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Click here for the trip south. (finished 31May10)
Click here for the trip north. (finished 18Jun10)

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Tuesday, May 18, 2010


Day 39 - Same pounding on my door this morning by Ilde as yesterday. Same questions about my family and where I'm from. Argh! What is it with her?

There are only two students in my school, me and another girl. Both of us have 5 hours of one on one instruction per day with our "maestras" (teachers). In addition, the school most days offers "actividades". Today was a trip up "El Baul", which is a hill overlooking the city. Eager to get a little bit of exercise, I said sure! It ended up being just me and the 18yo guide, Pepe (the other girl didn't want to come).

We hopped in a mini-van shuttle bus which is the preferred way for locals to get around the city. This is quite an experience, let me assure you. It's 1.25 Quetzales (15 cents) to take one anywhere in the city. The drivers drive like absolute maniacs. They all have an assistant riding shotgun, standing upright in the open sliding door of the minivan, handling the payments and shouting out where the van is going to people on the sidewalks. On the old cobblestone streets it combines to be an experience more thrilling than any amusement park ride I've ever been on.

After a half hour hike to the top of El Baul, we had a very nice view of the very large city before us. This is a popular area on the weekends with a lot of picnic sites. Pepe and I walked around a bit, and then he led me to the most incredible thing! Slides built for adults! These were over a hundred feet long and made of concrete. Pepe demonstrated that the best way to go down them, is sitting on a bit of plastic. He stomped his empty water bottle flat and showed me how it's done. What fun! See an exciting video here.

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