Pacaya National Park, Guatemala

I climbed 4 KM at 6 am to see this baby...and boy was it worth it!

Pacaya National Park is located between Guatemala City and Antigua. The volcano had a huge eruption the 1960s and has been erupting ever since. The climb up is gruesome. I was part of a small group with only 3 other people which made the experience even better. Our guide took the time to explain the flore and fauna, none of the names i remember (but they have a plant that they use to wipe the sweat of the body and another one that can help if you have a urinary infection!). Now you know.

Back to the climb. I had really hoped to do it all. But this little boy was following us from the bottom and he kept teasing me along the way , reminding me that the worst was yet to come. I didn´t do to bad and managed to do 3/4 of the climb. But in the end i caved and opted for the horse for the last 1/4 - the hardest bit! I know, booh to me. I felt like a real cripple (flashback of gym class !) especially as my fit american friends were barely breaking a sweat! But in the end I was glad I took the horse. I felt like Indiana Jane and managed a few Yeeahaaas as I approached the summit.

We then proceeded to "go to the lava". We were able to get extremely close which was amazing! A guide had even thought of bringing some marshmallows (we tourists are soo easily amused eh!) but when will you ever be able to say you ate a lava toasted marshmallow?

Today is my last day in Antigua and Guatemala for that matter. I will be meeting my fellow group pple tonight and we will be moving on to the Copan Ruins in Honduras tomorrow morning (thank god for the jet lag, which is making these early morning wake up calls much easier!).

Antigua , Guatemala

I´ve made it! After a quick transit through Guatemala City in my private shuttle, I arrived in Antigua at 22h on 27th Sept. I opted for the luxurious and the safe option of booking a mini bus. My reward for doing this was to pay an extra 5 USD because the driver supposedly didn´t have change (after an exhausting 20 hour day travelling i really could not have cared!).

I have been staying in a quaint hotel called Casa Rustica which is situated 2 blocks away from the main square. Keeping with my (still) luxurious habits I went for a private room with shower which can sleep another 2 pple !!!

It has felt extremely odd to be surrounded by the odd cowboy or the mother and child in traditional dress and I am trying as best i can to soak it in. I am in Guatemala!!!

Antigua is a beautiful city situated approx 40 min from the Guatemala City. It is an easy city to stay in, the architecture is rich and colonial in style, the streets are all cobblestones and you only need to glimpse upwards to be mesmerised by the massive volcano watching over the city.

People have been extremely friendly and courteous , a smile being the only requirement to make contact. There are many travellers here, a lot of americans learning spanish or even older travellers wanting to discover Central America. Surprisingly I also noticed a lot of white women with babies , this i can only assume are western couples looking to adopt a local baby (this was confirmed to me later on).

If I made a list of the odd things I noticed this could include:

• Very long queues at the bank (this happens on a daily basis)
• Children wear school uniforms
• People love ice cream
• The exchange rate is 1USD to 7.5 GQT and breakfast cost 25 GQT at the hostel
• They have McDonalds and Burger King (both are very posh!)
• The winner of the Latin American Pop Idol was decided yesterday and he is from Guatemala (and is now a national hero!)
• It rains at least once a day and usually in the afternoon
• I can understand the accent (woohoo!)
• Travellers seem to be wearing Croks shoes thingies nowadays (aargg!)
• Instead of putting butter on grilled corn on the cob use lime and salt instead (yes like tequila!) it´s yummy.
• So far, I´ve met a french reporter called Ronan who was covering a piece on the guerilla wars in Northern Guatemala and the displaced refugees coming home (fascinating!) , two american women who thought that drinking red wine at 8 am was a good idea, some young american graduates that work in socially responsible investing (pretty cool!) and a father who is in guatemala waiting to adopt a child.

Next post - How I survived climbing the Pacaya Volcano.

D - 1

Well this is it - last evening in France for a while.

We had dinner at home with my brother and his little family. Being together made this last night very special. It won't be long until I see them all again - 2 1/2 months to be precise - when we all meet up in Guadeloupe.

Looking back on my month here at home - I don't think it could have been any better. I spent some much appreciated quality time with my mum and dad, saw all my friends, enjoyed the good weather and tried to make the most of it.

My closest friends surprised me last weekend. Some made the journey down from Paris so that we could all be together (except for one - the US and a recent birth made it imposssible :)). I adore these girls. They are my ya-ya sisterhood.

I am packed - but i can't stop myself from thinking that I am missing something. Oh well, i am sure i will be able to get anything i need there.

Tomorrow London baby. People get ready - i am in a hugMeMood :)

Rodos, Greece - September 2007

Rhodes Recap'

The Good

• A and C's wedding
• Greek hospitality
  
• The beautiful views of Turkey!
• Riding a scooter (albeit dangerous!)
• Eating at a taverna the day after the wedding
• Getting completely smashed every night with old friends :)
  

The Not So Good

• Crashing on the scooter!
• Seeing Faliraki (i had flashbacks of Greece Uncovered on Sky One)
• Succumbing to the temptation.
  

Rodos, Greece September 2007

This is the story of two friends who met while I was studying in Exeter. One was from Cyprus and the other was from Rhodes. They met in Exeter, fell in love, managed a 3 year long distance relationship (!!!) and decided to take the big plunge and tie the knot in September. I was lucky enough to be invited to the wedding.

I was truly touched by their invitation. We hadn't seen each other in 6 years and it felt like time had not passed. I couldn't believe the length they went to, to make us feel welcome. I got to sample the true meaning of the word hospitality.

Greek weddings are a traditional affair and can last well over a few days. On the first day, we witnessed the "making of the bridal bed". Here people congregate in the bridal room where traditional greek music is played while non-married women make the bed. This whole process is meant to symbolise marriage and the good wishes for the married couple. It's difficult (the bride unfolds the bed repeatedly), joyful (people sing) and they are given money (people throw envelopes on the bed) and children (little children are also - not so much as thrown- but placed on the bed). It was amazing to see this event unfold. It is a highly emotional time for the parents (especially the mother!) and is the first real celebration of the wedding.

Then on the day of the wedding, there are another two events that take place before the church celebration; these are the "dressing of the bride and groom". This is where the best man shaves, dresses and "blesses" the groom - all this is done with music and singing. The same thing is done for the bride. Then, finally the church wedding and subsequent party takes place (which is more what we are used to !).

All in all it was an amazing experience. A and C are still deeply in love and it filled my heart with joy to see them both so happy.

It was also a great opportunity to have fun with people that I hadn't seen for a long time. We sampled the local cuisine, tested the potent beverages and enjoyed the nightlife. All this took a toll the next day - and I admittedly spent more of my days recovering from the night before.

Athens, Greece - September 2007

Athens Recap'

The Good

• The Acropolis at sunset
• Eating my first souvlaki and sampling home cooked food
• Airconditionned public transport (Ken, my man...learn from this will you!)
• Discovering frappe
• Meeting old friends and talking till late
• Living at night

The Not So Good

• The pollution and the traffic
• Taxi drivers (excuse me but queuing would make it a lot easier!)
• The mushrooming of American restaurants which are supposedly trendy (?)
• It's not all that cheap (how can you live on 800 Eur a month when a drink costs 7 Eur?)
  
• The heat (near 30 C in September!) - one could argue that one!

Athens, Greece September 2007

I arrived in Athens at 2h30 in the morning, having spent 4 hours dreaming about the men's Greek volleyball team which so happened to be seated around me on the plane. My introduction to Greece couldn't not have been better. That was until I heard my name on the speaker phone as I was waiting for my luggage. Never a good sign.

I was lucky enough to be staying with a friend in Piraeus for the length of my stay. There is no better way to discover a country than by staying with a local. Piraeus is the largest port in Europe and is situated just outside the city of Athens. It is a working class neighborhood where (I have been told) a lot of displaced Greeks, resulting from the 1923 Lausanne Treaty moved to following their expulsion from Turkey. For what it lacked in grandeur and sophistication it more than made up for with character and soul. One night, M took me out to the BEST hole in the wall fish taverna in Pireus. We ate like queens, feasted on giant gambas, fish, greek salad and white wine for less than 30 Euros. We were surrounded by local people and roaming dogs looking for food. It was a truly enjoyable experience both in its simplicity and genuine good food.

The next days were spent exploring the city. Athens is a sprawling city with over 4 million habitants. Most of the architecture is concrete based, with an odd mixture of old and new. The result can be eyesore. But there are a few gems. The old Turkish district ("Plaka") remains charming and authentic. It's amazing to know that this little neighbourhood lies in the center of the city.

"Plaka", Athens

I couldn't miss the opportunity to see the Acropolis. Although the ant-like formation of tourists that sprawled around this memorable monument did make me think twice before doing the "tourist thing". But I gave in agreeing that "it had to be done!".

NicNac and WiWi...

Giving him Chocolate milk was the only way to keep him still !

Organised Chaos

I recall a previous post where I predicted a lot of nagging from my mum re: clearing my room of all my stuff. This has now reached a new high. My dear mother decided to barge into my room at 9 am this morning to try and get me to clear my stuff out. I know she was not supposed to know that I had gone to bed at 3.30 am that morning having been out in Nice with M and her boyfriend. But still I got rattled.

Agreed my room is officially a mess (see below- and that's only half of it!) - but I like to think of it as organised chaos. I know where everything is (well at least I think I do). It also reminds me of when my manager tried to get me to implement a "clean desk" policy (clear desk = clear mind). That worked for a few weeks but I quickly reverted back to my old ways.



Please give me the strength to clear this mess up before i leave.

Lucie et Flo : Le mariage

Woh...I haven't posted since Wednesday. It must have been a "RAS" few days (RAS: Rien A Signaler). To be honest, all had been put on hold for the wedding of two of my friends Lucie and Flo on Saturday.


My mum kept asking me what I was going to wear, to which I replied:" No worries, it will be fine". My lack of dress-stress could be explained by the fact that the wedding party was going to take place in The Club Boulliste of Monaco. For all of you that ever went to France during the summer holidays, you must remember the game of Boules (or as the professional call it petanque). We have clubs here where old men gather to smoke, watch TV and play some boules. And that is exactly where my friends had decided to have their wedding dinner. It comes complete with le terrain de boules, plastic sets of table and chairs and Miko (ice cream) parasols!


They had wanted an unorthodox wedding (in type not religion) . The bride opted for a (stunning) copper coloured bustier and long skirt combined with a brown toga-like body veil and roman soldier type of sandals (think Asterix). I know it sounds odd, but she truly looked amazing (in a non-white virginal sense!) . The groom, who used to favour a long (to the bum) hair style (thank god she talked sense into him) and plays guitar in a rock band, had opted for a 1960s french rocker style of clothing (from the Ye-Ye era of french rock). Think dark suite, very thin black tie and a white shirt (a bit like the Blues Brothers). So needless to say, my outfit was the least of my worries!

I had been more concerned about the prospect of socialising with the french. I am not an unsociable person, but I can tell you: It was hard. In the end I took it like a social experiment, where I made a feeble attempt to to decipher their primitive ways. Maybe it was the lack of alcohol, or the large number of post 55 (years old) people which when combined with the less than festive surroundings made the whole day/evening quite a challenging experience. There were a lot of silences (they became less awkward as the evening went on), monosyllabic responses (I tried all the questions in the book to no avail!) and literally very little social-like behaviour.

I never thought I would say this, but at one point I had actually wished for a few english lads to crash the party and start downing flamming sambucas (no it didn't happen!). I resorted to doing what everyone else was doing - sticking to the people I knew.

In the end the chosen strategy was the most rewarding. I had a good time with my friends, didn't have to make an effort to make conversation and had a laugh in the process.

More pics on Flickr.