Mayan Ruins at Copan Honduras

The Mayan ruins here are some of the most impressive in the region. This site was named a UNESCO world heritage site and is still being actively excavated. It is estimated that at one time there were more than 25k Mayans living at this site. We hired a guide to lead us through the park after first thinking we could pick it up on our own, but quickly learned that a guide was essential. At the conclusion of our hike around the city I felt as though I had just completed a college course on Mayan history. I also learned a bit about what makes the central American countries each so different and unique. Part of the answer is related to the make up of the populations of the countries, more specifically the mix of indigenous people and those of Spanish heritage. Guatemala has one of the larger percentages of indigenous people and this is quite obvious as you travel around the country. As you move further south into Honduras and Costa Rica the percentage of indigenous people, as part of the population seems to decrease. One can imagine how these differences in population mix have shaped the cultures of these very geographically close, yet quite different countries.

Here is a link to more information about Copan...this is definitely a must see place!!

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copán

On the backpacker trail

Today we are taking off from Lago Atitlan to Copan, Honduras via the cramped backpacker shuttle. We travel along the windy and at times treacherous roads winding through countryside and the occasional towns. It's quite peaceful today. The sun is shinning, the views are phenomenal and the driver is playing the local music on the radio. It's such a good day that I am much more tolerant than usual of the frequent barrage of black smoke from the tailpipe of any and every motorized vehicle. I had my first hot shower in the last 4 days and that was wonderful. The small things that you take for granted can be quite rare here, but my appreciation for said shower has surpassed any of those tht I have had in my comfortable Ohio apartment. Little things are beginning to mean a lot :)

Copan 8/24/12

After a 6 hour drive from Antigua we crossed the border into Honduras, and made our way to the town of Copan Ruinas. Copan has the feel of Antigua in terms of the layout. The roads are made of cobblestone and have very narrow sidewalks. We noticed far fewer westerners than in Antigua, which was a bit surprising. The town is also seemed a bit more "lively" than Antigua. Many people were out and about late enjoying a bite or just the cool night air. There are plenty of music venues around with an eclectic mix to choose from. There is a great diversity of food and we had an opportunity to check out some local spots. So far the flan with a cup of coffee has been a favorite. I know it's a dessert, but that's a course too, right? Tonight we were invited to a local party on the outskirts of town...father and son DJ team. This should be fun!!!!

Today, I climbed a Volcano!!

On the edge of Lago Atitlan is the small town of San Pedro, which sits at the base of the now extinct Vulcan San Pedro. The day began at 6AM with a cup of coffee and a short tuk-tuk ride to the trail head at the base of the volcano where our hike would begin. Our guide was a man in his mid 50s named Luis. He is a kind and knowledgable man who set a pace that was hard for 3 thirty-something's to follow, it was quite impressive that a man at his age could move so quickly up this steep and slippery trail. As our hike continued we learned that much of the land surrounding the volcano was public land on which locals grew all sorts of crops from corn to coffee to avocados. Fences were in the form of non-food bearing plants that were planted in nice rose to clearly delineate the plots. Luis, feeling bad agreed to slow the pace, but warned that we must not slow too much or else we risk getting caught in the afternoon rain. As we continued we learned more about the indigenous people of the lake region. Language and alcohol were mentioned as two pervasive problems in the Mayan community. Young people were just know beginning to learn Spanish in school and this is considered essential for these kids to participate in the broader economy outside of the villages. Luis also lamented the abuse of alcohol within the indigenous community. I couldn't help but think of the parallels between this and the native communities in North America. Luis told us that he was born in San Pedro and had never been outside of the town once in his entire life. I could hardly believe it. On our way back to town following our hike we met a woman who ran a tienda and she told us that she had been to the capital city one time in her life but had also not left the town. She said that it was far too expensive to travel outside of town. It made me wonder about the many travelers / tourists that had made their way to San Pedro over the years from all over the world and how their interactions were shaping the perspectives of countless villagers throughout central America. We're we being good ambassadors for the places that we came from, or were we only being condescending, demanding party tourists that treated the locals as lessor people. The answer is mixed

The view from 3,000 meters

We found ourselves on the shores of Lago Atitlan, a large deep lake surrounded by volcanos and dotted with small indigenous villages. We arrived in one of those villages, San Pedro, after a 3.5 hour ride on a cramped mini van through the Guatemalan country side passing many small villages and towns along the way. This ride, along with our time in San Pedro provided an opportunity to really see and experience the local culture. No doubt that this town and the many towns that dot the lake are quite poor and tourism is a huge part of the local economies. To that end many expats have come to Guatemala to establish hotels, hostels, restaurants, tour companies, etc which has had a mixed impact on both the experience of travelers and that of the local people.

Critically speaking, it almost seems to be just another iteration of the colonialist practices that have given rise to institutions that operate to keep the indigenous people impoverished. In retrospect this is something that I have observed in many parts of the developing world to varying degrees, but it seems particularly pervasive here. No doubt that expats know what American, British, Canadian, Australian, Israeli, etc travelers will find familiar, comfortable, and appealing and they do a great job of marketing it. The result is little pockets of culture within this larger landscape, both coexisting separately.

The children typically go to school for 4 hours per day beginning in the early morning and then hit the streets to work selling all sorts of goods and services from cashews and chocolate breads to shoe shines. This adds an additional 5 hours of work time to the days of most children. The youngest boy we met was 7 years old who was selling shoe shines. We did not purchase the shoe shine but shared our lunch with him instead. He ate the meat but not the vegetables as he said he didn't like them, but at our suggestion he did give them a try. And so it goes, young children frequent the expat businesses to offer pop corn, baked goods, and honey roasted peanuts. I can't help but wonder how this town, or this country might be different if the local people actually owned their own means of production (i.e. the establishments that capture the majority of the tourist revenue). Would the tourists still come if they could not speak Spanish or if they could not hang out at the resort hostels with hot water, western style toilets, English speakers abound, and Bryan Adams on the radio? In a land so different from that of the many travelers that come through here, the lack of the comforts of home can be a bit foreboding. Understandably so! In the end, so many come here and stay for weeks or months but truly fail to have a meaningful cultural exchange.

Antigua