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| An exceptionally foggy morning. |
Little did I know when my friend Sudeep invited me to spend Thanksgiving with his cousins in Guatemala that it would turn out to be the most awesome trip I've ever taken. Wasn't it Shakespeare who said, "Few things in life are as dear as hospitable relatives who live in exotic locales"? Maybe not.
Sharing a border with Mexico, Honduras, Belize and El Salvador, Guatemala has a fabulously rich cultural heritage as a result of being the site of the birth and death of the legendary Mayan civilisation.
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The Plaza Fontabella harkens back to the plazas of Old Europe.
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A Spanish colony for over 300 years, Guatemala seriously put our communication skills to the test. Chanting "No entiendo" to everyone who wished us good afternoon was cute for only so long. With the aid of our trusty phrase-book and apologetic grimaces, we soon attempted to make intelligent remarks about the weather.
In many ways, Guatemala City itself is almost exactly what Old Bangalore would have looked like if it were surrounded by volcanoes (if only!). I, for one, think living in such idyllic surroundings is totally worth the 1 in 10 chance of being boiled in lava every 50 years.
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| Hello, Old Friend. |
Some sights were, of course, more familiar than others.
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| A distant cousin of the BTS bus. |
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Although the trip only lasted a week, the numerous side-trips, chronic lack of sleep, my otherwise DOA social life and my love of superlatives definitely make this the most exhausting week of my life.
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| The Christmas Tree is already up in the townsquare. |
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| Our gracious hosts, Nitin & Shubha. |
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More to come.
In many ways, Guatemala City itself is almost exactly what Old Bangalore would have looked like if it were surrounded by volcanoes (if only!). I, for one, think living in such idyllic surroundings is totally worth the 1 in 10 chance of being boiled in lava every 50 years.
Chronicles of Nayanna - love the title!
ReplyDeletemaybe you could come visit Champaign so you can blog bout my tiny land too :)
aah! finally!! i've wished on numerous occasions that u would write more often.. and since u are accepting random invitations to seldom visited lands.. please come to bangalore and blog about my quaint lil village!
ReplyDeleteNice tagline, O Net Naive Niece. Does that allow us to call your blog (in the unlikely event of it becoming boring): Voyage of the YawnTreader? And consider that the most decent of the opportunities offered :). Welcome to the Web, darling girl: become a spider least you become a fly. Cheers...
ReplyDeleteGood work...Nayana....its all good.....keep at it...
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