As I look out my window, we actually have snow so that puts me in the mood for Christmas. It has been a good year, with things feeling more normal this year.
Ana Lilia in the snow
I started the year with a trip to Central America.
It was a bit of a leap of faith but the company I traveled with took lots of precautions and we all felt safe. Of course, we had to wear masks everywhere, but it wasn’t so bad because they had purple ones.
The trip started in El Salvador where we began to follow the route of the Maya so lots of ruins and history but also each country had its own personality. The first day I was there I was anxious to get out in the sunshine, walk around and see things but after about an hour I came back to my room because it was over 90 degrees just about tripling the temperature for me from Seattle.
Our first tour took us to the Joya de Cerén, nicknamed the Pompeii of the Americas because it was buried under volcanic ash similar to the famous Roman ruins.
Next, we visited the historic downtown where there are hundreds of vendors selling everything imaginable trying to eke out a living.
We met Lucio Vasquez who has written a book about his life during the civil war. He said he lived an idyllic life until he was 8 years old when the war began and after his whole family except his dad were murdered, he and his dad ended up as guerilla fighters when he was only 12 years old.
From El Salvador we entered Honduras where we visited Copán. You can’t believe how many people were at the border hoping to get into Honduras and eventually to Mexico and finally into the United States. It is sad to think of those poor souls and how desperate they must be to be leaving their family and friends behind in the hopes of getting to the U.S.
The Mayas occupied Copán for more than two thousand years and the ruins have been reconstructed in detail by archaeologists and epigraphers. The cool thing now is that they can map the ruins with light or lasers called Lidar technology which directs hundreds of thousands of pulses of light toward the ground so they can read what is under the earth and know where and how to excavate.
The most impressive ruin is The Hieroglyphic Stairway which is 10 meters (33 ft) wide and 21 meters or 69 ft long with a total of 62 steps. The stairway takes its name from the 2200 glyphs carved into the steps creating the longest historical record of the Maya.
All during the day the scarlet Macaws were flying around us and after the ruins we made our way to the Macaw Mountain Bird Park where they rescue, rehabilitate and have release programs for the birds under their care.
When it came time to cross the border into Guatemala there was a road block because the country was on strike and we were turned back into Honduras. On our second try for the border, we were allowed to pass but not our bus so we had to unload our luggage and walk through the road block to the other side. It took about 20 minutes in the heat and the hills but we rested often and made it to where there was another bus waiting for us that had been sent from Guatemala City.
We spent quite a bit of time in Guatemala which afforded some sad parts where people struggle for their existence and some beautiful spots like Lake Atitlán.
One of the sad spots we visited was a project called Safe Passage which is right next to the city’s garbage dump which occupies 40 acres in a ravine in the middle of the city. Safe Passage serves 600 people plus various programs for education and developing skills for women. We found out the City issues permits to people to work at the garbage dump to salvage and sell recyclables and find things that they can clean up, fix up and sell which is how they eke out a living. Aside from the amazing fact that this is a lifestyle for so many people we learned that there are 10,000 people who have a permit from the city to go through the garbage. They have only certain days when it is their turn to go through the 3200 tons of garbage each day.
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| Iglesia Yurrita Guatemala City |
We also visited another project for Mayan women who are often isolated in their household and the Women’s Center offers a space where women share ideas and take classes in cooking, baking, weaving, and sewing in the hopes they can have their own small business.
We spent some time with a midwife who showed us how she grows and uses herbs and plants in making medicines to care for her community.
Then we went next door to a textile coop for a weaving demonstration and the beautiful hand-woven fabrics, cotton scarves, table runners, shawls, etc. that they make. They were all so colorful.
Next, we visited the home of the Cofradia and his family. Being a leader of the community, we were introduced to how the family lives, their spiritual practices, the many uses they have for the corn they grow, and the ladies prepared lunch for us. We were invited to try our luck at making the tortillas. They make them so easily but the ones we made were a little out of shape.
Our next destination was the old colonial city of Antigua. We visited Casa Santo Domingo, a hotel set amongst the ruins of an old Spanish colonial monastery and climbed Cerro de la Cruz or Hill of the Cross which overlooks the city. We spent an evening learning to make chocolate which was fun and delicious, met a family who make ceramics and wandered around the lovely old city.
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| Our Hotel in Antigua |
From there we took a short flight to Petén where we got up very early one morning to go birding. We saw about 40 different types of birds including 5 different hummingbirds and our guide was amazing at spotting them. He had a telescope that he would focus on the bird and then we could look through it to see them up close.
Then on to Belize. Our guide told us a little about the border dispute on our way and we heard both sides of the story. Although Guatemala believes Belize belongs to them Belize was actually a British Protectorate which gained its independence in 1981.
The highlight of Belize for me was the Noho Che’en Caves which is an extensive system of limestone caves where we had a 45-minute walking tour through the forest and into the caves. Then we arrived at the river and jumped into our huge inner tubes where we floated for an hour and a half through a huge cave with lamps on our helmets which we were instructed to turn on and off as the stories unfolded. After passing through the underground river, we came out into the bright sunshine and continued the float down the river.
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| Lilia, Lilia Elena, Cece, Me, Ana Lilia at my friend Julie's coffee bar in Puerto Vallarta |
In July I went with Lilia Elena and Kevin on a trip around Washington and Oregon. We started in Redmond, Oregon and traveled all along the Columbia River through the vineyards of Walla Walla all the way up to the amazing Grand Coulee Dam. At night they have a sound and light show projected onto the spillways which is really cool.
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Stonehenge WW1 Memorial  |
My friend Jan came from Tempe, AZ for three weeks in September. We were able to take in the family picnic which is basically her McCullem relatives. It was fun because I know them more than she does, since she has lived away from Seattle for so many years.
In September Robert came to live with me which I am really enjoying. He is going to the University of Washington taking Political Science and Economics and I’m learning lots of new things. I have known him since he was a baby so it is really special for me to be sharing this part of his life. We had a lot of fun dressing him up as Ruth Bader Ginsburg for his Halloween Party.
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| San Clemente Pier with Susie |
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| Marie's birthday |
Wishing you all the best for the Holidays and health and happiness for the year to come.
A special thanks to my fellow travelers in Central America who shared some of their wonderful photos with me.
