Guatemala Otro Vez

Tuesday March 15th
This is a sick sick landscape. We are on a big bus driving south to Guatemala City from Flores via Santa Elena. We stopped over in Flores only because we couldn't make it to Antigua by nightime. We stayed in a funny little room where the door was a window and the room was a kitchen. Handy though. I enjoyed the ample counter space and the sink! We got to Guatemala city around 7pm after an 8 hour bus ride. From there we caught another bus to Antigua.

Friday the 25th
We spent 2 days, 3 nights in Antigua. Taking care of business and resting from 2 days of travel. Antigua is a beautiful city. Massive walls seclude the businesses and private residences from the sidewalks and roads. Many buildings look ancient, hence the town name. We walked up to Cerro de la Cruz our first day. Great view of surrounding Antigua. Lots of federales up the hill. All the trees on the Antigua side of the hill are cut down for viewing purposes. It looks strange from ground level, a big square cleared in the middle of alargely forested area.

22nd
I'm living in my tent not sure where I will be in 2 days. I gotta be somewhere else, but where? I'd like to go to yoga teacher training. I am open to different schools, although the ones I've heard of so far haven't come with raving reviews. A farm would be awesome too. Go to Nicaragua to volunteer again? Then again I could just go back to California. And get a job... And pay rent... Or go to peninsula de osos in costa rica with intentions for an internship/ volunteer position working with cats. That one seems pretty far fetched. I could also wwoof in California or Canada, which sounds equally interesting. I miss NPR. I don't know what is happening in California, the world. I do know that what happened in japan is devasting and makes me feel sad, scared, and homeless. I want to be in California, my home. To be near my family, my friends. Be near the environment I love and I am passionate about. I don't want to go back because life in California is filled with work and go go go. If I found a place to live where I could relax and enjoy that isn't going up in smoke or falling into the ocean, or being extracted of all it's natural resources. I feel helpless to the state of California. Things aren't going well and that's not fair. They are stealing the land and taking away promises. Really? More talk of drilling and nuking? Are we blind?!?! These acts are destroying the landbase. Not only for your generation, but mine, your grandchildren and their children. These generations will not see this beautifil world. Their world will be absent of large virgin forest, free flowing clean water, playing outside wihout constant protection. If that isn't enough of a reason to change than we are in even worse shape. Where does one try to start a life with these prospects? Perhaps New Zealand. If my family thinks that's a good idea I would move in a heartbeat. For now I wil stay in Guatemala. Look for a yoga/ farm/ volunteer situation.

30 minutes later...
Settled into my tent again after the water explosion. The huge thousand kilo water vat just burst and started rushing down the hill toward my tent. I grabbed my pants and all my things and ran out of the tent. After a bit of water dispersing my tent was in the clear. I did such an awesome bed setup tonight. I built a pillow with my dirty clothes that haven't been washed prperly for months, covered it with the never wash hoodie, and the sarong. I lay on my yoga mat in a fleece sleep sack covered with a bright Mexican blanket. Since I'm giving gross detail I'll explain my delicious dinner. Coconut quinoa with minced fresh ginger and chopped fresh mint leaved accompanied by sauted carrots, peas, spinach with garlic and green onion.
Time for the bad news ... Last night while I was editing my blog some wierd cut/paste thing happened on my iPod touch and I lost my entire entry about my trip in belize when my mom visited. Hopefully I'll get that retyped soon as daunting it seems. Lately I've been typing all this on the touch and just tranfering it when I get to a wifi spot or Internet cafe. Way less money and it does get easier typing with practice.

Joey began a course at a meditation center yesterday in San Marcos. We've eaten meals together and gone to the bigger, surrounding towns of lake atitlan to stalk up on food stuffs, there are great resources for healthful eating. Other than that he is at the meditation center, sleeping and doing what they do.  I am on the other side of town at the same campspot we found our first night in San Marcos.
We came to San Marcos on lake atitlan because we heard of the festival of consiouness for lectures in yoga, natural building, meditation, healing, etc. All weekend Joey and I were attending lectures with topics including; sound healing, yin yoga, geodesic dome buidling, and lucid dreaming. Now that Joey joined the course from this past fullmoon until the next full moon, April 17th I need to find something to do. I'm open to any thoughts, ideas, and support :)