First real day in Antigua

Today I was exhausted upon waking. Even though I went to bed relatively early, I just couldn’t seem to get out of bed and function. Breakfast this morning was a delicious fruit salad (papaya, watermelon, and banana). Afterwards I ended up heading out to see some of the ruins in Guatemala with one of the other students in the Guest House, Erik. 

Together we ended up heading to see the ruins of San Francisco church with the remains of Santos Hermano Pedro (Saint Brother Pedro), a Franciscan monk from the 16th Century. The ruins were breathtaking. I will try to post some of the photos in a few days so you can see for yourself. Sadly because we all (the students) had a slow morning, we didn’t have a lot of time to wander off and do more before we were expected back for lunch.

After lunch we headed out to book a tour to see a coffee plantation for Sunday afternoon for Erik, Rodderick, and I. Even though I don’t drink coffee I think it’ll be a neat experience to get out of Antigua and head into the hills. Then Erik and I went to see more ruins this time on the outskirts of town. The ruins are called Iglesia y Convento de la Recoleccion, and they were slightly less cool than the San Francisco ruins. Mostly it was because there was no information. Just a semi-destroyed structure. But at the end of the day I’m not complaining. Both were worth the 25 Quetzals I paid to see them (that is about $3 CAN).

I also finally saw the famous Antigua arch as well as the vendors who patrol it. They sell everything from pan pipes and flutes to scarves and necklaces. After paying for our tour, Erik and I sat in the Parque Central for a couple minutes. It was a fascinating display of tourists and locals. The difficult part of sitting there is you are a sitting duck for people trying to sell you their goods, as well as you get to stare at the insanely trim horses pulling the carriages. You could see their hip bones very clearly in their flanks. Definitely a sad sight.

In many respects I wish I had taken a photo of this cute little Guatemalan boy who was selling scarves, and asked me when I said no if I’d get him chicken. At the time it wasn’t funny, but somehow now when he asked me for chicken in English, it was quite hilarious.

Also there was a big wedding going on this evening at the Antigua Cathedral next to the Parque Central. As I write this I can hear fireworks go off in celebration. When passing by, I stopped to watch the two bridesmaids try to enter a limo with their big pouffy dresses. That too was a sight to see.

Oh, and I rode in a Guatemalan tuk tuk today! Trust me, the cobblestones here make it WAY more entertaining than in Thailand. For those who may be familiar with the loco ways of a tuk tuk driver.