Weeks 2-5: San Pedro La Laguna

Due to popular demand (a.k.a Kortni Durant) I have got myself into gear and assembled the next instalment of my blog. My week in Guatemala City ended quite abruptly. After over-indulging at my second 21st birthday celebration, which was Guatemalan-themed, I was awoken at approximately 8am. We had a 3-4 hour trip in the car on winding roads that were blocked off in many points and I was quite incredibly hungover and sleep-deprived. Candy, Andrea, Oliver, Jose, two German's and I all took the journey to Lake Atitlan. Candy's mother hired a 7-seat car to accommodate us and they all stayed at a hotel in Panajachel with me for the night, instead of me taking a bus on my own. They all claimed that they "wanted to go to Pana and hadn't been there in a long time", but I don't know how truthful this was. It is another example of how well I was treated and how friendly Candy and her friends are. After driving for about an hour or so, we stopped at a small restaurant to have breakfast. Apparently, this was the area where the mudslides occurred just two weeks later and caused the deaths of over 70 people.

After visiting the restaurant, we checked out some mayan ruins at a place called Tecpán. Unfortunately, at this stage my camera was out of action. We finally arrived in Panajachel, which is a small town on lake Atitlan. We walked around the town and that night went to Pana Rock Cafe, which was very fun. The next day we took the boat from Pana' to San Pedro, which is on the other side of the lake. The entire entourage walked with me to my new Spanish School and Candy even walked me to my new homestay and translated for me when I met the new family. I left my bags there and then we returned to the boat and crossed the lake to a neighbouring town called San Juan. After touring San Juan it was finally time for me to go to San Pedro and take the leap of faith and live by myself with no translators.

My first homestay was with a small family. There were the parents (Micaela and Aniceto) and two kids: a 4-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl. I also had an Australian roommate, who was from Melbourne and her American friend arrived a few days later. I had an early night and then began classes the next morning. I am studying at San Pedro Spanish School. I pay $90US a week for 4 hours of one-on-one lessons on weekdays. The cost of the homestay is $60US per week and they provide meals 3 times daily Monday-Saturday. The lessons are taught in a very peaceful setting and a laid-back atmosphere, which is conducive to learning. The teachers are all Mayans (indigenous Guatemalans), so Spanish is their second language. I believe this is quite helpful because they are fluent yet, they speak spanish a lot slower than a native speaker so it is easier for me to understand.

I spent about two weeks with Aniceto and Micaela. They are very friendly people. At first, I didn't know much Spanish at all so at the dinner table I was a passenger. I needed the Australian girl's assistance quite a lot to get through the conversations. When I arrived, something was lost in translation and I was asked what food I did not like. I tried to tell them seafood and for some reason my first few meals were quite ordinary. Apparently they thought I was a vegetarian (the other roommates were). So after two unpleasant meals, I made a point that I am not vegetarian. I first went out on a Wednesday night to La Playa bar. It is run by an English man, who downloaded a Rugby Union game between the All Blacks and the Springboks at the request of four New Zealand men. A few other students came along and I thought it was a good excuse to meet some new people, despite not liking rugby union. I went to the bar and saw that a bucket of 6 beers cost 50 Quetzales ($6.60 AUD), so I didn't need anyone to twist my arm. 

The following day the Kiwis, my roommates and I all hired kayaks and we paddled from San Pedro to San Marcos. It was a 6km round trip, which we did in 2 hours. It was pretty tiring but at San Marcos we got to jump off some rocks around 8 metres high into the lake. The kayaks cost a ridiculous 10Q/$1.25AUD per hour. After class on the friday, it was about 3pm and raining and my roommates were out. Naturally, I decided to head to the bar. It is low tourist season so the bar I went to was empty. It was just the bartender and I, but it was good to find out some information about the town. Currently there is an ongoing feud between some vigilante locals and the owners of some bars. The locals want the bars to close at 11pm rather than 1am. So lately, a lot of bars have been forced to oblige due to the locals showing up with police at bars. After a few hours, I went to another bar and met some people from all over the world: a couple from England, a French girl, a Brazilian girl and many Australians and Americans.

The next day was the birthday of one of Candy's friends. They all decided to go to Panajachel to celebrate. I took the boat accross the lake to return to Panajachel to meet them. They arrived at about 4pm and when they arrived, I realised it was going to be quite a good night. Everyone - excluding the driver - had been drinking during the 3-4 hour journey. One thing that I will never forget is the incessant singing "yo no quiero agua, yo quiero bebida" (I don't want water, I want alcohol), which is a line from Maldito Alcohol by Pitbull. We had a very good night yet again at the Pana Rock Cafe.

When I returned to San Pedro my roommates had left for Belize. At this point I realised I was in for some awkward dinners with my homestay family, who spoke no english. The Kiwis left the school also during the week and the numbers of the students decreased significantly to about 5 students. I became pretty good friends with an American named Aaron, who is studying Spanish before embarking on a trip to the Domincan Republic, where he will volunteer for 7 months. I didn't do much during the week after classes due to heavy rain. On the Thursday night, I made it to El Barrio. There I met a few students from the school and had some beer. We were at a more expensive bar, so I decided to buy the one litre beer bottles, which were about 25Q ($3.30).

On the friday night, I went out with a group of students (one Aussie bloke, two American girls and an American guy). We played some pool and decided to move on to another bar at about 10.30pm, however, I was horrified to find that all the bars were closed. Luckily, the Australian knew a taco shop, which sold beer. The American guy, the Aussie guy and I sat, shared stories, drank beer and ate tacos. For 3 tacos and 1L of beer, it was about $4. The next morning, I was awake at the god forsaken hour of 7am after getting to bed at about 2am. I was supposed to be catching a bus to Antigua, for a birthday celebration of another of Candy's friends. Unfortunately, due to torrential rain, there had been many mudslides in Guatemala, which resulted in the death of at least 70 people and the roads to Antigua were deemed to dangerous to travel. So I was stuck in San Pedro for the night and basically repeated the previous night. I was actually supposed to catch a bus to Mexico on the upcoming friday, however, as recommended by the President and my teacher, the roads would be too dangerous. I was actually somewhat relieved because I felt too nervous at this stage to travel to Mexico by bus alone because my Spanish is not of a high proficiency. I am going to Mexico in October or November instead.

On the monday the two American girls offered to cook dinner for myself and the other two guys. It was very nice. After a few beers and some nice tacos, I decided to call it a night because on the previous day I moved into my new host family and thought I should not make a terrible impression. The previous family was quite nice, but it is common to swap families for a more "diverse experience". Well, that was the excuse I used anyway after one cold shower too many.

Luckily the new family has hot water and I am willing to live in a room full of love hearts if it means I can have a warm shower. The new family is actually quite well off and the father is the principal of the local school. In fact, the first night I stayed here I stayed at the dinner table and talked to the father for 90 minutes, entirely in Spanish. I felt quite happy after that and I only did not understand one sentence, which I still have no idea about. I was also reminded of my own family when the eldest daughter arrived home late and was then interrogated over the latest expensive phone bill.

The next week was quite mundane: spanish classes 8am-12pm and then a siesta, facebook or homework. It was still raining constantly. However, my American friend, Aaron, took me to a hairdresser he had visited and I got a haircut for $2. He played some Oasis on the guitar while I got the haircut, which was quite an awesome experience. A couple of students and I went to a bar on the thursday night for a few quiet beers and some games of pool. We arranged to do this on the friday night again, but one of the Americans invited a Texan girl and a Canadian guy. The Canadian is quite a drinker, reminiscent of Tom Oman. After numerous games of pool, we went to another bar. Suprisingly, the bar stayed open until 12.30am despite the risk of vigilantes showing up. During that time, I began to talk to two Chilean women. Despite them speaking fluent English, I thought it was a great opportunity to practice some Spanish, and they were visibly impressed.

The two American girls that cooked for us on the monday night had mentioned the Cycle Messenger World Championships were in Panajachel on the upcoming weekend. Basically, we inferred that there would be a massive piss-up in Panajachel and the six of us that went drinking on the Friday decided to go. The next day at 1.30pm, we met at the Panajachel dock. The Canadian was reliably drinking rum and coke out of a bottle. Candy booked the hotel for us that we stayed in the previous two times I was in Pana. The events that transpired in Panajachel were what travelling is all about: spontaneity, amusement and memories. After watching some races, we began drinking (more seriously). We went to several bars and met many people. Coincidentally, I met an American girl that stayed in my current homestay house about a month ago. At around midnight, a group of us went to the lake and most people stripped down to their underwear and went for a dip. I decided not to because I thought I would stay with all of the valuables and finish my litre of beer.

The next day we woke up and went for a walk down the main street of Pana. Luckily I did not have a hangover because there was a parade of marching bands. The noise was almost intolerable, but it was good to see some authentic Guatemalan culture. We ventured towards the bicycle races and while doing so, came accross a shop that collapsed during the recent hurricanes in June. After that we were trying to find a place to cross the river, so we didn't have to backtrack to cross the bridge. Whilst doing this we heard some loud music playing. One of the Americans decided to investigate. Although I was a little reluctant at first, we were welcomed by a local band, who were jamming in their house. We sat down and listened to them play for quite a while and then left to see the beginning of the race. Rather than walk an extra kilometre or two, we took off our shoes and walked accross the river.

We caught the boat back to San Pedro after a weekend of perpetual drinking and walking. Today, I began my final week of study in San Pedro. It is one week longer in San Pedro than anticipated due to not being able to travel to Mexico, however, I am having a blast and don't want it to end. Next week I will depart for Antigua, where I will spend one month studying Spanish.

Week 1: Guatemala City

I decided to write a blog because I thought it would be more interesting and detailed than a brief facebook comment or a generic email. It will also act as a journal for myself, which should provide accurate details of my trip that I can read in the future to reminisce. After the incessant and mundane drinking that took place whilst I was on exchange in South Korea, the whole trip turned out to be quite a blur.

I must admit that in the days leading up to my departure from Australia I was excited, yet apprehensive. It is quite daunting not only to travel to a foreign country by yourself, but also to a country where your native (and only) language is not widely spoken. Not only that, but I am travelling to Central America, a region that has an unenviable reputation. So why did I decide to go there? Because during my time in South Korea I met many European polyglots and Latin Americans that were bilingual and I decided I wanted to learn another language, in an effort of self-actualisation. My anxiety, however, was eradicated shortly after landing.

I made it to Guatemala City after a horrid 30 hour commute from Brisbane Airport. The flight to LA was seemingly fast, which can be attested to a charasmatic and talkative Aussie chick who sat next to me and was keen to sink some beers despite them costing $7 each. After that, things went downhill. LA airport was atrocious: poorly organised, long queues, thorough customs checks and flight delays. Once I arrived in Guatemala I was suprisingly upbeat and energetic. Candy, whom I met whilst on exchange in South Korea and also stayed at my place when visiting Australia, and her brother, Andres, picked me up from the airport. Candy, her sister and I went to a Mexican restuarant that night at about 11pm despite the streets being eerily quiet and heavy rainfall.

There are a few things that I noticed about Guatemala at first:

1) There are barbed-wire fences everywhere. Houses resemble fortresses.

2) There are security/military/police at virtually every street corner armed with shotguns or rifles.

3) It is common for families to have a full-time maid, who live with them.

4) The Guatemalans are very short. I have encountered about 3 people that are of similar height to me, even after visiting several shopping centres.

My only responsibilities in the first week were to get out of bed, shower and go to bed. Candy had organised activities for virtually every minute of every day. The next day Candy, her sister, her sister's boyfriend Jose, their friend Oliver and I had a tour at the Gallo brewery. Gallo is the most famous beer in Guatemala. After the five of us acted somewhat interested in the brewing process we enjoyed some free "samples".

Next we trekked to Antigua, a touristic city in Guatemala. There we drank quite a lot and I was taught some Guatemalan drinking techniques. The following day Candy took me to some malls so I could buy some sunglasses. I also tried a "choco banano", which is a frozen banana completely dipped in chocolate and covered in 100s and 1000s and nuts. An afternoon session of 4-Kings followed and then the group of us went to an Australian bar called Rattle 'n' Hum. We met Guisela, who is another exchange student that I met in South Korea. She had also stayed at my house in Australia.

The following day I toured the city centre, which is allegedly one of the dangerous parts of the city. I toured museums and cathedrals and also saw the infamous Guatemala City sinkhole. We also managed to have some fun at a carnival, which was reminsicent of a school fete. We went down a slippery slide on potato sacks and shot pellet guns at targets to win prizes. Embarassingly, I was the only person to miss the first shot, which included Candy and her sister.

On the friday, we did some adventure sports such as flying fox, rockclimbing, and some high ropes obstacle courses. It was very fun. That night I went out for dinner with Candy's mum, whom is a very busy woman. In fact I had not seen her since the night I arrived and I felt very guilty considering she had offered a room, food and much more. So it was nice to have a meal at a restaurant with the family. After that we went to a very latin bar and I felt an obligation to learn salsa after feeling very out of place. I was offered to dance numerous times from the girls but due to my sobriety and inability to dance, let alone salsa, I declined.

The next day we spent a ludicrous amount of time looking for a shirt at the malls and came out empty handed. That night a second, Guatemalan-themed birthday party was arranged for me. It was good to see how the Latin people celebrate the occasion. There was a piñata and lots of Candy's family and friends came to celebrate. Two German students from Korea even made it, who made a detour from their Mexican holiday. It was a very loose, yet very enjoyable night.

Unfortunately, the next day I had to venture off to the location in which I would call home for the next three weeks and commence studying spanish. That was when reality sank in the fun and games would have to diminish a little. I had one of the best weeks of my life in Guatemala City. The people were so friendly and hospitable, I was quite sad that I was leaving. Candy had been an excellent host and before I knew it, the week was over.