I apologize for the tardiness of this blog post. We arrived last night in Granada, Nicaragua and are staying for two days and three nights before we head to our next set of homestays in Playa Gigante. The city is beautiful and very historic – every street is lined with gorgeous Spanish architecture and vibrant colors. More to the point, I shall now reflect on the past week and our last days in Guatemala…
As we reluctantly move past the half way point in our journey, a bitter sweet feeling sets in as we realize that more time has passed than is left. I do not think a single on among us would disagree with my saying that this trip has already made a lasting impression on our lives, and the friends and new insights on life that this trip has afforded us thus far will remain in our hearts and minds forever. I for one, can hardly wait for what is still to come.
After leaving the rustic pueblo of Rocja Pomtil, we headed back to Coban for two nights in the same hostel we stayed in the prior weekend. On Saturday, we took a day trip to one of Guatemala’s most spectacular natural wonders, Semuc Champey. The day began with a few challenges as our bus got stuck in the fresh mud a few times on the narrow, winding mountain roads. Between all of the passengers on the bus and a few friendly locals, we successfully exuded the tires from the mud and made our way to the national park. Words can hardly describe the beauty of this Eden-like place. From what I understood, the area was formed in this valley by a river that flows both above and below the ground. Above, the crystal clear water glides down stream over a cascade of limestone pools, which are tranquil and deep enough to swim in. Many of us enjoyed jumping into the water from adjacent rocks and sliding down the natural water slides carved into the porous limestone by the slow moving river. After a few hours of swimming and exploring, we headed to a cave where we experienced another of Guatemala’s geological gems. Once we were sufficiently muddied with cave slime, we drove back to Coban to relax for the evening.
The following day, we travelled to another lakeside town called San Andrés. It is one of twelve small pueblos that surround the lovely Lago Peten Itza. We spent the week here living in homestays, attending language school during the day, and doing group activities in the afternoon. It was much warmer at this lower altitude and we finally got to enjoy wearing our summery attire. The lake offered refuge from the heat during the day as many of us went for a swim with our teachers during our mid-day breaks.
Monday afternoon, we learned about cooking food that is unique to this part of Guatemala. Tuesday, we took a small boat (or lancha) across the lake to visit an exotic animal reserve called Arcas. It is the only organization of its kind in Guatemala and it serves a very important purpose in rescuing indigenous animals from being traded on the black market. Arcas also strives to rehabilitate as many animals as possible so that they may one day return to the wild. Seeing these beautiful creatures behind bars and in cages did not sit well with everyone in the group, but I think we can all agree that their current situation is far and away better than the alternative. Aimee informed us of the statistic that only 4 out of every 10 of the animals traded on the black market survives being transported from seller to buyer as they are rarely properly taken care of. Wednesday, we ventured by bus to another national park to volunteer our services in the form of grounds maintenance. This is a very unique park because it serves, in part, as a memorial for those who died in a plane crash that occurred there over twenty years ago. That evening, we celebrated Halloween by getting into costume for a candle and moonlit group meeting held on the roof of a nearby abandoned house that sits partially in the lake. We even had a few celebrity apperances when Michael Phelps (aka Scott) swam up to the house, and Captain Underpants (aka Nic) posed for a few heroic photos. A few of us assumed the characature-ized identities of others in the group as I dawned Jai’s most eccentric hippie attire and she wore every pink thing of mine and some pearls. Aimee taped an assortment of the items lost by our beloved, yet forgettful, friend Ian to her blue and white Ian-esque outfit. Miranda and Hannah stealthily raided our leaders’ wardrobes and showed up in full on Nic and Aimee garb. Speaking of stealthy, we also had a ninja (Regina) in attendance, as well as a turtle (Alissa), an 80’s pop star (Robin), and a Native American (Ruby). And then there was the suave, mustached Guatemalan, Joél. In other words, Joel came as himself. And last but not least, we had a box (Ian), which we all took turns at punching repeatedly. Thursday afternoon, we took time to relax and explore the beautiful San Andrés community. Later in the evening, we accompanied a few of our maestros to the next town over, San José, to witness and take part in some of the local Day of the Dead traditions. These included kissing the three human skulls (don’t worry, they were ancient and therefore did not belong do anyone recently deceased) during mass, and subsequently following the parade of people around the town as they went from house to house with one of the skulls to perform a sort of ceremonial gesture at each abode. This parade went on for twenty four hours as they visited and ate a light meal with most of the families in the village. We only stuck around for the first two or so and then returned to our homes. Saturday, we wrapped up our time in Guatemala by visiting the ancient Mayan ruins in the city of Tikal, which is now both a Guatemalan national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We were all taken aback by the sheer magnitude of the ancient temples and pyramids that were so expertly built well over 1,000 years ago. We learned a great deal about the ancient Mayan culture and what is being done to preserve it today.
Although our time in Guatemala has now sadly came to an end, we eagerly embark on the next leg of our journey here in Nicaragua.
Until next week,
CAM MAYA Group 2012
Written by Sarah Lunsford