Antigua
When we returned to Xela we basically just started packing up and preparing for our last journey to Antigua. We had come to the realization that our website and blogs weren't going to magically start making money for us and we were going to have to go back to the states and find real jobs again. We made reservations at a cute hotel and went to the bus station a few days later with all of our belongings.
The best part of the journey to Antigua was the last stretch when we had to hop on a chickenbus that was so incredibly packed with people it is hard to describe. It was a typical school style bus, however in this one the seats almost ran the entire width of the bus. There was only about a six inch gap to walk down the aisle, but walking down it wasn't really an option. There was someone in every aisle sitting with the middle of their butt sagging into the gap, a line of people sitting all the way across the width of the bus in every aisle. We had to board through the emergency back door. We briefly glanced at each other as if to say "is this for real?", but we had grown slightly accustomed to the smaller personal bubble afforded in most places on our trip and we just squeezed right in. The most amazing thing was watching the assistant climb over the waves of people to collect money. It was like watching Jesus walk on water; kind of like, where were the strings kind of a thing. It was impressive anyways. I bet if the bus had tipped and rolled down a hill no one would have even budged we were packed in so tight. I think it might actually be much safer that way. Wish I had a picture of it.
We arrived in Antigua and found our hotel (pic to the right of the hotel courtyard) without any trouble. Antigua was quite beautiful. The weather was perfect, trees and flowers in bloom, along with old Spanish architecture and surrounded by three volcanoes. It wasn't hard to believe why it's such a popular tourist destination.
The town center was filled with a combination of local vendors (including ten year old shoe shine boys trying to sell pot) and tourists from Europe, Australia and the US. Most of the US tourists had baby strollers with their newly bought Guatemalan baby. I guess the rules have recently changed but when we were there we were about the only US couple that weren't pushing around a baby stroller. You may think that it is a wonderful thing for someone from the US to be willing to spend all that money to travel there, pay for the child and then bring it back, but it's not. I think it was a large source of black market babies and was tearing many families apart. I digress... I was talking about the town center. Those little shoe shine boys freaked me out for the first few days we were there. They knew some English and would walk up to you very innocently and ask you,
"Eh Meester, You want sumpthin special?"
I was thinking, "I hope these children aren't trying to whore themselves out...". Until one of them clarified one time. He must've seen the freaked out/ look of pity on my face. He leaned forward and motioned me down to listen closer. He said in perfect English,
"You idiot, I'm selling pot. Stop looking at me like I'm a whore."
Something like that anyways. I had to buy two dime bags off him just to calm him down.
***Just to clarify, I did not but weed from the ten year old. It was only a dramatization.***
Anywho, we had a lot of fun in Antigua. The Volcanoes were for the most part covered in clouds which kind of sucked, but it was still beautiful. We took a coffee tour (pic below of some beans that didn't make the cut) which was neato, but we mainly just walked around and took in the sights and sounds of one of the coolest cities in Guatemala. There was definitely much more money and tourism there so the locals weren't nearly as desperate or bitter towards us as other places, but it did feel a little less authentic. I don't really know how to explain the dynamic any better.
And in a flash we were on a plane headed to S. Florida, our journey that I had envisioned lasting forever, over. Stress crept into my spine and neck without my even noticing it. We were out of money and neither of us had a job.
We really really needed some cash. The second we arrived in Miami I went to the beach and started asking everyone I could find,
"Hey, want sumpthin' special?"
No really, we weren't that bad off. Besides I was looking like quite the dirty hippie at that point, which unlike in Santa Cruz, is a huge turn-off in Miami. We stayed with Melanie's mother in Tamarac until Melanie found a job in DC.
I'll catch up (I'm sure..) all my avid readers on life in DC, my job, and anything else i can think of in my next post. I'll try to keep it interesting...
Thanks for reading.
