Bienvenidos Gringos!!

Getting up at 4am does not allow one to say a proper good bye to the family at the airport. I could barely hug them without thinking...'Please don't leave me here!' Tearfully, we said good-bye and I started the first leg of a very stressful, exhausting, but rather wonderful adventure.

Making it to Guatemala city by 12 pm Guate time was easy. (it was about 230 in VA). Meeting up with Tom and Kate was a piece of cake in an airport that I barely remember from 5 years ago. Meeting a security guard who abandoned his post to talk to me in broken English and I to him in horrendous Spanish was fabulous.

Making it to Quetzaltenango (Xela) was nauseating/hilly/noisy and everything in between. We were even awesome about getting a cab from the airport to the bus station...The Alamo...For our comminication abilities I thought this feat was pretty profound. The bus ride was about 4 hours, and the three of us were ready to be there, in fresh air, and walking. I had the name and address of a Pension Andina, where according to our language school was super close to Sakribal. I took their word for it. However, having a cabbie who knows his way around this city would have been more comforting. I think we stopped about 6 time for him to ask about the location, and I began to believe it didn't exist. It does. We slept there last night.

Now, who would have thought making a phone call would have turned out to be the most difficult and frustrating part of a day. A day in which we travelled mucho miles to a city we have never been, in a country whose language I can sort of get by, after getting up before the roosters!? NOT ME!!!

After wandering Xela (pronounced Shae-laa) and eating a great dinner, we could not find a tienda (store) open to purchase a movie star card, the ones from the U.S. of course did not work, and ended up begging for help from the Pension worker. He was our guardian angel. He ended up running out around 9 pm to buy us a card, putting it to use on our phone, and THEN dialing for us. Here's the kicker. Our brains were not working well at all to be able to actually dial. We forgot about country codes...so after dialing about 5 or 6 times...We finally remembered to ask the right question...que es el code (thats English) del pias los Estados Unidos? (its 001 if you need to know). Finally got us on a phone line out of Guatemala. It was rather hilarious. Our night cap was each of us talking to the parentals and laying in bed unable to function. I kinda liked it.

I could not think of a better welcome than this. I am so happy to be here. I will have to update more about my host mama, Marta, her beautiful daughters, and the great Dia 2 Kate, Tom, and I have had in Xela.

Nos Vemos!