Lago de Atitlan, San Marcos Laguna
Lago de Atitlan
Taken by the dock in San Marcos LagunaHi everybody. Sorry I haven’t posted in a while. I think I got a bit burnt out on Xela and needed a change of scenery. Not much occurred in the past 2 weeks, lots of studying and well, that’s about it. I did attend 2 lectures in school. The first was about the 36 year civil war in Guatemala. This civil war just ended in 1996. It’s estimated that over 300,000 people were killed and 200,000 are still missing. The history of the beginnings of the war were discussed and it’s a shame because it appears that a fear of communism was used to commit genocide on the Mayan people. Yes, most of the people killed were indigenous Mayans who probably don’t even know what communism is. It appears that racism against the Mayans dates back very far here. The speaker read an interview from the New York Times with a priest who was the political advisor to the president during the bloodiest 3 years of the war *80/83 *. This priest was quoted as saying that it was unfortanate but the Mayan people must be eliminated if we hope to win the war against communism. One of my teachers told 
Shack in Lago de Atitlan
My $8 a night room. Stayed here for a night. Classes will be held at this location.me that when he was a teen the army would recruit by finding teenage boys and forcing them to go into training camps. He ran away from military men who started chasing him after school on 3 separate occasions. He told me that he had a friend who wasn’t so lucky. This friend was captured and forced into a military camp were he was trained by killing cats and dogs and then moved onto people. His friend escaped after 1 year and went to Costa Rica for a year. When he returned to Guatemala he had severe psycological problems and eventually died of alcoholism. There were other horrible stories I was told but I think I will spare you the details. Suffice it to say that I had a hard time holding back my tears and feel incredibly grateful to have been spared that life experience.
The other conference I attended was on the current economic situation in Guatemala. To date there are more Guatemalans living in Los Angeles than in Xela. The most Guatemalans live in Guate City, then Los Angeles, then Xela. Also the GNP for the entire country of Guatemala is about the same as that of Orlando Florida. Also, the UN reports that the illiteracy rate here is 70% while the Guate govt. reports that it is 40%. Either way, its very high. I could go on and on but think I will change the subject here for a bit to my travels.
As I mentioned, I think my brain fizzled out a bit and so I went searching for a change of scenery. It appears that I have found my new temporary home. It is in a very small town an the beautiful Lake Atitlan. I don’t have too many details to share yet because I still have to move my things from Xela and find exactly where I will be living but I thought I would share a few pictures of this new place. It’s supposed to be a energy vortex (says my Rough Guide Book) and I can tell you that I feel very uplifted and at peace when I am there. It is a wonderful change of pace from my previous Guate experience. Here are some pictures and I will keep you posted when I am settled in. Much love to all of you and please email me tamaramarieprice@yahoo.com to update me on what’s happening back home. I miss you.
p.s. I suppose I should say something about my Spanish progress. It’s difficult to say because I am in the midst of my studies and can see how far I have to go. I have had some markers to show my progress. I am able to communicate to get my basic needs met. When I speak I speak poorly and it takes me time to think about what I want to say before I say it. I suppose thinking before I talk isn’t a bad thing but it is a bit frustrating. I am able to read (and understand a much of) the Autobiography of a Yogui and Harry Potter in Spanish but I think the main reason for this is that I have read these books so many times in English and can understand a lot based on context. Harry Potter is especially good for my studies. I enjoy reading the book and read it on different levels. One level is to just read out loud to without stopping. Sometimes I read and infer meaning from context and other times I read and analyze the grammar. Good Times.
