Los Dos San Pedros (The Two San Pedros)

I guess it’s my time to write, eh?  Josiah left off with going out dancing on our second to last night in Xela so I will pick up from there.  We got up early the next morning and of course ate our egg breakfast.  We hurried to gather our bathing suits and headed out to Fuentes Georginas.  Some of you may have seen our pictures on facebook, but this place was fascinating.  The Public bus dropped us off at the bottom of a hill and we had to catch a pick up (a truck with a cage like structure in the back where you can sit or stand) to the top of the mountain.  Winding up the mountain, seeing patches of farmland being worked by the Indigenous was breathtaking.  We were sharing our pick up with some beautiful Mayan women.  Lets take a moment to focus on this culture.  I have noticed many women still dress in the conservative but colorful dresses and skirts and carry their children everywhere with them on their backs.  The indigenous culture in Guatemala is still very alive.  We forgot to mention our weaving class at El Nahual.  A woman came to demonstrate weaving for the volunteers, and we all got to try it.  My camera was not working that day so I didn’t get any photos.  Okay, back to the hot springs…By the time you get to the top you are literally in the clouds.  We headed into the NATURAL hot springs, ate lunch, and were ready to be hot.  I went to a hot spring in Costa Rica, but I liked this one better.  It was less commercial feeling and you could literally see the steaming water running down the mountain.  (Once again check out pictures on facebook).  The water was so hot in the pool nearest the mountain that it took your breath away and you felt like your flesh was burning at first.  I made it in though and it turned out to be pretty refreshing, especially since I had a cold.  J

Following day, Couchsurfing with Juan Garcia.  Couchsurfing was brought to my attention a couple of years ago.  www.couchsurfing.com  Some people may be freaked out by the idea of staying with, or hosting strangers but you can always be choosy.  This community of people throughout the world are willing to meet up with you, or let you stay in their homes.  It’s a great way to keep costs down on your travels, while having first hand advice from someone who lives in the area you are visiting.  We met Juan at his café in Xela and he arranged to pick us up the next day.  We went to his house where he lives with his family and stayed in the upstairs of their house.  This family was truly inspiring to me.  They reminded me a lot of my own, were quick to welcome us into their barbeque (which made our tastebuds dance with excitement) and we could feel their love for each other and for life.  There were plenty of jokes passed around throughout the night and Josiah even got in on a futbol game with Juan and his friends.  We had an exceptional experience and if any of you go to Xela, stay with Juan.

So, off to Lake Atitlan or so we thought.  I have heard a lot about Lake Atitlan and its beauty, so the tourist in me wanted to check it out.  We go to the bus terminal asking for San Pedro La Laguna and they directed us to the bus.  We rode about an hour until we arrived in San Pedro.  We both thought this was a rather short trip.  We descend from the bus and start asking people how to get to the docks because that’s where most of the hotels are.  People looked at us like we were insane and quickly told me “there are no boats here you are in the wrong San Pedro”.  We looked at each other, sighed, and headed to find a bus to take us an hour BACK to Xela where we began in the first place.  Our bus driver felt so sorry for us that he got us off his bus and literally walked us to the right bus and threw our stuff on.  We waited at least another hour and a half before the right bus left, and finally we arrived just as darkness was settling in for the night.  But finally we are here.  

We got up early to go to explore the city and weren’t quickly blown away until we finally found a path that opened up such an interesting community.  We are finally seeing what makes San Pedro special.  We wanted to see the inauguration and were excited to see flyers up hosting “Good Bye Bush” partys around town to watch the beginning of a new era in United States history! People here were just as enthusiastic to see Bush fly away to his Texas ranch as we were. Much cheering and clapping filled the very narrow streets.  J  This brings us up to date.  We are relaxing at our hotel by the lake.  It’s much warmer here so I’m getting to use my tanktops at last.  Tomorrow we take a boat across the lake to spend a day in another town before heading to Guate once again.  Take care, and remember that we love you!