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| 2006.01.29 - Market and Drive to Cotzal | ||||||||
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Events of the Day |
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0520: Got up with the sun.
The birds were making a racket. Listened to the trucks bringing goods to the market, and watched the sun rise in the central square 0630: Took the last hot shower I'm due to get until we leave La Esperanza. A man was playing some sort of xylophone in the square... same tune over and over and over... |
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| 0800: Breakfast. I had a 'sort of' traditional meal of eggs with salsa, black bean paste and fried plantains. it was good. | ||||||||
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0900: Took a quick jaunt out into the Market. It was a mad
house! Right outside our hotel door, the crowds were
pressing - and we were on the edge! There was a TON of stuff for sale, and the chicken busses were hard pressed to get around it all. |
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0915: Tired of the crowds, went to a museum and looked at Mayan
artifacts dating back to the 6th Century. Learned a lot about the
history of the town of Chichicastenango - Chichi for short. The church is a Catholic Church, but it was built on a Mayan temple, and they still allow the indigenous people burn incense and lay offerings to their Mayan gods, also represented in the church building. It was a bit odd, but it seemed to work well for the locals. Followed a guy carrying a basket of chickens... very interesting crowd. I actually bought a vest, which I liked quite a bit. |
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1100: Ate buffet at the hotel... it was incredible! 12:00 Loaded Trucks We're getting better at packing, because we seemed to have more room than we did before. 1220: Started drive to Cotzal |
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Drive was largely uneventful. Passedand several 'chicken busses',
and passed through several small towns with markets going on, but trek
went well. Drove through an arid valley, apparently rain shielded on both sides by high mountains. Passed through a high pass on the far end of the valley, and entered the IXIL region. |
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1700 Arrived at Cotzal, and at Agros. Roadway was largely paved. There were gaps at the passes, but even those were under construction. The roadway is getting much better than it was, a good sign that the new government is working to make things better for the country. |
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1730: Sorted out and unpacked trucks, then settled into rooms. The previous team had befriended a couple of dogs... and they were very happy to see the new crew arrive! |
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1830: Left for dinner.
Food was very good. Fried stew beef, rice, Broccoli and tortillas with a great bean dip with a medium-hot picante. |
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| 2115: Took my first shower in Cotzal, which wouldn't be noteworthy, except for the showerhead... it was a bit scary, but no one got shocked, so I guess it was safe enough. |
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That night, preparing for the morning's bible study, I noticed a cool
millipede... it was the biggest one I've seen! It must have been
about 6-7 inches long, easy. Didn't seem to bother anyone... it was just looking for something to snack on, I'm sure. |
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Getting there
In the Village
Heading Home |
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