The news was fairly grim today in Guatemala as flooding, mudslides & roadside avalanches were reported all over the country this past weekend. Although my Spanish is extremely lame I was able to catch the gist of things on the TV news and so discovered that damage wasn`t limited to the poor village of Los Esclavos but was even worse in areas near Lake Atitlan. I am told that up to 80 people were killed nationwide but I haven`t confirmed that from news sources.
This morning I caught a ride south toward El Salvador with some water engineers who were on their way to a town about halfway to the border on business. The older of the two spoke some English and he was the one who told me of the fatalities. I don`t usually hitchhike in Latin America but I have experience at it in Europe and Southeast Asia. These guys were leaving at the same time I was from the hotel. Hitching can be a good way to get around if you`re friendly but cautious.
The Guatemala-El Salvador frontier is one of the easier ones in the region because by treaty the Guatemala 90 immigration stamp is also good for El Salvador, Honduras & Nicaragua. A couple of short bus rides late this morning and I was quickly over the border and at my destination, Ahuachapan. The cheap hotel I was looking for has gone out of business--oh well! But I found another place, just a little more expensive, that will do just fine.
El Salvador has dollarized its economy--greenbacks are the legal tender here which is good since I have some cash dollars and am uncertain still about my ability to get cash from my account at home. One of my first chores here today is to check the ATMs.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Sun May 30 Los Esclavos (Day 7)
So I take another day here in this quiet & beautiful corner of the world but I`m really not in any hurry (unless I`m in a hurry to get to Merida, Venezuela). Saturday was impossible because of the rain & I had to wait longer for some laundry I`d sent out--clothesline in the wind is still their primary dryer in this part of the world.
Then I`ve been vexed by what`s turning into a major annoyance with my bank during what happens to be a three day weekend in the States. I cannot call them til Tuesday; meanwhile do I stay in Guatemala to do that or should I soldier onward & see about it in El Salvador?
Finally the local area has experienced a natural disaster--if not of epic proportions, then it`s been enough for crowds of local Sunday tourists to stream in all day long to rubberneck like me. Although at least three houses were badly damaged or destroyed, I am not aware of any injuries or loss of life. Most places in the area, including my hotel, still have electricity--although the owner told me the telephone is out & now he has to accept credit cards manually, the old fashioned way, with carbon copied slips. Remember those?
Some local people are busy cleaning up at the stone bridge, which was partly damaged last night. By the ferocity of this roaring muddy, swollen river I`m amazed that the whole bridge wasn`t swept away. The guilt-plagued "wealthy" Western tourist in me wants to help them if I can, but the pragmatist in me says I don´t have appropriate footwear for the task. These people are wearing rubber boots or real shoes.
Then I`ve been vexed by what`s turning into a major annoyance with my bank during what happens to be a three day weekend in the States. I cannot call them til Tuesday; meanwhile do I stay in Guatemala to do that or should I soldier onward & see about it in El Salvador?
Finally the local area has experienced a natural disaster--if not of epic proportions, then it`s been enough for crowds of local Sunday tourists to stream in all day long to rubberneck like me. Although at least three houses were badly damaged or destroyed, I am not aware of any injuries or loss of life. Most places in the area, including my hotel, still have electricity--although the owner told me the telephone is out & now he has to accept credit cards manually, the old fashioned way, with carbon copied slips. Remember those?
Some local people are busy cleaning up at the stone bridge, which was partly damaged last night. By the ferocity of this roaring muddy, swollen river I`m amazed that the whole bridge wasn`t swept away. The guilt-plagued "wealthy" Western tourist in me wants to help them if I can, but the pragmatist in me says I don´t have appropriate footwear for the task. These people are wearing rubber boots or real shoes.
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Los Esclavos in the National News (Day 7)
Well, there`s plenty of excitement here today with Los Esclavos on national TV, and the locals are gathering at the bridges to check out the devastation caused by yesterday`s rains--which never really let up until early this morning.
Rains, flooding, and mudslides took out a number of trees and sections of a road in the village down by the old stone bridge and power plant. These in turn pulled down several electric lines and poles, which did further damage to homes nearby. The police and ambulances are here, as is the electric company--and everybody from the village.
The scene has also drawn gawkers from Cuilapa and other nearby settlements. Many of these people have come to take photos and to telephone their friends and relatives. A couple of them have professional looking cameras, so I take them for local media.
I also took some photos but I`m still unable to upload to this site. I hope to be able to do so sometime in the not-too-distant future.
I should be leaving for the border today but the excitement has caused some delay in those plans. And for the record, I still can`t get cash from the ATMs!
Rains, flooding, and mudslides took out a number of trees and sections of a road in the village down by the old stone bridge and power plant. These in turn pulled down several electric lines and poles, which did further damage to homes nearby. The police and ambulances are here, as is the electric company--and everybody from the village.
The scene has also drawn gawkers from Cuilapa and other nearby settlements. Many of these people have come to take photos and to telephone their friends and relatives. A couple of them have professional looking cameras, so I take them for local media.
I also took some photos but I`m still unable to upload to this site. I hope to be able to do so sometime in the not-too-distant future.
I should be leaving for the border today but the excitement has caused some delay in those plans. And for the record, I still can`t get cash from the ATMs!
Sat May 29 (Day 6) & the Rains
When it rains it pours! And it`s really coming down today. I took advantage of a brief lull & grabbed a bus into town so I could check the ATMs again. I still can`t get cash from my account, though I`m still able to use the card for debit/credit. This is very inconvenient long term because I have only a limited amount of cash dollars which are a hassle to change and which I need to preserve for emergencies. I can last a few days but I hope I don´t have to call the bank.
The rain is so relentless today that I really didn`t feel like dealing with any travel at all, but I took advantage of the time to research the next leg or two. One option, which I`ve just about rejected, is to make my way to Guatemala`s nearby Pacific coast. The town of Monterrico in the coastal preserve Biotopo Monterrico-Hawaii looks kind of interesting for the turtle sanctuary but the hatching season doesn`t start til June. Meanwhile the guidebooks tell me that Guatemala`s Pacific beach towns are either run down or sleazy (or both). Much more interesting would be the stretch of beach towns just west of La Libertad in El Salvador. Apparently this little corner of Central America has some of the best surfing in the world--and lessons for $10!
Tomorrow, rain or shine, I think I`ll make straight for the El Salvador border and then to Ahuachapan, a pleasant colonial city I visited in 2008. This town is close to a couple Mayan ruins sites & some little-touristed mountain villages in El Salvador`s western coffee plantation region. From there I can visit the beaches then proceed to the capital San Salvador & points beyond.
The rain is so relentless today that I really didn`t feel like dealing with any travel at all, but I took advantage of the time to research the next leg or two. One option, which I`ve just about rejected, is to make my way to Guatemala`s nearby Pacific coast. The town of Monterrico in the coastal preserve Biotopo Monterrico-Hawaii looks kind of interesting for the turtle sanctuary but the hatching season doesn`t start til June. Meanwhile the guidebooks tell me that Guatemala`s Pacific beach towns are either run down or sleazy (or both). Much more interesting would be the stretch of beach towns just west of La Libertad in El Salvador. Apparently this little corner of Central America has some of the best surfing in the world--and lessons for $10!
Tomorrow, rain or shine, I think I`ll make straight for the El Salvador border and then to Ahuachapan, a pleasant colonial city I visited in 2008. This town is close to a couple Mayan ruins sites & some little-touristed mountain villages in El Salvador`s western coffee plantation region. From there I can visit the beaches then proceed to the capital San Salvador & points beyond.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Days 4 & 5 in Los Esclavos
Yesterday I opted for the relatively short journey from the capital south to Cuilapa so now will save Antigua and points north for a later date.
I´m revisiting the fine Hotel Turiscentro Los Esclavos which has an excellent restaurant and very good rooms for about $16 per night--the off season rate--and is only a five minute walk from the famous old stone bridge which I walked across today.
It´s definitely off season here because the rainy season has arrived with a vengeance. Last night it poured almost non-stop and today it´s been on & off all day. And it´s so quiet around here I suspect I might be the only guest in the hotel.
The restaurant is another matter though. It´s obviously very popular with the local road traffic on this portion of the Pan-American Highway. Yesterday´s lunch crowd was large and this morning´s breakfast crowd was even larger, and the parking lot was full. This afternoon, however, I had the swimming pool just outside my door all to myself--if I´d wanted it. . .
Despite the rains, it´s very beautiful around here with lush, green jungle covered foothills and a couple standout volcanos nearby. The muddy brown river races in the gorge below the bridges after passing through a small hydroelectric dam and power plant.
I´m cooling my heels a bit because today I was unable to access cash from the ATMs in Cuilapa and hope this electronic inconvenience is only a temporary annoyance and not some problem with the bank at home.
But at least I´ve started on my journey: looks like I´ll proceed to the El Salvador frontier in a day or two then see how my itinerary might progress from there.
I´m revisiting the fine Hotel Turiscentro Los Esclavos which has an excellent restaurant and very good rooms for about $16 per night--the off season rate--and is only a five minute walk from the famous old stone bridge which I walked across today.
It´s definitely off season here because the rainy season has arrived with a vengeance. Last night it poured almost non-stop and today it´s been on & off all day. And it´s so quiet around here I suspect I might be the only guest in the hotel.
The restaurant is another matter though. It´s obviously very popular with the local road traffic on this portion of the Pan-American Highway. Yesterday´s lunch crowd was large and this morning´s breakfast crowd was even larger, and the parking lot was full. This afternoon, however, I had the swimming pool just outside my door all to myself--if I´d wanted it. . .
Despite the rains, it´s very beautiful around here with lush, green jungle covered foothills and a couple standout volcanos nearby. The muddy brown river races in the gorge below the bridges after passing through a small hydroelectric dam and power plant.
I´m cooling my heels a bit because today I was unable to access cash from the ATMs in Cuilapa and hope this electronic inconvenience is only a temporary annoyance and not some problem with the bank at home.
But at least I´ve started on my journey: looks like I´ll proceed to the El Salvador frontier in a day or two then see how my itinerary might progress from there.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Los Escalvos Stone Bridge in Cuilapa
Just a couple miles south of the town of Cuilapa is the resort hotel Turiscentro Los Esclavos where I stayed for a few days in August 2008. For $25 per night you get a first class class room next to a swimming pool and an excellent restaurant featuring typical Guatemalan food for very reasonable prices. If I decide to bite the bullet and begin my journey south to El Salvador, Honduras & Nicaragua, then Cuilapa would be a great place to stop for some ease, luxury & comfort before I hit the harder road ahead.
Cuilapa doesn´t have very much to offer apart from the surrounding natural beauty of the mountains and Los Escalvos River valley. Just nearby is a 16th century stone bridge, remarkably preserved, over that river which is named for The Slaves.
I´ve posted a random link to the Los Esclavos bridge on the upper right hand side of this page. Check it out. . .
Cuilapa doesn´t have very much to offer apart from the surrounding natural beauty of the mountains and Los Escalvos River valley. Just nearby is a 16th century stone bridge, remarkably preserved, over that river which is named for The Slaves.
I´ve posted a random link to the Los Esclavos bridge on the upper right hand side of this page. Check it out. . .
Cuilapa & Points Southeast or Antigua & Northwest?
I´m stuck here ´cause I can´t make up my mind about the basic direction of my travels. Should I head south/southeast so I can get started immediately on an itinerary leading to Costa Rica, Panama & Venezuela? Or should I go revisit beautiful colonial Antigua de Guatemala--just an hour from here--where there is good tourist infrastructure and from where I can continue my travels further into Guatemala's interior?
If it´s the latter, then I should plan on a visit to the famous market town of Chichicastenango, only 2-3 hours by bus from Antigua, where my aunt´s church in Wisconsin has its sister church in Guatemala.
Logistics dictate that if I want to visit the large Mayan site in Tikal, then organizing the trip from Antigua makes a lot of sense.
Cuilapa, about 50 miles southeast of the capital, is a small town I visited in 2008. There´s not much there except a fine resort-type hotel with an excellent restaurant where I stayed for a couple days on my way back home that year.
No, I´m not here to do resort travel, but this place has great value, as I recall, with almost luxurious rooms for $25 or so. Sounds good, doesn´t it? But there´s virtually no tourist infrastructure for planning other legs of the journey. From Cuilapa there´s really only one place to go: El Salvador.
The fact is, the capital city isn´t much to write home about. I needed a few days to get my bearings, set up the blog, finish some other business, and get plenty of good food and rest for the next leg of my journey. So now, on Day 3, it´s time to make a move.
Yet my basic predicament remains: should I head south immediately, or chill out for a bit nearby? And where´s the bus station for Antigua buses?!
If it´s the latter, then I should plan on a visit to the famous market town of Chichicastenango, only 2-3 hours by bus from Antigua, where my aunt´s church in Wisconsin has its sister church in Guatemala.
Logistics dictate that if I want to visit the large Mayan site in Tikal, then organizing the trip from Antigua makes a lot of sense.
Cuilapa, about 50 miles southeast of the capital, is a small town I visited in 2008. There´s not much there except a fine resort-type hotel with an excellent restaurant where I stayed for a couple days on my way back home that year.
No, I´m not here to do resort travel, but this place has great value, as I recall, with almost luxurious rooms for $25 or so. Sounds good, doesn´t it? But there´s virtually no tourist infrastructure for planning other legs of the journey. From Cuilapa there´s really only one place to go: El Salvador.
The fact is, the capital city isn´t much to write home about. I needed a few days to get my bearings, set up the blog, finish some other business, and get plenty of good food and rest for the next leg of my journey. So now, on Day 3, it´s time to make a move.
Yet my basic predicament remains: should I head south immediately, or chill out for a bit nearby? And where´s the bus station for Antigua buses?!
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
As the Sun Goes Down I Follow the Locals
In the tropics people start their day pretty early, and their day tends to end earlier too, as it basically following the progress of the sun.
There are many good reasons for this, especially on travel days when I like to get a bus to my destination between 7-9 a.m. in order to arrive at the next town & get settled before it gets too hot in the afternoon.
And though I used to be a night owl when I was a journeyman musician working the bars & clubs, these days I'm not at all into the nightlife scene when I'm at home or on the road. When I'm traveling it definitely helps keep the budget balanced if I'm not spending very much on drinks & nightclubbing.
At sundown people here head home, and all over the city the gates are coming down--not just on businesses & restaurants but on the one & two star hotels where I hang my hat, and the gates are coming down on people's homes too.
Given that most guidebooks advise foreigners to avoid walking the streets after dark and to take taxis everywhere (for even a short trip to the wealthy Zona 10 from the hotel in my less-wealthy Zona 9--just a ten minute walk--it is recommended that you take a taxi), I tend to follow the locals when in Rome. So here in GC after dark I prepare to take an evening meal somewhere nearby and pretty much call it a day after that.
There are many good reasons for this, especially on travel days when I like to get a bus to my destination between 7-9 a.m. in order to arrive at the next town & get settled before it gets too hot in the afternoon.
And though I used to be a night owl when I was a journeyman musician working the bars & clubs, these days I'm not at all into the nightlife scene when I'm at home or on the road. When I'm traveling it definitely helps keep the budget balanced if I'm not spending very much on drinks & nightclubbing.
At sundown people here head home, and all over the city the gates are coming down--not just on businesses & restaurants but on the one & two star hotels where I hang my hat, and the gates are coming down on people's homes too.
Given that most guidebooks advise foreigners to avoid walking the streets after dark and to take taxis everywhere (for even a short trip to the wealthy Zona 10 from the hotel in my less-wealthy Zona 9--just a ten minute walk--it is recommended that you take a taxi), I tend to follow the locals when in Rome. So here in GC after dark I prepare to take an evening meal somewhere nearby and pretty much call it a day after that.
¡¿Where's the D%&ç Bus Station?!
One of my least favorite chores on the road in Latin America is figuring out which bus I need and from which bus station I have to find my way out & onward to my next destination. Unlike in some countries, Central American bus companies have their own private terminals, and most big cities have several of these large, chaotic terminals spread out over a wide area. So it can be tricky to navigate your way from hotel to terminal--especially if you want to save money on taxis--and from terminal to hotel in the next town or city.
Even when I have the assistance of maps & guidebooks, as I do here, I am often frustrated in my research. For example, my Guatemala Rough Guide indicates that the Tica Bus Company, which runs major routes all over Central America, has its terminal just three blocks west of my hotel (unusally convenient for me, in my experience!), but when I went for a walk to look for it yesterday I found no sign of it. Errgghhh. . .
Sometimes the bane of my traveler's existence, Latin American buses are a reality you have to deal with sooner or later--if you want to stay on budget and get around overland. But unsurprisingly I will sometimes stay an extra day someplace just to avoid dealing with it a little bit longer. . .
Even when I have the assistance of maps & guidebooks, as I do here, I am often frustrated in my research. For example, my Guatemala Rough Guide indicates that the Tica Bus Company, which runs major routes all over Central America, has its terminal just three blocks west of my hotel (unusally convenient for me, in my experience!), but when I went for a walk to look for it yesterday I found no sign of it. Errgghhh. . .
Sometimes the bane of my traveler's existence, Latin American buses are a reality you have to deal with sooner or later--if you want to stay on budget and get around overland. But unsurprisingly I will sometimes stay an extra day someplace just to avoid dealing with it a little bit longer. . .
TicoNica 2009 Blog Link Below
Check out the dormant blog of my Costa Rica/Nicaragua trip from August 2009 which is in many ways a prequel to this current blog. Click the link at the very bottom of this page . . .
Great Place for a James Bond Movie Chase
The Lonely Planet´s 1000 Ultimate Travel Experiences Guide lists Guatemala City among the ten best cities in the world to film a James Bond-style movie chase scene.
I think I know what they're saying if they mean this city's perfect backdrop for it includes the horrendous traffic and the wide variety of motorcycles, cars, vans, trucks & buses; the gridlocked grid system of numbered squalid streets & wide photogenic avenues; the modern skyscrapers next door to the two story shacks; the hustle & bustle of the Mercado Central with its shoe shine boys, CD peddlers, street food stalls, and beggars; the armed guards at the entrances of not only banks & jewelry stores but also most businesses, higher end restaurants, and even supermarkets; similarly armed guards literally "riding shotgun" in every delivery van to discourage old-fashioned highway robbery; fat cats & their entourages who exude wealth & power on the street as you've never seen it in a rich country like America while the vast majority of ordinary people--indigenous and mestizo alike--go about their ordinary, difficult everyday lives.
I think I know what they're saying if they mean this city's perfect backdrop for it includes the horrendous traffic and the wide variety of motorcycles, cars, vans, trucks & buses; the gridlocked grid system of numbered squalid streets & wide photogenic avenues; the modern skyscrapers next door to the two story shacks; the hustle & bustle of the Mercado Central with its shoe shine boys, CD peddlers, street food stalls, and beggars; the armed guards at the entrances of not only banks & jewelry stores but also most businesses, higher end restaurants, and even supermarkets; similarly armed guards literally "riding shotgun" in every delivery van to discourage old-fashioned highway robbery; fat cats & their entourages who exude wealth & power on the street as you've never seen it in a rich country like America while the vast majority of ordinary people--indigenous and mestizo alike--go about their ordinary, difficult everyday lives.
Monday, May 24, 2010
One More National Bird for the Buck
The quetzal is Guatemala's national bird. It's also Guatemala's national currency. When I was here last in August 2008 the exchange rate was just above Q 7 per greenback. Now it's just above Q 8 per greenback.
If you think Americans were hit hard when the economy tanked in 2008-09, then you can be sure that people in Latin America were hit even harder.
The Atlantis Building, a modern glass and steel structure, was like some microcosm of Chicago or New York when it was new--a sparkling, gleaming edifice of successful capitalism and "development." Twenty two months ago it was an attractive, acclimatized refuge for me from the typical bustle and squalor of Guatemala´s hot humid streets.
Now, although the building is still a convenient place for me to hang my hat for a bit, it's visibly more run down and rougher around the edges (and the air conditioning is history too!), and it's quite clear that some businesses here have fallen victim to recent hard times. Maybe Cubana Airlines was one of them.
If you think Americans were hit hard when the economy tanked in 2008-09, then you can be sure that people in Latin America were hit even harder.
The Atlantis Building, a modern glass and steel structure, was like some microcosm of Chicago or New York when it was new--a sparkling, gleaming edifice of successful capitalism and "development." Twenty two months ago it was an attractive, acclimatized refuge for me from the typical bustle and squalor of Guatemala´s hot humid streets.
Now, although the building is still a convenient place for me to hang my hat for a bit, it's visibly more run down and rougher around the edges (and the air conditioning is history too!), and it's quite clear that some businesses here have fallen victim to recent hard times. Maybe Cubana Airlines was one of them.
The Wealthy Part of Town for Cuba Flights
I'm writing from a cyber cafe in the Edificio Atlantis, a high rise office building in Guatemala City´s Zona 10--also known as the wealthy part of town. I know this area from my visit in August 2008, and I knew about this building, the cyber cafe, and the fact that you can get delicious espresso drinks for $2.00 or less and internet access for about $1.50 an hour. The building also has an ATM of the bank I prefer to use, so it made a lot of sense for me to set up the Atlantis Building as my headquarters for the day.
Imagine my surprise then when I was researching Cubana Airlines and discovered they have their offices in this building--or at least they did when my edition of the Guatemala Rough Guide was published a few years ago. I have confirmed that there are a number of travel agencies as well as the office of U.S. Airways in the building, but Cubana seems to have gone elsewhere.
Do I really want to go to Havana anyway? Well, yes, I do (and I have wanted to visit Cuba for many years), but it remains an open question if I will attempt to do so on this trip. I didn't do much research at home, and I´m not even sure of the current restrictions post-Bush era, but as far as I know it is still illegal for most Americans to spend their dollars in Castro's Cuba (but not illegal, at least technically, for Americans to travel there). So I wouldn't want to do anything overt--such as pay for a Cuba flight on a credit card--to break that law. And I don't know if I'll be able to access enough cash in a timely manner to pay for such a flight. Still, the possibility is enticing. And I'd like to go before Washington eases the rules and Cuba is invaded by Yankee hordes.
Imagine my surprise then when I was researching Cubana Airlines and discovered they have their offices in this building--or at least they did when my edition of the Guatemala Rough Guide was published a few years ago. I have confirmed that there are a number of travel agencies as well as the office of U.S. Airways in the building, but Cubana seems to have gone elsewhere.
Do I really want to go to Havana anyway? Well, yes, I do (and I have wanted to visit Cuba for many years), but it remains an open question if I will attempt to do so on this trip. I didn't do much research at home, and I´m not even sure of the current restrictions post-Bush era, but as far as I know it is still illegal for most Americans to spend their dollars in Castro's Cuba (but not illegal, at least technically, for Americans to travel there). So I wouldn't want to do anything overt--such as pay for a Cuba flight on a credit card--to break that law. And I don't know if I'll be able to access enough cash in a timely manner to pay for such a flight. Still, the possibility is enticing. And I'd like to go before Washington eases the rules and Cuba is invaded by Yankee hordes.
Day One: Guatemala City
It´s Day 1, I'm in Guatemala City, and I don´t feel like traveling anywhere. Our flight out of Dallas yesterday was delayed so they "could change a couple tires." Nearly two years ago the same airline did the same exact thing on another Guatemala flight out of Miami. Despite the delays I´m glad they changed the tire because we had a bit of a rough landing in rain.
So I´m not going anywhere today. I´m staying in the Hotel Carillon and it has no windows! Yeah, but the price is right and breakfast is included, and who needs windows in a hotel when it´s got cable TV, HBO and Showtime included?
So I´m not going anywhere today. I´m staying in the Hotel Carillon and it has no windows! Yeah, but the price is right and breakfast is included, and who needs windows in a hotel when it´s got cable TV, HBO and Showtime included?
SubwayFiddlerBlog Welcomes You
Welcome to my trip blog. The premise is simple: I have seven weeks to get to Merida, Venezuela by way of Panama then back to Guatemala City in time to catch my flight home Stateside. Alternately, I have the same amount of time to skip Venezuela and make my way to Havana instead (and get back Stateside without the feds finding out!). A third option? Go to Nicaragua and hang out at the beach ´cause it´s cheaper and less hassle!
Can I do it? Do I really want to do it? Does anyone really care? Which option is better for the budget? Check back soon for more posts to find out answers to these and other questions. . .
Can I do it? Do I really want to do it? Does anyone really care? Which option is better for the budget? Check back soon for more posts to find out answers to these and other questions. . .
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