Antigua!

Above is a picture of sunset from the rooftop deck of Hotel Sor Juana in Antigua, which was rated by Trip Advisor as the #1 B & B or Small Inn in Guatemala...with the above picture in the write-up!  (I am feeling most famous right now!)

Hotel Sor Juana in Antigua was our destination after landing in Guatemala City, an hour late!  We arrived in Antigua at nearly midnight on Saturday, December 6, 2014.  And we had to be up early for a tour to Chichicastanango!  In fact, the driver was earlier than the 7:00 AM time, so we had to hurry to get in the van.

The road to Chichicastanango was a mountainous, curvy and beautiful route!

We passed through and saw in the distance mountain villages until we arrived at Chichicastanango.  Our first stop was the Hotel Santo Tomas, which had a beautiful garden.  We arrived just as villagers were opening their stalls in the market!  

A woman brought a couple of chickens to sell.




And then there was the already-butchered meat in the market!




Many vendors had fabric art to sell and carved and painted wood pieces.  I was able to buy a Nativity scene for Christmas!  The 400-year-old church of San Tomas is built on an ancient Mayan site and is a part of the Mayan culture, as well.  Beautiful flowers are sold on the steps, and people carry them inside to pay their respect, along with candles.

What a rich and colorful scene the market is!

Dave and I returned to the Hotel Santo Tomas to have lunch (and Dave to have Guatemalan beer, El Gallo, of which we'd heard from Greg!).

The courtyard of the hotel is beautiful, and we sat outside in the pleasantly cool afternoon.  Here I am with one of the parrots that was nearby!

We were treated to live music by a marimba band!

As we returned to Antigua, we stopped for an excellent view of the volcanos, Volcan San Pedro and Volcan Toliman (I believe).  Lake Atitlan lies below!  Stunning!

We returned to Antigua and Hotel Sor Juana in time for La Quema del Diablo, the burning of the devil.  La Quema del Diablo occurs directly outside the hotel, and in past years, the owners/managers of the hotel have not had guests stay.  When we were planning our trip, they explained that there would be a celebration outside the hotel and a cocktail party inside, and I replied:  "Sounds like fun!"  They generously welcomed us for the weekend and for their family party!  

In the square outside the hotel, the Devil had been erected on a platform.  

As people gathered, wood chips, then gasoline, were added around and on the statue.  Strips of firecrackers led from the platform across the ground towards the crowd.  Not wanting to be left out, Dave and I stood near the front of the crowd--which turned out to be a bit dangerous!  Wow!  Did that Devil burn!  And there was a wild scrambling backwards to avoid the sparks and smoke!

My new shirt from Debbie received burn holes, which I now treasure as evidence of the Devil burning!

We then joined the cocktail party inside the courtyard and on the rooftop deck of the Hotel Sor Juana.  The Hotel Sor Juana was at one time a convent, thus the name.  It is a beautiful old building with beautiful flowers, many reminding us of the San Francisco area.  The climate is simply heavenly!

And outside of the Hotel, the band was performing!  Quite an evening!

The following day, Dave and I took a couple of tours.  We went to Finca Filadelphia for a tour of a coffee plantation and for some coffee tasting!


Beans were red and ready for harvesting and roasting!






And the nursery was generating new plants for the hillside plantation!


The roofs of the building are used for drying the beans, with workers raking them every 30 minutes.

Dave's glee at seeing the roasting and later experiencing the tasting is evident!

Next, Dave and I took a walking tour of Antigua and learned much of the very old history.  Antigua was founded in the early 16th century, and while a major earthquake destroyed most of the town in 1773, many ruins remain, making the town a World Heritage Site.  Being such, the renovations of the town must meet strict criteria, so many of the ruins are left as they were when the town was abandoned by the Spanish Crown and the Catholic Church, which funded much of the origianl building in 1776.  The town is beautifully laid out, and here are a few pictures:

The following day, we sadly left Antigua and visited Guatemala City.  Our tour guide took us through Guatemala City to Zone 1, site of the National Palace.  Our intention was to enter the Palace, but a major meeting of very important people was clearly in progress!  Not only were we not allowed to enter, but the place was teeming with men in suits and earpieces!

We crossed the square, where children were ice skating and rides were running and Christmas decorations abounded, to visit the Cathedral Metropolina.


The day after the La Quema del Diablo, the Virgin Mary is paraded through the streets. While we had a glimpse of that (again outside of the Hotel Sor Juana) in Antigua, we saw the great platform built and displayed within the Cathedral for the procession in Guatemala City the previous day.

Interestingly, a major convocation of priests and the Archbishop of Guatemala were gathering at the Cathedral.  I wanted to stay to see who all arrived (I'm still wondering if people from the Palace were going to join the group), but we had to hurry off.

Dave and I spent the night at the Westin for a little luxury!  We were within walking distance of a shopping mall, so did a little shopping and very little buying!

Our short trip to Guatemala was spectacular, and I would love to return for a longer visit!

Staying!

Dear Blog...you have been sadly neglected due to living life to the fullest!

I have not written about all the exciting experiences of December 2014!  I have spent much of my time sorting through the 1000 pictures that I took and which clearly I cannot post in their entirety!  I will hopefully get to these pictures and stories soon, but first, I want to announce that after a long process, Dave and I have decided to extend our stay in Belize for one more year!  UnBELIZEable!

Dave and I have had been looking from every angle possible the consequences of returning to the States (and where) or of staying in Belize to continue our work here.  We sat down and made a long "Ben Franklin" list of pros and cons, then weighted each entry.  California won for where in the States, as we have a great house in Pleasant Hill and the state of the economy and the support for mental health treatment is better there than in New Mexico.

But the more difficult balancing act was whether to stay in Belize or not.  Two primary considerations for staying bubbled to the top:  the wonderful relationships we have made here, both with adults and with children, and the purpose in life that we feel while working here.  At least we know what we're doing here!

Major considerations for leaving included bugs and heat/humidity.  And we have some business that does need attention in the States, as well as a trip to the Philippines planned with our family.  We cannot do much about the bugs, but with Yvette's support, we will hopefully get air conditioning downstairs in the apartment.  And we will take a trip in May or June to handle some business in New Mexico and to see some family (Maria and kids and Nathan and Megan, at least) and friends in a few spots of the country.

I realized during this process that Dave and I have seldom really considered for so long all the options before making a decision.  We have certainly had long-term goals that we worked toward, but then an opportunity (usually from the preceding work) would present itself and we'd just jump in!  But so many things needed to be considered about staying.  I actually did quite a lot of research myself, including going two blocks down the street to meet the opthamologist to see if he could remove these bothersome cataracts!  I felt very confident that he can do it.  I liked the dentist that I met, as well.  And the Wagner Foundation kindly supported my staying here, as did the people with the Child Care Center.  Yvette, too, has been very supportive of our staying, and we so appreciate her friendship and support.

So...here we are and the invitation to all to visit is still out there!  If you haven't come to Belize, or if you've come and want to return, we would love to play tour guide!  Summer/fall months are pretty miserable, but you are welcome anytime (except when we're gone!!).