Cacao, Coffee, Cigar
3 “C”s of (C)entral America:
Cacao, Coffee, Cigar
and possibly Cocaine, too, as the fourth? 😛
central america
San Pedro-Lake Atitlan
Señora Josefina, in the picture, is a Tz’utujil Maya, one of the 21 different Maya communities that dwell in Guatemala. Tz’utujil live around Lake Atitlan. It was a great escape from tourists with beer bottles in streets, to be able to talk with Mayans, about past, problems, politics, future, education of Guate, world, what they think about life, what they do and wish from future. I noted details of our conversation in my diaries…
She knitted me 2 bracelets in 4 hours. One with the flags of Central American countries, other with South American. I will put on each of them in both of my wrists, though i can’t really touch them because they are very valuable for me and i don’t want to damage them 
😛
Today, i was in San Pedro La Laguna, as my connection and peace point, before experiencing spiritual Chichicastenango (Chichi) during Christmas and Santo Tomas day. This will be my 2nd time in Chichi, as really something spiritual is going in that Mayan village, where people still preserve their Paganism and ancient Maya traditions, which captured my soul instantly in my first visit about 2 months ago. You can check my previous 2 writings about Cofradias in Chichi (brotherhoods/guilds) and Market of Chichi, which is considered as one of the biggest markets of Central America.
I’m sometimes sick of hostels in Central America. The ones i went to were mostly full of gringos, who came here to party cheaper than their countries. The exact opposite reason why I’m here. I can’t discuss interesting and unique things, like the country we are in, who seem to forget where they are in actually. Tip: You can easily spot them with sleeveless shirt, flipflops, swim shorts, raybans, baseball caps. (GORA’da Arif’in yemekhanedeki zenciye dediği gibi “Sahilde sanki pezevenk…”)
So whenever i find a cheap private room with the same price of hostel, i get some peace, watching the street/lake/people/stars/
Countries on bracelets in order:
Central: Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Cuba
South: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brasil
Adios Guatemala!
After 3 months in Antigua, I have to say “Adios” to Guatemala, but after visiting a few more places. I feel delighted to be able to create connections confidently to people in streets in Spanish, after reaching intermediate level (like to doctors while i was under serum treatment today in hospital, a few minutes before writing this
😂).
Needlessly to say, i have to come back again to Guatemala in future, the land of eternal spring. But this time, spending more time and interest in its diverse indigenous communities scattered around the country; and of course filling my luggage with their colorful traditional handcrafts.
Now, it’s time to open doors to Belize-> El Salvador-> Honduras-> Nicaragua-> Costa Rica-> Panama, for one of my greatest life education contrary to an university with colorless laws and orders which actually took years away from my life under stress, far away to my nature at least, under the promise of that they tell me “but you’ll be happy in future”, when i won’t have time to be independent or have energy. Let’s be happy now, i don’t know what future will bring. The memories of today will provide me the strength I will need for tomorrow and give me a happy life instead of far away doubtful promises.
This journey actually started as a protest by me, against me
Reggaeton street in Antigua
Not a bad street to shoot a Reggaeton music video. Made me remember this song:
Chichicastenango 1: Central America’s Biggest Market
Due to the reason written in the title, I ended up in Chichicastenango in the weekend. As in the title, when someone thinks about the size of something that contains lots of countries, expectations are raised. However, I was disappointed, when I compared it with Grand Bazaar of Istanbul, in my mind. Yet it was also partly my failure; comparing a metropolitan with a small, natural village. But there remains something mystical and attractive in this village, that will pull me to return here…
