get really packed.
Once in Antigua the recruiters responsibilities extend to running out infront of the bus and checking for traffic around tight corners. Then when that's done, he jumps on again.
Antigua was awesome. Much cleaner than "Guate" [that's what the natives call Guatemala City] as the recruiter on the return trip calls it. I guess there's restrictions on building codes and window size, etc, to keep the town looking genuine with that Spanish colonial flare. Which it definitely has. [I later figured out this was a historical district made under UNESCO]. It's narrow streets with houses/shops continually touching each other as one long building on a long block reminded me of Granada and Córdoba. The bright yellow, blues, and reds added to the effect. The city itself seems to be placed in a circular valley with volcanoes/mountains/hills encompassing it. One solitary volcano looms to the south, which I thought was the most picturesque.
Got dropped off at the market. Was totally disoriented. Thought north was east. Luckily some kid about my age on the dusty corner gave me some good directions. Walked through the market which was like a swap meet -- all crap. Was sad. So I walked into town and after seeing the "Merced" church I found Doña Luisa's place [Manuel's aunt]. I liked the ambiance: a patio with many a green plant around it. Two stories with a mezzanine, cool effect. I ordered the Tex-Mex, which was basically sloppy joe meat on a small crisp corn tortilla with lettuce, tomato, and onions with a side of sauce and chopped cucumber. Decent, I guess. Had some of the Doña's very own bottled water.
Left and walked all over town, that is after talking to Luisa, introducing myself as Manuel's friend. She told me some archaeology places to go, Capuchinas or whatever was kinda interesting, but not worth the $2.50. Checked out a textiles store with cool, brightly-colored blankets and clothes. Almost got a blanket, but didn't when I found out they didn't use cochineal [Cochineal is an insect that is mashed to create a red dye used in clothing.] They were allegedly hand-made however. The store also had some cool wood carvings -- skeletons, animals, saints, random dudes. Shot some pix there. Tried to find the Museo Colección 2000, but to no avail. Round a church south of it that was cool: Tall, vaulted ceilings with plumes of cloth hanging from the 50' ceilings, pulled against the wall and down the floor. Very pretty -- something I don't say a lot. Used the internet for 11 minutes, maybe 2 of it wasn't from waiting around for pages to load or cancel. Got out 2 quick emails to Meg. Asked directions from some hippie-looking guy on the corner in a coffee shop with grind-your-own beans. Looked cool, if you like coffee.
Got back on the bus to Guate. Saw a white chic. Said nothing until the fucking bus broke down maybe 5 miles out of Antigua. I guess it happens a lot. Everyone busted out and waited on the side of the road for more buses. [This was an almost immediate response, hence my comment that it seemed common.] People packed into the next one that came [not that there was really much room to begin with]. Some people were even hanging on the outside. Two buses and maybe 3 random pickups hauled people off with me and the white chic still standing around with maybe a dozen other people. We crammed onto the third bus. Got to talk to her a little. She's German, but I never caught her name. [She] Lived in Antigua for six months studying Spanish, bartending and working at the fire station. Four other months she was just kicking around Guatemala. We got to Guate bus stop. Unfortunately we were going in separate directions. She haggled the taxi driver down to 10 quetzales, I, although persistent, could not haggle with mine. 50 it was. (Haggled down 10 earlier when buying a shirt... good deal(?)) Had good conversation with the taxista [taxi driver, more efficient than the two words we use]. I understood probably 80% of his Spanish and he probably caught 90% of mine. The important part was that there was conversation... what I need. [What I remember of the conversation was where we somehow got onto the conversation of girls. He asked me if I like to have Russian-style sex. I didn't know what that meant so he made this motion up and down on his chest. I guess Russian sex is tit-fucking.]
Got back to Dos Lunas [the hostel I had already stayed at], met new guests. Three chix (Ever any guys? I'm not complaining...) First chic, Tera, a large-breasted girl from TN. Been around for three weeks in Guat and heading to Tikal at 6:30am tomorrow. The other two were traveling together. They've been going at it since March, starting in Guadalajara at a Spanish school. They went to Belize and southern Yucatan of Mexico. Now they're in Guatemala going to Antigua tomorrow night. I helped them out some, giving info I'd learned in my day trip.
Anyway. The more assertive one is Meg from Melbourne, Australia. We all four went to dinner together at a small place called Los Lagos [The Lakes] (I had lomito (steak)). While there, Meg seemed to be more interested in what the guy next to us was eating rather than talking to me. She has a strong personality, but she warmed up later when I was helping her plan her trip. The other chic Tiné (Tee-nee) short for Christina with a Spanish twist (I guess) is from NW Germany. Didn't catch the town, it was too German for my ears. She's been schooling in the Netherlands (cheaper than Germany) and knows English and Spanish as well as German, and I guess school is making her learn French too... We hit it off, while Tera and Meg did as well. She keeps saying "would- something", rather than just past tense. I think it's cute that she catches it and corrects herself. It's better than me, verb conjugation is where I'm the worst. I'm decent with vocab. A very nice girl, love the accent. Didn't sound like the other German chic's accent though, weird. She seemed really interested in me and offered for me to come to the museum tomorrow. Don't know if I'll have time, but I'll at least make the walk down there with them. She's never been to the US. As for Meg, she told me: Ayer's Rock in in BFE [middle of nowhere], kangaroo are like deer, they get hit on the road a lot, however their population is becoming a problem since they're protected, however they're becoming "farmed" and taste like cow. Thailand is Australia's Cancún. For vacation, Aussies do Thailand, Bali, Vietnam, Cambodia. Papua New Guinea is too dangerous.
Tiné told me how cool Europe is cuz 4 hours [of driving] = a different culture. Her town has the most vacationing people cuz the weather there sucks. I think I did a lot more talking with her because she was more interested in me, unlike Meg, who was also trying to plan their trip.
Other random shit: I was too scared to pull out the camera in Guate, my bad. I'd feel Japanese [I've gotten over this to a degree, and Americans are really just as bad anymore] and or scared for my camera's wellbeing. Same on the bus. Maybe in two weeks things will change. I want to get a pic of Campero: Guatemala's answer to KFC. Also here, Playstation = Funstation. About it for now.
-Saw 1 Native wearing shorts today out of thousands.
-There's some nice-ass cars here, as well as really shitty ones.
-A lot of nice cell phones too.
-Got "¡Gringo!" yelled at my back while in Antigua bus stop.
-I enjoy learning about other people's culture and country, especially those I can easily speak with.
-I know now why there are racial cliques in the US: people looking for some similar bond - here = whiteness = English = traveling foreign country = where am I going and how do I get there? = kindred spirit. [In a normal sentence structure, what I was trying to say was that when out in the city where you're completely lost, there is some instant bond of solidarity when you see a white person because they are more than likely to know English. They are also more likely to be in the same position as you are where you're not completely familiar with your current surroundings. Therefore there is an immediate bond, even before there is any interaction.]
Lots to write. First off, "Penelope" is actually Loraina -- go figure, I was a bit off. Had breakfast with the archy dudes, 2 Israelis, and a tall blond from Lancaster, PA. Her name was Tera - no fuck, I forgot her name, but I have her email somewhere. [I think I remembered her name later and filled it into the space I left for it.] She's going into special ed stuff and is going to some lang[uage] school in Chetaltenango or whatever. I should learn Guat city names. Anyway she doesn't know any Spanish, save the bare basics. We walked to the airport, exchanged money for just under 8 quetzales to a dollar. Rode the local bus for 1Q [quetzal]. Wanted to get off on 19th Ave, but ended up getting off on 9th, 10 blocks north. We made our way back down with a couple interactions. This is where I realized that I may not be fluent in Spanish, but I can sure get around town and hold decent conversations with people. One skanky dude walked up to us and asked if we were together [Tera and I]. Wrongly, I said no. So he asked if she was my sister. I told him yes, which wasn't good enough and he basically asked if I'd give her up so he could get his. [This was all done in Spanish.] Told him no and we walked on from there. We ran into other guys that wanted to give us rides. I told them we were just going to walk around town. The chic and I parted ways on 7th. Hopefully she found her destination, I can't imagine not knowing any of the language and getting around.
Me, I had to ask two people and wasted a half hr. before I found my bus stop. Some lady standing outside a barber shop gave me good directions. As I was getting there, this bus rolls by with a guy hanging out it yelling, "Antigua, Antigua!" I nod my head and the bus stops for me [in the middle of the road]. I get stares from everyone on the bus as I enter. I now know what its like to be black in the white-man's world. [Ok, that's cheesy, but it was the first time I was different from everyone around me.] I take the first available seat and watch how the Guat bus system works. You've got the bus driver who honks every 20 seconds and at the same time gets honked at. Then there's the recruiter that hangs out the door yelling the bus's destination as I previously described. He does this all through town with the bus driver stopping whenever somebody on the street gives a nod or wave. The recruiter hops off, lets the person on, then as the bus starts rolling again, he jumps back on. At certain points along the route the bus stops for a couple minutes allowing vendors to come aboard and sell their oranges or plantanos, newspaper, candy, etc. There's also the occasional handicapped beggar or mother with a fucked-up kid -- that person got more of a response than the blind man. [I didn't explain how these people would go up and down the bus aisle holding out a cup for change. As I said, the mothers with the poor, disfigured children got more tribute than just old, blind beggars.] Eventually when the driver gets tired of it, he starts rolling and the peddlers/beggars know their cue, and the recruiter hops back on [after those people get off]. This process goes on for the whole trip but more so within the first 20 miles or so of the 1 hour-15 minute trip. After this 20 mile-ish point, the recruiter collects 5Q [queztales, the equivalent of 65 cents or so]. A lot better than the $10 offered at Dos Lunas [my hostel]. Those buses, however, can get really packed.
Once in Antigua the recruiters responsibilities extend to running out infront of the bus and checking for traffic around tight corners. Then when that's done, he jumps on again.
Antigua was awesome. Much cleaner than "Guate" [that's what the natives call Guatemala City] as the recruiter on the return trip calls it. I guess there's restrictions on building codes and window size, etc, to keep the town looking genuine with that Spanish colonial flare. Which it definitely has. [I later figured out this was a historical district made under UNESCO]. It's narrow streets with houses/shops continually touching each other as one long building on a long block reminded me of Granada and Córdoba. The bright yellow, blues, and reds added to the effect. The city itself seems to be placed in a circular valley with volcanoes/mountains/hills encompassing it. One solitary volcano looms to the south, which I thought was the most picturesque.
Got dropped off at the market. Was totally disoriented. Thought north was east. Luckily some kid about my age on the dusty corner gave me some good directions. Walked through the market which was like a swap meet -- all crap. Was sad. So I walked into town and after seeing the "Merced" church I found Doña Luisa's place [Manuel's aunt]. I liked the ambiance: a patio with many a green plant around it. Two stories with a mezzanine, cool effect. I ordered the Tex-Mex, which was basically sloppy joe meat on a small crisp corn tortilla with lettuce, tomato, and onions with a side of sauce and chopped cucumber. Decent, I guess. Had some of the Doña's very own bottled water.
Left and walked all over town, that is after talking to Luisa, introducing myself as Manuel's friend. She told me some archaeology places to go, Capuchinas or whatever was kinda interesting, but not worth the $2.50. Checked out a textiles store with cool, brightly-colored blankets and clothes. Almost got a blanket, but didn't when I found out they didn't use cochineal [Cochineal is an insect that is mashed to create a red dye used in clothing.] They were allegedly hand-made however. The store also had some cool wood carvings -- skeletons, animals, saints, random dudes. Shot some pix there. Tried to find the Museo Colección 2000, but to no avail. Round a church south of it that was cool: Tall, vaulted ceilings with plumes of cloth hanging from the 50' ceilings, pulled against the wall and down the floor. Very pretty -- something I don't say a lot. Used the internet for 11 minutes, maybe 2 of it wasn't from waiting around for pages to load or cancel. Got out 2 quick emails to Meg. Asked directions from some hippie-looking guy on the corner in a coffee shop with grind-your-own beans. Looked cool, if you like coffee.
Got back on the bus to Guate. Saw a white chic. Said nothing until the fucking bus broke down maybe 5 miles out of Antigua. I guess it happens a lot. Everyone busted out and waited on the side of the road for more buses. [This was an almost immediate response, hence my comment that it seemed common.] People packed into the next one that came [not that there was really much room to begin with]. Some people were even hanging on the outside. Two buses and maybe 3 random pickups hauled people off with me and the white chic still standing around with maybe a dozen other people. We crammed onto the third bus. Got to talk to her a little. She's German, but I never caught her name. [She] Lived in Antigua for six months studying Spanish, bartending and working at the fire station. Four other months she was just kicking around Guatemala. We got to Guate bus stop. Unfortunately we were going in separate directions. She haggled the taxi driver down to 10 quetzales, I, although persistent, could not haggle with mine. 50 it was. (Haggled down 10 earlier when buying a shirt... good deal(?)) Had good conversation with the taxista [taxi driver, more efficient than the two words we use]. I understood probably 80% of his Spanish and he probably caught 90% of mine. The important part was that there was conversation... what I need. [What I remember of the conversation was where we somehow got onto the conversation of girls. He asked me if I like to have Russian-style sex. I didn't know what that meant so he made this motion up and down on his chest. I guess Russian sex is tit-fucking.]
Got back to Dos Lunas [the hostel I had already stayed at], met new guests. Three chix (Ever any guys? I'm not complaining...) First chic, Tera, a large-breasted girl from TN. Been around for three weeks in Guat and heading to Tikal at 6:30am tomorrow. The other two were traveling together. They've been going at it since March, starting in Guadalajara at a Spanish school. They went to Belize and southern Yucatan of Mexico. Now they're in Guatemala going to Antigua tomorrow night. I helped them out some, giving info I'd learned in my day trip.
Anyway. The more assertive one is Meg from Melbourne, Australia. We all four went to dinner together at a small place called Los Lagos [The Lakes] (I had lomito (steak)). While there, Meg seemed to be more interested in what the guy next to us was eating rather than talking to me. She has a strong personality, but she warmed up later when I was helping her plan her trip. The other chic Tiné (Tee-nee) short for Christina with a Spanish twist (I guess) is from NW Germany. Didn't catch the town, it was too German for my ears. She's been schooling in the Netherlands (cheaper than Germany) and knows English and Spanish as well as German, and I guess school is making her learn French too... We hit it off, while Tera and Meg did as well. She keeps saying "would- something", rather than just past tense. I think it's cute that she catches it and corrects herself. It's better than me, verb conjugation is where I'm the worst. I'm decent with vocab. A very nice girl, love the accent. Didn't sound like the other German chic's accent though, weird. She seemed really interested in me and offered for me to come to the museum tomorrow. Don't know if I'll have time, but I'll at least make the walk down there with them. She's never been to the US. As for Meg, she told me: Ayer's Rock in in BFE [middle of nowhere], kangaroo are like deer, they get hit on the road a lot, however their population is becoming a problem since they're protected, however they're becoming "farmed" and taste like cow. Thailand is Australia's Cancún. For vacation, Aussies do Thailand, Bali, Vietnam, Cambodia. Papua New Guinea is too dangerous.
Tiné told me how cool Europe is cuz 4 hours [of driving] = a different culture. Her town has the most vacationing people cuz the weather there sucks. I think I did a lot more talking with her because she was more interested in me, unlike Meg, who was also trying to plan their trip.
Other random shit: I was too scared to pull out the camera in Guate, my bad. I'd feel Japanese [I've gotten over this to a degree, and Americans are really just as bad anymore] and or scared for my camera's wellbeing. Same on the bus. Maybe in two weeks things will change. I want to get a pic of Campero: Guatemala's answer to KFC. Also here, Playstation = Funstation. About it for now.
-Saw 1 Native wearing shorts today out of thousands.
-There's some nice-ass cars here, as well as really shitty ones.
-A lot of nice cell phones too.
-Got "¡Gringo!" yelled at my back while in Antigua bus stop.
-I enjoy learning about other people's culture and country, especially those I can easily speak with.
-I know now why there are racial cliques in the US: people looking for some similar bond - here = whiteness = English = traveling foreign country = where am I going and how do I get there? = kindred spirit. [In a normal sentence structure, what I was trying to say was that when out in the city where you're completely lost, there is some instant bond of solidarity when you see a white person because they are more than likely to know English. They are also more likely to be in the same position as you are where you're not completely familiar with your current surroundings. Therefore there is an immediate bond, even before there is any interaction.]
Labels: guatemala diary
1 Comments:
kinda funny how so much of the Central American travel experience is the same no matter what country you are in, or who you are. Many of my stories resemble, as do so many of the stories I've heard from others...
Whenever I ride a bus at home anymore I am always sad at the lack of oranges for sale.
I would mind the smelly drunks a whole lot less if somebody would get on the bus selling oranges.
Amazingly though, I've never been propositioned randomly, or had my male travel companion propositioned on my behalf. Seems like every other person who has traveled down there has a story about that though...
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