Week 1 of 3 in Lake Atitlan
Trip Start
Jan 01, 2007
1
22
141
Trip End
Ongoing
San Pedro La Laguna,
Guatemala
Friday, January 26, 2007
Our first week in San Pedro was spent mostly going to class and walking up to the ATM to try to get cash, then lunch on the water somewhere.
On Thursday, we broke from our routine and took a launcha (after class) across the lake to Pana, in hopes of getting money from their single ATM that supposedly had money. We were in luck and were able to pull out lots of dough. Afterwards, we walked to a lovely little open-air restaurant right on the lakeside and dined on a fantastic meal of fish, fries, rice, steamed veggies, guacamole, and homemade tortillas (at only 20 Quetzales per entree!). And of course, a Gallo (local beer) to finish it off.
San Pedro the Volcano
After lunch, we caught a ferry across the lake over to San Pablo, where we heard a festival (called ferria) was taking place. By the time arrived, it was dusk. San Pablo is a Mayan village up on a steep hill along the lakeside. There are no hotels or gringo facilities there. So it was a good opportunity to observe another Mayan community sans the influence of westerners. The ferry turned out to be basically an extension of the central market, except located in the streets instead. Vendor after vendor of clothes, food, toys, etc. They were setting up large speakers in the square for a night of dancing, but we didn´t stick around for that because it would be wayyy past our bedtime by the time they started. One funny site was the ferris wheels. (called wheels of Chicago here). There was a medium-sized one for teenagers and a smaller one for little tikes. The larger one was a super fast one, whirling around quickly. It was operated in the strangest manner: a man sat in a chair with pedals under his feet. Connected to the pedals appeared to be the motor/engine of a vehicle! Without the car´s body. The pedals were connected to the Ferris Wheel by pulleys. And there was lots of duct tape and planks used to keep the thing together. Safety standards here are quite different!
After the festival, it was too late to catch a ferry across the lake back to San Pedro
Spanish Classroom - Frank and David
. Instead, we hopped in the back of a small pick-up truck with 30 other people. We squashed our bodies in, stood in the back, and held on for dear life onto the bars as the truck rumbled up and down the gravel roads back to San Juan. In San Juan, we transferred to another pick-up for the quick ride to San Pedro.For your curiousity... our daily routine for the first week consisted of mostly:
- Wake up at 6:30 to the roosters (called ¨Gallos¨ which is also the name of one of their beers). Attempt to fall back asleep. Wake up again at 7:30, dress quickly for class and run out the door.
- Start class at 8:00. Class was supposed to run till 12, but David kept teaching till 1 each day. There´s a break halfway through for snacks.
- Leave class at 1:00. Walk up the hill to the bank, discover no money in the ATM and walk back down the hill.
- Have lunch at one of the many great cheap places in town.
- Go home, shower, and study.
- Around 7:00, go watch a free movie in town
Spanish Classroom - Kay and Frank
. About 4 restaurants in town play bootleg (chinatown specials) DVD´s on large screen. During our visit, we saw Casino Royale, the Departed, 40-year-old Virgin, Scanner Darkly, and others.- Around 10:00, back to bed.
We initially planned on staying in San Pedro for just a week before continuing our journey southward. But the inviting waters of Lake Atitlan, the beautiful weather and lovely views, cheap accomodations and food tempted us into staying for another week. We also were interested in continuing our Spanish lessons, in hopes of extending our vocabulary beyond ¨Dos Cervezas, por favor, amigo!¨.
So on Friday, we decided to take a vacation from our vacation and head to another village on the lake for the weekend, before returning for more classes on Monday.
A FEW OBSERVATIONS FROM LAKE ATITLAN
Weather
The weather in Lake Atitlan this time of year is fantastic. It reminds me of Southern California. Warm and sunny during the day, lovely enough to wear shorts and a tank top. But no humidity. Cool (but not cold) evenings that may require a long sleeve shirt and possibly pants. A nice breeze throughout the day (I believe it is called ¨Xocomil¨).
Mayan Attire
Each Mayan village has it´s own attire style - colors and patterns vary with each village. The Most women (all ages) wear modern-traditional Mayan attire, comprised of a brightly colored woven long skirt, a brightly colored woven long apron, and a sheer solid polyester top in a solid color with floral pattern. Some dress it up with jewelry and mid-healed shoes or sandals. The true-traditional women wear heavier woven tops instead of the polyester blouses, and go barefoot or wear traditional leather shoes. They also make their own attire, rather than purchase a modern manufactured apparel. One of my instructors told me that the women´s attire is rather expensive - ranging from 150 to 1200 quetzales for one skirt alone! ($20 to $180 US dollars) The skirts are gorgeous and brillliantly colored! And it is nice to observe that women of all ages ( from 2 years old on up!) all still embrace their traditional heritage and culture through their attire.
Some of the older men also wear traditional Mayan attire, comprised of capri-length pants. Typically white material (linen or cotton maybe?) with brightly colored stitching along the bottoms or sides. A somewhat coordinated white top as well, and sometimes a panama-style hat. Most of the younger men (under age 50) wear modern apparel of jeans and collared pullover shirts.
Language
The local population in San Pedro is mostly (if not all) Mayan. For example, my second instructor (Luis) is ¨puro Mayan¨- both his mother and father and grandparents are all Mayan. His mother and father each speak a different Mayan language, but the languages are similar enough for them to understand each other. Luis speaks 4 languags: 2 Mayan languages, Spanish, and English. Learning to speak Spanish in Guatemala is fairly easy for us because Guatemalans tend to speak a clear, articulated, and slower Spanish than other countries. One other student we met theorized that this is because Spanish is not their first language either, one or more of the Mayan languages is theirs. (This theory, though, applies only to the Mayan Guatemalans, not the Ladino Guatemalans who come from European heritage)
Cheers, Kay
