Epilogue

The last three months in Guatemala (June, July and August) were set aside to write, for me. I successfully finished my second draft the night before we headed back to the states. It was surreal and painful saying goodbye to Lake Atitlan. We were blissfully happy in the cottage in Panajachel. The tortillaria two doors down, the market down the block -all the sights and sounds of Lake Atitlan day in and day out.
But life goes on, right? Sal suggested that when we leave -inevitable, even if disappointing- we might head for his hometown in Georgia. Seemed like a good opportunity to get to know my in-laws and re-immerse in the mainstream U.S. culture. Unfortunately we soon found ourselves all out of money, in a job market that has almost no opportunities and stuck out in the Atlanta burbs where it seems all anyone ever does is get drunk and make babies. Neither of which interest us at the moment.
Life has it's ups and downs. Living on the lake in Guatemala was a heavenly up. One we shall never forget. Being stuck here in Georgia is an inevitable down. One we'll get over, in time. Now I'm busy editing and rewriting my book while Sal's building his art portfolio, gaining new web design skills. His family is nice enough, and his youngest sister, Vanessa, is kind enough to let us co-adopt her puppy while she prepares for the irresponsible rush of late-teens/early adulthood. So, if nothing else, the fact that we finally have a puppy must be the universe's way of telling us we're on the right track.
We often lean back and reflect on the beauty we'd left behind in Guatemala. The warm winds, the fresh rains and the kind people. I know we'll go back there someday. The time we spent there was restful, the rejuvenation we need to complete the next phase of our lives and propel ourselves through both the mundane and the bullshit of everyday life. With any luck we'll accomplish our goals, find a comfortable place to make a home base, have a happy family and together explore this universe we're so constantly enthralled by and in love with. Wherever we go, Sal and I know we take our home with us. We carry love, comfort and serenity around like a light within us -a beacon and a sign that all the best cliches can and do come true.

June 22, 2009 The Place of the Voices

On Friday we got on a shuttle at about 4:00pm here in Panajachel and set out for Tikal National Forest. For anyone who hasn’t heard of Tikal or doesn’t know about its wonders: do yourself the favor of looking into the details! I’ll tell you this: it’s one of the largest sites of ruins in this hemisphere; it consists of hundreds of buildings, of which only a few dozen have been excavated. There’s six pyramids and one grand acropolis, which two pyramids look over and many other large structures have been excavated. This city is ancient (architecture dates to 4th Century B.C., says Wikipedia) and at one point in history, the population left or died and the entire city became one with the jungle, and that’s how they found it again when a team finally set out to excavate, only in the past five or so decades. It’s amazing.
We had to take a shuttle to Guatemala City to board an all-night bus for the twelve-hour ride to Flores, the city nearest to the ruins, because Tikal is deep in the jungles of Northern Guatemala. Flores is a city on an island in the middle of a big lake, about an hour from Tikal. The park itself is real jungle, full of tall trees, swinging vines, snakes, monkeys, birds, a crocodile (just one, apparently) and a jaguar (just one, apparently).
The bus ride was all right on the way there, because the bus was incredibly luxurious. It was a double-decker bus, and our seats were up top. The seats were soft leather and reclined, but the best part was this little rectangular cushion attached to the seat in front of you, that you pull down and slide your legs over and it’s like a recliner. It’s very comfortable! I slept all right on that bus, as far as sleeping on a bus goes. But they had the air conditioning on full blast the whole time, which was bad, and they played a horrible copy of a bad movie too loud. It was annoying, but I slept.
Then we spent all day exploring the jungle. We took a tour with a guide to learn more, and I’m glad we did. We passed by huge ceiba trees, the national tree of Guatemala, from which hang many birds nests. The first pyramid we climbed was kind of little, but the view was still nice up there.
Later on we climbed what they call “Temple V” (the pyramids were labeled Temples I-VI) the view from Temple V was the best. Unbelievable. I couldn’t help myself from exclaiming, “Dios mio!” We could see three other pyramids from here. And the horizon just goes on forever, pure jungle.
It felt so good, tromping through the jungle in the hot humidity, climbing pyramids, feeling the rough stone with my hands and sitting up where Mayan Kings once stood, drinking water and panting in the same place where human sacrifices were performed, where forgotten songs were sung, in a place where thousands of people once gathered in the most sacred fashion and united the way only these ancient peoples could. It was amazing. I want to climb pyramids all over the place! We climbed the only four pyramids you can. The others were roped off because of their deteriorated condition or unsafe conditions (one was only closed off last year because a tourist slipped in the rain and lost his life).
By the late afternoon we were all so tired and worn out from climbing (my mom came with us too– but Sal and I climbed more pyramids than she did!) we went back to the hotel (we were staying at the nice hotel right in the park). They had a pool but Sal and I had to buy some swimwear, all they had were shorts so I went in with my tank top on, but it felt good to soak in the water after using more muscles than I have in years. I mean it: my legs were sore! (They still are, honestly.)
After that we had a few mojitos at the hotel and got some food to bring back to our hotel room. We were so tired, I can’t even tell you. We watched an episode of “Battlestar Galactica” on Sal’s MacBook and fell asleep before dark.
The next morning was much more crowded within the park, it seemed to be full of teenagers (which terrified me), but we expected crowds this weekend since it’s the Summer Solstice – it’s just that Saturday was so quiet and fun we could hear all the birds and the howler monkeys screaming…. I was the first up and had to rouse the others so we could go see the Temple of the Inscription. For some reason this pyramid is different, it’s shorter, wider and much further away from all the others. I mean, once this was all a big city, so I’m sure it was close to some houses or something. But it was 20 minutes away from the main trail and the acropolis. Then we went back to the acropolis where Sal and I climbed a few more large buildings and took lots of pictures. We had to get back to the hotel to check-out, and our shuttle was picking us up at 4:30pm to go to Flores and wait for our 9:00pm bus to take us back home.
But our shuttle driver never showed – he took the money and ran, what a jerk. Luckily the hotel shuttle was leaving for Santa Elena (the town just outside of Flores). We went over to Flores and had dinner at a nice little restaurant called “GuacaMaya”, near the basketball courts. It was good, and I even had enough of a cell phone signal to call my Dad to wish him a Happy Father’s Day.
The bus on the ride home wasn’t so comfortable, no foot thingy, which grieved me. I spent the night sleeping at irregular intervals, drooling considerably, and listening to my old iPod play Sigur Ros and Explosions in the Sky so I wouldn’t have to listen to the driver’s pop music through his plastic box. And the shuttle ride from Guatemala City was in a kind of shitty van with a crazy driver who talked to himself and drove crazily. In Antigua, the shuttle to Panajachel left without us because of some clerical error and the crazy driver caught up to them for us, but we had to sit in the least desirable seats (except Sal, who sat shotgun). It was unpleasant, and by the time all returned to Panajachel, everyone was ready to sleep all day.
The best part of going anywhere, and I truly believe this, is coming home. It was really special, for me, coming home to this town. Recognizing, with great relief, the sight of Panajachel and the comfort of our little house here. Guatemala really is an amazing place, I love it.
(If anyone wants to go to Tikal, there’s also an airport in Flores, so you don’t have to take the overnight bus. Hotels in the park are kind of pricey (we paid about $180 for 3 people) but in Flores they’re cheap, and it’s about $25 a person to get into the park, per day – but they need the money to restore pyramids and such!)

June 16, 2009 PANAJACHEL!!!

Hello world! We’ve officially been in Panajachel for two weeks and some days, our little cottage is perfection. It’s small: the kitchen is so tiny only one person can work in there at a time. But it’s got a sweet yard full of flowers and bamboo and a killer view of all 3 volcanoes and a waterfall.
Panajachel is a nice place, I like it. Affectionately, I’m sure, it’s often called Gringotenango (tenango is a suffix for town, like Chichicastenango, Quetzaltenango and other towns around here) so it's Gringotown! Pana is officially a city! It’s got busy streets, lots of restaurants and a vibrant nightlife. We still don’t go out too much (c’mon, it’s us) but we’re loving it anyway.
A few places I love around here:

First and foremost: Dina’s Chocolates, a chocolate shop at the fork in the road al centro. It’s got the richest, creamiest chocolate bars I’ve ever tasted, made by a Mayan woman who, I've heard, harvests her cacao on the pacific coast and makes these chocolates herself with love. And they’ve got great flavors like peanut butter, macadamia nut, orange and dark and milk chocolates. The big attraction: the chili chocolate bar, the favorite of Mayan Kings, or so the shop boasts. It’s amazing. When we leave, I’m going to bring a case of that chocolate with me.

Deli is a restaurant with two locations, each one is a little different, on Calle Santander. The breakfast is amazing here. In Berkeley there was this place called Venus that had the best breakfast, all farm fresh veggies, dairy and so on. Deli reminds me of Venus a lot, which is good because I thought I’d left behind veggie omelets and home fried potatoes. They also make and sell their own bread, English muffins and a variety of other things including soy milk and Sal’s new favorite hot sauce.
Solomon’s Porch, of course, is our favorite internet café. The Leroy is our sandwich of choice, just hold the bacon please. It’s egg salad. Plus, they have live music a lot, espresso and movie rentals. Free internet and convenient location.
We’ve been checking out some other fun places, our good friend, Joseph (just call him Chepe here in Guatemala) recently returned to the lake and has been showing us all his favorite places from the time he spent here a few months ago. Las Chinitas has real Chinese food (more or less) including Miso Soup! Mmmm, miso soup. The chow mein was alright, although they only used normal spaghetti noodles, and the potstickers are really good.
I also enjoyed the bakery El Horno on my birthday, we picked up four different pieces of cake and then took them home and passed them around to taste them all. Zanahoria, chocolate y coco, chocolate y almendra and tres leches. Deliciouso!
Our time here in Panajachel, we agreed months ago, is to be devoted to the creative pursuits. I’m trying to write a second draft of my book, and I’m making progress. And Sal lovingly slaves away to make our cartoons a reality. We’ve been keeping busy with all the busyness of life, but this cottage, this sweet comfy cushion, is proving to be the ideal place for us to create and enjoy.
We’re got the cottage until the end of August, then we’ll go back to the states for a while. I really want to visit Europe soon too, but these things keep on looking more and more expensive and the world keeps on getting more and more tumultuous. Oh well, there’s always strife, unrest and tumult, that’s no reason to keep your head buried in the sand. There’s a world to see, we’re going to see it.

May 8, 2009 Mother’s Day, Spanish Lessons and Goings On

So it’s been a busy month. We picked up my mom from the Guatemala City Airport in mid-April, she’s taking a vacation with us. We spent a night in Antigua, which was very touristy. I didn’t really like it. I don’t want to get into it, but let’s just say the vibes were not good.
Mom and I have been taking Spanish lessons at the San Marcos Spanish School (which is actually the San Pedro Spanish School, but two teachers boat across the lake just for us). We go for three hours every weekday, with individual teachers. I guess it costs about $150 each for three weeks. The lessons have been really helpful. Mi espanol es mucho mejor.
Sal’s gotten all sorts of wonderful ideas about making cartoons. It should be a fun endeavor. We have our own show, you know. I don’t want to spill the beans or anything, but it’s going to be good. You’ll all love to watch it someday.
It’s been raining like crazy. When we first got here, I thought Annika (landlady) had said we’d just missed the rainy season. That’s incorrect; I must’ve misheard her. The rain started in April and though it’s not everyday, most days recede from warm sunny morning to stormy afternoon. Tropical storms, so it’s still pretty warm though a chill comes at night. I really like the rain, and the thunder is pretty strong too. One night, last week, the thunder was incredible. People around here said that was rare, it was beautiful lightening. And there was a pretty intense earthquake last weekend, not too rough, but long. It was fun.
We haven’t been doing much. Sal took a few days off work and he’s been drawing a lot. Mom and I both like playing silly computer games so we spend hours in the rainy afternoons with our computers on the long dining room table. It might seem a little silly in the middle of this paradise, but it’s fun. Besides, it’s an all right way to spend a rainy afternoon.
We’re planning on visiting Tikal once our Spanish lessons are over (next week is our last). I’m completely ready to see some Mayan ruins. I hope we’ll have lots of pictures. We also need to go to the city to see the new Star Trek movie. There’s no big theaters around here. Sal wanted to go on opening night (tonight) but it’s too last-minute and Sal and I both battled the flu this past week. So we decided to stay here.
It’s Mom’s Day weekend, and they celebrate here in Guatemala too! Today the school had loud music playing and it sounded like a game show, my Spanish teacher told me it was for Mother’s Day and that on Sunday all the young people will sing and give flowers to their mothers.
Anyway. I’ve been making delicious tamales but I’ve yet to be satisfied by a batch of cookies since we’ve been here. We’ve also got three bunches of bananas hanging up, ripening. Soon we’ll be in bananatown. Everything’s turning green from the rain, but this is the time of year they call invierno. Sometimes I miss the U.S. but mostly I just miss familiarity.
Sorry no pictures. We probably have some, especially of Antigua, but it'd take all night to upload them. I'm not exaggerating either. Goodnight.

April 7, 2009 Perpetual Stagnation

Sunday was our one-month anniversary! We’ve been living here at the Casa Blanca for a whole month now. My Spanish still sucks, we don’t necessarily have any new friends, and we haven’t saved any money. But still, it’s been a good start. I’m comfortable here. This house feels like my home, as much as it can.
I’m still infuriated by a few things, spiders no longer the most prominent on that list. They’ve backed off, mostly, recognizing that this is human territory. I still get shivers at the sight of them, but I can coexist. And that’s all that matters. The garbage situation annoys me mostly because we have a bin for “organic” waste right under the kitchen sink. You know what goes in there: all the stinky stuff: eggshells, banana peels, onionskins – and that attracts these tiny little flies like nobody’s business! I don’t like trash in my kitchen, least of all when it attracts flies.
Water is also a little bothersome. You can’t drink what comes out of the faucet, it’s lake water and the lake is polluted. So you buy these big jugs (water cooler jugs) for drinking and cooking, and when you run out you have to call a tuk tuk driver and pay him to bring you fresh water jugs.
But the most annoying thing. The thing that most keeps me from feeling completely comfortable is that I can’t communicate with most of the people around me. My Spanish is appalling. I can’t even think of what I want to say. Except very simple things, and even then I’m too shy to actually say it. I stay quiet nearly all the time when we’re around Spanish speakers. I’m embarrassed to have people hear me speak English. I’m embarrassed to be such a stupid gringo that I can’t even speak the language of the country I’m in.
So on Sunday we went down to the Hotel Jinava, our next-door neighbors, and had breakfast (they gave me a menu in English, could tell just by looking at me what I am) and asked about using their beach. They said we could use the beach anytime we buy anything, so after breakfast we went and got our beach towels and our sunblock and sat out on their little strip of sand. We even got in the water! It’s full of grass and who-knows-how-many critters, but it felt really refreshing.
I think it was a good way to celebrate our first month. Jumping in this magical lake that beckoned to us from over two thousand miles away and called us out here. It’s been a great experience. I get along well even not knowing Spanish. And I’ll learn. I think it’s time to go to the Spanish school here in San Marcos, immersion doesn’t work too well if you’re chronically shy and self-conscious. I’ll get it. I will. We’re planning to stay here at least until the end of August, if I don’t know Spanish by then, please kick me in the shins.
I don’t know if any Oakland friends read this. Maybe Oaklanders are too cool to keep up with silly blogs. But we’re too cool for Oakland, so there. I’m just kidding, we’re not too cool for anything I know of. But Sal and I have decided not to return to the Land of Oaks this April, as was our plan originally. So who knows when we’ll be back in those United States? We probably won’t go to California soon anyway; we need to visit Sal’s family in Georgia. Hopefully I’ll know Spanish when we go visit them! I’d love that, and I bet his parents would too.
Sigh. You want to know the truth, Internet? I don’t want to wait another year to get married at all. I want our future now. I want to marry my sweet wonderful perfect man this summer and go on a relaxing honeymoon for a week or two in Jamaica (and get my dreads back while we’re there) and then go live cheaply in Europe for about six months. And then I want to publish my book and win lots of money for it and build us a house and finally adopt a puppy. And once the puppy is grown up we could make a baby. That’s what I want.

April 3, 2009 A Night in Pana

Sal and I are sweet, if not predictable creatures. We eat almost the same meal every night. We adore the same TV shows over and over again. We systematically celebrate the third of every month as our “monthiversary” a tribute to the night, three years ago, on August third, when we first locked lips. But every once in a while we like to shake things up.
So it was that, Tuesday, March 31st, Sal was invited to the percussion jam session at Solomon’s Porch by Cush, we think that must be short for percussion, he’s a great percussionist. It was a great time. To start off the day we got coffee at the stand outside, sitting in the wooden chairs while I read (I’m now onto “Middlesex” by Jeffrey Eugenides) and Sal worked. It was also payday so we wanted to go put a deposit on a little cottage here in Pana that we’re renting for the summer. Our future landlady, Dianne, has a beautiful big house near the lakeshore and we met her there.
She served us tea and entertained us with stories about her life sailing around the Caribbean and tidbits of useful information on the Atitlan area. When we mentioned we were trying to figure out how to stay late in Panajachel (since we almost always catch the public boat before 6pm) she offered us the use of one of the extra bedrooms in her house. We graciously accepted.
I’m always a little apprehensive to try new things, especially when they disrupt my sleep schedule. After all, I’ve only just become used to sleeping in my bed in San Marcos. But Sal was excited to play music with other children. He almost always plays alone. He works feverishly writing new songs, recording them, mastering the complicated fingering for the few seconds long enough to immortalize it on his MacBook. But so rarely does Sal find others to play with. He’s had bands. He’s been in bands. But they never did what he wanted. You see, from what I understand, Sal is more of a composer. He writes the most beautiful songs.
So my love got up on that stage and played the djembe with a bunch of guys. He got on the drumset but, apparantely was playing too loudly and one of the older musicians had to trade him for the congos. His smile was euphoric. The sweat dripping down his forehead, pushing his glasses down to the tip of his nose, was like a crown of joy. Sal, musical Sal, with the sweet pulse of beat, of rhythm, coursing through his veins like the sweetest drug. I watched, took pictures, and drank more beers than I usually do.
Around midnight, the energy of music still jarring Sal to frantic grins and “let’s get one more beer to go” we finally burst out into the street. Panajachel is different by night. As quiet as the small village we claim is more peaceful (San Marcos). But getting a Tuktuk was easy, Dianne had given us the keys to her house so we only had to be careful not to wake her three, big, beautiful dogs as we tiptoed through the garden. She’s a big believer in feather mattresses and left a jug of water out for us. It was perfect.
In the morning she gave us coffee (tasted too sweet for one reason or another) and we were on our way. She recommended a restaurant called “Deli” (it has a longer name, Llama de fuego, or something) at the end of Calle Santender and there I found the one breakfast item I prefer to the Chapin breakfast (plantains, eggs, beans, and tortillas) a vegetarian omelet. Chopped zucchini, broccoli and bell peppers spilled out in a mass of cheese and pepper from under well-cooker eggs. Perfecto.
We spent yesterday at home (I can call it that now) and I continued reading. Jim, the handyman at our house, told us about a big celebration happening, Semana Santa. And I guess it’s going on right now. I can hear, from my comfy the forceful lumbering of marching band drums and the whoops and hollers of clerks coming out from behind their counters to gawk at pretty girls twirling batons. It’s a Christian holiday (surprise!) having to do with Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter. All the gruesome days relating to Jesus’ bloody death and ghostly revival. Sorry if I’m sacrilegious here, I can’t say this stuff out loud or I’ll get in trouble! I don’t think anyone here should ever know just how blasphemous I can be…..
Now, the sweet sweet weekend awaits. For the weekend we won’t be broke. So hopefully I’ll have fun pictures up of whatever we end up doing. The evening fast approaches and a boat is out there waiting for us before returning to the sleepy dock of San Marcos.

March 27, 2009 Hanging on Solomon's Porch

So we’ve been going, almost everyday, to this place called “Solomon’s Porch” in Panajachel. It’s a nice place, lunch and dinner and they serve Moza, the beer we have grown most fond of here in Guatemala. The guy behind the counter, Noe, he’s really nice –and versatile. He’ll be fetching us beers, making lattes, serving tables, hooking up sound equipment (they have live music almost every night, the owner is a musician, we saw him at the festival and that’s when we heard about Solomon’s Porch!) and then keeping the internet under control all in the span of a few minutes. I didn’t realize Noe spoke English because he kept speaking in Spanish to us, Sal spoke in Spanish to him, it’s a Spanish-speaking country, but then the other day after I finished my Espaguetti Primavera (yum!) he walks over and says, “Are you finished with this?” in perfect English, no accent, just… smarter than me, apparently, I can barely mutter “Gracias,” without feeling like a big silly gringo.
The internet is the main thing. Sal’s gotten way too impatient with the slow internets at the house. At first it seemed like maybe it was enough, but in office places where people chat through e-mail like it were instant messaging and everything happens through the superfast inner-office network and T3 internets… well, it’s hard to keep up with these ambitious career types. Sal’s been saying stuff like he doesn’t like working in IT anymore and I don’t blame him. Yeah, if he didn’t have a thousand other interests (including me!) he could probably obsess over all this bullshit, but he’s a sweet, brilliant and artistic man who deserves better than being underestimated and talked down to by obsessive egotistical nerds.
But our financial constraints make it difficult to just go to Pana everyday, we have to be careful, be on a budget. Still, we’ve been there three times this week, and twice eaten their yummy food. Tonight we were there a little later than usual (we usually try to be at the embarcadero right after 5 to catch the boat home before sunset) and since we missed the 5:30 boat we went ahead and hung out until the 6:30-ish boat and Sal got up the courage to go play drums with the band!
Now. I know that lots of people have lots of friends. Some people have several different groups of friends to do different things. Like work friends. School friends. Friends to do fun outside things with. Friends to talk about your feelings with. But Sal and I just do all that stuff with each other. Of the two of us, he’s more outgoing, but we’re both big introverts. We’ve been together long enough to want to call each other husband and wife now, and I’m still consistently relieved to just stay in with Sal, have dinner and watch TV. Other people, in my experience, have been mostly disappointing.
But Sal was brave and outgoing and walked over to Leroy, the owner of the place, while he was practicing some drumming with a marimba and a bass and asked to play with them. I was reading the new book I bought, “The Time Traveler’s Wife” (I like it, it’s romantical) and watching over our laptops, but when Sal finished and came back over he was grinning from ear to ear. Playing music makes him so happy! They invited him to some sort of drum thing they’re doing on Tuesday, that’s payday so we’re going. We just have to make sure we can get transportation back to San Marcos afterwards, shouldn’t be too difficult.
Anyway, unless we think of some better internet plan, Solomon’s Porch is our new favorite hangout. It’s got awesome people, musical happenings, good food, and great beer. The coffee shop in the foyer of the place (I guess the layout is sort of like a little mall, one big hallway/foyer/lobby opens to the street and has several shops and restaurants inside) has really good coffee.
I know it’s ironic since Guatemala is a big coffee-growing region, and they grow coffee all over the hills right here at Lake Atitlan. But they sell it all to Starbucks for very little money (damn you, Starbucks!) and it’s kind of hard to find good beans. Most coffee, when you order at restaurants, is instant coffee. Other than that, they make espresso and put microwaved milk in it, “café con leche”. But the coffee place near Solomon’s porch has good coffee, steamed milk, good espresso (I had an espresso con panna with no disappointment! chocolate powder on top and all!), and they sell local beans. If only we had a coffee grinder….
Anyway, we had a nice boatride home, too. It was dark and the headlight is right in the middle of the little roof, Sal and I sat right in the front watching the bow dance up and down. I just really like riding on the boats. It’s choppy and the hard benches hurt my butt, but I still enjoy it. Anytime (mostly when it’s daytime) you can glance over your shoulder and see the dark mystical waters of Lake Atitlan churning and shining, like a big sky. It’s really amazing. Good thing I like it, because sometimes the boats are jampacked with people and have to go really slow over the bumpy waters. That ride can feel like an eternity, especially when Sal’s sealed in between stinky drunk German tourists who piss themselves, as has happened in the past.
On our way home we stopped at the bodega for cerveza and pan and Sal saw a stack of empty bottles next to the jalapeño peppers. He was completely intrigued and asked the girl behind the counter what they were. “Some empty bottles,” she smartly replied (in Spanish, so Sal told me).
Anyway, it’s called aguardiente (means: water burning, or firewater) añejo (we guess that means aged). A hard liquor made right here in Guatemala. Tastes like Spritevodka! I love it! It costs about a dollar for a little bottle that got me and Sal about four shots each and it felt nice. He made a little video when we brought it home, the girl at the bodega warned up it was strong, I was nervous it would be disgusting. But it’s not! On that note, goodnight, internets!