We had been invited to our friends Gerry and Juliana O'Connor in Guatemala City for supper before Don and Nance arrived. It turned out that John had planned a day of washing clothes and cleaning his digs so he was unable to schedule the trip to the city. Instead, I had planned to take the four o'clock Teligua shuttle just a block or so from where we live to the city. I checked two hours before it was to have departed and the office was closed. It was also closed one hour before so I made alternative plans - jumped on a chicken bus and took the last 15 minutes to the O'Connor home in a taxi.
It was an easy transfer and when I arrived, I rang and only Gerry was at home. Juliana was out shopping for things for dinner. I stood on the ground level of the building waiting for Gerry to come down from the seventeenth floor to meet me. I spent the time visiting with the security guard. Before Gerry arrived, I noticed that Juliana was heading into the garage so we managed to all converge together.
Went into the lobby and we took the elevator to the top floor where they make their home. Then, while Juliana prepared our meal, Gerry and I sat and conversed. Soon there were treats set before us and Juliana joined us in conversation.
The O'Connors have a commanding view over a good portion of the city and of its surrounding areas. One of the three prominent volcanoes just south of Antigua was easily visible from one of their three porches and stood high as the rays of the setting sun caught its glory. Quite an impressive sight.
Supper was called and I was placed in a position so that I could see the city lights straight ahead and to each of the sides. There were large windows with sliding doors to permit ingress/egress from or to the porches. It was from one of these that we viewed the American Airlines plane in its final landing pattern lower itself onto the runway. It had landed five minutes ahead of schedule and we would soon be heading for the airport - a short ten minute ride from their home.
We arrived at La Aurora airport and I jumped out of their car to make arrangements for our eventual shuttle trip back to Antigua while they awaited at curbside. I found many shuttles but no pilots so I was unable to determine which of those minibuses would be heading in our direction. I walked back to where passengers exit and within minutes Don and Nance were heading out with their suitcases in tow. We connected with Gerry and Juliana and made introductions and they went back to their car. About that time I heard Antigua, turned and there was a legless man on a board with wheels saying to me that he knew where the shuttle was to Antigua. We followed and came to one of the vans I had previously passed. The pilot was now there and I paid for three passages and entered the van. The pilot, in hopes of additional fares, raised one hand and put the tips of his thumb together with his pointer finger which indicated to me that he was waiting for more folks. We waited maybe ten minutes and out came a baker's dozen of potential passengers, all with luggage. Instead of riding in the back seat of the van, the luggage Don and Nance had stowed there was moved to the top of the van together with all of the other bags. The additional passengers seated themselves and began to talk in a somewhat familiar tongue, not English nor was it Spanish. I listened and heard a word or two that seemed more than familiar but could not really make it out. It turned out that they were Norwegians coming to Guatemala to spend a week or so.
The luggage was all stowed and all but perhaps one jump seat was occupied and still the pilot did the little hand routine to me. I do not know why he disappeared into the terminal once again but he returned within five minutes and we were ready to go. He asked me which hotel and I told him it would be a house and I would let him know where it was. He was fine with that and we began our approximately 45 minutes trip to Antigua with very light traffic flow.
We pulled up to the door of the Philippi compound, alighted and waited for the two bags which had been securely tied to avoid disappointment. They were off in a jiffy and we were inside the walled compound. I gave Don and Nance a brief orientation and I suspect they and I were in bed within minutes.
Today we hope to go to Casa Santo Domingo for breakfast buffet and then to church.
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