Archive for June, 2009
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Tuesday, June 30th, 2009One of the things I love most about Spanish school, traveling and not attending formal education anymore is that it allows me to actually enjoy learning for the sake of learning again. This is absolutely, completely wonderful. Yes, right now I’m getting up every morning and attending five hours of one-on-one Spanish tutoring (becoming fluent [...]
Don’t Worry Until the Locals Start to Scream: adventures on Guatemalan “chicken buses.”
Sunday, June 28th, 2009Chicken buses, or “camionetas” as they are known to locals, are pimped-up second hand school buses that serve as the most common form of public transportation in Guatemala. They zip along the roads of Guatemala, leaving a trail of black exaust and the sounds of “Xela Xela Xela” or “Guate Guate Guate” in their wake. [...]
Travel blogging more difficult than I expected…
Friday, June 26th, 2009I now have oodles of respect (or should I say, even more respect than I had before) for my favourite travel bloggers. I’ve been writing about travel on this blog for a few months now, and most of the time it’s been easy. I’ve been at home, with lots of time at the computer and [...]
Final thoughts on San Pedro La Laguna
Wednesday, June 24th, 2009Even though it’s supposed to be a mecca of shoestring travel, I think that San Pedro on Lake Atitlan, Guatemala, is actually quite expensive. Because the thing is, San Pedro is a party destination. Backpackers go there to get drunk (or otherwise) and eat gringo food. The town itself is actually quite dirty and [...]
Characters of San Pedro, Guatemala
Monday, June 22nd, 2009San Pedro is weird. It is kind of like a ghost town right now, too. I had heard that it was “party central,” but the place is surprisingly quiet. I guess the global recession has hit tourism pretty hard.
We have, however, met some extremely odd foreigners.
Yesterday we were hanging out in the cafe [...]
Granola flavoured hot chocolate and space brownies: Welcome to San Pedro
Saturday, June 20th, 2009If Quetzaltenango is Neverneverland for 20-somethings, San Pedro la Laguna is lalaland for hippies.
Even more than other expat centers in Guatemala (the main ones being Antigua, Quetzaltenango and the towns around Lake Atitlan) San Pedro seems totally disconnected from reality. Of course, I’ve only been here about four hours and we are right in [...]
“I just don’t feel like it.”
Thursday, June 18th, 2009Sometimes, I call myself a “slow traveler.”
Other times, I wonder if I’m the worst, most lazy traveler ever.
I might be the only person in history who has traveled in Guatemala without seeing Tikal. I was in Guatemala for six weeks summer, and I “just didn’t feel like it.” I was having a great time [...]
“This trip can only go uphill from here” or “how to survive a horrible flight.”
Tuesday, June 16th, 2009Instead of taking the 12 hour bus ride from Ottawa to NYC, I decided to treat myself to a flight so I could save time and arrive somewhat refreshed. No biggie – I had some Aeroplan points saved up, so after taxes I only spent ten bucks more than the plane. Not bad, considering I’d [...]
So long, Ottawa
Sunday, June 14th, 2009Haven’t written anything because I have been frantically trying to finish my Masters, then pack up my apartment, then get ready for Guatemala.
I’ll be on the road tomorrow, so expect some extremely super exciting posts soon.
Holy shit, it’s Barack Obama!
Tuesday, June 9th, 2009Finally found the roll of film from my trip to Washington, DC in January. Though financially irresponsible, going for the inauguration was perhaps the best idea ever. I was having a particularly tough winter, and it was impossible to feel down in DC that week.
Too bad I was so excited at getting a glimpse [...]