Visit to the beach! Monterrico

Time in Guatemala: 1 month. Happy Anniversary Guate!
Weather: SO RAINY
Occupation Status: Soon-to-be substitute teacher at Colegio Maya
Living Situation: Los Jardines del Acueducto- mi apartamento
Mental Status: A little homesick, but adjusting
Misc: Please please post a comment! I love hearing from you, even if you just say "hi, I read your post"

Not having internet for a week really set me back! Time to catch up. Last weekend, Lucas and I went to Antigua with my friend Nidia from my cooking class and her husband, the Director of Colegio Maya. We had a nice time, wandered around the little mercados and had lunch at a traditional Guatemalan restaurant while listening to live Marimba. I do love Marimba! Antigua is a beautiful city. A woman on the board of directors at Marroquin told Lucas we could stay at her villa in Antigua this weekend. I'm going to take my camera and have a wonderful time. Post on Antigua soon to come...

The weekend before last we went to the beach with Andres, a friend of Lucas from Marroquin, and his girlfriend Dunia. It was a little awkward because Dunia only speaks Spanish and Lucas only speaks English so I felt like I needed to choose who to leave out of the conversation, all the while knowing that both of them want to learn the 2nd language, so also wanting to give each the opportunity and exposure to the language. Exhausting! But the beach was beautiful.

My trip to the beach was much needed. It reminded me so much of Thailand. The humidity, the people, the beach itself (although this beach was black sand). It brought me a great sense of peace and tranquility that I haven't felt for months. Sunday morning we woke up and went on a boat ride through the marsh.

There were many beautiful birds and hundreds of fish scanning the water's surface for a morning meal. The sunrise was beautiful. After the boat ride was over it was still only 7:30 am so I went to the beach and took some photos and then sat and watched the waves for an hour. It was so soothing.

We ate our meals at the restaurant at the hotel. The food was delicious.

I'm so excited the beach is so close. Its only 2-3 hour drive (depending on weather and traffic, which are often interrelated) That's shorter than the drive to Zion's from my home in SLC. I told Lucas we have to go there at least once a month.

Its been raining here so much. Every day it rains for at least 4 hours. On the drive back from the beach we crossed a part of the road that had been washed away. We talked to one of the locals and she said the rain started Friday afternoon and didn't stop until Saturday night. The downpour resulted in a newly formed river to carry the runoff from the top of the mountain. The river gained so much strength it washed away the road.

A few more photos from the beach. Did I mention it only cost Q160/night to stay there? That's $20 per room!

On the drive we passed this boat graveyard and these three large boats somehow all sank in the same place. Eery...

The people in Guate are very kind, especially in the rural areas. There's a very tribal mindset, you have to earn your way in, but once you have, they'll do anything for you. I'm still working on my Spanish, which proves to be difficult with no job, but my cooking class is helping. This week I attend the last session of that class. I will start a Guatemalan cooking class and a Soup&Salad class next month. Also, as soon as I turn in a copy of my transcripts I will start subbing at Colegio Maya, which I'm excited about.
And my couch will be here in 3 weeks...can't wait to have something other than tile or my bed to sit on...

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