It was hard to leave the pretty town of San Cristobal de La Casas and Mexico itself but I decided it was best to get some spanish into my ignorant little head at one of the many cheaper schools in Guatemala. I made the move with some English gringos and headed first for the Guatalese (?) town of Quetzaltenango or Xela... a short bumpy ride of 8 or so hours.
After a sweaty border crossing of epic tequila hang over proportions we arrived in the glowing evening sun to a cool hostel in the centre of the gothic/latino town, a dichotomy that works strangely well..
In another bus ride over the clouds to Lake Atitlan it was good to know I was to throw my bag down in one room for more than a week. I dropped myself in the deep end and bunked in with a Guatemalan family who although I draw mostly sign language from, are so kind and friendly like most other Guatemalans I have come across in the first week here. Most folks really are your amigos! This warm openheartedness is despite a horrific recent past, and hard to believe its so prevalent after what they have been through in recent years...
In short Los Americanos came in and invaded in the 40's, ten years after Guatemala just caught a break from a liberal government who rightly thought it was a swell idea to divide the countries land up and give it back to the people. The States, fearful of communist movements in latin America decided that this generosity or fairness must want to lead to some other form of power or ulterior motive. After a Guatemalan military dictatorship in the years to follow the common Guatemalan got sick of this suppressed existence and a guerilla movement broke in the hills and towns of this serene place. The atrocities that came with the civil war are too sick to mention but mass killings continued up until 1996 when the government signed a peace treaty. Little has changed here though (apparently Guatemalans currently own less then 5% of its land) and they still live in poverty, great for us who can grab a $2 cuba libre though right?
This is still in the minds and lives of most Guatemalans today, but its still hard to persist with an understanding after frequent digs because someone is only using you to earn an extra dime... okay okay bad experience today but Il forget about that one. I think instead Il remember the wild sunset this morning after climbing the Indians Nose (a pretty high mountain peak on the Lago De Atitlan, not some obscure metaphor!)
Im supposed to be doing my homework right now but my brain has almost stopped working after such an intense week of new words... Il do it tomorrow, manana "manana, a lovely word and one that probably means heaven", but for now...vamos a salsa...
