Destination: Guatemala

Cross the rope

Thu, 21 May 2009 | By enrique_nunez_mussa | Views [1294]

I have been going to bed early every night so I havn’t seen how is Antigua when it gets dark. I obtain a magazine for tourists with cultural panoramas and decide to see a movie at night. Before I will teach my classes as it has to be, I will speak ... Read more >

Rains

Wed, 20 May 2009 | By enrique_nunez_mussa | Views [895]

The days have been sunny. The heat is something humid, but commfortable. They have said to me that Guatemala has the perfect weather and I am nearby to believe it. So I decide to use shorts for the first time in this trip. Beyond that a girl asked ... Read more >

T2C--Tom decides to stick it to the lava

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [560] | Video

I wanted to experience what it would like to push my walking stick into molten lava. It had a thick, gooey plasticity that yielded to my pusing. It was also, HOT.

Tags: lave, pacaya

T2C--Lava flow up close

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [577] | Video

Check out the flow of the lava and Theora's commentary.

T2C--Pacaya Hike--Lava Flow Up Close

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [588] | Video

Here is a Frenchman and his buddy trying to get a close up with the flow.

Tags: lava, pacaya

T2C--Hiking to the lava flow of Volcán Pacaya

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [668] | Video

My friends Rod and Lori and their two kids recently visited Guatemala and recommended this trip, as did all my classmates who visited Pacaya and returned to the school. The objective was to reach the lava flowing from Pacaya and roast marshmallows. ... Read more >

Tags: lava, pacaya

T2C--Hiking Route to Pacaya

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [1497]

The hike to Pacaya was not particularly difficult. The route is shown here on this trail map: 2.28 km (1.4 miles) with an elevation gain of 302 m (990 ft). Some people hire horses -- see "caballo y guia" photo in gallery. 

T2C--Model of Pacaya

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [1390]

OK, I am a sucker for maps and little models in museums and elsewhere. Here is a model of Pacaya and some of its volcanic neighbors in a glass case in the village of San Francisco that serves as the dropoff point and trailhead for the hike to the volcano.... Read more >

Flying

Tue, 19 May 2009 | By enrique_nunez_mussa | Views [1427]

Since ever, I have gone away to the bed so early and waked up at six o'clock in the morning as this days. I eat breakfast and go to do classes. I’ve been asked to prepare a special class on Chile in Social Sciences. I sit the children in a circle.... Read more >

Frieda's Art

Mon, 18 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [811] | Video

OK, this little video clip has nothing whatsoever to do with Antigua or Guatemala, but it is any interesting video montage of self-portraits by Frieda Kahlo's. Frieda did many self-portraits because she was often bed-ridden due to childhood polio and ... Read more >

Frieda's Restaurant

Mon, 18 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [1437]

We decided to have lunch at Frieda's Restaurant. To practice Spanish during my time in Xela I re-watched the Selma Hyak/Julie Taymor movie, Frieda, about Mexican-born artist Frieda Kahlo so I was curious. (By the way, I recommend this movie and the special ... Read more >

Walking Antigua

Mon, 18 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [519]

We set off in the morning to walk about this lovely and most walkable of cities. The sun was warm and the people bustling about. All roads seem to lead to Parque Central and its colonial architecture, this example along the east side of the square.

Posada with a View

Mon, 18 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [288]

Another nice aspect of our posada is the rooftop terrace. From here I can scan over Antigua to see the rooftops and the ruins of the many churches that collapsed in the 1773 earthquake. This morning I was journaling when a photographer suggested I go ... Read more >

Antigua skyline

Mon, 18 May 2009 | By tom_moench | Views [482]

A large church in the morning haze laying in ruins still from the 1773 earthquake that took Santiago (Antigua), Guatemala. Took this photo one morning from the rooftop terrace of our posada. 

The Test

Mon, 18 May 2009 | By enrique_nunez_mussa | Views [1146]

I get punctually to the coffee shop, there are the other volunteers. Dom, the director of GVI in Guatemala greets me and explains to me that during the first week I will be doing classes in the community San Andrés Itzapa. One of the two communities ... Read more >