January 2015 – Expatriateism

1/31/2015 Antigua

January 31, 2015February 2, 2015Martin Wigert

Yesterday, Jill got some new blog cards printed. We also visited Dyslexia bookstore. A tiny place with lots of Antigua connections. I asked about the book Kabloona but he didn’t have it. It’s about a gentleman that lives with the Inuit in Canada for about a year in 1920 or thereabouts. Kabloona means white man in Inuit. Jim, the proprietor of Dyslexia, wrote an article about it in La Cuadra.… Read the rest

1/29/2015 Antigua, Guatemala

January 29, 2015February 2, 2015Martin Wigert

We’ve been having tons of fun here since our first day. I can’t remember what day we arrived on. The day after we arrived we found a lovely place for the right price. Since then we’re enjoying our practically private rooftop patio and finding delicious restaurants. On Tuesday we went on a walking tour. We learned, really just confirmed, that Antigua has little in common with the rest of Guatemala.

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1/28/2015 Antigua, Guatemala

January 28, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

We had a bit of a plan when we arrived in Antigua. We were going to look for a place to rent for a week. We figured it would be cheaper than paying a daily price for a week. We had lunch of Fish & Chips to try to recover from the bus ride. The fish wasn’t even breaded, I’m not sure if that is proper.

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1/25/2015 Antigua, Guatemala

January 25, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

Hey look at us! We made it to Antigua. Yesterday was interesting, to say the least. We awoke at 6 and packed our bags. 7:30 found us outside the hostel restaurant waiting for the owner to get the front door open. He lost his keys. The unlocking somehow involved a rope and was successful. The owner appeared to be an Aussie who didn’t speak a lot of Spanish.… Read the rest

1/23/2015 San Marcos La Laguna, Lake Atitlan

January 23, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

I took care of the laundry today. It involves walking down the path to the Holistic Center and Laundromat and paying a woman 50Q/$6.54. Magically, 8 hours later I had a bag of clean, folded laundry. The whole process was transcendental. I was utterly calm. I found myself in another realm and was able to eat an entire pizza for lunch.

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1/22/2015 San Marcos La Laguna, Guatemala

January 22, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

We made it to San Marcos La Laguna! We even have a place to stay. The ride was by mini bus and involved a lot of curves, rocks, speed bumps, holes, etc. We arrived at dusk and made our way to the hostel. A pedestrian walk way leads everyone through an odd assortment of shops, holistic clinics, hotels, and restaurants. English is the easy language here.… Read the rest

1/21/2015 Quetzaltenango (Xela), Guatemala

January 21, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

We’ve been here for a day and a half. It’s a working city. It’s been fun. We’ve been walking around looking around. Yesterday we went to the mall and MegaPaca in the morning. Jill finally bought a little jacket that should keep her warmer. I found some nice shoes for hiking up volcanoes and such. In the afternoon we went to a hot spring called Fuentas Georginas.… Read the rest

1/17/2015 San Cristobal and Chapas de Corzo

January 17, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

Yesterday was the last day of Spanish school. We also tried to go to the Moxviquil orchid garden but it was closed already. So we went to the Mayan Medicine Museum. We watched a movie and learned about a Mayan birth. The midwife prays and drinks soda to assure a healthy baby. There is also some Pox spitting. The momma can’t eat onions or avocados for three months because it will make the baby sick.… Read the rest

1/15/2015 San Cristobal

January 15, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

We did some laundry yesterday. Jill froze without her dirty layers. We went to school. We studied. We learned. Jill continues to get over her cold. Jill made tuna pesto spaghetti. I had suggested tuna pesto oatmeal noodles but thankfully that was voted down. Last night we tried the local moonshine Pox, pronounced, posh. We had teeny cups of it that were accompanied by orange slices and chocolate truffles.… Read the rest

1/14/2015 San Cristobal

January 14, 2015January 28, 2015Martin Wigert

We tried to walk to the Mayan medicine museum after school yesterday. Our map made it look closer than it was. Instead Jill wanted to take a nap. We relaxed for a while then did our Spanish homework. It was easy, forming some verbs. Then we went to the Argentinian restaurant for supper. It is a much more fancy place than we anticipated.… Read the rest