Hotel Princess Guatemala Guatemala City

... where the Cathedral and Palacio Nacional are located (the classic tourist sites in the city). Although Doņna Emma told me to get on the number 3 bus apparently I got on the 63. I blame this on the fact that I had been traveling the day before and that the buses all exhaust thick smog so I couldnīt see the "6". Another word about the buses. Ever wonder what happend to the old school buses from the States? The ones with the long fronts? Well they are ...

... s, etc) but settle on Pizza Hut. We order two pies, 6 beers and pile back into the van.

Interesting Fact: Pizza hut was PACKED. Completely full at 2 pm.
Another Fact: It had an armed guard in the parking lot.
Scary Fact: With a sniperīs lookout tower.

Beer Count: 1 (Brahva)

HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!!

... perfectly secure by saying something along the lines of: Ļthere is no way in hell you could get this stuff out of my pocket no matter how hard you tried.Ļ Satisfied that my belongings were safe, I finally found my new house. (Note: Some of that story might not be true--all of my important documents are currently safe and sound in my room.)

My new family is spectacular. I mean, I like my regular family just fine but this family is totally pocket ...

A short flight north to the Guatemalan jungle to find: Mayan archeological treasures at Tikal, a thatched-roof hut of my own on the shores of Lago de Peten Itza, a hammock overlooking the lake, a French restaurant 100 m. from my hut, horseback rides on jungle trails, kayaking on the lake. Well....all but the last two became reality. This was due to heat-stroke following my ...

... on st*ge we h*d * gre*t time, or w*s it the rum...*nw*y, I knew *bout it the next d*y *nd the d*y *fter th*t so we sheepishly h*d to del*y our le*ving pl*ns *fter some quite gr*nd goodbyes *s I w*s too ill to get on the bus. How emb*r*ssing. We *re off on our *dventures *g*in. We will miss our f*mily *nd new friends in Xel* *nd *lso the e*sy going lifestyle of h*ving food cooked for you 3 times * d*y. I don't think we'll ever h*ve it so e*sy *g*in. Boooo.

... I spend to much time thinking about them and writing them. Hopefully I can still convey my thoughts and feelings about experiences I have here. Last night Marta's friend and her son were in a car accident. She was pregnant. I bought a guitar from a friend. She bought it when she first got here and decided she didn't play it enough.

The food here is pretty good - much like Mexican food. And Iīm not one of those weirdo travellers with long hair and a beard who says that all 3rd world food is good; all Western food is bad. If the food is bad, like it is in China, Iīll say itīs bad. I have had one nasty eperience though. The chicken fajitas that I had on my last night in Antigua gave me food poisoning. When I woke up on Monday, it was with the ...

... were too big for Liz). And its safely back home via Dallas. An excellent trip ranked Guatemala, Panama, Belize, Costa Rica and reinforcing our experience that the less developed the destination the better the experience. Costa Rica had some good stuff but much is dominated by the big tour bus US market which wants to replicate home too much. Photos will go up over the weekend - they are now there

IT'S OFFICAL!! ANY DONATION MADE TO THE SCHOOL PROJECT IN DECEMBER WILL BE MATCHED!! (up to $7500 total -- thatīs the lucky number) THAT MAKES YOUR DOLLARS WORTH DOUBLE!! If we can raise the money for just one school in 2008 ...

... is Santo Domingo is currently occupied by a top-end hotel which did a brilliant job at conserving the monastery. You can walk around the public spaces which are dotted with colonial statuary and archaeological pieces and for a small fee (if you are not a hotel guest...which I was not) you can visit the four little museums they have. It was my favourite place in lovely Antigua. Despite everything I have heard about the capital of Guatemala, I still had to stop in Guatemala ...