Is it possible
That the birds of Antigua
Speak fluent Spanish?
Their songs hold a hint:
Trilling softly rolling rrr’s
And calling !aqui¡
One, I swear sings out
¡Buenos dias, mi hija!
Upon meeting me. 
Peace, People!
Category: Travel
Wedding at Hobbitenango
Those who read my blog posts on a regular basis (God bless you faithful few) know that I’ve been in Antigua, Guatemala, these past few days to celebrate the marriage of my beautiful niece Hanna and her handsome beau, Beto.
On Friday, April 11, family, friends, and a handful of complete strangers joined Beto and Hanna on a mountain far above Antigua for one of the most joyous occasions I’ve ever had the pleasure to witness.
The bride. 😊 Her dad is the proud-looking man just behind Hanna.
Cutting the wedding cake never looked quite so romantic before.
Mother of the bride, Hanna, Father of the bride and lovely niece Lauren. 
My gorgeous niece, Claire, sister of the bride.
This is me standing in the doorway of Hobbitenango.
Hobbitenango is a tavern and hostel owned by my new nephew and his business partners. The buildings that make up Hobbitenango are all Eco-friendly, made from reclaimed lumber, plastic bottles, and egg cartons.
Still in its early phases of development, Hobbitenango will one day have individual hobbit style houses for guests to rent, and once the shire is complete they’ve planned to create an Ewok village.
I urged them to hurry–I’m not getting any younger.
Niece Lauren and my sister-in-law, Susan.
Delightful Andrea, (one of Beto’s cousins) with her mother. I’ve never met more loving, welcoming people.
The rest I didn’t caption. I’ve run out of superlatives.
Hobbitenango is ringed by four volcanoes. Just at sunset, Fuego, put on a small show for those of us remaining. Of course, my battery was dead, so I had to borrow a photo from my brother’s camera.
Needless to say it was a sight I will not soon, if ever, forget.
Peace, People!
Mercado en Antigua
Pictures do not completely capture the excitement and color of market day. A thousand words are inadequate. I needed much more than five senses to take in all of the sights, scents, and sounds of the Market. 
One of the first images was of fresh vegetables and fruits of every hue.
The grains, dried peppers, and spices put on their own colorful show as if in competition with the veggies. I’m not sure there was a clear cut winner.
Try this technique next time you go shopping.
I loved the pottery angels and the shiny buckets. See, I notice some things that aren’t edible.
My favorite photo of the day. I asked permission to take this woman’s picture, and when she said yes, I told her in Spanish that I thought she was beautiful. She covered her mouth with her hand and smiled like a teenaged girl.
Just a woman and her rooster.
We didn’t even make it to the textiles area. Hopefully we can stop by on Sunday for more of this wonderland.
Peace, People!
Courtyard
Why don’t all homes have small courtyards–
private outdoor/indoor spaces to enjoy the insistent (and sometimes raucous) noises of the waking-up world?
Songbird
Sleeping with wide open windows
In La Antigua de Guatemala
Night murmurs offer lullabies.
Alarm clocks are unnecessary.
Songbirds, first one, then a
Chorus begin telling the
Stories of their lives.
The shrill one is my avian
Doppelgänger, repeating
Her story ad nauseum.
Occasionally, though, she
Touches my heart, punctuating
Her song with, “please see me?”
New-to-me
Places I’ve never been
Are my favorite destinations
I cannot wait to place my
Feet on new-to-me land.
Don’t get me wrong;
I’d have been a terrible
Pioneer.
Scared of snakes,
Petrified of the unknown,
Reluctant to venture
Outside the camp’s
Boundaries.
Still, there is a large
Part of me that needs the
Thrill of driving on
New-to-me roads, of
Treading on new-to-me
Sidewalks, of eating
New-to-me foods.
Like an overgrown
Child on a raucous
Rollercoaster,
For the very first time:
Hands in the air
Stomach in my throat
Wheeeee! 
Antigua, here I come.
Peace, People!
Holy Grail Trail
When did purchasing a simple thing like traveler’s checks turn out to be the equivalent of searching for the holy grail? Banks, for the most part no longer offer them. AAA doesn’t sell them. I had a lead from one bank that there was a rumor that another bank might still sell them. Nope. I could order checks from American Express, but they might or might not arrive before I depart on Wednesday.
I guess I’ll be traveling with cash then. I just remember the days when one could walk into one’s bank and buy the darned things. Did I hallucinate?
Inoculated for Guatemala
I leave to attend my niece’s wedding in Antigua, Guatemala in one week. Squeal!!! But wait a minute. According to the Centers for Disease Control, travelers to Guatemala should have the following inoculations:
“Make sure you are up-to-date on routine vaccines before every trip. These vaccines include measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, polio vaccine, and your yearly flu shot.”
I’m okay on those above, but just this week I thought to check on other suggested immunizations:
Hepatitis A
“CDC recommends this vaccine because you can get hepatitis A through contaminated food or water in Guatemala, regardless of where you are eating or staying.”
And:
Typhoid
“You can get typhoid through contaminated food or water in Guatemala. CDC recommends this vaccine for most travelers, especially if you are staying with friends or relatives, visiting smaller cities or rural areas, or if you are an adventurous eater.”
Now, I’ve been running around shopping almost non-stop for my trip, but did I think about needing inoculations? Nope.
On Monday I told my doctor, whose name I am unable to pronounce, so I’ve dubbed him Doctor When, that I was leaving for Guatemala on April 8th, and needed to be inoculated against Typhoid and Hepatitis A. In response, Dr. When laughed.
“Your inoculations would be of no use taken this close to your trip,” Dr. When said.
“You’re probably going to die,” he added before climbing into his Tardis and departing for another point in time.
Ok, I made that last part up, but that was what I took away from the exchange.
He did prescribe an antibiotic just in case I ran into anything nasty, but I believe I’ll do as my brother instructed and self-inoculate with plenty of cerveza and vino. No waiting period necessary.
No street food for me. 😢
But fresh produce should be ok! 😃
And maybe I’ll skip eating and just shop!
Peace, people!
Give ‘Em L Tour Ending
All good things,
They say
Must end.
I want to know
Who are “they”
And why must I
Listen to them?
The three L’s leaving our mark on the beach at St. George Island, Florida, March 23, 2015.
These were a few of our favorite –ings:
Shopping
Wining
Dining
Exploring
Talking
Laughing
Reminiscing
Lauren, Ponce de Leon, Leslie, and Lila, at The Fountain of Youth, March 25, 2015.
Leslie and Lila at The Spanish Sugar Mill in DeLeon Springs, FL, March 25, 2015.
Lila and Lauren at The Blue Parrot, Saint George Island, March 23, 2015.
Lauren, joined by two little folks at DeLeon Springs. One of my favorite pictures of the week.
Why is it that
Spring break weeks
Take forever to arrive,
Yet end almost as
Soon as they’ve begun?
That’s a question
For the wise folks
Among us, and
Certainly I am not one.
Peace, People!
Guatemala Bound
I booked my flight to travel to Antigua, Guatemala! My trip isn’t until April, and Studly kept urging me to hold off on booking.
“Prices will come down,” he said.
“Be patient,” he cautioned.
Does he not know me better than that?Patience might be a virtue, but it’s not one of mine. Now that I’m booked I can start on the other tasks I’ve set for myself, namely shopping for appropriate Guate-wear and brushing up on my Spanish.
Having grown up in Texas, I have a decent vocabulary of inappropriate Spanish. I won’t plan on using any of those unless I get into a heated discussion with someone smaller than me.
I did take two years of high school Spanish. I remember how to ask where the bathroom is located, and I can tell someone that they should take only one piece of toast because two is too many. Surely that phrase will come in handy with the toast-eating crowd.
Viva Guatemala!
Peace, People!
Praying for Eyebrowz 