Trapped (in Rio Dull Say)...

First off, this city is really called ¨Rio Dolce,¨ and it´s a launching point for boat rides down the (you guessed it) rio. Boat rides, which are supposed to be amazing, but I wouldn´t know.

Due to a rooky mistake (I´m out of practice with this whole, show up in town and get moving¨ quickly thing)... I´m stuck here, and I haven´t been out on the water. If I´m lucky, I´ll get out in the morning - before I have to catch my bus home to Antigua at noon. If not, well - I had a lot of Spanish practice (and that´s always a good thing).

I got here too late to take a tour and I got a hotel room here before I realized I´d rather relocate (to Livingston) before bed-time (something it seems I did have time for). I´d heard a lot of great stuff about ¨Rio Dolce¨ but, I assure you, those comments must be about the river and not the city. I suppose I´m in a bit of a grumpy mood - so it´s probably good that I´m alone for this little side-trip.

Oh well - live and learn... And if you even come to Rio Dulce, get out of town as fast as possible. I hear there are little hotels scattered around the lake that might be pretty nice (and secluded from the overcrowded STREET - yes, street, singular - that is Rio Dolce). Again, I wouldn´t know - because (rooky mistake) I have a cheap little shack of a hotel room near the bus station. A map would probably help. Maybe I should tell Lonely Planet?

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Maybe this* has something to do with why I´m grumpy.

*Not the card, but the absence of its author.

Tikal

We spent 2 hours at Tikal Thursday afternoon (after the surgery on the t-shirt) and all day Friday. A friend of Eve´s (Mike) joined us on Thursday (but mysteriously dissapeared on Friday). Anyhow, doesn´t Eve look great in that green t-shirt?!

Anyhow, I´m not really sure what to say except ¨Wow¨ - which happens to be what I kept saying Friday morning as we wandered the paths from temple to temple. Initially Eve wasn´t as taken back by it all as me, but I´m weird that way - and I have a unsatisfied facination with ancient Mayan (and other Indigeonous American) cultures and archeology. Anyhow, I really liked it. I puts Chichén Itzá and the Pyramids outside Mexico City to shame (in my opinion).

So yeah, we wandered, climbed, took photos, and dripped gallons of sweat (and mixed it with sunscreen for a fantastic sticky end result). My point is - it´s HOT in the jungles of Guatemala. Thursday ended up being worse than Friday though. I think it had something to do with being tired out by the bus ride and having a hard time ¨getting going¨ that day. So initially, Thursday ended up being a pretty mellow (and a bit stressful) day as both Eve and I werén´t really firing all cylinders... But in the end, it was a good time and I really enjoyed seeing all the ruins and spending time with Eve.

A Green T-Shirt

So for nearly 3 weeks, Eve has been searching for a green t-shirt and draging Austin and me along for the ride (not that we really minded)... But anyhow, you´d be surprised how hard it is to find a green t-shirt in Antigua (at least one that will fit Eve and not just my 4 year old niece).

Anyhow, Austin and I got the coolest going-away gifts from Eve. She made us individual cards in Spanish! Now lest you think this is no big deal... It IS a big deal, because it meant a lot of work for her to create them, as well as faith in us that we´d be able to read them. And the cards didn´t just say, ¨Nice to know you.¨ They were lengthy good-bye commentaries. I´m guessing it took her hours to do them . In any case, I think Austin would agree with me that these cards were a very cool and thoughtful gift.

And so, I was thinking - I didn´t get anything for Eve (I had considered a few random gifts, but she made it pretty clear that she was trying to travel light for her final weeks and I didn´t want to weight her down with unecessary oddities)... And then, I wandered into a shop and a green t-shirt reached out and grabbed me. Almost, really! I didn´t have to look for it or anything, it was just there waiting to be bought. So I bought it (and a Sharpie).

Then, Austin and I scribbled memorable quotes from our time together with Eve. And I gave it to here in the van as we left town to go to Tikal Wednesday night. I had no idea it would be as big a hit as it was. Eve had been a bit ¨mopey¨ (for lack of a better word) Tuesday night as she realized her time here with us was drawing to a close, but I´d like to think that this moment in the van was enough to negate all that. She said it was the best gift she´d ever gotten! Like I said, I didn´t realize it would be as big a hit as it was, but I´m glad it was! I like making people´s day. After all, I am a walking ¨Make a Wish Foundation.¨

When we had some time, Eve did a little ¨surgury¨ on the shirt. It´s amazing what a pair of scissors can do to an ¨average¨ tourist t-shirt. Below you can see the shirt in it´s final form, and (if you care) read the various comments written all over it. I don´t expect any of it to makes sense to you, but for Austin, Eve, and me - it´s the untilmate reminder.

What is this club called?

In an effort to make Eve and Austin world famous, I've decided to dedicate yet another entry in my blog to our triumverate of wandering. Homework has been skipped and other obligations neglected in honor of this trio. And even though Austin tried to userp authority of the the 1979 club Eve is still willing to be his friend.

These two have made my stay in Antigua that much more enjoyable. Oh sure, I'd have survived without them, but they make this whole experience that much mroe meaningful. Thanks for coming to Antigua Eva and Austin!

Oh the stories!!!!! Family history, keep moving, hypogycemia (how do you spell that), cookie-topped-ice-cream, "I'm hungry!" green t-shirt, hippies, a knot in my back, "Mango," and a bazillion more.

Eva (I mean Eve) is done tomorrow but Austin is staying long after I'm done. And lucky for me, I now have a travel companion for my weekend up north to Flores to see Tikal. Eve and I are heading up to meet an old friend of hers and we'll see the sights in a new (though doubfully as engaging) trio.

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Oh, and this is what happens when I show up on time and start fretting over my absent friends. (We have no phones to confirm, change, or make plans - so everything is planned in advance and we hope people will show up. It usually works out ok... usually!)

The Happy Processional

Easter Sunday came and went with little fanfare (relative to Good Friday). There was, thankfully, a small processional celebrating the resurection but it paled in comparison to the numersous processionals throughout the preceeding week bemoaning the "pending" crucifiction. Several of us found it sad: the emphasis the church (or possibly culture, you deside) places on the suffering and pain of the atonement, rather than the glorious realities that followed thereafter - you know: the "Good News" of the gospel (which reminds me of a talk by Gordon B. Hinckley on the matter of symbols of faith).

Anyhow, the "Happy Procession" (as we decided to call it) had upbeat music (as well as a hymn I recognized), clapping and shouts a Hallelujah accompanied by a general feeling of excitement. All the previous processionals were accompanied by dreary music and a feeling more in leage with somber than with reverent. Yes, Christ suffered, and that ought not be forgotten, but it seems that the happy side of christianity gets lost in all the sadness.

Unfortunately, most of the people were tired-out from all the other festivities of the week that there were few people out to celebrate the resurection. People kept asking me throughout the week if I celebrated Good Friday or Lent for that matter, and I felt odd saying that Easter was a one-day holiday for me and many of my faith (and other faiths in the US). Now, looking back though, I'm okay with that.

4:30 PM

Yes, this is insane...
Oh wait, I mean insence.

This photo was taken Saturday afternoon. Admittedly, the rain had just stoped and the sky was somewhat overcast, but the majority of the limited visibility is not due to anything but smoke from the insence!

The processionals are not complete without an overabundance of the smokey stuff. They stopped right in front of us for 10 minutes (not normal) and by the time it was over we had ourselves 3 long lasting reminders of our afternoon (in the form of upset stomaches, headaches and clothes - and hair, and a pillow - that smelled like the processionals).

Books to Learn From

These are the various books that I study from. In fact, this is my study "desk." Although I do have an actual desk in my room, the chair is something less than an Aeron Chair, so I prefer the bed for my daily studies. And this is the layout of my source materials.

A dictionary, the manual from the school, the book I brought from home, various notebooks, and yes: Curoius George!

Life is good, but 4 weeks down and 5 to go - I don't know enough Spanish!