Arriving at night masked the beauty of this city and we set out to explore the next morning. Antigua once home to over 33 Catholic churches and religious orders has architecture, history, and unbelievable flavor. Most of the city has been rebuilt around the ruins of the old city affording views of architecture that is 300 plus years old. Catering to tourists, various vendors (mostly indigenous women and their children) roam the streets looking for travelers to whom they can sell their colorful cloth products and jewelry. The colors of their dress, mixed with their products, makes for an eye catching sight. Another nice surprise was the level of comprehension we had with our Spanish. Since most of the vendors were speaking Spanish as a second language, with their native Indian tongues being their first language, it was much easier to understand their deliberate annunciation of Spanish pronunciation. Guatemala has 23 indigenous languages in use today even though Spanish is considered the national language.

The colors of the buildings, the streets, the people, the vendors, and the sky (which seemed bluer than normal) all melted into one colorful experience that screamed the Guatemala you see in movies. After a day in Antigua we moved to Panajachel on Lake Atitlan. If we had a theme for this particular adventure it would probably have been “shop until Shawn falls down dead from exhaustion”; and after shopping most of the day we moved across the lake on a small 15 passenger boat, which was filled with about 25 people, to Santa Cruz where we stayed at Noah’s Ark. Although we don’t know the exact story of how the owners came up with the name, it seemed fitting since there were a variety of people from all walks of life staying in the ten-unit lakeside getaway. Dinners were served family style and we had the opportunity to meet some of the diverse people staying at the cabins (mostly Europeans and a few Americans). We enjoyed hearing about their travels and experiences. One man said he has been traveling for six years throughout the U.S. and Latin America. He was a walking travel book filled with a wealth of information and travel tips. His job is to visit various international companies and negotiate construction deals.

Chichicastenango (try saying that 5 times fast) is a huge market located about an hour away from the lake. Known to have the largest market days in Guatemala on Thursdays and Sundays, we ventured out to explore! We visited on a Thursday morning and when we entered the town it felt a little more like the Central America I was used to since there was a lack of garbage cans and an increase in the amount refuse thrown into the street. As we walked through wall to wall people in the streets of the market, I started to lose track of the fact that I was on a street as the vendor booths started to bunch closer together like thick jungle vegetation, until we entered an area near the center of the town where a “tent” city has been erected; complete with canvas isle coverings to protect the shoppers from the depleting effects of the harsh noonday sun. Our day at the market involved bargaining everything we bought down to at least 50% of the asking cost with some bargaining sessions taking place over two or three trips away from and back to the same vendor. Jennifer loved practicing her bargaining strategies. It was a game for her. The most exciting buy we actually helped negotiate was for a retired American couple who had come down on vacation. They wanted to buy a blanket and we helped translate. The couple was quite pleased with their purchase for a guest bedroom back home. We met another retired couple who was fascinated with our Peace Corps story. They took photos of us to send to our parents when they returned to the states from vacation. We met them at the market and they offered us the following advice, “we have never regretted the things we have purchased overseas, only the items we have left behind”. Of course, this encouraged Jennifer to continue shopping.

We were treated once again to an awe-inspiring drive back into the gigantic crater that Lake Atitlan is located in as the area is surrounded by inactive volcanoes. We stayed another night at Noah’s Ark taking in the turquoise blue waters from the cabin shores. Throughout the trip I rather enjoyed the anonymity afforded to us being “just another couple of tourists” instead of the only people within 20 miles who look different than the masses. This was reinforced a week later when we returned to our little home in Concepción de Maria, Honduras. After a wonderful week in Guatemala and a great conference in Copan Ruins, we returned to our home to find we are still the best show in town. This was apparent when the first day back home we had several faces appearing outside our door. One was Fernando, the six year old son of the woman who washes our cloths every other week. He came by to “visit his mom” and took a seat right outside our door staring in for long periods of time to get a glimpse of what the “gringos” do inside their house. Another was the new maid that our neighbor hired while we were away. Olga made a point to mop and sweep the patio area outside our door several times during the day and took up residence in a hammock outside our door that afforded her a view of the inside of our house. Every week I tell Jennifer that we should sell tickets and invite people over. We could put the money toward a scholarship program we have been talking about starting for kids who don’t have enough money to pay for school supplies.

Being back “home” has been very relaxing. I have slept better here than anywhere else on our two week trip. There is nothing like being able to sleep in your own bed and feel the comforts of your own space. We have just a few days to prepare for Jennifer’s parents to come visit. The temperature over the last week has been 99oF in the afternoon and 83 oF at night and we are still in the cool season. I just hope they are ready for some warm weather after being in a cold Minnesota winter for the past four months.

Take care,

Website: globalsilveras.com