Archaeology museum and down to Honduras

We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast at the hotel with an array of fresh juices to choose from - watermelon, papaya, pineapple, orange, made to order omelets, beans, breakfast crepes.  Even had lox!  All to enjoy in a beautiful patio beside the pool. 
The National Archeology Museum is only about a 10 minute drive from the hotel.  I really like this museum in that it is small enough to not be overwhelmed but big enough to have some great stuff. Of course, since I'm such a fabric person, I love all of the examples of the embroidered traditional dress.  It also has lots of stelae that are in beautiful condition, pottery, dioramas of life during classical Maya time.  One of the highlights was an exhibit of all of the things found in one of the main burial sites at the ruins of Tikal.  It was a good preview of things to come.

Then the long ride to Honduras.  The road has been improved a lot since I was last here (2001), even so, it took 8 hours.  At least the bus is comfortable and the scenery is dramatic.  Climb over one range of mountains, descend into a valley, climb over the next range, descend, repeat many times. 
The border crossing into Honduras was busy with trucks lined up on both sides of the border.  This was also modernized since I was here last.  Before, it was one small building on each side with a couple of officials sitting behind a desk and a gate that was raised by hand.  It really felt like Woody Allen's movie, Bananas.  Now, there are multiple modern buildings on both sides, no gate and a fee to exit one country and enter the next. 

Only about 15 minute drive from the border to Copan Ruinas.  (The town is called Copan Ruinas and the ruins are just called Copan).  The hotel is lovely and they were efficient in checking us in.  The pool enticed many of us for a quick dip before dinner.  A lovely, relaxing dinner and then a swim for some and a walk around town for others.

A great day.

We're all here!

After a long delay, the whole crew got here and through customs about 3:00, check in at the hotel and then went to the historic district to have lunch/snack at the Pan American hotel where they specialize in traditional food. There are many colorfully embroidered huipils (traditional dress) decorating the walls, a fountain in the middle of the dining room. We all felt refreshed and ready to see the world.  We walkede to the main square, seeing the cathedral and governor's palace.  In front of the cathedral are columns that have the names of all the people who were executed, tortured, disappeared during the civil war.  It is quite sobering.  It is wonderful to see the families, friends enjoying the square.  The temperature is perfect!  In the 70's!  What a relief from the heat at home.  Tomorrow we will be traveling down into the jungle so will be much hotter and more humid.

Gallivanting in Guatemala

I'm so excited for the group to join Juan and me!  The hotel is elegant and a busy place.
 Yesterday, I got money exchanged which was a bigger deal than I expected.  To try to curb money laundering, the bank will only change $200 at a time to Quezales if you don't have an account at the bank.  $200, thats probably one dinner for the group and I need to pay for a bunch more than that!  What to do?  A young man who was doing his banking at the teller next to me heard my problem.  He offered to have me deposit the money into his account and then he would withdraw it in Quetzales.  Well, sometimes you just have to trust the world.  He got $20.00 for his time and I got my quetzales.

We then went to the travel agency who will be providing the bus for us.  We had a few additions we wanted them to make.  No problem.  The woman didn't know Juan but knew his name as he is often the guide they use when there is a Mexican portion of a trip.  I am always amazed at the extent of Juan's contacts.  Many years ago, someone said, "Ah, Juan Vazquez, como sal, conocido en cada casa."  Ah, Juan Vazquez, like salt, know in every house.

We took a walk from the hotel to find a restaurant for the group for dinner.  McDonald's is right next door to the hotel but we agreed that the group would really wonder about us if we took them there for dinner!  We found a nice place about 3 blocks away.  We really enjoyed it and are looking forward to taking the group there.  We especially liked the salsa that they made right at the table side.

Breakfast buffet this morning was great and eating it out on the patio, hearing the birds was a delight.  It will be a great start with the group! 

Off to the airport to meet the group!

Just a few more days!  Now I'm trying to remember how to post, how to add pictures, etc.  This is a picture in Guatemala City, our first stop. See you soon!

We will be leaving for our adventure in Guatemala in just a couple of weeks! We have a full group going - 11 plus Juan and me. Everyone is getting excited - asking questions, exercising a bit more, brushing up on their Spanish. It's going to be a great trip! Watch for updates. We leave June 28 and I hope to be able to post, at least a little something, everyday.