Grateful my Dad is Okay

The first word in the title of this blog is gratitude, and that is what I am feeling today even as I am reeling from the news that my dad was in a serious bike accident this morning back in Sacramento.

My dad is probably the fittest person I know. He runs, plays tennis, lifts weights, and rides his bike - gets a workout in everyday or he just doesn't feel right. He is a custodian at the elementary school where I grew up and was on his way at 5 a.m. when he hit something in the road.

The hardest part is that no one stopped to help him. Even though he was partially in the lane, cars drove around him - he was with it enough to be upset that he had to call 911 himself. You see, my dad is the kind of person that would help. He is the kind of person who makes friends wherever he goes, who cares about people and stays connected to everyone he meets.

The weather here today in Guatemala is rainy, and it feels like it is mirroring my mood. Nice rain, throughout the day, kinda soothing.

I talked to dad today and he is in good spirits, being released from the hospital and my sister is there. It is so hard not to be there with them. He didn't want me to find out here in Guatemala because he didn't want me to worry, that is so dad. Then he started singing "All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth," to cheer me up. Because that's what dad does, he takes care of other people. And I have been lucky enough to grow up in the love of a man like that - who always made me feel like I was perfect, just the way I am. He also provided a model of respect, kindness, fairness, love, and joy. There is no greater gift.

Pana!

So despite the warning from Pierre that there was nothing of note to see there, we decided we would be remiss not to visit the most notable town in the area, Panajachel, Pana for short. We were headed out the door shortly after breakfast when Ken got an alert that one of his client's web sites was down. No worries, we headed back to the studio and he sorted it out.

About an hour later, we headed down to our dock and caught a boat in passing. It was quite full and we offered to take the next one, but they insisted we get on board. With just one seat on a bench inside the covered area, poor Ken sat on the step people use to get onto the boat. We decided it must be a theme this trip, him being forced to sit on the steps.

It was about a 30 minute ride and Ken got involved with a conversation with an ex-pat who had a restaurant in the town near us and is adding on a hotel. The guy told us about just about every item on his menu, and he is particularly proud of his special recipe pizza.

It was a pretty uneventful trip until the last few minutes when the water got REALLY choppy and instead of slowing down, our boat sped up. There were several times we got considerable air and I felt like I left my stomach somewhere on the waves behind us. Ken and his buddy even had to stand up because they were being thrown around so much - no, don't have a photo of that, I was busy holding on!

As soon as we got there, Ken said he was starving so we started looking for a place to eat. We headed down Santander Road, and quickly found something that would work - El Bistro!

I am a strict vegetarian, but Ken likes to add a little animal protein when we eat out, so El Bistro was perfect. He ordered a pepperoni pizza and I started with an avocado salad and margarita. I have to say the margarita was one of the most elegant and tasty I have ever had. It was perfectly clear, except for a small amount of a hot pink substance floating in the drink. Yummy! Ken also tried the "official" beer of Guatemala, Gallo. He says it's okay. The bread was warm and decent and we appreciated the oil and balsamic, especially how it made a heart for us.

 So here is Ken with his pizza. And here I am with my margarita.

And the lighting in the place was probably my favorite part - these were paper lanterns with lights inside and they looked beautiful!

This is also the first restaurant that we have been to that accepts Visa, very nice for our cash flow. Also kinda cool that the Visa sign is posted on a natural wood stump.

As we entered the restaurant, a woman on the street approached us to buy her woven table covers, but we told her we would see her after we ate. As we left, she approached us again, but we told her we were going to have coffee. I read about a place called Cafe Moka online and we went in to check it out. Have to say, I love the mochas down here, they add a little cinnamon and it's a little less sweet.

As we left the coffee shop, it was a relief to talk with Margarita, as she seemed to anxious to have our business. She told us that only the women in her family made the cloths we were looking at and asked quite a lot for them to begin with. Ken talked her down to about $20 a piece for 3 of them, about half of the original price - by the way, it is pretty customary to negotiate here. To the point that you have to walk away. Margarita was an amazing salesperson. She learned our names, she was persistent, she remained friendly, and I liked her. We hugged when the deal was made. So we saw very similar fabrics down the road, and I am choosing to believe that it because her family is selling fabric there as well. ;-)

People here have a good sense of humor...this was in the front window of a book store. Lots of bookstores down here by the way.

Here are a couple of "street" shots to give a feel of the shops and restaurants. It was a little surreal to have the level of commerce in the shadows of such impressive natural wonders.

After lunch and some shopping, the weather was getting a little gnarly and we knew it was time to head back. Here's a look at the dock.

And a look at the area where our boat would be headed to take us back to Pasaj-Cap - about that fourth mountainous edge you see poking out on the right.

Here's a video of part of the boat ride back - sorry it's sideways, no idea how to fix that. It was bumpy and crowded, but pleasant.

 Here's  Santa Cruz, a small town up the hill from their dock where we dropped a few folks off on our way back.

These photos are so small, I know they don't convey the feeling you have when you are on a small boat going past these huge outcroppings, hills, and mountains. Even the size of the lake is hard to imagine. It all comes together to remind you how very small you are, and how little control you have over the natural world. That's a good thing.

Dinner and Shopping, Guatemala Style!

Feeling much better today, so we did some work for clients and then decided to head out to the neighboring town of San Marcos for a little dinner.

We walked to town on the little dirt road behind our property that eventually meets up with the paved road. It was just after 5 p.m., and apparently working hours don't differ too much as we saw lots of folks walking both directions. The people walking during this time seemed more likely to look up and say buenas, buenas tardes, or simply tardes in one case. I also noticed that if they were men they tended to look at Ken with a greeting, rather than me.

When we got to town, we immediately heard some live music in the distance. We walked toward the sounds and passed the church where there was a small gathering with candles, past the covered concrete soccer arena where there was a game going on, and on to an outdoor amphitheater where it looked like the local high school band was practicing. I have to say, their drum line was the strongest part of the ensemble, but the horns were nice too. I would have liked to share some video, but it would had felt intrusive to pull out my phone, so my description will have to do. ;-)

We were firmly in the Guatemalan side of the town, and I have to say, I felt it was more comfortable. I didn't know the language - in fact most of the people here speak Kaqchiquel, a Mayan language that pre-dates Spanish colonization of the area. Despite the language barrier, it has all the makings of a small, hardworking town. It is active and busy in the evenings, alive with families taking care of their weekday business.

After walking around town a bit, we decided to head toward the "ex-pat" side of town for one of the three restaurants we found recommended online - Restaurant Fe, Blind Lemon, and Tul y Sol. We found Blind Lemon immediately, off the main road and before you have to turn off into one of the small paths leading to the docks/ex-pat area. Looked like a great place, unfortunately for us, it wasn't open. :(

Down the paths we went in search of one of the other two restaurants. We knew where Tul y Sol was from an earlier wandering, but the recommendations were highest for Fe, so we tried really hard to find it. I can't begin to convey how confusing it is to try to get around in this town. The paths are narrow, haphazard passageways with minimal signage. You have to be bold and adventurous. We finally gave in and walked into Tul Y Sol just as the skies opened up - great timing. The place normally has wonderful balcony seating on the lake, but you can see from the photo below, it wasn't the night for that.

We were the only diners tonight, and felt very taken care of. Ken ordered roasted chicken with a coke (much less sweet here than in the US) and I got the tofu curry with a cuba libre- yes, tofu. The area is actually mostly vegetarian. (Lots of yoga, mediation, and kombucha too.)

After a few minutes, one of the two Mayan women working there came to the table with our salads - shredded carrots, beets, and cucumbers with a hot mustard or wasabi dressing and some hot yeasty bread - both delicious. Yes, I said the beets were delicious and that is the only time you will hear that from me. They normally taste like dirt.

A little into our salads, a gringo with long hair appeared with my cuba libre. He didn't appear to speak English though. As we were finishing our salads, he walked out with our dinners. They were every bit as good. Ken devoured his entire plate and then the potatoes from mine. My red curry was a little on the hot side, just the way I like it. The side of green beans was really good too.

After dinner we realized we may be too late to try to catch a boat home and it was too dark to walk back without a light (which we forgot.) So, since we were going to have to hire a tuk-tuk, we figured we would do a little grocery shopping. Walking back on those little paths - no bueno. It was so dark I pulled my phone out and had to keep pushing the button to somewhat light up the path in front of us - definitely felt like I was pushing my personal limits of comfort on that walk.

Thankfully, we made it to the main street again and stopped at a small store to pick up honey, tortillas, eggs, and jelly and were lucky enough to run into a tuk-tuk driver. He agreed to take us back to Pasaj-Cap for 10Q each, about $1.30. While we were waiting, a few boys (8-10?) walked up and one said pretty aggressively to Ken "para mi" while pointing to the eggs. It was very strange, not a question, definitely a command. Ken took it in stride and joked back, "no, para mi" with a smile. Talking later, we both felt oddly threatened by the exchange and wished it had gone a little differently - we would have gladly handed over some eggs if he had asked. With Spanish as a likely second language, we did wonder if he knew how to ask. A Bimbo bakery driver overheard the conversation and said something to the kids that sounded like leave the gringos alone, but I couldn't be sure.

The tuk-tuk ride more than made up for the strangeness of the egg situation. If you ever have the opportunity to ride in one of these - do! A tuk-tuk is a scooter thingy with...heck, I'll just show you:

The guy blasted some great Spanish language music and headed up the very rough dirt road leading to our place. It was so worth the paltry fee he charged, in fact I felt a little bad considering the road was in such bad condition it could have hurt his vehicle. Luckily, we arrived with the tuk-tuk and our eggs in good shape. It was really fun and we're looking forward to more tuk-tuk adventures!

Wild Garden

I am feeling much better after a few days of antibiotics and Ken and I decided to take a walk around the grounds of the place where we're staying. While strolling to the far side of the property, we stumbled upon a great garden of all kinds of good stuff!

On the way there, we first spotted this enormous avocado tree.

Being an aficionado, I had already picked up a few Guatemalan avocados, and I have to say, this is the one place I prefer what we have back home (which is probably Mexican.) The ones here are more rounded so there is more flesh, but both of the ones I tried were inedible. Perhaps it is shopper error. ;-)

Moving deeper into the property, we came across several small groves of coffee. Aska, the owner's girlfriend, told us that this place used to be a coffee farm at one time. No wonder Ken likes it so much.

After walking past at least several dozen coffee plants, we came across a "proper" garden.

They simply used the branches of nearby trees to create the little fence around this herb garden area. Beyond the fenced area, there were also some vegetables.

I believe those are beets and carrots, and possibly others?

Then we came across one of my favorites, mangoes! Not quite ripe, but we'll be here another few weeks. You can bet we'll be checking! 

A couple blackberry bushes, also being supported by the cut branches of another tree. 

Crazy, wild squash stretching everywhere throughout the various plant areas.

A few pepper plants sprinkled among the others, not an area set aside for just them. Wondering if that is a strategy?

And two of my favorites - lime and banana! We also have them just outside our window. I have a couple drinks I am using the limes with - I make what I like to call a "Beer-a-Rita" with one of our Dorado beers (3/4) and lime juice (1/4) over ice. I also make limeade with water (3/4) and lime juice (1/4) over ice with a dash of maple syrup (we don't have any sugar or other type of sweetener. Believe it or not, I kinda like the addition of a little maple flavor.

Here are a few other cool plants from the property that I have yet to identify.

I'm spending one more day on the mend, hanging around our studio and working on stuff for clients. We are talking about heading to San Marcos tomorrow and renting a couple kayaks to bring back our groceries and then explore more of the lake. More on that later. As the folks around here say, Caio!

Sick in Guatemala!

We came here for a full month as a pilot, a sort of trial to see if we could really live in another country for an extended period of time and keep up with our business back home. Part of living somewhere is knowing how to deal with the daily challenges that come your way.

Luckily, my body was on the same page and thought it would throw a sinus infection at us early on to see how we handle it!

The exact causes leading up to the infection are debatable - if you read earlier posts, you understand that we had a little war going on here with the local insect population, so there was an increase in the usage of Off, and the accompanying fumes.

In addition, we are staying in a place that is 5,000 feet up and several days this week we had some low-lying storms to where the clouds seemed right at our level. Perhaps the climate/pressure changes?

At any rate, my usual mucinex/benedryl cocktail did nothing to address the congestion that developed two days ago and I knew from past experience that a sinus infection was inevitable. We called the UCD on-call doctor (who was very excited to have received a call from Guatemala that day) and she told us about a few good options for anitbiotics.

So, Ken headed down to the dock to catch a boat to the nearest town with a good farmacia (San Pedro.) I debated going with him, but when the energy it took to get ready hit me with an intense desire to go back to bed, I realized that was pure folly.

About 45 minutes after he left, a decent storm came in and I couldn't even see the other side of the lake. I was a little concerned, but tried to remember that the boatmen out here do this every day, through much worse.

Ken called from San Pedro in fact, and wasn't even seeing the same level of rain there. Apparently the storm was mighty, but small. He called and let me know he was stepping on to the return boat and would be here soon.

I heard the boat pull up and heard Ken laughing with a couple people down at the dock. He connected with another developer from California and they plan to get together for a beer to talk shop! What a small world. He also enjoy riding on the boat with a young Guatemalan girl and her abuelita, showing them pictures of our kitten Osa from home.

He came in the door victorious - not only was he able to get a "Z-Pack,"(azithromiacin) it was available over the counter and in double the dose you can get at home.

Lucky for me, he also picked up good 'ole Kleenex - soft and without the perfumes they add to paper products here! I don't think I've ever been so happy to see tissue.

I decided to split the doses up to the levels I take in the US, and took my second dose today. I'm not rid of it, but feeling much better. The weather even cooperated with rain all day so I didn't feel so bad for laying around and sleeping and reading.

Speaking of reading, I started reading a new genre of books yesterday that may be of interest to some folks out there. I am not usually a sci-fi reader, but this series has been really good! I read the first one yesterday, Wool, by Hugh Howie. Today I am finishing up the second called, "Shift." There is a third I will likely start as soon as I finish. It's kinda cool that the guy is an indie publisher - his books have been published online and are just about to be published in print. Here's a link to more about him: http://www.amazon.com/Hugh-Howey/e/B002RX4S5Q/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

So, all in all, having a sinus infection here is honestly a little easier than having one back home. I didn't have to make an appointment to go see a "primary care" doctor, or because it was Saturday, go to a clinic. Ken was able to get what I needed pretty easily. And laying around with a view of a beautiful lake watching a storm (what we like to call weather tv) beats anything on the tube back home.

Hope this infection clears soon so I have more exciting stuff to share!

Our Pasaj-Cap Studio

As you may have guessed from previous posts, Ken and I enjoy traveling in Central America. In fact, we have visited Costa Rica six times, mostly staying in the Osa Penninsula area. We have a favorite lodge there, El Remanso, that is magical - in a very rustic way. We are used to having limited power and almost no internet or hot water access.

This year, we decided to try something new and explore Guatemala. Pasaj-Cap may have spoiled us for good. We have the benefit of being located in beautifully natural surroundings, but the living quarters themselves are almost as beautiful. The "apartment" is elegant and simple in exactly the way we like it. It is located in a gated compound of about eight units, but designed in a way that we have to go out of our way to run into anyone else.

Our kitchen is small but well equipped, in fact we have eaten out just once since we arrived a week ago.

There is a nice selection of pots and pans, dishes, even a garlic press! There is also a supply of bottled water as the local water isn't clean enough to drink. We do use it for bathing and washing though, and have had no problems.

One of the most striking features of the studio is that the wall facing the lake is made up almost entirely of glass doors that slide to the side until there is just one panel of glass on each side and the studio feels like we are outside.

As you can see in the picture, there is also a chunky ledge that can be used for additional seating should you know enough people in Guatemala to throw a party.

There is also a dining room table which has been more of a workspace for Ken and me, along with a wonderful fireplace that we hope to get the chance to use at some point. It is not really cold enough, but it would be neat.

I am a bathroom person but have gotten used to the idea that it is a luxury to have a bath in Central America. At Pasaj-Cap, again I am spoiled. The bathroom has a fantastic tub and I love the cement countertops throughout the bathroom and kitchen. So clean and modern.

However, as wonderful as the rest of the apartment is, my favorite part by far is the hammock that hangs just inside the front door on a raised wooden platform. 

I've never seen anything like it. I spend a good part of each day here, watching the bananas and limes grow just outside the glass doors, or opening them up so I can feel the breeze coming off the lake. One night I laid there watching an amazing thunder and lightning storm, it was pretty special.

Noche de las Arañas (Night of the Spiders)

It started off as such a nice night. I decided to make pasta with bread and cucumber salad - ambitious for our little kitchen here in our Guatemalan studio, but doable.

As we were sitting on the couch looking out over Lake Atitlan and enjoying the meal, I looked beyond my husband at the wall behind him and noticed what seemed to be a very large spider just next to the closet.

For some reason, when I see a spider, scorpion, etc., I lose my capacity for speech and retreat down into my brain stem where language sounds like a series of grunts and I point at the object of my fear.

This was one of the three spiders my husband hunted down for me. He is a pacifist at heart, and tried to save them, but none were willing to take him up on the suggestion that they just leave.

 We realized our increase in spiders was directly tied to a change in behavior. The first few nights, we left the wall of glass doors open most of the day and evening for the wonderful breeze coming off the lake. Today was overcast and stayed very cool, so we didn't need to leave them open. With the closed glass doors and lights inside, the flying bugs were going nuts, all huddled up against the glass trying to get to the light.

Where there is a large population of bugs, you will attract their predators - spiders.

My solution for the night - most of the bottle of red Argentinan wine, and moving our bed to the center of the room and spraying the base with bug spray.

Bottom line, a night spider hunting in Guatemala is still better than most Thursdays in Sacramento. ;-)

Update: After this post was written and as we were settling into bed, we spotted a scorpion on the ground near the head of our bed, the second we have found in that spot.

Yes, I did sleep last night but it wasn't easy. In the light of day, I feel like i can be more philosophical about the experience. One of the things I love about this place is the vitality here - that comes from a climate that promotes an abundance of life. You don't get to choose which species are selected in the foodchain, so if you want to be in a place that has monkeys, beautiful birds, sloths, incredibly huge butterflies, you also have to accept their counterparts.

I am very allergic to many insects, and it does challenge my courage at times to see them in my space. But, I have my Benydryl and my Epi-Pen, and my perspective - I came here to fully experience life.

As the Pasaj-Cap owner's girlfriend Aska said to me, "better to die in a place like this than in front of a tv." :-)

San Marcos La Laguna

The last two days we had the opportunity to visit a couple of the neighboring "towns" on the lake. You can most easily get around by going down to the Pasaj-Cap dock and waving to one of the boats run by the locals. Boats coming from the right will take you to Santa Cruz and Pana, boats coming from the left will take you to San Marcos, San Juan, and San Pedro. Here's the dock at Pasaj-Cap:

Here's Ken on the boat:

This is a happy Ken, but he doesn't smile, it's just his picture thing.

Our first stop was the town of San Marcos. It's kind of two towns - the town closest to the water is kind of a hippy, spiritual expat community, and further up towards the highway and mountains are the native Guatemalan/Mayan people. In the ex-pat area, you can find lots of restaurants (including vegetarian,) multiple massage places, yoga retreats, and several nice looking hotels.

Here is a link to more info about the town: http://wikitravel.org/en/San_Marcos_La_Laguna

One of the things that really struck me was the impact the rising lake has had on this community. Sounds like about 20 feet in the last 10 years -rough! Here some photos that show the second story of a house on the lake as well as the make-shift walkway put in place after the beach disappeared to allow folks to get around - one thing I love about Central America, they just improvise. Yes, those are shipping pallets.

My favorite part of visiting was the little Mayan boy walking with his mom who made a point to yell Hola! to Ken and I as we crossed their path. I also enjoyed watching the kids playing futbal in the town square and at the local school.

The boat ride from San Marcos to San Pedro took us past this interesting estate - you may need to zoom in to see how spectacular it is, kinds sticks out compared to most of the other places on the lake:

It kind of reminded me of one of my favorite movies, "What Dreams May Come," in the scene where Robin Williams goes to heaven and he is in this world of paint and he is running down green hills and into water and up again the other side to a beautiful house where he thinks his wife is waiting. A sailboat figures prominently in the movie as well. It was just a beautiful scene just outside of San Marcos.