Riding the chicken bus to Guate

a typical Guatemalan chicken bus by night

Journal Entry
February, 22, 2006
El Remate, Guatemala

We rode the reggae bus from Belize City to San Ignacio yesterday. It was a hot 3 hours on an old converted school bus. The seats were packed and so was the aisle, but the reggae blaring from the speakers in front and back and helped make the ride more enjoyable. I also had a lot of fun playing with el bebe that sat on her grandmother's lap beside me and took quite an interest in my sleeping bag that sat on my lap. We played together for a while, tapping on the sleeping bag like a drum between her many turns showing me her great strength as she would wrap her tiny arms around the bag (almost the same size as she) and stand to lift it! Much like Giselle (my neice) she took much delight in my applause at her strength.

It wasn't long until el bebe was fast asleep in her grandmother's arms and I found myself gazing out the window at the Belizean countryside, wind on my face, alone with my thoughts, which I found drifted greatly towards Giselle. Wondering how big she is now, how much longer her hair must be, whether she has had her first hair cut yet and how many more words she must be able to say since I left. I miss her very much and really look forward to seeing her when I get home. Once she takes her inevitable minute or two to recognize me, I'm going to scoop her up in my arms, squeeze her tight and smother her with hugs and kisses.

Once we arrived in San Ignacio it took us a couple misses but we found a good deal on a room at Rosa's hotel. The best part of it easily being the shower. Not only was the water hot but the pressure was strong. There's no doubt it was the best shower I've had since LA and I enjoyed every second of it! Those bites I was worried about diminished significantly after a thorough scrubbing and my head felt a few pounds lighter after a double shampoo. So lovely to realize just how dirty I was...gross!! I guess that's just a part of life on the road when your budget is tight, but we do the best we can. It was a leisurely evening spent doing some email, having a happy hour Belikin (the local brew) and an absolutely wonderful chicken curry dinner at Hanna's, then back to the room for a little reading adn a good night's sleep.


Sak Luk our artsy and beautiful accomdation in El Remate

We left Belize for the Guatemalan border at about 7am, opting to hitch a ride with a tour company headed for Tikal. It may have cost a few more dollars, but it was well worth it for a smooth and easy (and safe) trip through the border, all the way here to El Remate, about 45 minutes south of the Tikal ruins.

It is absolutely beautiful here. We are staying in an open air room overlooking the crystal clear, fresh water, Lake Peten Itza. Our accomodations, Sak Luk, are upthe mountainside in amongst the lush, tropical greenery and natural rocky paths. The outdoor sitting areas all offering an absolutely stunning view of the lake. It's a very artzy place offering meals and tasty Guatemalan coffee and out hosts are incredibly friendly and accomodating. We've been here for about an hour and it's still only 11:30am.

Tomorrow morning we will head out at the crack of dawn in an attempt to miss at least part of the peak tourist hours at the Tikal ruins. They are expansive and apparently quite impressive. After what is likely to be a long day there we'll make out way to Flores for a night en route to Antigua, where I'm very excited to start my spanish classes.