Another post by mom!! YEAH!

Hi everyone,

Kelly asked me to "blog" again about the trip. Thought you might enjoy my take on it. We not only got to visit with Kelly we also had a GREAT time with our friends Carmen and Roger.


Here goes......


We've just returned from another wonderful visit to Guatemala! This time we not only were able to spend some time with Kelly we also were able to share our experiences with our friends Carmen and Roger Beggs. On our first trip to Guate last November we thought that Carmen and Roger would enjoy this "adventure" as much as we do - and we were right! We are so glad they came with us and we're already planning to go back again sometime and go up to Tikal to see the Mayan ruins. Carmen was especially impressed with Kelly's sailing trip to Belize and she wants to tack on a boat trip (Roger's a captain) and then of course, a few more days at the beautiful Hotel Atitlan to end the trip. Sounds like fun to me!

Kelly met us at the airport and we went right to her apartment to see her roommates and unload all the "stuff" she asked us to bring - and some extra surprises (about 30 DVD's and Girl Scout Cookies compliments of her cousins Kathy and Marcus). Then it was off to see her play soccer. I've seen Kelly play softball, basketball and tennis - but never soccer. She plays offense and defense and I must say, she was really good at it! Her team won and it still in the playoffs - Go Zucarita Shooters!

After the game, we headed to Antigua. We checked into our hotel - Convento Santa Catalina - a former convent built in the 1600's - and then headed out for Kelly's Walking Tour of Antigua. I had forgotten how treacherous the old cobblestone streets can be on the feet and wore flip-flops - ouch! We ended up at the beautiful hotel, Casa Santo Domingo for dinner and to celebrate my birthday. It was dark by then and the grounds were lit up with candles - hundreds of them! We had never seen anything quite as beautiful as that! The next day Carmen and Roger took a shuttle to the market at Chichicastenengo - quite and experience for them! We spent a few more hours with Kelly and then took a shuttle to Panajachel to meet Carmen and Roger for the next two days - on our own - without Kelly, our personal Spanish interpreter/guide - Gulp!!






We did surprisingly well and truly, almost everyone can and will speak English. I think I'm pretty good at my version of "Spanglish" too. We LOVE the Hotel Atitlan in Panajachel with its beautiful view of the lake and perfectly manicured gardens of every flower imaginable. We also love sitting in the infinity hot tub drinking margaritas and enjoyed doing just that both nights we were there! On our first full day there we took a boat to three different villages on the lake. It was an all day excursion and interesting to see some other villages. Everything is uphill once you get off the boat so we only went so far. We'd sent Roger ahead to check it out to see if there was anything we needed to hike up for - after all, he's the jogger in the group. We ended up buying some place mats and runners at our last stop. I think Carmen and I were looking for something different to buy - there's just so much stuff everywhere - and it's pretty much all the same. I did find a pattern that I really liked but they were making purses and bags out of it - not place mats. Just my luck! Anyway, we think we bargained pretty well - who knows? - and we both got what we wanted. The ladies were very nice - not too pushy- and they had an adorable little girl in the store weaving bracelets who we couldn't resist.


The next day we walked out of the hotel and down the dirt road to the Atitlan Reserve and Butterfly Gardens. We were pleasantly surprised at the nice facility and spent a couple of hours there. Then one more venture to Panajachel for lunch and we were on our way back in the late afternoon to Antigua to meet up again with Kelly that night.

The next day we took another walking tour in Antigua with a guide named Elizabeth Bell, an American who has lived in Antigua for almost 30 years. She's very knowledgeable about the city and optimistic for its future, citing lots of improvements in just the last ten years. During the tour she noticed one of the volcanos (El Fuego) was erupting and pointed out the puffs of smoke - that was really cool to see! Later that afternoon we headed back to Guatemala City.






I haven't addressed the traffic yet......the worst traffic and the worst drivers I've ever seen....including New York City! Anyway, we had a first as we were driving back into town to take us to the Marriott for our last night. Kelly had her first (and hopefully last) accident. Thankfully, it was just a fender bender but it was her fault as she bumped a car from behind. They don't call the police - just the insurance company (that is, if they have insurance since it doesn't seem to be required and most people don't have it). She felt really bad since we were in her roommates car because it's a little bigger than hers. When she called her roommate to tell her - surprise! She had a fender bender in Kelly's car the day before!! So now they're both in the process of getting their cars repaired. Thank God no one was hurt - you haven't lived until you've almost been run off the road by a chicken bus! They don't stop for anyone!!

(Kelly addition: No picture here!! I refused to let them take a picture because 1. I was embarrassed and 2. I was crying!)

The last day we were able to visit with Kelly's class for an hour. They are learning to interview people and to ask questions that require more than a one word answer. Kelly had told them a little bit about the four of us and each child wrote a question to ask - they were incredible! Roger was a hit because he is also a private pilot - they thought that was so cool! They also performed "Circle of Life" from the Lion King in sign language. It definitely brought a tear to my eye. I can tell she loves her kids and they love her too.

My crazy bunch of kids

I also am glad to say that I've figured out the "Secret to Guatemala." For me, it's a Pepto Bismol cocktail before bed every night. On our first trip I got Moximo's revenge (Guatemalan joke!) but this time all was great and that made for a wonderful, wonderful visit!

One of Kelly's students asked me the question "If you had one wish, what would it be"? I thought for a minute and said "I would wish that Guatemala and Atlanta were closer". The little girl said, "So you could see your daughter more often, right"?

Yes..... she is so, so right.