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zbealer · 8 years ago

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December 2016

On December 1st my trip across Guatemala with my best friend continued as we traveled from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlán, which is one of the prettiest lakes I’ve ever been to in my life. We left around 1PM and arrived around 5PM. We dropped off our stuff at the hotel then went to eat lunch/dinner. Since Guatemala is so close to the equator the sun always rises at 6AM and sets at 6PM, which means by the time we got done eating it was already getting dark. We decided to walk around a bit before going back to the hotel, which had an awesome terrace, to drink with some friends we had met on the bus to the lake before heading out. That night we got back to the hotel pretty late and stayed up literally all night catching up on each other’s lives. After seeing the sunrise we decided to get some rest. That day we didn’t wake up until the late afternoon then we went to eat at one of my favorite restaurants in San Pedro (the town we were staying at on the lake) and Audrey wanted to do some shopping so I helped her look around for what she needed. I have a favorite spot on some rocks that look out over the lake that I wanted to show Audrey as the sun was going down. In the same spot there were quite a few Guatemalans in their skivvies jumping off the rocks into the lake. After the sun went down we got another bite to eat, hung out on the terrace, then went out for a little bit.

Strolling around the lake

Our new friends

On Friday the second we took a shuttle at 8:30AM to Antigua. We arrived around lunch time and dropped off our stuff at my friend’s house then went to check out some of the old church ruins there. Although Antigua is arguably the prettiest town in Guatemala due to it’s colonial architecture (and construction laws that keep it that way) it is probably one of my least favorite towns due to the amount of tourists and things that remind me of the United States. One thing I was oblivious to until recently was the amount of old church/convent/monastery ruins there – I’m pretty sure there are 9 sites total. If I would’ve known about the ruins earlier I’m sure I would’ve visited them all. Unfortunately, since we spent a good chunk of time in each place. The first place we went to was an old convent used in the 1700s. I was most surprised by the size of the rooms the nuns had – it was hard for me to get a picture of the whole thing due to how small they were. Apart from that it was cool to see everything so intact – the kitchen, bathrooms, church, and common areas. Afterwards we headed over to an old monastery that was built in 1717 and destroyed the same year by an earthquake. I found it a bit comical/sad that the people wanting to build it solicited money from Spain in order to do so, but were denied because they felt there was already enough Catholic presence in the area and it wasn’t necessary. Their stubbornness got the best of them and they decided to build it anyways just to have it destroyed the same year by a natural disaster.

At the monastery

The old church at the convent

The nun’s rooms

Inside one of the rooms

Bathtubs

Where they washed their clothes/habits

When the sun had gone down we met up with one of my friends who lives in Antigua, who also happened to have his best friend visiting from a different town. We got dinner together then went back to his house to shower up and get ready for the night and we all went out together. The main two reasons people visit Antigua is because of the colonial architecture/ruins and the night life – the town is littered with bars and clubs, and since it is a popular tourist spot it in probably the safest place in Guatemala to walk around without worrying that something will happen to you. Since it’s only an hour’s drive from Guatemala City many capitalinos (people that live in the capital) frequently visit Antigua to party on the weekend.

My friend Edwin, Audrey, and I

2 pairs of best friends in this picture

The next day I met up with one of my friends from Antigua early for breakfast before she went to work to be able to catch up a bit before meeting up with Audrey and the rest of my friends for lunch. Audrey and I then took the bus to Guatemala City, as it was our final destination before she headed back to the United States. I wanted to show her the national palace, but we were both pretty drained from the week of traveling so we decided to just stay in the area around my friend’s apartment and chat since she had to be at the airport at 5AM the next day.

My original plan was to leave Guatemala City on Monday the 5th, but my friend Alvaro who I was staying with invited me to a convivio that same day. Convivios are the Guatemalan version of Christmas parties, and they are really common here. There are friend convivios, workplace convivios, and in Alvaro’s case gym member convivios. Obviously I’m not a member at his gym, but that didn’t matter. We went with a group of his friends (some guys from Argentina, two girls from Peru, and a guy from Brazil) who were members as well. I have to say I didn’t expect much, but it was a lot more fun than I had expected – the meal was delicious (with free booze) and afterwards there was a dance (and we were the last ones to leave).

At the convivio

I decided to stay until that Wednesday because it was Alvaro’s birthday, and I wanted to help him celebrate. Since I hadn’t planned to stay three extra days (and I’ve already seen everything I wanted to see in Guatemala City) I didn’t really have much to do. I decided to head to a bookstore to buy a couple books in Spanish to help my vocabulary and reading comprehension. I bought El Colonel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba and El Lustrador and enjoyed both of them. I’ve only read 4 books total in Spanish, but I can tell that with each book I read my need to use a dictionary is decreased every time. Unfortunately my favorite books are non-fiction, which has more complex vocabulary, thus making it a bit more difficult for me to read without using a dictionary. On Wednesday the 7th a bunch of Alvaro’s friends from various countries (Argentina, Spain, Peru, and Guatemala) and I all got together at a Greek restaurant for the ”All You Can Eat BBQ and Greek salad.” I knew to pace myself with the salad, but when they gave me my plate full of nearly two pounds of sirloin, ribeye steak, filet mignon, and longanizas I knew it would be quite the feat. I was able to finish it all, but it definitely wasn’t easy (and I falsely promised myself to reduce my intake of meat for the next few days). Afterwards we all went back to Alvaro’s apartment to hang out a bit before calling it a night.

Alvaro’s birthday party dinner

The next day I came back to Quetzaltenango and went to visit my friends Margarita and Giulia. Giulia is one of those friends you meet and instantly get along really well, and she’s Italian so I take advantage of any opportunity I have to cook with her. That day we made another “pasta invention,” which consisted of us throwing random ingredients together with some pasta, and it turned out delicious.

One of my good friends, Maritza, used to work at a café here that is very famous for their mojitos. I knew I would be leaving Guatemala soon, and one of my wishes before that happened was to have her teach me the secret recipe (to which she agreed). When we get together we usually make lunch as well, and this time we decided to make dobladas. Surprisingly despite Guatemala’s small size there are many drastic changes in the climate, language, and foods depending on which region you’re in. The dobladas we made were the “costal” version, whereas they are completely different when I’ve asked for them in the capital. The ones we made consisted of shredded chicken inside a thin tortilla with cream, lettuce, radish, and onion on top. Simple and delicious. After we got done eating we called up some other friends to come over and hang out with us. Unfortunately I had to work at 9 that night, so I wasn’t able to stay over there as late as I would have liked to.

Lunch & Mojitos with Maritza

The next day I met up with one of my old co-workers from Argentina, Romi. We spent the whole day at her apartment talking since we hadn’t seen each other in quite some time, cooking, and listening to music. I had planned on going to a concert that night with some friends, but unfortunately they backed out last minute. I really miss going to concerts so I decided I would go by myself if I had to, but luckily Romi said she would go with me go I would have some company. Although she had no idea who was playing it just so turned out that one of her friends was an opening DJ, and after he got done he came over to hang out with us for the rest of the show. When the concert ended around 12:30AM we all headed back to Romi’s place and had our own little “after party” while he put on music for us.

At the concert

On Sunday the 11th a group of friends and I decided to have our “friend convivio” at a nice pool/hotel/restaurant on the coast to get away from Xela’s cold climate. We ordered a huge plate of mixed seafood – shrimp, crab, oysters, squid, crappie, and tilapia. The original plan was to take a dip in the pool afterwards, however as we were eating someone mentioned a Jurassic Park themed park nearby and we decided to change our plans. I’m not a huge Jurassic Park fan (and the park seemed to be geared more towards children), but I did enjoy walking around with my friends. Different robotic dinosaurs were scattered throughout the park (which was a lot bigger than I expected) with scientific descriptions of each one next to them. We left right as the park was closing down and headed back to Quetzaltenango, which was about an hour’s drive away. I went to another “friend convivio” the following day, but this time it seemed to be amongst a group of foreigners here in Xela which a few Guatemalans thrown in the mix.

At the pool

“Jurassic Park”

Although I don’t have a “formal” job here in Xela I am usually able to keep myself busy with random side jobs that also help me out financially. On the 15th I had an interview to be a translator for a group of medical students that are coming to do volunteer work for a week at a few different clinics in the Xela area, and to my luck they hired me on the spot. Afterwards I headed over to my old host family’s house to help celebrate my “little brother’s” 16th birthday. Afterwards I met up with an old co-worker from the colegio where I used to work to get a coffee and catch up before I headed to Coatepeque with my best friend, his girlfriend, and her twin sister.

One interesting migratory thing between Mexico and Guatemala is the fact that Mexicans can enter Guatemala with their passport and are automatically given a 90-day tourist visa; however Guatemalans do not have this same privilege. Guatemalans have two options: either apply for a Mexican tourist visa (which takes time, paperwork, and money) that grants them the normal 180-day tourist visa upon entering Mexico, or a “pass,” which only grants them the right to be in the three most southern Mexican states for a maximum of three days. In order to get the “pass” one must stand in line on the Mexican-Guatemalan border with a photocopy of their identification and wait their turn to get everything processed. It doesn’t sound to bad, but they only grant 150 “passes” a day and there are many people that want them.

Vivi (my best friend’s girlfriend) and her twin sister, Fabi, wanted to get their “pass” so we left Coatepeque at 1:30AM on the 16th and arrived at the border at 3AM. Unfortunately there is just as much corruption in this process as there is in the Guatemalan government. First of all there is zero organization (no “line,” no officials watching, nothing) so there are people that “work” at the border that stand in line with no intention to get their pass just to sell their “space” to someone that arrives later that wants to have a better spot in line, thus being more likely to be among one of the 150 granted a “pass,” and they always try to squeeze as many people as they can in their “space” to make more money. When the Mexican officials came to announce they would be opening their doors at 9AM they encountered a huge mess of disorganized Guatemalans fighting each other saying others had cut the line, arrived late, and weren’t part of the original “line.” Luckily the Mexican official had experience and, with the help of some Guatemalans who had been there early enough to see everything take place (like my friend), they were able to achieve some type of order. One of the most surprising things I saw was that a woman and her daughter tried to start their own line close to the front, then the official told them to go to the back of the line, but as soon as the line started moving they literally pushed people in order to cut back into the line they had just been kicked out of. Luckily someone saw it and reported it to an official, who told them to leave.

At the border (Do you see a single-file line? Yeah... me neither)

My best friend and I knew it would be a while before Vivi and Fabi completed the process so we went to get lunch then took a nap in the shade until the were finished. After everything was said and done they spent a total of 6 hours standing in line and 5 hours waiting to get their papers processed in order to get their “pass.” We all then went to Tapachula (a town close to the Mexican border), found our hotel, walked around a bit, then headed to a mall to do some shopping. The Mexican Peso is worth less than the Guatemalan Quetzal so many Guatemalans will go to Tapachula to stock up on groceries at a bargain price. After we did a bit of shopping we went to the movies to see “The Attic.” Being able to understand movies is like being able to understand books for me – the more complex/scientific the plot the more difficult it is more be to understand everything. Luckily the plot of the movie we saw wasn’t anything too complicated, so I was able to understand 100% of the movie.

The next day we got tacos for breakfast at a local market then did more shopping. One thing that really warmed my heart was when my friend and I were waiting on Vivi and Fabi to do shopping when I saw some kids drinking chocolate and eating bread that they had got from next door. I thought it was a little café, but I was mistaken. I quickly apologized to the woman in the house then walked away. Shortly afterwards the same lady came approached us with two cups of Mexican hot chocolate and bread that she had given to us for free. After our shopping was complete at the market we headed over to Sam’s Club for our last stop. I couldn’t believe how cheap everything was there – luckily I knew I would be leaving Guatemala soon so I wasn’t tempted to load up on groceries. Despite the fact that I didn’t buy much on the way back my friend’s 2-door Toyota Yaris was completely packed with groceries to the point that my leg fell asleep on the way home because of the weird position I had to sit in.

One of my favorite things about Coatepeque is the vibe – it’s a lot different than the vibe in Xela. The best way I can describe it is summers in Kansas where everyone hangs out on their porch in the evenings drinking, listening to the radio, and drinking while their children run around with other neighborhood kids. The people are definitely a lot livelier. One perfect example of this is when we went to the town’s Christmas parade the night of the 17th. The parade didn’t even start until around 9PM and ended around 11. I expected something like my town’s Christmas parade – Mr. and Mrs. Claus, small kid’s dance groups, and local businesses with Christmas floats, but it was nothing like that. Their were TONS of band groups, dance groups, and zumba groups doing dance routines that I found a bit provocative. After seeing that parade I’m pretty sure I’ve seen every sexy Christmas outfit possible. As far as companies with Christmas floats there were very few. I had a great time experiencing it, and I doubt I’ll ever see anything similar in my life.

On the 18th we got ceviche (seafood cocktail) for lunch and went to the Guatemalan version of Goodwill before heading back to Quetzaltenango. As soon as I arrived I got changed then met up with some friends at a local 1-day music festival they put on every year here called Chusmita. I hadn’t been before but really enjoyed it. Obviously I saw a bunch of people I knew there, which made it even better. There was just one stage, but a variety of artists played – rock, reggae, and soul music were the main events. My favorite part was that the lyrics weren’t what many pop songs talk about – the artists talked about being socially active, feminism, and about knowing what’s going on in your government.

Ceviche

At Chusmita

The next day I went to my old host family’s house to drop off the stuff I had bought for them while I was in Tapachula and to have lunch before heading back to Coatepeque with my friend JJ. I knew I wanted to spend at least one Christmas in Guatemala due to the differences in the culture and how they celebrate it here, so I decided to spend it on the coast with my best friend and his family. Luckily he had the month of December off for vacation so we were able to hang out quite a bit as well. During the week I was with my friend we did a variety of things: we went to the market, cleaned his house, met up with his daughter and one of my old roommates for tacos, got snow cones (there’s a place in Coatepeque where they make my all-time favorite snow cones), watched a few movies, and went to the gym.

On Wednesday the 21 my friend and I walked to some waterfalls called Chibuj nearby Coatepeque because he had told me he really enjoyed them when he went with his boyscout group nearly 15 years ago. We had to hike up a bit to get to the perfect spot between two waterfalls, which wasn’t super easy since there were no trails to guide you. It was crazy because the water was crystal clear, but because it was so deep it made it look like the water was black. I was a bit scared to jump in at first because you had no idea what was under the water, but it didn’t take long for me to work up the courage to do so. Before I knew it we were jumping off rocks and swimming around the place like fish. That night one of my friend’s cousins came over with her husband had we had a churrasco (Guatemalan BBQ) and all hung out and talked for quite a while. That Friday we met up with them again at a country club they’re a member of to have another churrasco along with their family and the family of some of their friends. It was crazy to me that it was December 23rd and I was swimming in a pool in 87 degree weather and barbequing. I had a great time with JJ’s family – we were at the pool for a good 8 hours and by the end of the night everyone was telling me I was now their “adopted cousin.”

At the Chibuj Waterfalls

At the pool

One of the traditional Guatemalan dishes served for Christmas is lomo relleno (stuffed pork tenderloin), which I helped my friend’s dad, Carlos, prepare on the 24th. We first marinated the meat then filled and rolled it up with a mixture of ham, turkey, cheeses, hard-boiled eggs, raisins, and bacon before baking it. My friend and rooomate in Xela, Luisa, who is also from Coatepeque came to pick me up at my friend’s house then we drove to her house out in the country, Before I came to Guatemala I imagined I would be staying in a place like her house – a smaller, simple house without running water in an area with tropical foliage where people cook using firewood instead of stoves. Her mom and I had never met beore (although Luisa had told her quite a bit about me), but she was so welcoming to me. As soon as I got there she offered me a tamale (another traditional Christmas dish) and rompope (Guatemala’s version of eggnog). I then helped her make a fruit punch often served at Christmas called caliente or ponche de frutas. We made a huge vat of it – the ingredients were papaya, two types of apples, pineapple, hibiscus flowers, a natural sugar called panela, and some other fruits and spices typical to Guatemala. Tamales here are very different from Mexican tamales – they are larger, made from a corn base, filled with a huge of pork (with the bone still in), and usually have an olive, plum, and a hot chile added to them. There is also a “sweet” version which is made from a base of plantain and ground natural chocolate. My favorite was the normal, “salty” version. Another difference I noticed at Luisa’s house (which is where more of a traditional Christmas is celebrated) was that they decorated the nativity scene with natural plants found in the area (not the fake stuff we buy at the grocery store). At Luisa’s house they decorated it with pine needles spread around the nativity scene that also covered the front porch, with a tinsel made of small apples strung together to enclose the scene. When it got dark Luisa’s family drove me back to JJ’s house.

The street infront of Luisa’s house

Making tamales

Ponche de frutas

Luisa and her mom

Luisa (one of my roommates), her daughter, and me

Here the “main event” happens at midnight on the 24th. At the moment the clock strikes 12 everyone in the entire town sets off fireworks, making it sound like a war zone. It was so loud I could barely hear what people were telling me. At the same time everyone gives each other a huge while saying Merry Christmas. After everything has died down everyone sits down together to eat tamales, lomo relleno, and a “Christmas salad.” The recipe of the salad varies greatly depending on what region you’re in, but the one we had consisted of chopped apples and celery with shredded carrots in a yogurt dressing. I didn’t think I would like it, but it was actually pretty tasty. The Christmas at my friend’s house was the most traditional because his mom was with family in the United States, but the rest of his close family came over to have dinner with us. After you get done eating it’s common to stay at your house and drink because other family members will come over to visit you after they’ve finished eating dinner. At 2AM my friend, his brother, and I headed to the disco to find that was already completely packed. Luckily as soon as we walked in I saw one of my friends with her cousins and she invited us to stay at their table. That night we danced to reggaeton music from 2AM until the sun came up at 6:30AM, and the place was full the whole time. I had a blast.

Christmas dinner

Christmas 2017 in Coatepeque, Guatemala

My friend, Andrea, and I at the disco

The crew... that forgot to move the bucket of trash before taking a picture

The 25th for most people here is more or less a normal day. My friend, his brother, their dad, and I went over to JJ’s cousin’s house to eat more tamales and lomo relleno with them. After we got done eating we watched the Mexican soccer league final together then headed back to JJ’s house.

That Monday I got a ride with Luisa’s brother, Angel, who just moved into the same house where I’m living in Xela. The next day I met up with my old host family to have a little Christmas celebration with them .

Christmas with my Guatemalan family

On the 28th I took the bus to Guatemala City because I knew it would probably be the last opportunity I would have to see my friends from there before I left Guatemala. Among some of the friends I met up with were Majo and her brother, Juan Diego, who is now living in Mexico City and came back to visit for Christmas. We went to their aunt’s house who put on a little going-away dinner for him then we all went out together. I also saw my car-wash buddies, who were having their own company convivio and invited me to hang out with them. They had grilled a lamb alongside some other meats and a bunch of beer. I had already eaten, but I tried the lamb and liked it a lot. Afterwards we went to a cevichería, which is a ceviche restaurant that normally turns into a bar at night.

On the 31st I met up with my friend Alvaro, who had spent Christmas with his family in Colombia, at his house. I dropped off my stuff there then went got on the bus to to Lake Atitlán. For New Year’s Eve here many people head to the lake, the coast, or to Antigua. We found a pretty neat music festival taking place at Lake Atitlán and a great deal with a house on AirBnB. Between the concert tickets and the house rental we only paid $16 each. The music festival we went to lasted three days, but the venue was pretty small and right on the edge of the lake with bonfires scattered throughout. I had a great time – we met up with one of Alvaro’s friends who is also from Colombia and some of her friends which happened to be friends of mine as well. The headliner DJ was from Colombia, which made it even better. At midnight hugs were exchanged between all those present amidst fireworks with their reflections in one of the prettiest lakes in the world. I knew 2017 would be a year full of many changes and experiences, and being at that lake was definitely one of the best ways to ring it all in.

My friend Alvaro and I at the music festival at Lake Atitlán

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