travels & other things in more detail.

I skipped through a couple of insignificant things along the course of our journey throughout Guate. A lot of the time spent traveling in Guate was in buses, a quick overview 

Guatemala City-Flores (8hours)

Flores-Tikal (1 hour)

TIkal-Poptun (3 hours)

Poptun-Coban (4 hours)

Coban-Fray Bartolome de las casas (4 hours)

Fray-Guatemala City (3 hours)

Guatemala City-Solola and then on to Panajachel (4 hours)

Panajachel-Guatemala City (4.5 hours...bus driver got lost)

Lots of time eh?

So if you want an idea of what the roads were like anywhere except from Guate city to Flores picture Lake shore drive's potholes, alright now multiply those potholes by 10 and then give or take two or perhaps three dozen sharp curves/turns and moments that would give your grandmother a heart attack. Not to mention the heat that made me worry Julian might pass out and  just when you feel that the bus won't be able to accomodate anyone else it swallows up one more at the next stop. These stops are done without any sort of order, the same attendant who collects the bus fare sticks his head out the double doors announcing the destination and anyone who appears to hail a cab hops on. The dust would constantly creep into our bus via the six inch windows every passenger would leave open and the fumes created a horrendous sting in your eyes. But this made for a more precious appreciation of the calm Lago Atitlan or the ability to lay atop the cool sheets of the rundown hotel that didn't think of installing curtains in the shower, as a result the bathroom would flood whenever we'd want to take a quick shower. 

I got in earlier this afternoon into Ft. Lauderdale and was welcomed by Florida's humidity and my mother's cries. We arrived at my grandmother's house where I finally felt at home and an odd feeling of "what's next?" But it all went away as I started to rid my pack of the dirty clothes and souvenirs (mostly coffee) that filled it. My first call was to my dad who started rambling details about my Vietnam trip and hiring a tour guide and hanging out with an aunt. In other news, it seems I have won (thanks to your help perhaps) the USFT position of industry liaison :) Which also means a trip to Nicaragua in late July! 

Sometimes, okay most of the time, I see myself wanting to do it all. Participate in helping with the green fee and sustainability council, helping to plan this event with this org, coordinating the real food summit at Loyola in the fall, throwing kick ass events that draw huge crowds, being involved with STJC and USFT equally now that I've committed myself to steering committee type positions, and maybe even date a bit in the beautiful city I call home. This upcoming school year I'll also be having about 14 roommates living in community. History has shown that I tend to have a breaking point where I'll feel burned out and what not...but maybe I know better and this time I'll balance it out. This past spring semester I pulled off a decent social life and involvement in extra curricular activities. I'm also counting on a great support team in the Oxfamily and elsewhere, so it'll surely work out. 

I'm going back and forth here, be patient with me...

There are still plenty of places I would have loved to have visited in Guatemala, so if you ever find yourself wanting to make your way down to Central America, I'm there. I need a week's notice unless you're planning on a random roadtrip. There are also plans to hit up Spain again, I've not spent adequate time there says a friend, Alanita says they're closing down the pyramids next year so that trip needs to happen soon, and I eventually want to hit up South America. Also, I'm starting to think I need to explore the states some more with only twenty or so down it might be a good idea to roadtrip the rest. Lovely, no? I've been wanting to for a while, just waiting for the right person/people/time to come along. It is becoming a tad easy to get tired of organizing it all and wanting things to just fall into place. 

suerte.