Azotea Coffee Farm, Santo Domingo, and Chichicastenango

I came to the internet place tonight with all intentions of staying for a while and getting some photos of the last few days here....buuuuut....I forgot the cord, so next time. But anyway...

This weekend has been busy. On Saturday morning I planned to go to Azotea, which is a combination coffee farm and coffee/music/Mayan museum. I got to the store that the shuttle left from, and ended up having a good talk with a Guatemalan man who studied at Rutgers and then worked for the US consulate in Guatemala City. He said that he has been to every state in the US except for Alaska and Hawaii. Because he still has contacts at the consulate, he told me to please let him know if I have any problems or need to talk with anyone there. And as the shuttle pulled up and we said goodbye, he said, "Also, let me know if you want to sell dental plans in America when you get back." Huh?

For 50 Quetzales, or about $6, I got to tour all of Azotea. There was a bit of interesting information during the coffee tour, but the tourguide was speaking veeeerrrry slowly in Spanish, and then some guy on the tour was translating everything, plus adding some info of his own, so it was soooo slow. So, I jumped on a head and took a ton of photos of coffee and pots and mugs and manequins. Seeing the coffee plants was the best part. There were a bunch that were in bloom, and they smelled like jasmine. Most interesting fact from the coffee tour - when coffee is labeled "robust" it means the plant is robust - it grows well - not that the coffee is strong or tastes better. In fact, the robust coffee is considered a poorer quality for drinking. They do, however, graft the good tasting plants onto the robust plants creating some cool mega-coffee hybrid.

Saturday afternoon, I walked to the northeast side of Antigua to see Santo Domingo. It took me about 30 minutes to find the entrance, but when I did get in I was so glad that I had made the trip. Santo Domingo is ruins of a giant old church and monastery, part of which has been turned into a hotel and museums. The hotel was the Ritz of Guatemala - absolutely beautiful. Waiters in tuxedos, white tablecloths, macaws, and a very inviting pool. While the more authentic Antiguan experience has been great, I could definitely go for a couple days there! The ruins were well restored with placards in both Spanish and English, so it was a relaxing experience. And finally, the museums were fantastic. There were maybe 5 or 6 within the complex. My favorite had an exhibit that placed pre-Columbian artifacts next to very similar, modern glass pieced. The animals were grouped together, as were the people and the abstract vessels. Again, I got some great pictures that I will share later.

The shuttle to Chichicastenango picked me and my English housemate up this morning at 7:30, and we took a long, winding road 2.5 hours into the Western Highlands. The market was completely insane, which hundreds of stalls selling embroidered decorations, jewelry, food, art, t-shirts, bookmarks, pens...everything. There were sections that were obviously geared toward tourists, and sections for locals with necessities. Everywhere we walked, children under 8 would come running up, "Good price. You stay and look. Good price." A visit inside a combo Catholic/Mayan church was a welcome break from the chaos, and after about 3 hours I had enough.

On the drive back, we passed the aftermath of a very gory motorcycle accident. I looked, and wished that I hadn't, but I think that it is always a good idea to remind yourself to be happy a majority of the time, or at least content, because who knows what tomorrow, or even five minutes from now, will bring. I choose to meditate on that rather than darker thoughts.

As for the photos of my adventures, I'll get them up soon. This week I am only taking class in the morning so I should have some more time. Does anyone out there know how to get photos in the middle of Blogger blogs rather than always at the top? Will putting them in the html do that?

Coming up this week, trip to Pacaya volcano, Semuc Champey pools and caves next weekend, and probably another trip to Santo Domingo. (I didn't mention before that there is a very nice chocolate shop there as well!!)