Sorry for the delay!  We've had two busy, adventure-filled weeks with many visitors.  On March 31, two ACE buddies in LA, Greg Gomez and Marshall Davidson, arrived in the Land of Eternal Spring.  We had Holy Week off, so we first took them on a 4-day adventure trip to Semuc Champey.  On Wednesday, Sarah's UDayton friend Emily and her boyfriend Josh awaited our return to the city in Sarah's apartment, as they had flown in from Boston.  We took our guests to our favorite Mayan restaurant in the city Wednesday night before an early wake-up call on Holy Thursday.  Our 6am shuttle to Antigua avoided the miles of traffic backed up later in the day. 

Antigua is famous for its Catholic celebration of Semana Santa.  After Jerusalem and the Vatican, it is arguably the best place in the world to spend the holiest week of the year.  Every year on Ash Wednesday, Antigua begins to commemorate this holy time with vibrant processions every Sunday.  The activity is in full force by Palm Sunday and culminates on Holy Thursday and Good Friday.  The pageantry is marked by long processions, which begin inside one of the many churches and cathedrals and last up to 8 hours.  40-50 purple-robed men carry huge floats weighing thousands of pounds.  Every couple blocks fresh legs are brought in to shoulder the burden.  The colorful, incense-filled processions are quite a spectacle to witness, but they are not as impressive as the "carpets" they trample over as they walk.  The community decorates the cobble-stoned streets with spectacular "alfombras" made of colored sawdust, flowers, pines, clovers, fruit, etc.  The construction of these incredible works of art is timed so that they are complete just before a procession destroys them when they are looking their best. 

You can read more about the events here.  I also found a great video of last year's Semana Santa on YouTube.

After a great breakfast at Cafe Condesa, we roamed the streets to witness the early construction of carpets. 



We also checked out the ruins of San Francisco Cathedral and watched their procession spill out of the church from a rooftop bar.  The festivities continue all night long as the climax on Good Friday approaches.  We were faced with the decision whether to catch some sleep and get up before sunrise or stay up all night... Greg and Marshall chose the latter while the rest of us headed to our hostel.  We traded places at 4am and the streets of Antigua had never been more jammed as we walked to Catedral La Merced (Marshall actually rallied after 25 minutes of sleep and joined us).  The largest procession of the week commenced from inside the ornate yellow church.  Hundreds of purple-robed men lined both sides of the street as floats carrying, first Jesus with His cross, then Mary (carried by women) slowly flowed by.  A drummer kept the float bearers in step as they swayed back and forth.  The different teams of carriers are determined by their shoulder height.



After the procession, it was still too early for free breakfast at our hostel, so we happily accepted our favorite coffee shop as consolation.  Our good friends, the Cade family, had just arrived in Antigua and said, "Let's go to the Bagel Barn and see if Sarah and Ryan are there."  Good bet.  After breakfast the streets were lined with brilliant "alfombras."  Here are a couple pics of the artwork just before they are destroyed...

The transition from purple to the Good Friday black began to take shape.  The roman soldiers began to appear as the mock trial, passion, and crucifixion of Jesus started.  We were not able to witness the rest of the Good Friday festivities, because our shuttle was ready to take us to Lake Atitlan at 1pm.  No trip to Guatemala is complete without a trip to the "most beautiful lake in the world."  Another former LA ACEr, Paul Daday (who taught with me at St. Marianne), flew into the city at 11:30.  We arranged for another shuttle to pick him up at the airport and meet us in Chimaltenango on the way to Atitlan.  Arriving at the main city on the lake, Panajachel, we discovered some more Samana Santa carpets, albeit on a much smaller scale than Antigua.  We had time for some appetizers and drinks at the lake-side Sunset Cafe before catching a boat to our favorite hotel on the lake.  The secluded, cliff-side paradise has to be the best bargain in the country... especially since a room costs less than a Motel 6 in the States.  An early booking yielded the two best rooms in the hotel.  Check out the view...



After a community fish dinner, we reserved the wood-burning hot tub for a soak under the stars.  In the morning, we rented kayaks and followed the same adventure path we had learned from our guided trip in November.  We made the one-hour paddle to the village of San Marcos.  Just before the village, a section of rocks and cliffs create a good spot for a 35-40? foot jump.  Sarah's brother-in-law and I made the jump on our last trip, so I climbed up and found the spot.  It looked even higher than I remembered it (and the rocks to clear looked further).  When I hit the water, the jolt knocked my left contact out.  Fortunately I was able to retrieve it as it dangled from my eyelashes.  Paul was next and was followed by Josh who flew far with a bold running start.  Marshall and Greg made the plunge before Emily was not to be outdone by the fellas.  Sarah generously volunteered to be the photographer down below (although apparently I jumped too fast for the disposable shudder).  The best shot is probably of Paul (it's a good thing pictures don't have audio or we'd have to censor the plunge)...



A boat came from our hotel to pick up the kayaks.  During the short paddle across the bay, perhaps still a little shaken up from the jump, Paul had some trouble negotiating his water-filled kayak.  After 5 spills, he attempted to swim before being rescued by the boat driver and a family at a nearby dock.  The driver also brought our backpacks with hiking gear.  Being Holy Saturday, it was tougher than expected to find a guide for the hike back to the hotel, but we finally succeeded and after an italian lunch we hit the trail.  Marshall brought up the topic of music with our two young guides, and they mentioned one of their favorite bands - Coldplay.  The 2-hour hike is said to be the most beautiful section of the trail, high above the water with amazing views of all three volcanoes. 



The hike ranged from dirt roads to narrow trails, steep climbs, rocky descents and small village streets.  The kids are always happy to see tourists, as most are far from shy as we pass by.... evidenced by one toddler who squatted in the front yard as we walked by (definitely no picture of this event.)  Upon our return to the hotel we had time to cool off with a swim and a nap in a hammock before dinner.  Several games of euchre were played deep into the night.  Incidentally, the night ended with a down 9-6, dramatic loner hand slapped onto the table by yours truly.  (I had to mention this, as it was my only moment of euchre glory over the entire 2 weeks.)

Easter morning we took a 6:30am boat back to Panajachel for breakfast and Mass.  Then we explored the Natural Reserve outside of the city.  The reserve had put up a new "Zip Line" since Sarah and I had been there last, so we all harnessed up.  Sarah, again, sacrificed one for the team and agreed to stay back and hold onto our valuables, record some video, etc.  This was the 3rd different zip line I had done, and it might be the best.  It's not quite the same as flying from tree to tree in the jungle, but the runs are twice as long (over 300 meters), the lines are very high, and you have a great view of the lake.  Dad and Marcia: prepare for this next month!



After checking out the rest of the reserve, including some monkeys, we ended our Lake trip with the best pizza in the country.  Circus Bar in Panajachel is always a must when we visit the lake.  A shuttle took us back to Antigua, and our visitors did some souvenir shopping.  After dinner, the shuttle took Emily, Josh, Sarah, and I back to the city, as we left Greg, Marshall, and Paul in the much-preferred jeweled city of Antigua.  Emily and Josh flew back to Boston on Monday, while the guys climbed Volcan de Pacaya.  As a middle school science teacher, Greg will have a rock-star presentation to give his students in south-central L.A., complete with their teacher standing within 5 feet of flowing lava - risking his leg hair catching on fire! 

Paul returned on Monday night and treated us to a fabulous Argentinian steak dinner overlooking the lights of the city.  He came to school with us on Tuesday morning before hiring our loyal taxi driver Ricardo to give him a quick tour of the city on the way to the airport. 

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Marshall and Greg were able to experience a different side to Guatemala.  They visited the Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos orphanage outside of Antigua, where Marshall's friend Sergio volunteers.  Sarah and I look forward to getting a look at this oasis.  This amazing organization has been caring for abandoned Latin American children for over 50 years.  It was hard for the them to express their experience with words, but this photo by Greg speaks volumes...



Upon their return to the city, the guys spent a day at our school.  In fact, they actually performed our jobs for us.  Marshall led a poetry recital with my 5th Grade Rockets and taught a cool lesson on China in Sarah's class.  Greg gave an awesome intoduction to my Science unit on elements and the atom, and I learned as much as my students. 

On Friday we closed out the trip with one final game of Euchre.  Greg and Sarah had dominated Marshall and me in 2 out of our 3 previous nights of Euchre, so we decided to have one final best out of three series.  After splitting the first two games, their flight time rapidly approached, so another game to 10 was not possible.  Therefore, the rivalry came down to one final hand for all the marbles.  Greg commented that one thing he learned from his adventures in Guatemala is that sometimes you just have to put it all on the line.  Well, It was like the Red Sox triumph over the Yanks in '04, as Marshall and I came through in the clutch.  I'm glad Greg's gamble to venture south of the (Mexican) border paid off more than his measley left bower.

We can't thank Greg, Marshall, Emily, Josh, and Paul enough for spending their vacation with us.  Our Guatemalan experience and memories will be forever richer having been given the opportunity to share it with amazing friends.  Viva Guatem-aaaaala!!