Copán Ruinas

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cop%C3%A1n)

Just your average weekend lay ahead as I gingerly crept into the bus after zero sleep from a night of rum and salsa. It was 4am and a 6 hour bus journey panned out. I passed out arriving at the interesting Guat-Hondur border. Easy crossing even with a thumping headache, result. As the bus swung in, I headed straight for a coffee bar to admire my new picturesque surrounding of Copán; home of the former Mayan ciudad.

I grabbed a typical Honduran meal of plantain, meat, rice, chilli sauce and re-fried beans before stumbling across a cool snooker hall, sharks everywhere. The place was packed out with old men on stools clutching Salva Vida beers, young men in flannelette shirts and moustaches holding pool cues to their shoulders. All wearing the Honduran moda; huge cowboy hats and big guns draped over their belt. I spent the remainder of the evening talking to locals, mainly about Tottenham´s Honduran jugador Wilson Palacios, whilst sipping nitro strength rum as the sun slowly dimmed into a crescendo.

Some Hombres pondering life as the bus swashbuckled past.

Awaking the next day, fresh as a daisy I must recall (a la Deep Dasgupta), I hailed a tuc tuc (the Americas equivalent to a tuk tuk) heading for the old Mayan conurbation.

I tried explaining to my guide that my township is also old and was built by the Romans. He was not loving that.

 The screech of macaws overhead bellowed out as I walked through the great ruins of Copán, their red tails trailing behind them like a plane tugging a banner. 

Finally working out how to blur on my camera.

On Seb Tanas´s advice

Ears the size of Ed Miliband

 
 

The intricate carving of the stelae (gravestone slash big stone with inscriptions) in the courtyard, the huge hieroglyphic staircase jumbled by archaeologists, the tombs and the tunnels, the massive tree roots snaking through the rock and the trees towering above the ruins as conquerors. I was in Copán.

The sun rose like a salmon melting the lushious vegetation, our guide expressing how the rich used to live in the city and the peasants in the hills, how times change, er! I walked with sheer admiration of the Mayan engineering and astrological prowess as my camera flashed and clicked its way round the truly breathtaking ruins.

The money shot - no literally this is the picture on the 1 Lempira note.

Weekend over, I jumped on another bus back to Antigua, Guatemala. More stamps and another 6 hour bus journey was shortened by the small facet of meeting a fellow Cheltonian. Strangely, as the bus ricketed over the cobbled stones of Antigua it felt like I was home and back to normal life. More classes awaited.

Hasta luego de Mincho

Soy Mincho y estoy en Antigua....

So, I have been in beautiful, colonial Antigua for 5 days now and I can confirm I love the place.

Here is Parque Central at night and a few more to wet your taste buds. (Yes I am over the moon with my new DSLR).

Day to day life

I am currently staying in the Jungle Party Hostel (this week only), it is a lively place full of the traveller type telling "ya, you know I have been travelling for like 10 months and I am so removed from western culture I am practically a local!" Seriously though, it is a cool hostel, I have free WIFI, which is amazing on the iPhone and a huge selection of free breakfasts.


Anyway, once I had filled my tiring and moody stomach, I fished around for a Language school to get going on lessons. I decided to throw myself in the deep-end and I am currently doing 6 hours per day of one-on-one tution. Here is what I can see from my desk at the Sevilla Language School.

The classes are really intense, try talking in English for 6 hours a day one-on-one! I know, I know..I know I talk a lot but it is mentally draining. Carmen my teacher is really sweet and I can already notice the difference in my Spanish. We played Scrabble today and she only beat me by 4 points!! Better than the 40 or so...yesterday. Carmen has started calling me Mincho which is apparently a diminutive of Benjamin. Amusing to her and before you all ask she is 57!

Antigua is very safe by Guatemalan standards and also does not let down on a booming nightlife. I have never done so much Salsa in my life. Therefore, today I am typing on the back of 4 hours sleep (I start Spanish lessons at 8am) amidst a crazy one with some Irish, Aussies, Germans and Kiwis.


This though is my new hangover cure, it is pickled cabbage with salsa picante and tomato, filling the moist meat that is engulfed by avocado and a dense texture of deep fried bread. Unbelievable. Again, Salisbury, it is incredible, - rivalling Chilango.

 
Food has been a staple interest of mine for a while and here does not fault to deceive. I am loving Guatemalan food, this has been my favourite meal thus far. No menu just given a deep, hearty stew with great chilli depth accompanied by mini tortillas and avocado with an obligatory Pepsi.

Otherwise, the days are flying by already. I have been playing football with the locals in my lunch break, they are not Angel standard but pretty decent. No el Jefe! Also, stupidly went for a run a couple of days ago in searing heat at altitude. I ran up the nearby mountain and considering we are already at 1500m, I nearly died but better than this hangover I am nursing.

Tonight, I am going out with my new housemates. I am moving into the student shared house at the Lang. School, so I am going over for pre drinking slash Yankee gaming. If it is like any other night it should be a mad one, the dancing is crazy and the locals are mad about Jamie Ayers, I mean J Lo - On the Floor, and, Keith Gamble,  Pitbull - Give me Everything.




Righto people, here is a selection of photos of Antigua and my life right now. Best go and get some lunch, soup to help hydrate as the sun is out in force, until 4pm that is when the rain arrives in gusto.
 
Outside my hostel, a thunder storm was a coming

One of the nearby volcanos erupting (yesterday)

The washing machine

Tomorrow I am off to Copan in Honduras for the weekend with someone on my course. So I will bid adieu and update once back in Antigua on Sunday night. You know just your basic weekend away to Copan before another week of Spanish.

Ciao amigos. Besos.

Plane Travelling to Las Americas

I have a long list of people to thank for the horrendous hangover that I suffered on my flight from London Heathrow to New York. Deep Dasgupta, I categorically despised slash loved you after such shenanigans for my leaving do. However, I found out that plane food and the obligatory G &T, beer of the dog aka Chris B, is a sure fire cure for a hangover.

Sad faces for my leaving do!

I'm not sure if it was the hangover or the sheer excitement but as I walked through not only Customs but also Immigration I was pulled aside both times. Each time the same question, "Ohhhh you're going to Guatemala" I replied half-heatedly "Yep, can't wait", then a puzzled frown as the man scanned me up and down stating "..and you're flying out of Colombia?" At moments like this I wanted to reply sarcastically, yes, I'm running the cartel and I'm needed to sort out a few family matters, but no all I got was, "Right over here, please open your bags."

As I smugly passed through customs I reflected that at least I had managed to even make the airport when I couldn't even tie my own shoe lace at this point.

So, I had just about made my plane, somehow packed with a severe case of dehydration, booming headache and sleep deprivation and now was gearing up for some movie action. Ah ha Inglourious Basterds, I haven't seen this before, great. So as I'm settling down to a bit of Tarantino cinema magic, glorious soundtracks and Jewish revenge I realised the man, oh so sitting macho with legs spread shoulders pushed back, was a German. I sort of froze in that awkward fashion as he read the German subtitles whilst Brad Pitt smashed the hell out of some poor Wehrmacht officer. Great, me and spread leg are going to be best of buddies for the next 8 hours. So I gave up jostling for the arm. One nil down much like the football.

I love getting off planes. I find it utterly farcical. Not only does everyone clamber to be first off but people do that half stand-half sitting position. You know the one when if you are sitting in either the window or middle seat you try to squeeze out. As is always the case the aisle is too full so you awkwardly prop yourself up with your arm resting on the chair whilst some idiot smashes themselves with their 40KG hand luggage. The morale of the story is after giving up my left arm for the sake of Anglo-German relations I had nothing left in my left gun than to meekly sit and watch everyone else do what I secretly wanted.

Next, I will briefly floss over my time in NYC because it wasn't my finest hour, sleeping in Newark airport and somehow trying to wash standing up at 4am in the airport toilets, I looked good.

I boarded my second of three flights to Houston surrounded by 'hockey Mum's' and 'men wearing the coolest cowboy boots but for real and not trying to be Hoxton'. It was here I nearly missed my connection. I didn't. Happy days. Phew. Next from Houston to Guat'. I sat by a rather intriguing lady, 55 to be exact, from Washington State, a Pastor who was Asthmatic.


I only know all this because she didn't know how to fill out her immigration declaration form.

It was Wendy Treat's first time out of the grand old US of A. It was also the first time she had got a passport, cue mocking sarcasm that she just really didn't understand, ah bless. No really bless, she was a Pastor. In case you didn't know, the word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. Interesting.
So as I flippantly filled out the immigration form, Wendy struggled. Bless again. The confused look on her face when the form asked 'please state whether you are bringing in any drugs' puzzled her deeply, bless. This is when I found out she was Asthmatic. She ticked no, after not believing me and having to confirm with an Air Hostess. Idiot.

Touch down. I had finally arrived after 23.5 hours of travel into Guatemala.

I then had a strange encounter culminating in swapping email addresses with the girl behind the counter of the money exchange in the airport. She then proceeded to add me on Facebook. Specifically, when I was mustering random words to her in Spanish asking her where the bus stop was for Antigua she shook her Mayan head and took me outside and negotiated a very cheap taxi just so I didn't have to get the bus. I tried to explain I was hard as nails but she wasn't having any of it. But hey, email address (and subsequent emails) for a taxi the same cost as the bus. Done.

Anyway, I'm now in come rain and sun Antigua and on a Spanish course.

Here's a snippet of my breakfast, potato, chicken, rice and bean omelette.

Roadside lunch (Tim you would love it)! Mini Tortillas filled with chicken, avocado, chillis, onions, tomato topped off with a fiery chilli picante. Delicious and for only 110pence!

I'll get some photos of Antigua up in the next few days. Hope all are well.

Hasta Luego amigos.