Like a Trip to the DMV on Steroids

On Thursday of this past week I got to go to Guatemala City, which people here just call Guate (say: Gwah - Tay). I had to do some official stuff. I'm still not sure what stuff I did. Or still have to do. But, I have it on good authority that I'm well into the process of receiving my two-year Visa.  <whew>

The day started at 5:30 (in the morning!!!) when I had to get up in order to shower (in cold water), get dressed (in the dark) and walk to Parque Central (in fog). Here are some of the things I saw along the way:

Stray Dog. One of ten or so I saw on my walk.

Sunrise on my street in Xela.

Fresh juice, anyone? 

I think the church in the background is called the Transfiguration Church. Don't know for sure. It's old. And pretty. And visible from a distance.. 

The downtown catholic church from a distance.

Security measures are important. You see a lot of razor wire here.

The downtown catholic church, as seen through the overhang of the gas station. :) 

Another dog.

The catholic church up close. The facade in the left of the pic is almost 500 years old.

Right now the city of Xela (and all of Guatemala) is in the throes of celebrating Independence weekend. Apparently Xela is the THE place to be for the Independence Day celebration. There are parades, a fair, tons of people from out of town, and TRAFFIC!!!!! It's always a challenge to get around here, but apparently even more so this weekend. Oh - and there are also flags up everywhere, like these in  the central park.

The light blue and white banners represent Guatemala's flag. The red, white, and blue ones represent the flag of Xela.

After a big of delay in getting everyone and everything situation in the very comfortable van we were blessed to be riding in, we were on our way. The drive from Xela to Guate usuall takes between 3 and 4 hours, depending on traffic. You have to ascend to over 10,000 feet, and then descend again into the city. The views are spectacular. Unfortunatley, my camera skills in a moving vehicle are not. That's why the only pics I got look like this:

See... there's a mountain back there. Honest.

The view just a second before these trees got in the way was really something.
It's too bad you missed it. (Or, that I missed it with the camera.)

There was fog. Or, is it just called clouds at that altitude? 

Our trip went smoothly, and we made good time - only stopping once for a few snacks and a potty break. It was a very typical gas station / convenience store.

Because of *course* the toilet wouldn't have a toilet seat, or TP.

Because of *course* the gas station is going to have a stuffed alpaca out front.

After we arrived in Guate, I became even more grateful for our intrepid driver. You know you're in a bad traffic situation when you hear the navigator calmly say from the front seat, "Remember - you shouldn't honk at them, even if they cut you off. That's a red chicken bus, and they are the ones who always shoot people."

And she meant it.

But there were other interesting things to look at, too. Like this motorcycle, which had deer antlers, even though I don't even think there are any deer in Guatemala.

Thankfully, we arrived in one piece (despite our proximity with red chicken buses) just before 11:00, and plopped down in non-descript seats in a non-descript room in a non-descript government building. And then we waited. For four hours. During that time I got up twice - once to sign a piece of paper, and once to get my picture taken. I'm so grateful for the school's lawyer, who did all the hard work, and for the people I was with. They were awesome, and we managed to have a blast despite the long wait.

The lady with the purse in the background was waiting with us... AND her two young children (who were so well behaved)! The one giving the thumbs up had to spend her BIRTHDAY in a Guate govt. building, and still managed to smile through it all. Like I said - we had a blast together!

Ok, maybe he wasn't having as much fun as we were. But, still... :) 

After 653,000 hours (give or take), we finally headed back to the van, and stopped off for the most delicious McDonalds we'd ever eaten. (Perhaps not having eaten for 12 hours might have had something to do with it as well.)

Thumbs up! We were so happy to be back to the van.

So, here's something interesting... the McCafes in Guatemala sell the most amazing cake and pastries. We bought Mary a piece because it was her birthday. There may or may not have been open flame and some off-key singing in the van as well.

The rest of the ride home was uneventful. The sights were almost as pretty on the way home as they had been on the way there. Somehow my camera skills hadn't improved any, though, which is quite a shame, since we saw a volcano puffing out smoke and ash. You really missed quite a sight! :) 

Sleeping off the cares of the day (and the sugar from the cake).

Resting from all the resting he did at the government office. (I don't blame him, though. If I could sleep while sitting upright I would have done it too!)

One of the bus stops along the way home. Lots of people...

There's a volcano there. On the right. Beyond the blurry red lights It's even erupting a little as this picture is being taken. Not that you could tell, though...

 

We finally arrived back in Xela around 8:30. It was a long day, to say the least, but we're learning to be patient and enjoy the process and the ride (figuratively as well and literally). So, all in all, I'd say Thursday turned out to be a pretty great day!