Celas Maya Spanish School, First Session

Jan 20, 2019.  

• Zip lining at a coffee plantation.  Actually kind of fun: 9 lines criss-crossing a valley studded with coffee plants.  Brought some back for my family.

• Attended a local football (soccer) match.  Crowd was crazy wild.

Jan 21, 2018. 

Tough hike up a steep, rocky path to La Muele (The Hill).  My balance sucks, and walking without poles was tough, but I managed, and it was fun getting to know the three tourist police who accompanied us.  The ended up singing a song in my honor, entitled “Tio Sam”.

Jan 22, 2018. 

Visited Salcajá.  It’s Iglesia de San Jacinto, dating from 1524, and complete with a Black Christ, is the oldest Christian temple in Central America.  Also stopped for a tasting of its Caldo de Fruta, a high-octane sangria, made from combining nuances, peaches, apples and pears, and fermenting them for six months or so.  I bought some for my family, as well as a bottle of the other town specialty, Rompopo, made from rum, egg yolks, sugar and spices.

Jan 23, 2018. 

Saw the very graphic and unsettling film Desierto, about some undocumented folks trying to cross into the US illegally.  The lead was Gael García Bernal, who also starred in The Motorcycle Diaries.  

Jan 24, 2018. Home of Erick & Nicolasa Coti

Afternoon at the Eco-Sauna Las Cumbres, where I was unable to last for longer than a half minute in the volcano-heated fumes.  Then attended the Guatemalan premier of the Guatemalan film 500 Años, La Vida en Resistencia.  I couldn’t understand much, but the local crowd loved it, and gave it a standing ovation at the end.  An important film for this war-torn country.

Jan 27, 2018.  

Climbed Volcan Santa Maria with a dozen or so fellow Spanish students, eight hours up and down, a little rough but no harm done.  Lots of locals on top, praying and singing.  Some were women who had climbed with babies on their backs, flowers in their arms, and sandals on their feet.  Saw (and heard) Volcan Santiaguito fuming away for a few minutes before clouds 

Jan 28, 2018.  

Bike ride to two pueblos: San Andrés Xecul (with its colorful facade), and Salcaja (again).  Took a bus part way back, with the bikes on top, because of the traffic.

Jan 29, 2018. 

• My fourth and last week at school.  Mixture of sadness and excitement at joining Caren and seeing Serenity for the first time.  Taking it easy with my Español (as is my teacher Claudia).  We’ve already had an outing to the best coffee shop in town (I will buy some for the boat later in the week), and another is planned for later in the week.  

• Serenity is causing problems with her water maker, battery bank, and dinghy winch, and matters have not been helped by her crew jumping ship while Caren was in California, taking some stuff with him.  Ah, the boating life...

Jan 30, 2018.  

Great movie at school: “Voices...?” About the 40 year war between the government (supported by the US army and the CIA, during the Reagan administration) and the guerrillas in El Salvador: 40,000 killed or disappeared, countless others fled to Mexico and the US, where many have become gang members unfortunately.

• Gave my family a bottle of Rompopo (rum plus egg whites and spices, exclusive product of Salcajá), and a photo album of all family members except Bruce the puppy.  Very much appreciated.

Jan 31, 2018.  

Mid-morning presentation of the guerrilla war in Guatemala by one of the officials in charge of gathering evidence of the atrocities committed, including exhuming remains of women and children killed during the war.  The good news is that a Peace and Reconciliation process was instigated and has been (and continues to be) largely successful.  They’ve even put some army dudes in prison, and an ex-president, currently in jail on corruption charges, will face charges once his jail time is finished.

Feb 1, 2018. 

Morning outing with Claudia my wonderful Professora to buy two pounds of coffee at Tostaduria Grano de Café.  She later gave me a graduation present of a big fat bar of chocolate.  Then a special dinner for me at my family’s.  Lovely, lovely people.  I already miss them.

Feb 2, 2018.  

Graduation day.  The four of us who are leaving were presented with graduation certificates, and I gave a little extemporaneous speech in Español.  Four weeks, five hours a day, a total of 100 hours.  I can just barely speak, and am hardly able to understand native speakers unless the slow way down, but it’s a start.  I’d like to get another 2-3 months under my belt.  

Feb 3, 2018.  En route to Grenada

A final (special) breakfast, then goodbye to the family.  I cried, of course.  Walked to the zoo, which was pretty awful but had a lot of locals, mainly women in their traditional outfits relaxing on the grass with kids, then walked on to the bus station.  Four hours on a very nice bus ($10) next to a lovely young law student (I had enough courage to initiate the conversation- with “Estudio o Trabajo” of course), past Lago Atitlan and Volcan San Pedro, to Guatemala City.  Taxi to the airport.  I am 7 hours early (!) and the airport is almost empty.  But I have my Kindle, and I am enjoying this break between Guatemala and Grenada.